(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Muscat- A group of nine Omani goodwill ambassadors began their road trip to Africa on Tuesday.
A ceremony to see them off was held at the Oman Automobile Association (OAA). The group, Team Adventure is undertaking a tour from Muscat to Cape Town, South Africa, and on to Namibia on the Atlantic coast of Africa by road.
The group aims to explore new places in the African continent, spread goodwill message about Oman and also celebrate Mandela Day. Speaking at the ceremony, South African Embassy's Political Counsellor/Deputy Head of Mission, Busi Mangoegape, said, 'We're honoured to be here to send off these young Omani goodwill ambassadors on their trip which will further strengthen the already warm relations between the two countries. An important part of their journey will be the celebration of Mandela Day.
'In South Africa, there is a call to make every day Mandela Day. We admire what these young peace ambassadors are doing, as we admire Oman's peacemaking role under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said.'
She said that such trips are good for both countries. 'They develop people-to-people contact and it is a win-win situation because while there, the group will spread the message about Oman among South Africans and when they come back they will talk about South Africa. Such trips should be encouraged as they promote tourism.'
The motto of the trip is, 'Journey to Remember' and it will include covering around 35,000km. The journey from Muscat to Cape Town is expected to take a month. The group will first travel to the UAE, followed by Saudi Arabia, and from there a ferry to Sudan. The drive will continue through the African continent till Namibia. Sultan Hamood Hassan al Naamani, the group's leader, told Muscat Daily that the journey had been his dream since last year.
'After our successful drive from Muscat to Kigali in Rwanda and to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and Mombasa in Kenya last year, this time we wanted to go further down the continent to South Africa. Our aim is to explore new places and to celebrate Mandela Day, which is significant around the world.'
He added, 'We will drive 2,000km to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia from where we will take a ferry to Suakin port in Sudan. From there we plan to drive south to Ethiopia and then cross the border into Kenya. Then we'll turn west into Uganda and south towards Rwanda and then east towards Tanzania, then further south into Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho before reaching Cape Town in South Africa. We've also extended the initial list of countries to include Swaziland, Botswana, Lesotho and Namibia.'
He also spoke about the significance of Mandela Day which is celebrated on July 18 every year. 'Take action, Inspire change. Make every day a Mandela Day. No matter how small your action', Mandela Day is about changing the world for the better, just as Nelson Mandela did every day.' Sulaiman Ali al Ghafri, a group member said, 'We will be travelling in three vehicles.' He said the group hopes to leave a mark about Oman. 'Our vehicles are decorated with Omani flags and we will talk about Oman and peace.'
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