Highlighting the importance of boosting relations between India & Ethiopia across all segments, the Ambassador identified some key activities that the Embassy was planning to undertake in India
With traditional Ethiopian costumes, along with platters full of several Ethiopian delicacies, the Embassy of Ethiopia in India celebrated Ethiopian New Year 2016 on Tuesday.
On the occasion, the host, Ambassador Demeke Atnafu Ambulo, extended a warm welcome to all the invitees and said that diplomatic relations between the two countries were gaining momentum. He also praised India for being the ‘Voice of the Global South’ and called India an upcoming global economic and political force.
Unravelling the mystery behind why the embassy was celebrating New Year 2016 when the year 2023 was nearing its end, the Ambassador said that the Ethiopian calendar was different from the Gregorian calendar and said that generally the Ethiopian calendar was 7-8 years behind the Gregorian calendar. He emphasised that while the Julian and Coptic calendars were related to the Ethiopian calendar, they were not identical.
Highlighting the importance of boosting relations between India and Ethiopia across all segments, the Ambassador identified some key activities that the Embassy was planning to undertake in India.
Demeke Atnafu Ambulo
“We are planning a series of promotional activities here in India, starting with promoting tourism and also trade and investment, and we have plans to have cultural promotional activities here at the Ethiopian house in India, at the Ethiopian Embassy,” the Ambassador told India Outbound.
The Ambassador encouraged Indian travellers to explore Ethiopia’s wide range of tourism activities that offer heritage, cultural, natural, religious, and sport tourism. He reaffirmed that strengthening ties between Ethiopia and India to a strategic partnership would be his ‘top priority’.
“In every country when you celebrate New Year, it is very important for diplomatic ties. It renews the bilateral relationship, people-to-people ties, creating a business environment, so it will refurbish the relationship between both countries,” said Ibrahim Hamu, Second Secretary (Political Affairs), Ethiopian Embassy India.
The gala dinner was followed by a bonfire night, where all the delegates of the two countries & other attendees joined in the ceremony
Ethiopian delegates donned their traditional attires for the night and among the participants in the celebrations were children who revelled in fun and frolic in the traditional ceremony that has been an integral part of Ethiopian culture for generations. The gala dinner was followed by a bonfire night, where all the delegates of the two countries and other attendees joined in the ceremony.
Among the diverse group of attendees were also representatives of medical tourism, like Jatindervir Singh, Senior Manager Apollo Hospitals, who expressed his gratitude and delight on being a part of this event. “India has launched an online portal for medical value tourism as part of the G20 Advantage Healthcare initiative. India is now dedicated to serving international patients from across the globe, including those from Africa, the Pacific region, and other countries. We have been treating Ethiopian patients for several years,” Singh told India Outbound.
“According to the traditions, we celebrate New Year every year on September 12. This is an occasion of immense cultural value to us as we celebrate, come together with our families and enjoy together, prepare traditional dishes and wear traditional clothes. New Year is almost the same to us as what Christmas is to the world, because we celebrate this with the same fervour,” Nabiyu Samuel, an Ethiopian student who is currently pursuing his Engineering degree from Delhi Technological University, told India Outbound.
