FK Africa Regional Office in collaboration with Ethiopian Media Women Association (EMWA) organized a two week prep-course from January 23 - Feb 5th 2007 at the Red Cross Society training Institute in Addis Ababa. The purpose of the prep-course is to prepare the participants to work and live in a foreign country.
In the opening speech the Norwegian Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mr. Jens Petter Kjemprud, told about the shift in priorities from the old model of Fredskorpset to the exchange based programs that exist today. On the same occasion Secretary General of FK, Mr. Helge Espe, emphasized on opportunities of FK for tomorrow’s leaders of Africa. Mrs. Tsehai Tefefredeg, Vice President of EMWA, thanked the FK secretariat for being selected twice to organize the prep-course. She further pointed the benefits of FK to the participants by underlining the importance of exposure to other ways of doing things. The opening ceremony was graced by the presence of Mrs Tutu Jacobsen and Vigdis Rønning, representatives from the FK secretariat and the FK Board.
The homecoming seminar was conducted on 22nd January 2007 at Addis Ababa Red Cross Society Training Institute. 31 former exchange-participants were present, evaluating their experiences and performances together with 22 home and host organization representatives, wrapping it all up for the participants, they looked back at the year they had started in Addis on their prep-course.
Meanwhile, 34 new participants, 20 women and 14 men, from four primary partner networks, Ethiopian Media Women Association (EMWA), Christian Medical Health Association of Malawi (CHAM), Agri-Business Forum and African Network for the Prevention and Protection of Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN) are undergoing the prep-course, bracing themselves for a challenging year abroad. They come from 10 African countries, namely; Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. The participants will be given insights into intercultural communication, development, health and positive thinking. In addition to this, they have visited Lake Langano, Mount Entoto, National Museum and the vibrating market “Mercato” in Addis. The course ends on February 5th, after which another round of participants start their year abroad, as part of the South/South program which received excellent remarks during the evaluation of the Fredskorpset.