Aurora hosts first Sister City delegation from Adama, Ethiopia
Press Release
Aurora, Colorado – The city of Aurora has partnered with its first sister city, Adama, Ethiopia, under a revived Aurora Sister Cities program. A delegation from Adama will visit Aurora, and other parts of Colorado, August 22 through 31. Aurora is Adama’s first U.S. sister city, providing a unique opportunity to create innovative and new programs both locally and globally.
An Ethiopian delegation, including Mayor Abreham Adula, Deputy City Mayor Agned Yusuf and Director of Sister Cities Jeglalo Guye, will arrive in Aurora on August 22 and visit various locations within the city. The tour will last 10 days. Areas of primary focus for the two cities during this time are:
·Education and libraries – youth exchanges to provide advanced learning opportunities in each city, instructor development through joint training and library services through technology.
·Municipal issues – collaboration on areas such as urban development, transportation, as both cities are in transportation growth stages, water and sustainable energy projects.
·International trade and development – sharing of training models, opportunities for business growth to one city or the other, import/export opportunities and sustainable energy projects.
The city of Aurora and Aurora Sister Cities International expressed interest in developing a sister city relationship in Ethiopia, and Aurora’s Ethiopian community and the Ethiopian Ambassador Girma Birru in Washington, D.C. facilitated the partnership. The Ethiopian Embassy took the lead to discuss the proposal through federal channels in Ethiopia, and recommended Adama. Adama is the second largest city in Ethiopia with about 350,000 residents, and is a popular tourist destination. It’s connected to Addis Ababa, the largest city in Ethiopia and surrounding cities through a new railway. Home to 11 colleges, Adama’s major industries are cotton, garment, wind farms, banking/financial, tourism, education and several micro-industries.
About Aurora Sister Cities International:
Aurora Sister Cities International (ASCI) is committed to promoting citizen diplomacy through global partnerships that engage citizens of the world to boost economic development as well as artistic, educational, and cultural exchange and pursuits. ASCI is an integrative model that employs a globally, knowledgeable and culturally literate leadership to engage a multitude of partners, sponsors, volunteers and ambassadors in helping build bridges to the developed and developing world. www.aurorasistercities.org.