Meeting with Dr Assefa

Written by Lonny (August 21, 2009)

We met with Dr. Solomon Assefa, Director General of the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (photo left) and his assistant, Seyoum Bediye. It was a very successful visit. After visiting Debre Zeyit and Holeta I had hoped that we could use the animals there as recipients for our embryos. Dr. Solomon was hoping that we would be willing to do just that. They have also requested that we train them in the embryo recovery part of embryo transfer. They are so excited with our projects and our willingness to help.

We met this afternoon with Dr. Abera Deressa, the State Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for Ethiopia, (photo right). He is very interested in all the work of MAI and anxious to visit with Paul next week. Dr. Abera, Dr. Solomon, and Seyoum invited us to go to the Habesha restaurant for dinner and Ethiopian entertainment. We had a fun evening which ended by them giving each of us a cultural gift as a token of their appreciation for our work. They are great men and will make a huge difference in this country.