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Ethiopia 'not a country of drought, problems'

"Bad news travel much faster than anything else and it has already placed in everyone's mind that Ethiopia is a country of drought and problems. So we have to work a lot and we put it as a challenge and a priority," Habtamu Bekele, Head of the Tourism Promotion Department, told Khaleej Times.

In 2005, Ethiopia's international tourists arrival totalled only 226,000, which Bekele admitted to be few as compared to what the country can offer in terms of tourism potential.

Bekele said their department has been actively participating in forums and trade fairs worldwide to showcase Ethiopia's major tourist attractions.

"As we go along and as we expand our presence in advertisements in major electronic and print media, all our activities are geared towards overcoming this challenge," he noted.

The official said Ethiopia's tourist attractions are diverse and can be classified into three major groups: historical, natural and cultural.

"We have a history of more than 3,000 years. For instance, Axum used to be the ancient capital and one of the glorious empires of the past. It is also where Christianity was introduced in the 4th century. As a result, we have the first churches. Lalibela has magnificent rock churches, which are still functional even after 800 years since they were constructed," Bekele explained.

He added that Axum has three historical obelisks. "The one that is still standing measures about 24 metres in height and was carved out of a single granite rock. The other, which is the biggest in the world at 500 tonnes, was believed to be broken into parts during the erection. And the last was recently regained from Rome after it was looted during the preoccupation of Italy. This was declared by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) as a World Heritage Site," he said.

Bekele said Dubai is considered as an important market for them because of its expatriate community. "Aside from the emirate being a centre of business in the region, it has a big expatriate community and we have appealing attractions that cater to this segment," he said.

He likewise assured that Ethiopia is one of the safest countries for tourists, particularly since the downfall of the military regime some 13 years ago.

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