Tomorrow, D.C. will add a new sister city to its roster: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Mayor Vince Gray and Addis Ababa’s mayor, Diriba Kuma, will sign a Sister City Agreement tomorrow evening at the Wilson Building, a press release states. The Sister City Agreement will “facilitate cultural and educational exchanges for the benefit of residents in both cities.”
D.C.’s “vibrant Ethiopian community” inspired the agreement with Addis Ababa, which is the capital city of Ethiopia. Indeed, as the BBC reported, as many as 250,000 Ethiopians live in and around Washington. A part of Shaw is unofficially referred to as Little Ethiopia.
This partnership, says a press release, will provide an opportunity for both cities to “exchange information and collaborate on mutual priorities in many areas, including public health, urban development, transportation and youth engagement.”
Addis Ababa is now the fourteenth sister city for D.C., the others include Bangkok, Thailand; Dakar, Senegal; Beijing, China; Brussels, Belgium; Athens, Greece; Paris, France; Pretoria, South Africa; Seoul, South Korea; Accra, Ghana; Sunderland, U.K.; Rome, Italy; Ankara, Turkey; and Brasília, Brazil.
Tadias.com
Washington, D.C. — Washington, D.C. and Addis Ababa will become sister cities this month when leaders from the two cities formalize Protocols of Friendship. The Sister City Agreement signing ceremony is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, December 11th at the John A. Wilson Building in Washington, D.C. Officials say the initiative will pave the way for various joint projects between the two municipalities in areas of mutual interest including economic development, information exchange, cultural education and youth engagement.
“I’m proud to announce that our city and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia have agreed to enter into a sister city agreement,” Mayor Vincent Gray told an enthusiastic crowd in November during his appearance at the Debre Selam Kidist Mariam Ethiopian Orthodox Church in D.C., where he first made the proposal public. “This agreement is inspired by the large and vibrant Ethiopian diaspora here in the District and by Ethiopia’s emergence as one of the fastest growing economies in Africa.”
The accord makes the Ethiopian capital the fourteenth sister city of Washington, D.C. The District of Columbia has similar arrangements with Bangkok, Thailand (since 1962); Dakar, Senegal (since 1980); Beijing, China (since 1984); Brussels, Belgium (since 1985); Tshwane, South Africa (since 2002); Paris, France (since 2000); Athens, Greece (since 2000); Seoul, Korea (since 2006); Accra, Ghana (since 2006); and Sunderland, United Kingdom – George Washington’s Ancestral Home (since 2006); Rome, Italy (since 2011); Ankara, Turkey (since 2011); Brasilia, Brazil (since 2013). According to Sister Cities International (SCI), the national membership organization for sister city programs in the U.S., sister city affiliations between the United States and other nations began shortly after World War II and developed into a national initiative when President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed the people-to-people program at a White House Conference in 1956.
During his remarks at DSK Mariam Ethiopian Orthodox Church last month, Mayor Gray encouraged the Ethiopian community to attend the signing ceremony.
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If You Go:
Signing of the Sister City Agreement between Addis Ababa and Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Ceremony starts at 6:00 P.M. (Seating Begins at 5:30 P.M.)
Reception to Follow at The John A. Wilson Building
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Mayor’s Press Room, G9
Washington, District of Columbia 20004
By Matt Cohen
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