The Ethiopian Airlines honored more than six hundred employees who have sacrificed 40-20 years of their lives for a single company and a single airliner.
Every nook and cranny of the EAA cafeteria hall was full of retirees and guests who were adorning themselves head-to-foot with attention-grabbing traditional Ethiopian costumes. Everything was pleasant to see.
If truth be told, the coordination of the program was out of this world. When I took a quick glance, all and sundry were having a good time and smiling faces were seen in the left, right and center of the hall.
Last Saturday, the Ethiopian Airlines Group Chief Executive Officer, Tewolde Gebremariam awarded certificates and plaques to staffers who attained 40, 35, 25 and 20 year of service.
After honorable guests took their seats accompanied by vice president corporate Human Resource Management and executive officers, the vice president of Human resource management made an opening speech revolving around the day and the employees’ commitment and determination.
Almost immediately, the Ethiopian Airlines Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Tewolde Gebremariam set in motion handing certificates to employees who attained 40,35,25, and 20 years of service.
During lunchtime, the retiree Association Representative made some remarks concerning the day and other related aspects. Sometime later, the CEO of the Ethiopian Airlines went to the podium and embarked on addressing the audience.
He said on the occasion, “This is a unique environment and a unique airline whereby people can sacrifice forty years of their lives for a single company and a single airline. I do not think we can find an airline all over the world where people are committed to more than half of their lives for the mission of their airline.
If it was not for their dedicated and committed services for the last forty years in good and challenging times, peace and wartime, development and poverty, famine, and drought, we would not have seen an airline of this size and this success.
Today, we are in the time where we are in a very strong position in terms of long term strategy and implementation. But at the same time, we are in a very strong challenge in the short term. The airline has completed its vision 2025 seven years ahead of the target time. As a result of your hard work, you have made the airline shine high in the sky and the airline to be the largest in Africa.
“Because of your success, we have started this year in January vision 2035 to scale of the growth we have achieved so far. Scaling up means growing the business not only the airline business but also in cargo logistics, aerospace manufacturing, catering, aviation academy, ground services, cargo and logistics, and hotel and tourism and whatnot.”
Today, Ethiopian Airlines is truly a pan African airline group. It is owning airline in Mozambique, owning Malawi Airline in Malawi, owning an airline in Chad, owning an airline in Togo, managing an airline in equatorial Guinea, supporting Congo Airways, supporting Rwanda Airways, Tanzanian Airways, and also the airline is in the last stage to form an airline in Zambia and Ghana and thus we are truly a pan African airline.
“Vision 2025 is going to promote tour travel and tourism in Africa particularly in Ethiopia. Therefore, the tourism sector in Ethiopia has not grown as much as we like. We only have more than a million tourists a year. But Ethiopian Airlines is aiming singly handily to grow tourist arrival to 15 million by 2025. So vision 2025 is also a fast-growing mission for all of us,” he added.
Many people are telling us to stop flying to China. But this does not represent our history. This does not remember our history. Our history is, we have been flying to Angola when active war and active shooting was at the airport in Rwanda. We have been flying to Namibia where the country was still struggling to take its independence. We have stood with other countries in bad and doom times, good and challenging times.
“By the same token, it will not be ethical and morally acceptable to stop flying to China seeing that they have a temporary problem. We have to stand with our Chinese brothers and sisters and African brothers and sisters. Today, if we do not fly to China, China and Africa are going to be completely disconnected. No one in Ethiopian Airlines would like to see this,” he continued.
Of course, we have to take care of our people, crew, managers, station managers and others based in China and elsewhere. We have to take maximum precautions. But stopping flying is not the answer. Even if we stop flying to China, Chinese passengers will continue to come to Ethiopia through Dubai, Singapore, Malaysia, Tokyo, Korea, and what have you.
I think with the right devotion, care, and handling, we have to continue our patronage, our solidarity with the Chinese people and African people. That has been our history
The Ethiopian Herald February 14/2020
BY ADDISALEM MULAT
