The Scramble for the Millennium

By Tewedage Sintayehu

The Ethiopian millennium will run from September 2007 to September 2008 and has been expected to attract hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians from the Diaspora, foreigners of Ethiopian descent as well as visitors from all over the world. Expectations of the influx of people into the country exceeded 750,000.
There have been a few reports by government media of hundreds of people arriving here but the total number of people that have got here for the celebrations is still indefinite. However, most of the people Capital talked to seem to believe that the number of people that have arrived is much less than what has been expected.
Anticipations of a very large number of people coming into the country have exacerbated the already high inflation rates in the country with prices of services like rent shooting up extraordinarily. There have been instances where those who have rented houses have been evicted with high hopes of a large influx of people from abroad to take on their places.
‘Millennium extravaganza’
Along with this expectation have been designed festival events that encompass a wide range of activities. The Ethiopian Millennium Festival National Council (EMFNC) - along with its Executive Council and Secretariat - is responsible for delivering Ethiopia’s national focus to mark and celebrate the arrival of the third millennium. Festival events scheduled by the EMFNC to take place during 2007/2008 include a spectacular opening ceremony from the heart of Addis Ababa on 11th September 2007 -the sheer splendor of which will also be held simultaneously in Ethiopia’s regional capitals - will herald the start of yearlong festivities by highlighting on the strength and beauty we have derived from the patchwork nature of the union of free and equal Ethiopians.
The millennium musical extravaganza and millennium eve concert that kicks off in Addis Ababa on September 11 is to be staged in a 20,000-seater venue costing USD10m and still under construction. Billed as being a celebration of both Ethiopian and world music, a galaxy of Ethiopian stars includes Tewodros Tadesse, Hamelmal Abate, Abenet Agonafer, Aster Aweke and Ayalew Mesfin. Beyonce is headlining and the Black Eyed Peas will also play live. It is rumoured that Michael Jackson has promised to put in an appearance.
Giant TV screens will link towns all over the country with live broadcasts, so revellers in Bahar Dar and Aksum can join in with party goers in Addis Ababa and Assosa. This is a first for Ethiopia and, like many of the millennium events, is funded by private donors, not aid money.
Come the millennium, every bar and restaurant all over the country will be a blaze of red, green and gold, the colours of the national flag, and the partying will last long into the night - and into the following year as well. The places to head for are “national” restaurants, which are traditional Ethiopian ones, although every type of restaurant in Ethiopia is sure to jump on the millennium bandwagon.
‘Africa Week’
As the Ethiopian Millennium has been declared “an African occasion” by the 8th Regular Summit of the African Union, Ethiopia will launch week-long celebrations by focusing on her commendable record in the continent’s history of decolonization and in her continued pride and pleasure of continuing to host the head-quarters of the African Union. Cultural troupes, artists, writers and film makers from various African countries are expected to add color to the festivities. The Muslim walled city of Harar will also be celebrating the 1,000th anniversary of when it was founded. The Africa Week starts on May 25th 2008.
‘Buy Ethiopian’
Designed to give a boost to local products as well as enhance quality, ‘Buy Ethiopian’ encourages people to wear national attire during the millennial event. This program is scheduled for the entire year.
‘Wubnesh Ethiopia’ - Beautiful Ethiopia a musical drama to be produced and staged by the best and brightest in Ethiopia’s rowing theatre industry, traces our past and attempts to equip, especially the youth, with vision and determination to move on to the next millennium. It is scheduled to take place in the 1st week of September, 2007.
‘Three Exhibitions on Ethiopia’s Heritage’
Designed to show-case some of Ethiopia’s awe-inspiring artifacts for a period of four months at a time, these exhibitions are expected to attract a stream of visitors who had come to visit the many archeological wonders of The Cradle of Mankind. The exhibitions would start in mid-September 2007 and last for four months.
‘Four multi-faceted symposiums on Ethiopia’
Participants would be able to broaden their horizons as an attempt is being made to remember our past, experience our present and prepare us well for the challenges ahead.
‘Millennium Parks’
The construction of multi-purpose parks in the metropolis and regional capitals adorned with indigenous trees, mini-museums, children’s playgrounds and refreshment outlets, these parks would serve as focal points for those residents who wish to relax in the splendor and tranquility of a modern park, as well as being a living symbol of this generation’s gift to future generations.
‘2 Trees for 2000’
By offering a chance to every Ethiopian to plant 2 trees at the close of the second millennium, ‘2trees for 2000’ is meant to be a symbolic gesture of this generation’s firm determination to address Ethiopia’s growing environmental hazard caused by deforestation.
‘Catalogue of Ethiopian Heritage sites’
An unprecedented attempt is made to equip visitors with a bird’s eye-view of existing and new-found sites.
‘Keep Addis Clean Campaign’
Addis Ababans would be encouraged to participate in a spring-clean campaign of the metropolis by hitting the road with their brooms and leaving Addis spick and span for our visitors.
‘Coffee Museum’
This generation will reward Ethiopia’s gift to the world by establishing state of the art coffee museum in the origin of coffee in Bonga, in south-western Ethiopia. Visitors will be able to learn the fascinating story of the wild bean while indulging in the taste of a variety of Ethiopian coffee.
Gains
Out of the scheduled programs stated above, some have been going on well while others wait for their launching dates.
Construction of the Coffee Museum, the Keep Addis Clean campaign and the 2 Trees for 2000 campaign are probably the most successful programs out of those that have already been launched.
Efforts have already been underway to construct the coffee museum in Bonga town of the SNNP state, with President Girma Woldegiorgis laying its cornerstone at the end of june 2007. Five million Birr has already been pledged for the museum’s construction, which requires seven million Birr. The pledges for the construction of the coffee museum were made by governmental, non-governmental organizations and individuals, including Sheikh Mohammed Hussien Al Amoudi, a business tycoon, who through his representative promised to give three million Birr. Same day, the town of Bonga in Kaffa zone, where coffee is believed to have originated, saw a Coffee Day celebration for the second time ever.
The keep Addis clean campaign has also been working with residents of the city to rescue some of the embarrassingly dirty areas from the pile of filth they have been trapped in. The participation of artistes in the cleaning campaign is probably of the highest profile of activities carried out in this regard. Though an excitingly clean Addis is still not on the horizon, the efforts made so far deserve to be complimented.
With about 500 million tree seedlings transplanted so far through out the country, “2 Trees for 2000 Project” has definitely gone beyond everybody’s expectation. The campaign has been effective in mobilizing the people to take part in its activities. The campaign only needs to live up to its present reputation to make sure that the transplanted tree seedlings get the right kind and amount of attention in the coming years, for it to be a complete success.
Apart from these, activities by the Addis Ababa Roads Authority to undertake road beautification works in connection with the upcoming Ethiopian millennium can be considered notable. Most of the activities have focused on preserving and maintaining roads that have been damaged due to the installation of electric, telecommunications and water facilities. The maintenance and renovation of pedestrian roads, lampposts and traffic signs are also being carried out.
Drawbacks
The most notable draw backs to the millennium celebrations have to do with the cancellation/postponement of events.
The most notable of such cancellations/postponements is that of The Great Ethiopian Run, which was scheduled to take place on September 9, 2007. The Great Run was reported by some media as one that “promised to be the largest participation road race ever run on African soil.” It would only be an understatement to say that it would have been one of the most socially participative events scheduled to mark the start of the millennium. Its cancellation/postponement has left the first quarter of the Ethiopian millennium with no notable social sporting activities.
Another notable cancellation was Tewodros Kassahun’s, arguably the best contemporary Amharic singer, concert that was scheduled to take place on Friday, September 7, 2007, at the Ghion hotel. Cancellation of a musical event that was to take place in the Addis Ababa Stadium and its subsequent replacement with another concert organized by Midroc Ethiopia has also been controversial.
Finally, it can be said that anticipations related with the millennium have been felt through the spectrum that ranges from individuals to the government. These anticipations have pushed all of us, both individuals and organizations including the government, to use the moment as one we can benefit from. At times, these pushes have led us to embark on the accomplishment of remarkable things on individual and national scales while there have been moments that we can not be proud of. I would say that our scramble for the millennium would be just fine with a little bit of ethics added to it.

Logo
The logo symbolizes Ethiopia’s gift to the world in the form of a coffee bean and shows the shield that we Africans had used to guard our independence from foreign aggression. It also symbolizes a womb to signify that our ancient land is truly “the Cradle of Mankind.”   The numbers are in Geez (Ethiopic) and Arabic characters respectively.   The color of hope, azure-blue, adorns its back-ground.