Peace Corps Ethiopia III

The National Palace in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is also known as the Jubilee Palace. The palace was built in 1955 to mark emperor Haile Selassie's Silver Jubilee. After a coup attempt in the Guenete Leul Palace in 1960, the emperor made the Jubilee Palace his main residence. Although the seat of government remained at the Imperial Palace. The palace was expanded and doubled in size between 1966 and 1967.

The Jubilee Palace was the site of the dethronement of Emperor Haile Selassie in September 1974. 10 low ranking military officers appeared before the Emperor in the palace library and read him the statement of the Derg, which officially removed him from the throne. The Derg (the Committee) renamed the Palace the "National Palace", which it still bears today. The Derg used this Palace for state ceremonies involving visiting heads of state, state banquets and receptions. The Derg added a swimming pool to the grounds. With the fall of the Derg, and the proclamation of the Federal Republic, the Jubilee Palace became the official residence of the President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia. The president has a ceremonial role and uses the palace for official functions.

The Ethiopian Government announced its intention to build a new official presidential residence. The National Palace will then be opened as a museum. It will continue to house the President of the Republic until that time.

In the morning of September 25, 2012, RPCV's on the "Return to Ethiopia" trip (known in the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry as "The One Hundred') were invited to a meeting with the Ethiopian President, Girma Wolde-Giorgis.

After a brief welcome from Ethiopian President Girma Wolde-Giorgis, the RPCV's were invited to ask questions. The President said that most pressing problem facing Ethiopia today is poverty.

On October 8, the President met with Ethiopian legislators from both houses to open the new parliamentary year – its first in more than two decades without late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who died August 20. In his speech, he outlined government priorities for the coming 12 months. Noting that Ethiopia is one of the fastest growing economies in the world at 9 percent GDP, the president warned that its double-digit inflation is having a severe impact on the lives of average people.

"The One-Hundred" gathered on the front steps of the National Palace (Jubilee Palace) for a group photo with Ambassador Taye of the Ethiopian Minister of Foreign Affairs; Donald Booth, American Ambassador to Ethiopia; Dick Day, Peace Corps Regional Director for Africa; and Gregory Engle, Ethiopia Peace Corps Director.

Returned Peace Corps Volunteers Visit Ethiopia 50 Years After Service

On Sept 25, U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Donald Booth hosted a reception at his residence in honor of former Peace Corps Volunteers who returned to Ethiopia to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Peace Corps in Ethiopia

Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

Ambassador Donald Booth with current Peace Corps Volunteers

September 25, 2012, Addis Ababa - Nearly 70 former Peace Corps Volunteers and their guests arrived in Addis Ababa this week to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps in Ethiopia. Approximately twenty of these former Volunteers were among the very first group of nearly 300 Peace Corps Volunteers who arrived in Ethiopia in September 1962.

During their visit, the former Volunteers will meet with Ethiopian government officials, U.S. Embassy officials, current Peace Corps Volunteers, and their Ethiopian friends, host families and counterparts. Among their many activities, they will participate in a panel discussion on Peace Corps support of Education in Ethiopia at Kotebe College of Teacher Education with current Volunteers and officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development and Ethiopian Ministry of Education. The U.S. Ambassador will also host a reception in their honor, and many of the former Volunteers will return to the communities in which they served.

Ethiopia was one of the first countries to invite the Peace Corps to establish its program in 1962, just one year after President John F. Kennedy created the Peace Corps. Since that time more than 3500 Volunteers have worked in agriculture, basic education, tourism, health, economic development and teaching English as a foreign language in Ethiopia. The Peace Corps program in Ethiopia was reestablished in 2007. Currently, roughly 200 Volunteers work in health and HIV/AIDS prevention, conservation and natural resource management and education/teaching English as a foreign language.