About us

The Goethe-Institut is the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach.

We promote knowledge of the German language abroad and foster international cultural cooperation. We convey a comprehensive picture of Germany by providing information on Germany's cultural, social and political life.

Through our network of Goethe-Institutes, Goethe Centres, cultural societies and reading rooms, alongside our examination and language learning centres, we perform the principal tasks of cultural and educational policy abroad. We work in partnership with public and private cultural bodies, the German federal states and municipalities, and the corporate sector.

We draw on the rich variety of our many-faceted open society and Germany's lively culture. We combine the experiences and conceptions of our partners in Germany and abroad with our professional skills and engage in a dialogue rooted in partnership. In doing so, we function as service providers and partners for everyone taking an active interest in Germany and the German language and culture, and act independently with no political affiliations.

We face the cultural policy challenges of globalisation and develop innovative concepts for a world made more human through mutual understanding, where cultural diversity is seen as an asset.

When the Goethe-Institut Addis Ababa was founded in 1962, It was one of the first branches established in Africa. An important task of the Institute is to promote cultural exchange between Germany, Ethiopia and Europe. In this, connection with that, the Goethe-Institut organizes and supports a broad range of cultural events to propagate German Culture and intensify cultural dialoge between the two countries with wide spectrum.

We are offering "German as a forign language" courses for adults and are the only Institute in Ethiopia to provide an internationally recognized certificate for German Language

The information centre of the Goethe-Institut Addis Ababa serves as a resource for those interested in contemporary Germany, and for those interested in teaching and studying German as a foreign language. More than 4,000 books, videos, audio-cassettes, DVDs and CD-ROMs are available. In addition, we offer computers for access to the internet in Germany and an extensive on-line directory of relevant German websites.