Residents in Meshualekia told to prepare for demolitions
The Addis Ababa City Administration has cut short the Customs Commission’s plans to construct a headquarters in the capital, instead allocating a plot of land initially reserved for the project towards an expansion of the Oromia Cultural Center.
The 12,000 square meter plot in question lies in Woreda 10 of Kirkos Sub-city, directly across from the building currently serving as the Commission’s head office in the area commonly known as Meshualekia. It is also adjacent to the premises of the Cultural Center.
The Commission has been spending close to 67 million birr a year on rent for the 15-storey building it leases, according to officials sources.
A notice issued to the area’s residents in November 2023 indicated the city Land Development and Management Bureau was gearing up to demolish 92 residential properties to make way for a new Customs headquarters.
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However, the plans were suspended just three months after the notice was issued, according to residents.
“When they first announced the Customs Commission’s project, they instructed us to halt any plans for renovation and told us we shouldn’t even paint walls as the demolitions were going to be carried out sooner than we had thought,” said a mother of two who lives in the area, speaking anonymously.
“But just three months after that, the Bureau called a meeting and told us we could go ahead with our plans. They said the Administration did not have the budget to cover compensation expenses. Now, they’re at it again.”
Residents who spoke to The Reporter say that in late January 2025, the Land Bureau once again notified them to submit the necessary paperwork and evidence for relocation and compensation considerations.
The latest notice recalled the previous announcement about the Commission’s would-be project, and informed residents that plans had changed and their property would instead be demolished to make way for the expansion of the Oromia Cultural Center.
An anonymous official at the Land Development and Management Bureau confirmed the new plans to The Reporter.
“The decision was passed by the City Administration, which has informed us that the land is required for the Cultural Center expansion project. We don’t know the reasoning behind the change. The Administration only instructed us to reorganize the residential data needed, so we’re doing just that,” said the official.
Officials of the Commission and the Oromia Regional State Cultural and Tourism Bureau could not be reached for comment
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