12th October 2022 Geneva, Switzerland
I’ve always had a fond attachment to the number 51. It was my house number growing up in Manchester, as little Robert. My first memory there was my parents bringing my newly-born baby sister home from the hospital. And my mum was born in the year ’51 (as well as some more famous but less […]
16th January 2017 Addis Abbaba, Ethiopia
In December last year I had the thrill to meet Hiwot and her six month old baby boy in Hosanna hospital in Ethiopia. Hiwot had complications in her pregnancy that were life threatening for her son and for her. Luckily, VSO volunteer health specialists had worked with Ethiopian medical staff to establish a specialist care […]
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17th June 2016 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
This week we celebrated World Blood Donation day. Giving blood is one of the most powerful acts you can do to help other people in society. It is quite a feeling to know that you might save someone’s life in an emergency, help a mother in a difficult pregnancy, or support someone who is having […]
28th April 2016 Addis Ababa
I was pleased to welcome a large number of guests to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday, at the British Ambassador’s Residence. The Queen’s Birthday party or QBP, as we call it in the Embassy, is an event hosted by all posts across the world to celebrate and cement relations between the UK and the corresponding country. This year we […]
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28th April 2016 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Major- General Orde Charles Wingate The Second World War hero and a British army officer, Major- General Orde Charles Wingate, was born on 26 February 1903, in Naini Tal, near Almora, in Kumaon, India. Most of Wingate’s childhood was spent in England. For the first 12 years of his life, he socialized primarily with his siblings. […]
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22nd March 2016 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
By Ruth Bradley-Jones Can you imagine two journeys more different? That of 3000 Yemeni refugees http://ow.ly/ZNIbB fleeing conflict in their homeland across the 30 mile stretch of water to the dessert in Djibouti; and the 260,000 miles and 160 countries travelled by the London company of the Shakespeare’s global tour of Hamlet http://ow.ly/ZNP11. But in […]
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9th March 2016 Addis Ababa
Powerful and influential women are part of every country’s history, and Ethiopia is no exception. Empress Taytu Betul, was arguably Ethiopia’s most influential women in modern times. She was more than a match for her husband, Menelik II, the renowned commander and military strategist. Historians have drawn attention to the key role she played in […]
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14th December 2015
Time to move on and let someone else take a turn. This is my last day in extraordinary Ethiopia as the British Ambassador. Goodbyes are never easy, but I have had an amazing four years getting to know this place – full of hospitable people and outstanding experiences. But as is common for most diplomats, we […]
23rd November 2015
Poor sanitation threatens everyone’s health. It is sad to hear that an astonishing 2.4 billion people throughout the world do not have access to a toilet and have to practice open defecation. November is considered a very special month in Ethiopia regarding sanitation. I’m sure that visitors would have observed the sky over Addis full of […]
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6th November 2015
Two weeks ago all UK eyes were on China’s State visit to the UK. But the Chinese weren’t the only ones in town building commercial ties. It was also a week for Ethiopia in London, with a number of events where Ethiopia showcased their recent economic success and future potential. I joined Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister […]
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