On an official visit to Ethiopia, Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar and Ethiopian Minister for Culture and Tourism, Hirut Kassaw, recently visited the Lalibela Unesco World Heritage Site, announcing a new cultural heritage tourism partnership between the two countries.
After the visit to Lalibela, Varadkar said: “Following my visit to the Lalibela Unesco World Heritage Site, I am delighted to announce a new partnership between Ethiopia and Ireland in cultural heritage tourism,” reports Addis Standard.
The new partnership, according to Varadkar, will consist of a series of exchanges and experience sharing between Ethiopian and Irish institutions, with a focus on cultural heritage tourism and rural job creation through tourism.
Kassaw will visit Ireland this spring to meet with the relevant tourism and cultural heritage bodies, including Failte Ireland and the Office of Public Works, finalising a programme of experiences between Ireland and Ethiopia.
According to Varadkar, Ireland and Ethiopia already have an existing partnership on cultural heritage tourism and there have been a number of exchanges between the two countries, including tourism officials from Axum in Ethiopia and Newgrange in Ireland. Varadkar added: “This new programme will deepen the partnership in 2019 and 2020 in an area that is vital for Ethiopia’s economic growth and job creation targets,” reports Addis Standard.
Varadkar also announced that Lalibela would join the 2019 ‘Global Greening’, along with various other monuments and cultural heritage sites across the world that will go green on St Patrick’s Day to mark the friendship between Ethiopia and Ireland.
Addis Standard quoted Kassaw saying: “I look forward to my visit to Ireland and to leading this new partnership on cultural heritage tourism. Tourism and culture have huge potential to drive economic growth and jobs in Ethiopia, particularly in rural areas. Ireland attracts almost double its population in tourists each year and we will look at examples of best practice in cultural heritage tourism and rural job creation through tourism in Ireland and apply relevant lessons to our strategy in Ethiopia.”
Ireland’s embassy in Addis Ababa issued a statement reading: “Ireland has developed effective tourism strategies to ensure that these heritage sites, and the rich histories behind them, are made accessible to a wide audience, while also safeguarding and protecting these sites.”
