(Accredited to Singapore, Australia & Malaysia)
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(Accredited to Singapore, Australia & Malaysia) |
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ETHIOPIA In Focus Message
from the Ambassador
Contact Us
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Ethiopia's Visa regulation has been recently revised to create a conducive atmosphere to foreign travelers to Ethiopia. 32 tourist-generating countries are now privileged to get visa on arrival. Among the four countries covered by our embassy, P. R. China and Australia are beneficiaries of this privilege. Tourists from the other two countries that we cover, Singapore and Malaysia could also get visa on arrival on condition that they come on a group basis and arrange a local travel agent as an organizer of the travel.
Some visa services previously restricted to the Main Department of Immigration and Nationalities Affairs (a government body that follows-up the overall national immigration issues) are now provided by Ethiopian missions abroad. For instance, missions are now entitled to provide multiple and double entry tourist visas. This creates more convenience for tourists reaching many destinations while traveling to Ethiopia. Ethiopian missions can now accommodate tourist visa applicants even if they come from countries that they are not accredited to, as long as tourists provide sufficient evidence such as roundtrip tickets and valid passports. The revised visa regulation also entitles tourists coming from areas where there are no Ethiopian direct diplomatic representation, to get visa service upon their arrival in Ethiopia. Along the liberalization of visa issuance, Ethiopia provides a suitable travel service with its reputable airline service. The Ethiopian Airlines with a renowned service of more than 55 years provides excellent travel packages with a discounted fare for group tourists. Its flights cover most important destinations in the Americas, Europe, and Asia.
In Asia alone, it has close to 30 years of direct flight to P.R. China. Other destinations are India, Japan, Thailand and many parts of the Middle East. As of March this year, its flight to P. R. China has been extended from once a week to twice a week. In January 2002, the Ethiopian Airlines has also started flying to Hong Kong twice a week. Creating more convenience to Asian tourists traveling to Ethiopia and many parts of Africa which the Ethiopian Airline covers. Ethiopian Airlines regional offices and ticket sales agents located in Asia provide convenient service in many parts of the region. Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Delhi, Tokyo, Mumbai and Karachi are the main regional offices of the Ethiopian Airlines in Asia, while there are a number of ticket sales agents in Australia, Malaysia and Singapore. The Ethiopian Airlines and Ethiopian National Tourist Operation (NTO) offer interesting tour packages to the historic and the natural attractions of Ethiopia. Travel to these areas is facilitated by directly contacting regional offices of Ethiopian Airlines, the head office, and Ethiopian missions.
The Embassy in Beijing and the Ethiopian consulate general office in Australia run home pages www.ethiopiaemb.org.cn and www.consul.com.au respectively which provide quick information on Ethiopia's tourist sights, culture and general information. Tourists can access visa application information directly from these Home Pages. In Singapore our Consulate General Office has been instrumental to set-up permanent exhibition of Ethiopia in the Singapore Zoological Garden. The permanent exhibition is serving as a miniature model of the tourist attractions of Ethiopia.
July 2002 Vol.4 No.2 |
