Viewpoints | May 23,2021
In a City Hall adorned with the theme of the New Year, Adanech Abiebie, 48, walked to a raised podium to take her oath for the highest executive office of the Addis Abeba City Council. She is the first female mayor of the 31 who had served the capital since its foundation over a century ago. Ironically, the diplomatic capital of Africa owes its founding to another female, Empress Taitu.
The only thing that could have taken away from the historical moment last Tuesday was that Adanech has been serving the capital as de facto mayor, but technically Deputy Mayor, for over a year. Like her predecessor, Takele Uma, now minister of Mines & Petroleum, Adanech held the highest office a municipal official not elected to the City Council could attain by law. After winning a landslide vote from the Nefas Silk District in the elections in June, the road was paved for her mayorship.
Mayor Adanech and her Council members, who want to see a "New Chapter" for Addis Abeba, will be in charge of a city at a significant juncture in its over a century-long existence. It is by far the most thriving part of the country, no less because it is undergoing an urban renewal in the form of the Beautifying Sheger Project and its attraction for Ethiopia's young and aspiring. The city has also been spared from the vicious, large-scale destruction and violence the rest of the country is beholding.
But there are also several short- and long-term challenges. The rising cost of living, wildly escalating property and food prices are the most glaring in the immediate future. It will be the most significant cause of urban poverty for quite some time to come. The long-term impediments to growth that would consume Madam Mayor’s attention will be housing shortages, poor public utility services provision, rapid migration from rural areas, unregulated urban sprawl, and Addis Ababa’s complex relationship with the surrounding Oromia Regional State. She has the job cut out for her.
PUBLISHED ON
Oct 02,2021 [ VOL
22 , NO
1118]
Viewpoints | May 23,2021
Fortune News | Nov 15,2018
Radar | Oct 09,2021
Editorial | Dec 11,2021
Radar | Apr 03,2021
Viewpoints | Oct 02,2021
View From Arada | Mar 26,2022
Agenda | Oct 09,2021
News Analysis | Jun 19,2021
Radar | Jul 11,2021
Dec 22 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Charged with transforming colossal state-owned enterprises into modern and competitiv...
Aug 18 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Although predictable Yonas Zerihun's job in the ride-hailing service is not immune to...
Jul 28 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Unhabitual, perhaps too many, Samuel Gebreyohannes, 38, used to occasionally enjoy a couple of beers at breakfast. However, he recently swit...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Investors who rely on tractors, trucks, and field vehicles for commuting, transporting commodities, and f...
Apr 13 , 2025
The federal government will soon require one year of national service from university...
Apr 6 , 2025
Last week, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group...
Mar 30 , 2025
When the private satellite channel, Ethiopian Broadcasting Service (EBS), aired an em...
Mar 23 , 2025
Getachew Redda, head of the Tigray Interim Regional Administration (TIRA), at least u...
Loading your updates...