Your Excellency, Ato Girma Woldegiorgis, President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia,
Ato Lechisa Hayu, Chief Administrator of the South West Shoa Zone,
Distinguished Guests,
Community Members of the Gerbo Kebele,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning.  Akkam Bultan.

First of all, I would like to say how honored I am by the presence of Your Excellency President Girma Woldegiorgis at this inauguration ceremony.  I am also most grateful to all of you for your very warm welcome today.  This is my first trip to the Woliso Woreda and my fifth trip to the Oromia Region.

It is a great pleasure for me to have this opportunity to attend the inauguration ceremony for the secondary school construction project here in the Gerbo village, Woliso Woreda.  This project was funded by Japan’s grant-in-aid scheme for grassroots and human security projects, amounting to about USD 106,000, based upon the grant contract I signed on 1 November last year.  I still have a vivid memory of this as it was the first GGP contract I signed in Ethiopia as Ambassador of Japan.  Our project partner is the Soddo Agemgey Gerbo Elementary School Committee.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Improving access to secondary education is a great challenge in Ethiopia, and the Woliso Woreda is no exception.  In this Woreda, the population has been increasing dramatically in recent years and thus the number of students has increased as well.  Currently only one secondary school exists in the Woliso Woreda, whereas there are 48 primary schools and over 175,000 students.  Due to the lack of secondary schools, most students who desire to study further have to go to another town, which is over 32 km away from the Gerbo village.  Most families, however, are small-scale farmers and cannot afford to send their children for further education due to the expense involved.  In such circumstances, there is even less chance for female students to pursue higher education.

Therefore, this project aimed at expanding access to secondary education in rural areas for those who desire to continue to study and whose families want their children to have further education.  Through this project, two blocks with eight classrooms, one administration block with six rooms and one laboratory have been newly constructed and fully furnished in collaboration with the Gerbo community.  One toilet block has been constructed as well.

There is one more point worth mentioning about this project.  This is a community project in the genuine sense of the word.  Firstly, the project partner is the community.  Secondly, the residents, particularly PTA members, participated in the project not only by offering their labor and construction materials but also through fundraising.  It is noteworthy that the community mobilized their members to collect funds of over 1 million birr before starting this project, the same as in the Korke village.  This is laudable and I would like to pay tribute to all the community members here today.  I am sure that your community is one of the most active in this country.

It is also worth noting that the Soddo Agemgey Gerbo Elementary School, especially, Ato Kemal, the school director, and Ato Fetensa from the Woliso Woreda have facilitated this project with the Embassy to complete it on time in collaboration with the community and the local government and in line with the project guidelines.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The two newly built school blocks, one administration block, one laboratory and one toilet block are now handed over to the community and the Woreda.  I am sure that you will expand this school as a secondary school in the coming year, 2005 E.C. in collaboration with the local government.  I understand that you will enroll 800 students for G9 and G10, according to your original plan.  I am confident that you will make the most use of this school to improve access to secondary education and enjoy great benefits.  At the same time, please keep in mind that it is equally important to maintain the facilities in good condition so that the school will serve the local interests for a long time.  Finally, I do hope that we can work together again in the future for the economic and social benefit of underprivileged people in rural areas of Ethiopia.

Thank you for your attention.  Galatoomaa.  Fayyaa ta’a.