Blogs from Ethiopia, Africa - page 91

The National Road Safety Coordination Office decided that they wanted me to visit Amhara Region to see a local pedestrian safety campaign, so on Friday morning, Daniel, Sebsibe and I set off with Bahayilu (the driver), for a trip to Debre Markos, Bahar Dar and Gonder. The trip consisted of a series of meetings with local officials, observations of pedestrian behaviour and pedestrian surveys, interspersed with visits to a few tourist sites. The road from Addis Ababa to Debre Markos was uneventful … until we reached the Abay Gorge. At this point, the tarmac ends and the unpaved road winds down through a series of sharp bends to the bridge over the Abay River. Only one vehicle at a time is allowed across the bridge - luckily they are in the process of building a new ... read more

This year sees the 10th anniversary of a VSO Programme Office in Ethiopia (although there were volunteers here before that). VSO Ethiopia is now one of the largest volunteer programmes in the world, and worth celebrating! I had been asked to put together a cheap and cheerful (my words, not VSO’s) display for the events happening this week and to help set it up at the British Embassy for the first event. We ended up hanging it between two pillars in the entrance hall to the Ambassador’s Residence, where it hung in front of a portrait of the Queen. Seven volunteers (one from each of the recruitment bases - UK, Ireland, Kenya, India, Canada, The Netherlands and The Philippines were invited to a dinner hosted by Bob Dewar (the British Ambassador), with Mark Goldring (the CEO ... read more

As part of my short term placement at the National Road Safety Coordination Office, based in Addis Ababa, I was taken to Debre Zeyit (Bishoftuu) to observe the organisation of the speed project that Sesibe, one of my colleagues is responsible for running. The project works with the Traffic Police to enforce speed limits along the Southern route from Addis to Awasa - which is a road with a high crash record (see my previous diary - Travels between Robe and Addis Ababa (3)). We set off at 9.30, a mere 30 minutes later than planned, and the first stop was to visit the site of a fatal crash on the previous day. The Traffic Police, who we had collected on the way, explained what had happened: the suggested cause of the crash, in which two ... read more

Clare and I moved into David and Nadia’s old house in Addis Ababa. We are both working in the capital over the summer and VSO have given us a very nice house to live in. My summer job is working for the National Road Safety Coordination Office. The organisation of road safety in Ethiopia is excellent and they are doing much of what is recommended to improve road safety in a developing country. So far, I have been very impressed. There are many benefits to living in Addis Ababa (or Finfinne - the Oromo name) - nice restaurants (Indian, pizza, croissants …), supermarkets that sell essential items, such as ground coffee, chocolate, cheese and imported wine, and leisure activities. Last weekend, Clare and I spent much of the weekend shopping - buying those necessary household items, ... read more

Famous for the famine of 1984/85 Famous for barren land, desert and death Famous for images of malnourished children with distended bellies Famous as the inspiration for the world’s greatest charity effort, Live Aid Famous for conflict and war with Eritrea Forget everything you imagine Ethiopia to be and every preconception; it's nothing like the image you most likely have in your head! Ethiopia is full of surprises! Did you know that it was one of only two African nations never colonised? Or that it’s known as the “Cradle of Humanity”, where fossils of the earliest hominids have been found? Or that 18 of Egypt’s pharaohs were Ethiopian? Not only that, but it is home to the oldest written language in the world, Ge'ez, the first ever Christian country, the origin of the coffee bean, and ... read more