Addis Ababa, November 13, 2026 (FMC) – Addis Ababa is mobilizing government resources, private investment, housing cooperatives and individual initiatives to advance Ethiopia’s five-year national undertaking to build 1.5 million homes, Mayor Adanech Abiebie disclosed.
Speaking during an inspection of ongoing housing developments alongside Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the Mayor explained that the city has established multiple housing delivery mechanisms to translate the national commitment announced at Guba into tangible results.
The approaches include homes financed through the city administration’s budget, public-private partnerships, savings-based housing cooperatives and individual construction.
The city is also supporting housing initiatives organised by professional groups, including teachers, health professionals and police officers.
Adanech said the programme is designed not only to increase the supply of homes but also to respond to the diverse housing needs of the city’s residents.
Those displaced from redevelopment areas are being prioritised for accommodation in the new developments, particularly residents whose former houses were in severely deteriorated conditions.
The administration is also facilitating the completion of housing projects undertaken by cooperatives.
She noted that Addis Ababa has one of the country’s most acute housing shortages, with many residents having waited for years despite saving to own homes.
Some have been waiting for 12, 14 or even 20 years, underscoring the scale of unmet demand and the need to accelerate construction.
The Mayor emphasised that the administration is working to deliver homes as quickly as possible while progressively responding to applicants’ needs.
Although it cannot accommodate all home seekers at once, the city is expanding opportunities through different housing arrangements and continuing to launch new developments.
She further called on residents to strengthen their savings and work collectively to make homeownership more accessible. The government, she explained, will subsidise part of the housing costs, while beneficiaries are expected to contribute the remaining amount.
Adanech expressed confidence that sustained cooperation between the government and residents would help advance the housing undertaking, describing home construction as one of the key priorities in making Addis Ababa a more liveable city.