Wednesday July 1, 2020
Ottawa (HOL) - Djibouti marks the 43rd independence anniversary since the country gained its independence from the French in 1977.
Djibouti is in the Horn of Africa, has a land border with Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somaliland. The French began to colonize it in 1862 by signing various treaties with local authorities.
This year the commemorations are limited over fears of deadly coronavirus pandemic as there were no people on the streets to mark this important celebration.
President Guelleh congratulated the people of Djibouti and called on the full celebration of this day.
On June 27, Djiboutian’s celebrate their nation's independence.
President Guelleh and his government put efforts to improve the country economy and the social structure.
Last week, Djibouti hosted a high-level consultative summit between Somaliland and Somalia leaders where diplomats and delegations from the US, EU, and the AU were in attendance.
Djibouti and Kenya contested for the African seat at the UN security council at the UN headquarters in New York.
Djibouti is also contributing troops to the African Union Mission in Somalia.
It also hosts foreign military facilities including the US, China, French and other NGO’s.
Both Ottawa and Montréal are home to organized Djiboutian diaspora communities, and there is an active community of returned Djibouti-Canadians in Djibouti. Canada established diplomatic relations with Djibouti in 1978 following its independence from France in 1977. The Embassy of Canada to Ethiopia, located in Addis Ababa, is responsible for relations with Djibouti. Canada also has an Honorary Consul in Djibouti City. Conversely, Djibouti has no representative in Canada, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Djibouti to the United Nations, in New York, is responsible for Djibouti’s relations with Canada.
Yahya Mohamud, a community leader in Ottawa, devoted father and husband with a decade of political consultant experience and play a key role in helping federal and provincial political candidates in developing strategies around community outreach and financial reporting. Mr Mohamud organized and hosted the first annual flag day recognizing the independence of Djibouti Republic on June 27, 2019, at Canada parliament. This event draw figures from the community and political space in Ottawa. It was widely attended by community members and MP’s exchange of views and promoting Djibouti rich culture to Ontarians and all Canadians.
This year outbreak of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus is a significant challenge for the entire world, public gathering prohibited. This year national flag day 43rd Independence Day of the Republic of Djibouti was held online with greeting from Prime Minister of Canada – Justin Trudeau, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence – Anita Vandenbeld and Member of parliament – Marie-France Lalonde.