at the Handing-over Ceremony for the Mitsubishi CSR Project
in Sesat Kebele, Tigray Regional State on 21 May, 2013

Ato Abera Mulat, Advisor to the State Minister, Ministry of Agriculture,
Mr. Sachio Kaneki, Senior Vice President, Deputy Regional CEO of Europe and Africa, Mitsubishi Corporation,
Community Members of the Sesat Kebele,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning.  Endemen Arefedachehu.  Dehan Do Arfidkum.

I am most grateful to all of you for your warm welcome this morning.  This is my ninth visit to the Tigray Regional State, and I am happy to be back here.  It is also a great pleasure for me to attend this handing-over ceremony for the Mitsubishi CSR (corporate social responsibility) solar power project here in the Sesat Kebele and to share the joyous moment with you.

Solar power systems are eco-friendly and best fit Ethiopia’s energy and environmental policy, which exclusively depends on renewable energy sources for power generation such as hydro and wind.  With sunshine, this system works even in isolated communities far from the national power grid.

In this project, solar power systems have been installed at Farmers Training Centers in three model villages in the Tigray Region, based upon the MOU signed in August last year, which I witnessed.

In Ethiopia, Farmers Training Centers play an important role in rural areas.  There, farmers share best practices and learn about agricultural technologies such as irrigation, soil improvement, forestation, etc.  Sharing knowledge and experience are crucial for farmers to improve productivity in agriculture and expand farmland.  The GTP attaches great importance to this as leverage for ensuring food security by 2015.

Through this project, thanks to solar power, farmers can concentrate on their field work in the daytime and attend training courses at the Center in the evening.  Some electronic appliances such as TV sets, DVD players, computers and printers have been provided as well.  As a result, farmers’ best practices in the field can be shared with others through audio-visual materials.  I strongly believe that this will contribute to the empowerment of farmers.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

More than four years have passed since Mitsubishi Corporation started CSR projects in Ethiopia for the benefit of farmers in rural areas.  To date, 13 facilities in nine villages over four regions including Tigray have received benefits from their projects.

The Embassy of Japan has a similar scheme called “grant-in-aid for grassroots human security projects.”  We implement various small-scale, community-based projects directly benefitting residents in rural areas throughout Ethiopia.  The area of cooperation is quite extensive, including education, water supply, health and infrastructure.  I think that Mitsubishi Corporation’s CSR projects are based upon the same concept as ours.  Quick implementation and direct benefits for residents are key aims our two schemes have in common.

I hope that this initiative by Mitsubishi Corporation will be continued in the years to come and will serve as a bridge which links our people together at the grassroots level.

Thank you for your attention.  Amesagenalehu.  Yemesgen.