Real Estate Developers Build a Lobby as Rules Tighten

May 31 , 2025. By BEZAWIT HULUAGER ( FORTUNE STAFF WRITER )

Real-estate developers have formed a new lobbying group, the Ethiopian Real Estate Developers' Association, after years of working piecemeal while rules tightened and public scepticism grew. The new lobby group's leaders say they will offer a single negotiating channel as policymakers reshape how houses are financed, built and sold.

More than 20 developers, including Ayat, Jemboro and Bamakon Real Estate, had previously been preparing for the launch. Flintstone Engineering & Homes has also joined, confirmed Brook Shimelis, board member. The Association’s inaugural general assembly is scheduled for June 7, 2025. Members will pay a yet-to-be-disclosed registration fee and make voluntary contributions to cover running costs, an arrangement leaders say is essential for self-financing.

Alemayehu Ketema, founder and general manager of Alemayehu Ketema General Contractor, was elected as the founding president. His company, launched in 1989, now builds across Ethiopia and East Africa. He is also a shareholder of Country Club Developers (CCD) Plc, a gated community in Legatafo, in the north-eastern outskirts of Addis Abeba. Established in 2002, CCD has already handed over 2,200 upscale villas and 1,000 houses for middle-income families.

Kedir Seid, an architect who spent 17 years with DVM Developers and KDI Construction, will serve as secretary-general.

The lobby group arrived months after Parliament approved the first comprehensive real-estate law, designed to protect buyers. Developers are obliged to complete 80pc of a project before title deeds can be transferred unless alternative terms are spelt out. Advance payments have to sit in closed, escrow-type accounts supervised by regulators.

A follow-up regulation drafted by the Ministry of Urban Development & Infrastructure is now circulating. Officials forwarded the draft to the Association's leaders, who had already submitted comments for consideration, and the group stated that it had offered its feedback.

Industry watchers say the umbrella body could become the primary forum for negotiating future rules, assuming its disparate members remain aligned during what promises to be a lengthy and protracted federal rule-making process over time.

PUBLISHED ON May 31,2025 [ VOL 26 , NO 1309]