Mittwoch, 16. Januar 2013

Speech of The Day (127): Inauguration of The Imperial Ethiopian College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts at Alem-Maya, Harar



On Thursday, January 16, 1958, His Imperial
Majesty Haile Selassie I inaugurated the
Imperial Ethiopian College of Agriculture and
Mechanical Arts at Alem-Maya, Harar. On
this occasion His Majesty the Emperor made
the following speech:


"It gives Us great pleasure to be present here to
inaugurate the College of Agriculture and Mechanical
Arts, an occasion which marks a great and far-reaching
advance in Our programme for the promotion of agri-
cultural education. This institution will serve as a
source of inspiration in carrying out the agricultural
programme which We have laid down for the future.
In establishing this College for the development of
the natural wealth of Our country, agriculture and
animal husbandry, on modern and scientific lines, Our
main purpose has not been merely to develop and utilize
these basic resources to supply the daily needs of Our
people, but, in addition, to produce a surplus to be
shared with other countries of the world. Ethiopia,
to some degree, has done this in the past. For example,
when the world was sorely distressed by lack of food
immediately after the Second World War, Our country,
although she herself had for five long years been struggling
to recover from the terrible damage inflicted upon her
during the War, was yet able to perform a significant
service in supplying foodstuffs to the countries of the
Middle East. And We have been pleased to observe
how, since then, Our people have increasingly devoted
themselves to improving the agriculture of Our country.
A country and a people that become self-sufficient
by the development of agriculture can look forward with
confidence to the future.
Agriculture is not only the chief among those
fundamental and ancient tasks which have been essential
to the survival of mankind, but also ranks first among
the prerequisites to industrial and other developments.
History affords Us ample evidence that mankind
abandoned its nomadic way of life and developed a
settled, communal economy only when man became
skilled and competent in agricultural techniques. From
the beginnings of recorded history, right up to the Middle
Ages, and even as late as the beginning of the Industrial
Age in which we now live, agriculture has always con-
stituted the fundamental source of wealth for the human
race.
Only when a solid agricultural base has been laid
for Our country's commercial and industrial growth can
We ensure the attainment of the ultimate goal of Our
development programme, namely, a high standard of
living for Our people. Commerce and industry, being
concerned in the main with development and distribution,
can only develop and profit from existing resources, but
cannot actually create things which did not exist before.
Most of the districts of Our Harar Province are
populated mainly by nomadic peoples. Now that We
are in a position to anticipate an adequate water supply
from the rivers and wells in the region, the area will
flourish and land will no longer lie fallow in the Province,
if only the people of Ogaden, Esa and Adal could be
educated in agricultural techniques. All this can be
attained only by means of the wisdom which flows from
the fountain of education, and while this College will
serve the whole of Our country, its being established in
the Province of Harar is the result of careful planning
and consideration on Our part.
Even in this nuclear age, in spite of the revolutionary
changes in man's way of life which science has brought
about, the problem of further improving and perfecting
agricultural methods continues to hold a position of high
priority for the human race. It is hard to believe
that a substitute can ever be found for the occupation of
agriculture --- sacred task graciously conferred upon
man by God to serve as the source of his well-being and
the basis of his wealth.
Our country, Ethiopia, being blessed with an
abundance of natural resources, need not be anxious
about her own needs. However, it is Our constant
endeavour and Our firm desire, that Our people will
produce not only enough to meet their own requirements
but that their production will enable them to share and
exchange the fruits of their labour with other countries.
If only Ethiopia, with an assured wealth of natural
resources, would look at what the barren Sahara Desert
has been made to produce by the endeavour of trained
scientists, she would realize that science is the source
of wealth. We would, therefore, have Our students and
scholars accept as their primary duty the attainment of
scientific knowledge through education.
We have placed Our trust in this College to be the
chief instrument for the attainment of this high goal, and
We are confident that the students who have today
received their diplomas from Our hands, as well as those
who follow them in the future, will through the achievements
furnish Us with tangible evidence of the fulfilment
of this Our purpose and Our desire.
Agriculture and industry are indispensable one to
the other. Only close cooperation between these two
branches of knowledge can guarantee the fulfilment of
Our programme of economic development for Our
country.
This College, which holds a prominent place in the
plans We have laid down for the prosperity and welfare
of Our beloved people and country, can look forward
to receiving the same constant support which We have
shown in the past.
It is with pleasure that We express on this occasion
Our gratitude to Our great friend, the United States of
America, for the generous and significant assistance they
have given to this institution as part of their great effort
for the development of the spirit of cooperation and
understanding among the nations of the world. We
would request His Excellency the Ambassador to
convey Our thanks to his Government.
If the late Dr. Bennet, who laid the plans for this
institution and whose great desire and tireless efforts to
achieve the establishment of an Agricultural and
Mechanical College in this country are well-known to Us,
were with Us today to see the fulfilment of his plans, how
happy he would have been! With deep sorrow in Our
heart, remembering the words "Man proposes, God
disposes", We pay a tribute to his memory in this hour.
We would like to express Our sincere thanks to the
Director of the Point Four Programme in this country,
the President and staff of this College, and all of Our
officials who have laboured to bring this institution into
being.
It is not enough for the children of Ethiopia to be
recipients of education. They should never forget that
the responsibility for passing on this knowledge to others
and of handing it over to the next generation rests on
them. "



Speeches delivered by His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie Ist Emperor of Ethiopia on various occasions - page 35 - &

Selected Speeches of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie – page 5
       

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