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NEWS ALERT
Peace Corps Press Office
202.692.2230
September 13, 2006
Peace Corps Volunteers to Return to Ethiopia
WASHINGTON, D.C., September 13, 2006 - Peace Corps
Acting Director
Jody Olsen announced today that volunteers will be
returning to the
African nation of Ethiopia, the second most
populated country in
sub-Saharan Africa, for the first time since 1999.
The Peace Corps/Ethiopia program is scheduled to
open in fiscal year
2007, with approximately 40 volunteers arriving
next summer. The
volunteers will be working in the field of health
and HIV/AIDS
education and prevention, with possible expansion
into other sectors
in the coming years.
The Peace Corps volunteers will work closely with
the President's
Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Emergency Plan)
through the Office of
the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator. The Peace Corps
is currently active
in 9 of the 15 Emergency Plan focus countries, and
more than 2,600
Peace Corps volunteers are working in HIV/AIDS.
Ethiopia will be the
10th Emergency Plan country in which the Peace
Corps is involved. The
Peace Corps volunteers are in a unique position to
assist in the
health and HIV/AIDS education sector with their
language skills and
integration into communities.
"We are excited that we have found a way to
return to Ethiopia, a
program that has had a long standing history of
warmly accepting
volunteers into local communities," said Dr.
Olsen. "Our hope is that
the Ethiopia program becomes a model for the
accomplishments that
Peace Corps volunteers demonstrate in the health
field around the
world."
The volunteers will be working primarily with
non-government
organizations involved in health and HIV/AIDS,
community groups, and
youth groups to increase effectiveness of their
programs.
The Ethiopia program was one of the first for the
Peace Corps,
originally opening in 1962. From 1962-77 and
1995-99, Ethiopia hosted
approximately 3,500 volunteers. Over the years,
the primary focus was
on education, with the goal of training skilled
workers and promoting
economic development. In addition, volunteers
worked on agriculture
projects and health projects ranging from
establishing pediatric
clinics to working with the smallpox eradication
programs.
The Peace Corps is celebrating a 45-year legacy of
service at home
and abroad, and a 30-year high for volunteers in
the field. Since
1961, more than 182,000 volunteers have helped
promote a better
understanding between Americans and the people of
the 138 countries
where volunteers have served. Peace Corps
volunteers must be U.S.
citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps
service is a
27-month commitment.
# # #
--
Marian Haley Beil
Ethiopia & Eritrea RPCVs
President and treasurer of the Board
585/223-1155; 585/223-1158 fax
Come to our reunion September 15-17 in Washington
DC. See details at
http://www.ethiopiaeritrearpcvs.org/pages/reunion/45th-2006/facts.html
____________________________________________________________________
Ethiopia & Eritrea RPCVs, Inc., a non-profit
corporation,
has 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt status.
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