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COSMETIC CRESCENDO


COSMETIC CRESCENDO

A city at the cusp of an aesthetic reformation is laid bare from the top floor of a high-rise in the capital. The contours of an old city trace the edges of an emerging metropolis as Addis Abeba sheds its wrinkles for a sleek cosmopolitan look. The ninety-day project gushing across the city entails mass resettlement and billions in compensation. Just two weeks into the demolition around Piassa, the City Administration has revealed plans to lease of land to prospective developers who can meet the new standards. A delicate balance exists between development projects and resettlement, with experiences in other African countries illustrating that poor planning could leave the displaced worse off.

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IMPERIAL WITNESS

Excavated earth now surrounds the gilded bronze Lion of Judah Monument near Legehar (La Gare) railway station on Ras Mekonnen Avenue, as preparations get underway to move the monument 60 metres backward to make way for road-widening works. Nothing on the monument itself will change; it will be carefully relocated intact, continuing to face the Addis Abeba Municipality Office. Standing atop a black granite pedestal bearing the likenesses of Ethiopia's last four emperors, the Lion was sculpted by...


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WHEELED EVOLUTION

A bike lane once foreign to Addis Abeba is now busy serving its intended purpose, and then some. Along African Avenue, beside the walls of the Skylight Hotel, a man rides a small electric scooter while another pushes a two-wheeled wheelbarrow loaded with cement sacks along the same lane. Intended exclusively for cyclists, the lane has become an unlikely meeting point for two forms of wheeled transport, leaving one to wonder whether the rules call for a citation or applause. The scene captures a...


In-Picture

STREET BALLERS

Children kick a ball around the parking lots surrounding Entoto Park, turning an otherwise quiet morning into an impromptu football pitch. One boy, wearing the jersey of St. George Football Club, one of Ethiopia's most decorated teams, is a reminder that football remains very much alive. The government has built football fields across the city, yet it is still common to find people playing in streets, parking lots and open spaces. Perhaps the fields are too costly for some, or perhaps football i...