Chambers Of Commerce Locked In Dispute Over Rights To Mexico Square Headquarters

The Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (ECCSA) has moved to evict the Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (AACCSA) from the building the two organizations have shared as a headquarters in Mexico Square, Addis Ababa, for the better part of two decades.

The long-standing dispute, according to inside sources, boiled over when ECCSA demanded that AACCSA pay monthly rent for the offices it leases within the building, which also houses the offices of seven other chambers of commerce from around the country.

AACCSA and the other tenant chambers had been subject to a discounted rate (40 percent of market value) for a year, following a decision from the ECCSA board to begin charging rent in 2024.

However, AACCSA’s inability or refusal to pay rent has forced the Ethiopian chamber to seal its offices and bar its staff from entry, according to Sebsib Abafira, who was elected ECCSA president in July 2024.

He alleges that AACCSA violated the terms of its lease agreement with ECCSA, and justified his organization’s move to seal the office space as a valid legal decision.

ECCSA decided to begin charging rent in an attempt to cover costs associated with administering the building, including taxes and other expenses, according to the President. Prior to the move, AACCSA had no obligation to pay rent on the basis of a past agreement between the leadership of the two chambers.

Sebsib says the Addis Ababa Chamber and the other chambers housed within the property had been paying their rent regularly before AACCSA allegedly decided to cease payments.

A source who has served on the boards of both chambers told The Reporter that AACCSA’s objection to paying rent stems from a past decision from the Ministry of Trade granting ECCSA property rights but obliging it to accommodate other chambers of commerce within the building.

The long-serving board member views the dispute as a stain on the reputations of both chambers, and criticizes ECCSA’s unilateral decision to begin charging rent as being misguided.

The dispute with ECCSA comes as a blow to the Addis Ababa Chamber, whose plans to erect its own headquarters in the capital have made little progress.

In 2013, AACCSA unveiled the design plans for a headquarters its leaders estimated would cost upwards of 100 million Birr to construct at the time. However, a plot of land allotted to the Chamber has since been reclaimed by the Addis Ababa City Administration owing to a failure to begin construction on time.

Sources say the Chamber has filed a request for another plot and is awaiting a response from the City Administration. In December 2023, Chamber leadership told The Reporter that the planned headquarters project was expected to have a price tag in the billions of Birr.