at Google ScholarTitle data
Terrefe, Biruk:
Urban layers of political rupture : the 'new' politics of Addis Ababa's megaprojects.
In: Journal of Eastern African Studies.
Vol. 14
(2020)
Issue 3
.
- pp. 375-395.
ISSN 1753-1063
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17531055.2020.1774705
Abstract in another language
From the Derg’s restoration of Meskel Square for its military parades and Meles Zenawi’s Light-Rail Transit (LRT) and condominium social housing projects to Abiy Ahmed’s high-end luxury real estate and urban tourism schemes, megaprojects have collapsed Ethiopia’s political history into an urban bricolage of shifting ideologies and new priorities. At this critical juncture, where questions of political rupture and continuity become salient, this paper examines what we can learn about Ethiopia’s political dynamics through its latest urban megaprojects. Drawing on ‘LaGare’ and ‘Beautifying Sheger’ as case studies, this article argues that there is a new urban aesthetic emerging in Addis Ababa targeting domestic elites, the Ethiopian diaspora and tourists. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Gulf-emulated luxury real estate projects and major riverside renewal schemes are intended to generate revenue through increased land values and urban tourism. At the same time, issues around inclusive consultation with local stakeholders, the lack of coordination with the relevant bureaucracies and the highly centralized decision-making process are reminiscent of the modus operandi of previous Ethiopian regimes. These urban megaprojects are useful analytical lenses to disentangle political rupture from operational continuity.
Further data
| Item Type: | Article in a journal |
|---|---|
| Refereed: | Yes |
| Keywords: | Ethiopia; Abiy Ahmed; Prosperity Party; EPRDF; cities; infrastructure; urbanization |
| Institutions of the University: | Faculties Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Sociology of Africa Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Sociology of Africa > Chair Sociology of Africa - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Jana Hönke |
| Result of work at the UBT: | No |
| DDC Subjects: | 300 Social sciences 300 Social sciences > 300 Social sciences, sociology and anthropology 300 Social sciences > 320 Political science 900 History and geography > 910 Geography, travel 900 History and geography > 960 History of Africa |
| Date Deposited: | 04 Oct 2024 07:49 |
| Last Modified: | 07 Oct 2024 06:37 |
| URI: | https://eref.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/90534 |