Through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Ethiopian Sustainable Tourism Alliance (ESTA) project with funding from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the new community-based tourism sites in Lephis and Ziway are inaugurated  in Oromia Regional State.

The sites were developed to present natural and historic attractions and activities in an Eco-friendly manner that will maximize the benefit for the local community.

Government officials from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT) and the first official group of tourists attended the inauguration ceremony.

USAID Ethiopia Agricultural Officer Cullen Hughes said, “For tourism to be successful and sustainable, both the land and communities in the destination must be healthy and productive. The project’s holistic development approach has created the ideal environment for tourism growth and provides visitors with an authentic experience of Ethiopia.”

The ESTA project, implemented by Counterpart International, is a five-year, seven million dollar initiative that promotes biodiversity conservation through sustainable tourism and other alternative livelihoods. To date, 34 associations have been created to support sustainable livelihood generation and biodiversity conservation in the Central and Southern Rift Valleys in Ethiopia.

Source: The Reporter