Real estate developments and the housing supply issue in Ethiopia - Case studies from Addis Ababa

Abstract

The production of built up space in urban areas has been transforming from user-producer to a commodified form of production. Kesearch indicates that the manner of production is an indicator of the level of urbanisation of a country/or a city. Real estate development is a specialised form of builtspace production for sale or rent. In this paper, the awhor has critically reviewed the manner of real estate form of housing development in Ethiopia and has tried to show whether or not the way it operates creates access to housing to the low-income group. The author argues that manner of land ownership and its allocation in Ethiopia play a pivotal role in making real estate-developed housing less accessible. Based on case studies from Addis Ababa, the author recommends ways of addressing the critical shortcomings of real estate developments in Ethiopia