Remarks by H.E. Hiroyuki Kishino, Ambassador of Japan to Ethiopia,
at the Inauguration Ceremony for the Expansion of the Agazi Primary School
in Adigrat City, Tigray Region on March 30, 2013

Your Excellency Ato Tadesse Haile, State Minister for Industry of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia,
Ato Kahsay Gebremedhin, Mayor of Adigrat City,
Distinguished Guests,
Community Members of Adigrat City.
Teachers and Students of the Agazi Primary School,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Endemen Arefedachehu.  Dehan Do Arfidkum.

I am most grateful to all of you for your very warm welcome today.  This is my eighth trip to the Tigray Region and my first trip to Adigrat, a lovely city with amiable people full of hospitality and beautiful mountains behind.

It is indeed a great pleasure for me to have this opportunity to join you to inaugurat this primary school expansion project here in Adigrat City.  This project was funded by Japan’s grant-in-aid scheme for grassroots human security projects (GGP), amounting to about USD 115,700, based upon the grant contract signed in March 2011.  Our project partner is the Agazi Alumni Association, a very active Ethiopian NGO in this region.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Improving the educational environment is a great challenge in Ethiopia, and Adigrat City is no exception.  The Agazi Primary School, founded in 1941, has a long history, having served the local community for more than 70 years.  In recent years, however, the school has experienced an unprecedented increase in the number of students, which has caused problems.  Before this project started, 2,371 students were learning at this school, but only 24 classrooms were available for them.  In order to accommodate all the students, the school applied the double-shift system by separating them into morning and afternoon classes.  This negatively affected the quality of education as indicated by the high dropout rate of this school.  Indeed, its dropout rate was about 13% last year, much higher than the Tigray regional average of 8.3%.

Therefore, this project aimed at improving the quality of the educational environment at the Agazi Primary School by constructing additional classrooms.  Through this project, a 3-storey block with 12 classrooms has been newly built.  School furniture, such as combined desks and chairs as well as blackboards, has been provided by the local community, which has also born the extra financial requirements caused by a change in the original plan.  Two toilet blocks with eight rooms in each have also been built as well.  As a result, the students of the Agazi Primary School now enjoy a better educational environment, having full-day education.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The newly constructed school buildings and facilities are now formally handed over to the community and the City.  I am confident that you will make the most use of them to improve access to and quality of education.  I also hope that the children in Adigrat City will enjoy the full benefits of this project and build the foundation of their future through education.  At the same time, please keep in mind that it is equally important to maintain the facilities in good condition so that the school can 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.  Amesegenalehu.  Yemesgen.