Addis
Ababa: Africa's Meeting
Place
Why
did ATA choose Addis Ababa as the venue
for its 25th Anniversary Jubilee Congress
and 8th Cultural and Ecotourism Symposium?
To begin with it's today's political
capital of Africa, home of the
Organization of African Unity (OAU) and
the United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa, (UNECA). More than 95 embassies
from all over the world have their
missions in Addis Ababa. This makes the
capital of Ethiopia a city where one finds
the highest concentration of embassies in
the world after Washington DC, New York
and London. Addis Ababa is easily
accessible, having daily flights to and
from cities in Europe. Ethiopian Airlines,
Lufthansa, Alitalia, Kenya Airways, Egypt
Air, Saudia and others serve Addis Ababa.
Perhaps what makes Addis unique is that
the national carrier, Ethiopian Airlines,
serves many cities in Africa&emdash;
making it the most accessible city on the
continent.
United
Nations Conference Centre: The UNCC is
one of the most modern and sophisticated
conference centres in the world, offering
state-of-the-art facilities,
including:
Conference Room capable of seating
600 delegates plus 180 in the gallery.
Conference Room accommodating 400
delegates plus 48 in the gallery.
Four Conference Rooms, each with a
seating capacity of 114. Simultaneous
interpretation facilities.
Small meeting rooms for 20 to 30
people; briefing rooms; office suites; a
press centre with the most up-to-date
electronic equipment to transmit audio and
video reports
Business Centre; cafeteria; lounges;
delegates dining room; press bar and an
exhibition area. Africa Hall: Also
in the United Nations compound is the
famous and historic Africa Hall where the
Charter of the Organization of African
Unity was signed in 1963. Many conferences
are still being held there. It has a
seating capacity for 272 delegates with
100 microphones and 335 seats in the
gallery. It has simultaneous
interpretation facilities.
Sheraton
Addis: The Sheraton Addis offers
modern conference facilities with
simultaneous interpretation; big tv
screens and executive boardrooms. Up to
500 participants can be seated in the main
hall. The Sheraton Addis is set in
beautiful grounds, overlooking the capital
city.
Aside from
the conference facilities, the hotel has 3
restaurants; a gazebo for light meals by
the swimming pool; a musical fountain;
cozy bars, and a health centre. This
luxury collection hotel is ideal for those
who wish to have their meetings and
accommodations at the same
place.
Hilton Addis Ababa: The Hilton
Hotel offers a banquet hall for meetings
of up to 500 participants. There are also
two meeting rooms that can sit up to 20
people and another two for up to eight
persons. Overhead projectors, flip charts,
projection screens and video projectors
are available. Simultaneous interpretation
system is not available as of the present
moment. Full details on a special page in
this edition of Africa Travel
Magazine.
Shebelle
Ethiopia Conference Services
Conference
Organizer: Shebelle Conference
Services is managed by Mr. Yohannes Kifle,
who has over 20 years experience in
conference organizing. From 1982 to 1988,
as the Deputy and then General Manager of
the National Tourism Organization, he was
responsible for organizing the annual
Heads of State and Government Summits,
which were hosted by the Ethiopian
Government. In 1988, he was appointed as
Chief of Protocol of the OAU, a position
he held until August 1999. In that
position, he was responsible for the
physical organization of the OAU Summits,
the biannual Council of Ministers as well
as many other meetings organized by the
OAU during the course of each year. He
has, inter-alia, organized the African
Leaders meetings in Abuja, Nigeria;
Algiers, Algeria; Cairo, Egypt; Dakar,
Senegal; Tunis, Tunisia and in several
other African capitals. Shebelle will
organize all that is required for a smooth
and successful meeting in Addis Ababa,
including:
Book and rent conference halls.
Book hotel accommodation for
participants and organizers.
Arrange air travel and send PTS
(Prepaid tickets) to any participant
worldwide.
Arrange local transportation by bus
or vehicles of various standards.
Meet and assist participants on
arrival and departure.
Arrange visas for participants
coming from countries where there are no
Ethiopian Embassies or Missions.
Engage conference staff such as
secretaries, ushers, clerks, etc.
Duplicate and prepare documents to
the specification of conference
organizers.
Arrange conference halls and
committee rooms, as required.
Provide protocol services.
Employ interpreters and
translators.
Negotiate special group rates for
air travel and hotel accommodation.
Arrange payment of per diem and
other expenses in foreign
currency.
Please
write or call: Mr. Yohannes Kifle,
Managing Director
Shebelle Ethiopia Conference Services
P.O. Box 29508, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Tel: 251-1-510558, 251-1-533737
Fax: 251-1-501239
E-mail-
yohannes.k@telecom.net.et
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