FERTILE FANCIES


FERTILE FANCIES

A corrugated tin fence is painted over with greenery and trees around Arat Kilo as the corridor development project snaking through the neighbourhood nears its end. The high fences have become ubiquitous across Addis Ababa, hielding locations incompatible with the city's reimagined aesthetic. Mayor Adanech Abiebe revealed two weeks ago that the ambitious project tallied up to around 33 billion Br with meticulous spending.The project, closely overseen by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD), is reviewed every 100 days for performance and progress. While the majority of the architectural concepts stem from a city-wide structural plan devised nearly seven years back, novel elements were introduced by the current administration toward realizing 'smart city' goals. A concerted effort has been launched by authorities to replace combustion engine vehicles with electric alternatives, endorse cycling and promote waking

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In-Picture

UNCOVERED WILDERNESS

The long-shuttered plot at Mexico Square finally breathes again as fences come down, revealing a vast open space once hidden from public view earmarked for Abyssinia Bank's future headquarters. The site now stretches bare and sunlit, drawing curious passersby, midday loungers, and a lone umbrella-shaded onlooker. In a city of concrete and congestion, even temporary emptiness feels like a quiet revolution. It now showcases a wilderness in the middle of the busy streets of Mexico...


In-Picture

GO SEEK

Minalesh Tera, one of Addis Abeba's busiest and most chaotic markets, draws hundreds if not thousands daily in search of cheaper essentials. Shoulder-to-shoulder crowds navigate narrow, dusty paths between makeshift stalls, where vendors hawk everything from onions and engine parts to plasticware and traditional remedies. It's a sensory overload and a lifeline rolled into one, an open-air maze where the practical meets the unexpected, and affordability drives the city's daily grind...


In-Picture

TERMINAL TREASURES

From left: Jantirar Abay, Deputy Mayor and Head of the Industry Bureau; Ayderus H.M. Farag, CEO of Alfarag Trading PLC; and Getaneh Adera, Acting CEO of Ethiopian Airports, chat during the opening of Alfarag's refurbished duty-free shops at Bole International Airport on June 18, 2025. The two stores, located in Terminal 2's Departure Hall, span 1,000sqm. Alfarag, established in Dire Dawa in 1923, became Ethiopia's first private duty-free retailer in 2003...