Businesses in Bishoftu Flourish for Ireecha Festival

Bishoftu, September 29/2018 Various businesses in the town of Bishoftu have flourished as the town has engulfed with an influx of visitors across the country for the yearly Ireecha festival. The businesses selling traditional clothes and goods as well as clothes and cap printed with different pictures is a lucrative business at this time of the year, as the town is visited by millions of people. Today, the town is receiving its guests come from different corner of the country for the Irrecha festival to be celebrated on Sunday at HoraHarsedi. Especially youths are walking in the town singing different traditional songs that depicts the Oromo culture. The influx gives the opportunity for service providers and traders to be profitable. ShimelisNigusu is a resident of Bishoftu town and he engaged in selling of different traditional materials with his eight friends. “We printed 2000 caps for this festival in addition to other things based on the interest of customers and the market is good and we feel very happy”, he said. He expected to be profitable as the materials are wanted by the visitors. TilahunAbdisa, a taxi driver, is another resident of Bishoftu, who is busy transporting people at the eve of the celebration. He even hopes that the demand will rise tomorrow as the people who headed to the lake where the celebration takes place. “I am very happy to host the guests and help them show direction with the spirit of love and unity”. He added that “I am eagerly waiting for this occasion”, many people entered to the town in the early morning and this is really productive”. Rosemery Hotel General Manager FirewKebede on his part said the Irrecha festival is bringing additional market for them. “We are preparing for the festival in special way to host our guests and the overall condition is very interesting’, he said, adding all the hotel rooms are already occupied. The General Manager hopes that the festival will be peaceful and colorful. Some 1020 youth drawn from the entire Oromia regional state are working to ensure peace and stability at the festival. Coordinator of the youth Lemma Gemechu said that the youth will be engaged in ensuring peaceful movement of celebrants in collaboration with the police as the town will host millions of people tomorrow. Last year, some 400 organized youth had played key role in ensuring peaceful movement of the people in areas where the event was took place. The IrreechaBirra, one of the intangible heritages of the country, Thanksgiving Day of the Oromo, is going to be celebrated in the presence of a large gathering by Lake Hora-Harsadi in Bishoftu on Sunday. Irrecha, athanksgiving festival of the Oromo people, celebrated every year at this time of the year at HoraHarsedi, a lake in the town of Bishoftu