Addis Ababa, May 27, 2026 (FMC) — Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed today inaugurated the Borana Cultural Center in Yabelo town of Oromia Region.
In a social media message shared after the inauguration, the Prime Minister noted that the foundation stone for the center was laid in 2020 (2013 Ethiopian Calendar) by First Lady Zinash Tayachew, and that the facility has now officially opened for service.
He stated that the center was constructed using proceeds from the sale of the book Medemer, and is built on 57.6 hectares of land.
According to the Prime Minister, the cultural center features a conference hall with the capacity to accommodate up to 2,000 people, along with a heritage museum, and is expected to play a key role in preserving and transmitting the culture, history, and philosophy of the Borana people to future generations.
The Gadaa system is a traditional Oromo socio-political governance system in which leadership is organized through age-based groups that take power in fixed cycles. It is based on a structured rotation of leadership, collective decision-making, and a legal and social order that regulates community life, including governance, justice, and cultural norms.