The magnificent 16th century Gondar castleThe region has been unstable for more than a year now
borkena
June 2,2018
Ethiopian started online visa service to tourists and other categories of visitors from across the world. The prime minister’s chief of staff announced about it on his twitter page.
The measure seem to be part of the reform initiative by Ethiopia’s new prime minister Abiy Ahmed who is emphasizing quality and efficient service delivery in the public sector.
Last week, the prime minister announced interest in the creation of a visa free regime for Africans as a move to pursue the experience of Rwanda. He spoke about it when he was hosting Rwandan president Paul Kagame at a state dinner in Ethiopia. Abiy is quoted as saying “The President (Kagame) invited all Africans to travel to Rwanda without visas, we will follow you very soon.”
The online visa issuance service is expected to help increase the inflow of tourists to the country. Ethiopia has been running short of foreign currency in recent months and the decrease in the number of tourists in the past three years in connection with widespread protest in most parts of the country has contributed to the problem.
The government has ambitious plans to boost the tourism industry. The state owned national carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, celebrated recently the delivery of its 100th Boeing aircraft. The airlines has also expanded its destinations in Asia, North America,Europe and Africa, among others.
Ethiopia has a range of tourist destinations in different parts of the country and some of them are registered as heritage by UNESCO.
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