Addis Ababa — Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has today inaugurated 'Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubark' boarding school built in Addis Ababa by the Office of the First Lady for visually impaired persons.
The boarding school was built with the support obtained from Sheikha Fatima, the mother of Sheihk Mohammed bin Zayed, the President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The school, that will receive students of grade 9 to 12, encompasses vital services convenient for visually impaired students including classrooms, cafeteria, library and other state of the art facilities.
Prime Minister Abiy said on the occasion that Office of The First Lady has previously built 34 schools across the country that are mainly rendering services to people with low income.
"On the occasion of the inauguration of the Sheika Fatima Bint Mubarak School for the Blind I would like to extend my congratulations to First Lady Zinash Tayachew for the fruition of a citizen centered establishment putting the vulnerable at heart, following the success of the schools built throughout the nation through the Office of the First Lady," the premier stated.
Abiy said learning from the success of this school for the blind, stressing the need to make sure that city infrastructure we build needs to pay attention to the needs of those with disabilities.
The newly inaugurated state of the art and very unique boarding school will receive more than 300 blind students from across the country, the premier said.
Noting that the government's development projects focus on citizens with low income, Abiy affirmed that development projects being carried out in Ethiopia aimed at benefiting citizens with low income will continue to intensify.
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He also extended gratitude to Sheika Fatima Bint Mubarak for the support extended to this noble cause,
First Lady Zinash Tayachew for her part said the development projects being undertaken by the office of the first lady aim at easing the burden of low income segment of the society.
She extended gratitude to all that contribute to the successful implementation of the project including Sheikha Ftima.
Kelifa Mubarek, Humanity Department Chancellor at the University of Sheihk Mohammed bin Zayed said representing Sheikha Fatima that UAE and Ethiopia are enjoying strong bilateral relations and the newly inaugurated boarding school is the manifestation of this cordial partnership.
The bilateral relations of the two countries have been strengthening particularly following the official visit made by President Sheihk Mohammed bin Zayed in 2018 to Ethiopia.
