Anniversary Memories

Anniversary Memories:

The first batch of Bahir Dar Poly Technic Institute students graduated on Sene 25, 1959 E.C in the presence of Emperor Haileselassie, Ambassador Leonid Teplov (USSR Ambassador to Ethiopia) and other dignitaries like Crown Prince Assfaw Wossen, Prince Imiru Haileselassie, Prince Wossen Seged Mekonnen, Commander Iskinder Desta (Vice commander of Navy), Lij Kassa Woldemariam (President of Haileselassie I University), Akaleworq Habtewold (Minister of Education and Fine Arts), Million Neqiniq (Vice Minister of Education  and Fine Arts), Ambassador Yilma Deressa (Minister of Finance), Dr.Haile Giorgis Worqineh (Vice Minister of Labor), and Tsehafe Tizaz Tefera-Worq Kidanewolde (Minister of Palace).

Among the 232 students admitted as freshmen, only 151 managed to complete their studies of whom Tesfaye Biftu, now Professor, seen below in the picture receiving his diploma from H.I.M Haileselassie, completed top from his  Industrial Chemistry program and received gold medal.

The professor has became the most influential medicinal chemist in he USA at present. He was the program lead and key innovator in the discovery of 12 drug candidates including Marizev™, the Once Weekly DPP-4 Inhibitor anti-diabetic agent, and key player in the Januvia™ project which has a total sales over 70 billion since its introduction in 2006. He has more than 95 patents registered in his name.