1. On the sidelines of the third International Conference on Financing for Development underway in Ethiopia from July 13 through 16, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se attended the opening ceremony of “Thank You Small Libraries” held at “Major General Hayelom Araya” Primary School in Addis Ababa on July 13. At the event attended by primary school students, their parents and local residents, some 700 in total, the Minister spoke about the Republic of Korea’s experience of achieving economic development through education, delivering the message that future leaders of Ethiopia will step toward a bright future full of hope by reading.

◦ The ceremony was held to celebrate the opening of four “Thank You Small Libraries” set up in Ethiopia with the support of the ROK government. Among its attendees were State Minister of Education Faud Ibrahim; Chairman Gebru Gebresilasse of the Ethiopian Federal Parliamentary Assembly’s committee on information and communications; the superintendent of schools in Addis Ababa; the principals of the four schools where new Small Libraries have been set up; and Chairperson Dho Young-shim of the ST-EP Foundation’s Board who led the library-creation project. Education officials of Ethiopia extended deep appreciation to the ROK government for its assistance and the ST-EP Foundation for its activities.

2. In his congratulatory remarks, Foreign Minister, bringing attention to the special ties between the ROK and Ethiopia forged through the sacrifice of the Ethiopian troops in the Korean War, underscored that the driving force behind the “miracle on the Han river” had been education. He suggested that students, who are Ethiopia’s hope for the future, nurture their dreams and prepare for a brighter future through the Small Libraries and books, expressing hope that the Libraries will be the cradle of the “miracle of Abyssinia.”

* Ethiopia is the only African country that dispatched ground troops to the ROK to fight alongside it during the Korean War. Out of its 6,037 soldiers, 122 were killed and 536 others were injured.

* Abyssinia is the name of Ethiopian Empire, a historical nation in present-day Eritrea and the northern half of Ethiopia.

◦ After delivering his congratulatory remarks, Minister Yun presented the students of the “Major General Hayelom Araya” Primary School, the venue of the opening ceremony, with soccer balls and school supplies.

3. The “Thank You Small Library” project calls for the ST-EP Foundation, an affiliate of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), to build libraries mainly at elementary schools of underdeveloped countries with the support of the ROK Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. There are 169 “Thank You Small Libraries” in 20 underdeveloped countries, including the four newly opened and 31 other such libraries in Ethiopia.

4. On July 14, Minister Yun will attend as a guest speaker the high-level session titled “The Investment Case for Information,” a side event of the third International Conference on Financing for Development. He will speak about the ROK’s experience of succeeding in development through education and the Park Geun-hye government’s humanitarian diplomacy.

* unofficial translation