Participants who exhibited their products at the Millennium Hall in Addis Ababa told The Ethiopian Herald that they had not seen any problem of peace and security during their stay in the country.

 

Martha Rutynowska-Eising who represented Bosch Packaging, a Germany company, confirmed that she had no doubt about the peace and stability in Ethiopia. "This is totally not a doubt for us. This is our forth exhibition in Ethiopia over the past three months. Ethiopia is safe. We think Ethiopia has a big potential. We love coming back. We can see a lot of interest in our portfolio," Martha said.

 

Spectrum Industries Chief Executive Jeevan Saldanha, another exhibitor from India, also said he had no doubt at all about the peacefulness of Ethiopia. "I don't feel any issue at all. This is my fifth visit to Addis Ababa. I have participated in AFCA Conference for the last 10 years," the executive witnessed.

 

AFCA Executive Director Samuel N. Kamau said for his part that AFCA made efforts to clear doubts among some participants about the security matters in Ethiopia. "We proved that Ethiopia is safe. AFCA worked hard to convince visitors that had some doubts regarding the peacefulness of the nation. That is why over 1,100 people arrived for the conference here in Addis," Samuel said.

 

Three days before the official opening of the Conference and Exhibition, Wednesday Feb. 15, 2017, AFCA members, global coffee buyers from US and EU as well as senior delegation from the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture made a visit to coffee fields and its origins in Oromia and SNNP states.

 

Towards the end of 2016, some parts of the Oromia and Amhara states were unstable for months, yet the visiting team has witnessed that peace has already been restored.

Source : allafrica.com