Editing Addis Ababa (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of Addis Ababa}}
{{For timeline}}

===Prehistory===
A study based on DNA evidence from almost 1,000 people around the world suggests that early humans first traveled out of Africa via a place close to Addis Ababa, spreading from the region to the rest of the planet some time around 100,000 years ago.<ref name=":7">{{cite news |title=DNA Studies Trace Migration from Ethiopia |url=http://www.bnd.com/news/nation/story/262406.html |access-date=20 July 2021 |work=bnd.com |agency=bnd |publisher=Los Angeles Times |date=22 February 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20071020010637/http://www.bnd.com/news/nation/story/262406.html |archive-date=20 October 2007 |location=St. Louis}}</ref> The research indicated that genetic diversity decreases steadily the further one's ancestors travelled from Addis Ababa.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/21/AR2008022102739.html | title=Genetic Mutations Offer Insights on Human Diversity | newspaper=The Washington Post | first=David | last=Brown | date=22 February 2008 | access-date=23 April 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604224751/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/21/AR2008022102739.html?hpid=moreheadlines | archive-date=4 June 2011 | url-status=live | df=dmy-all }}</ref>

===Middle Ages===
Mount [[Entoto]], a high tableland to the north of current Addis Ababa, is one of a handful of sites put forward as a possible location for a medieval imperial capital known as Barara. This permanent fortified city was established during the early to mid-15th century and it served as the main residence of several successive emperors up to the early 16th-century reign of [[Dawit II|Libne Dengel]].<ref name="persee.fr">{{cite journal |last1=Pankhurst |first1=Richard |title=Barara, the Royal City of 15th and Early 16th Century (Ethiopia). Medieval and Other Early Settlements Between Wechecha Range and Mt Yerer |journal=Annales d'Éthiopie |year=2009 |volume=24 |issue=1 |pages=209–249 |doi=10.3406/ethio.2009.1394 |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/ethio_0066-2127_2009_num_24_1_1394}}</ref> The city was depicted standing between [[Mount Zuqualla]] and Menegasha on a map drawn by the Italian cartographer [[Fra Mauro]] in around 1450, and it was razed and plundered by [[Ahmed Gragn]] while the imperial army was trapped on the south of the [[Awash River]] in 1529, an event witnessed and documented two years later by the Yemeni writer Arab-Faqih. The suggestion that Barara was located on Mount Entoto is supported by the very recent discovery of a large medieval town overlooking Addis Ababa located between rock-hewn Washa Mikael and the more modern church of Entoto Maryam, founded in the late 19th century. Dubbed the Pentagon, the 30-hectare site incorporates a castle with 12 towers, along with 520 meters of stone walls measuring up to 5-meter high.<ref name="persee.fr"/> Described a "metropolis", Barara is estimated to have a population exceeding 160,000 people,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.academia.edu/26052539/The_shapes_of_medieval_Addis_Ababa |title=The shapes of medieval Addis Ababa |last=Vigano |first=Marco |access-date=11 April 2025 |via=Academia}}</ref> comparable to the largest European towns in 1500 CE, Paris and Naples.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.academia.edu/78567188/An_Introduction_to_Ethiopian_History_Axum_to_pre_Gondar_our_Middle_Ages |title=An Introduction to Ethiopian History, Axum to pre-Gondar, our 'Middle Ages'. |last=Vigano |first=Marco |via=Academia |access-date=11 April 2025}}</ref>

===Foundation===
{{Main article|Urban evolution of Addis Ababa}}
[[File:AbPalaisMénélikAddis-AbabaVers1900.jpg|thumb|Distant view of [[Menelik Palace]] in 1900]]

====Founding====
In 1886, settlement began in the valley south of the mountain in a place called Finfinne, a name which refers to the presence of hot springs. The site was chosen by Empress [[Taytu Betul]]. Initially, she built a house for herself near the "Filwuha" hot [[mineral springs]], where she and members of the Shewan Royal Court liked to take mineral baths. Empress Taytu persuaded Emperor [[Menelik II]] to move the capital from cold and windy [[Entoto]] to the plains below and named the new city Addis Ababa. By the next year large plots of land (Amharic: ሰፈር , ''sefer'') had been allocated to the major nobility, other important personages and some churches. The local [[Oromo people|Oromo]] tribes had their lands confiscated and many were displaced. The city was originally founded as a ''[[katama]]'' (royal camp), with the sefer laid out mirroring an army on the march. The lands of Fitawrari [[Habte Giyorgis]] were furthest to the west, while the [[Imperial Palace Addis Ababa|Imperial Palace]] of Menelik was in the centre, bracketed on each side by the leaders of the left (Qeñazmach) and right (Grazmach) wings of the army. The rear or area to the east of the palace was allocated to a Dejazmach or another prominent noble. Many of these original lands can still be traced back to the original military grants. Each sefer continued to be settled by each noble's retainers and slaves, usually brought from the lands he controlled. Among those ethnic groups, the [[Amhara people|Amhara]], the [[Oromo people|Oromo]], the [[Gurage people|Gurage]], the [[Dorze people|Dorze]] and the [[Tigrayans]] would come in the largest numbers.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Pankhurst |first=Richard |year=1982 |title=History of Ethiopian towns from the mid 19th century to 1935 |page=203}}</ref> The town grew by leaps and bounds. Not only for nobles, but also the site attracted numerous working classes including artisans, merchants, and foreign visitors.
[[File:British legation Addis Ababa 1910.jpg|thumb|The earliest urban dwelling typically made up of [[hut]] cluster. Here is an example of British legation pictured in 1910.]]
Early residential dwelling was typically made of circular huts; walls were constructed with mud (Amharic: ጭቃ, ''cheka'') and straw plastered on a wooden frame and thatched roofs. Addis Ababa's growth rate began with early rapid urbanization without preplanned intention. This was the time where nobilities embarked on concentrated permanent settlement, and altered by social patterns; i.e. each neighborhoods (''sefer'') was located on higher grounds, noncontiguous from adjacent settlements. The early social milieu contributed the contemporary admixture of a classic neighborhood. One of Emperor Menelik's contributions that are still visible today is the planting of numerous [[eucalyptus]] trees along the city streets.<ref>Pankhurst, p. 195</ref><ref name=":2" />

[[File:ETH-BIB-Mausoleum des Kaisers Menelik I. auf dem Hügel des grossen Gibi-Abessinienflug 1934-LBS MH02-22-0326.tif|thumb|The Te'eka Negist Mausoleum at [[Menelik Palace]] in Addis Ababa, 1934.]]

Moreover, the city held strong social organization patterns prior to the Italian invasion. According to [[Richard Pankhurst (Ethiopianist)|Richard Pankhurst]] (1968), the city's accelerated population growth was due to factors of provisional governors and their troops, the 1892 famine, and eventually the [[Battle of Adwa]]. Another includes the 1907 land act, municipal administration in 1909, and a railway and modernized transportation system boom beginning in the 20th century, culminating in continual growth. Additional supplements, for example the laying of [[Ethio-Djibouti Railways]] and topographical factors further led the city's boundary to expand southward.<ref name=":2" />

===20th century===
====Pre-Italian occupation (1916–1935)====
[[File:ETH-BIB-Flugbild von Addis Abeba-Abessinienflug 1934-LBS MH02-22-0214.tif|thumb|left|Addis Ababa in aerial view (1934)]]
[[Gebrehiwot Baykedagn]] took major administrative division post, and Addis Ababa–Djibouti railways in 1916,<ref name=":8">{{Cite book |last=Zewde |first=Bahru |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WbVZzRk4XjoC&q=addis+ababa+in+20th+century |title=Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century |date=2002 |publisher=J. Currey |isbn=978-0-85255-452-4 |language=en |access-date=31 May 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230704152314/https://books.google.com/books?id=WbVZzRk4XjoC&q=addis+ababa+in+20th+century |url-status=live }}</ref> which also connects Addis Ababa with French Somaliland port of Djibouti.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yw9fwgjr5CkC&pg=PA277 |title=Daily Consular and Trade Reports |date=1927 |publisher=Department of Commerce and Labor, Bureau of Manufactures |language=en |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230704145436/https://books.google.com/books?id=Yw9fwgjr5CkC&pg=PA277 |url-status=live }}</ref>  Ras Tafari Mekonnen, later became Emperor [[Haile Selassie I]] was the most powerful figure in the city following his appointment in 1917. He transformed the city by recognizing the importance of modernization and urbanization, and he distributed wealth to support emerging class. From this point, Ras Tafari gained a legitimate power as regency council in 1918.

[[File:ETH-BIB-Strassenszene in Addis Abeba-Abessinienflug 1934-LBS MH02-22-0362.tif|thumb|Marketplace in Addis Ababa (c. February 1934)]]
By 1926 and 1927, a large-scale economic revolution occurred, a surplus of coffee production began growing as a result of [[capital accumulation]]. Profiting from this wealth, the bourgeoisie benefited the city by constructing new, stone-fitted houses with imported European furniture and an importation of the latest automobiles, and expansion of banks across the locales. The total register of automobiles were 76 in 1926 and went to 578 in 1930. The first popular road transportation opened between Addis Ababa and Djibouti, about 97 miles northward in the direction of [[Dessie]]. Initially intended to connect Italian occupied [[Assab]] with Addis Ababa in the [[Italo-Ethiopian Treaty of 1928]], the road was considered for motor vehicle travel. The highway was important to the French railway of Djibouti and freight rate was very high with a lack of [[Competition (economics)|competition]], and increase of cargo between Ethiopia and Assab.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Freidson |first=Irving |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4XyqGRX6oBcC&pg=PA24 |title=Motor Roads in Africa: (except Union of South Africa). |date=1930 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |language=en |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230704145436/https://books.google.com/books?id=4XyqGRX6oBcC&pg=PA24 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1930, the Emperor was crowned and proceeded with new technologies and building infrastructure. Among them, he installed power lines and telephones, and erected several monuments (such as [[Meyazia 27 Square]]).

====Italian occupation (1936–1941)====
[[File:Military Parade of Italian Troops in Addis Ababa (1936).jpg|thumb|Military parade of Italian troops in Addis Ababa (1936)]]
Following all the major engagements of [[Second Italo-Abyssinian War|their invasion]], the [[Fascist Italy (1922–43)|Italian]] troops from the colony of [[Italian Eritrea|Eritrea]] entered Addis Ababa on 5 May 1936. Along with [[Dire Dawa]], the city had been spared the aerial bombardment (including the use of [[chemical weapons]] such as [[mustard gas]]) practiced elsewhere in Ethiopia. This also allowed [[Franco-Ethiopian Railway|its railway]] to [[Djibouti]] to remain intact. After the occupation, the city served as the [[Amedeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta|Duke of Aosta]]'s capital for unified [[Italian East Africa]] until 1941, when it was abandoned in favor of [[Battle of Amba Alagi (1941)|Amba Alagi]] and other redoubts during the [[Second World War]]'s [[East African campaign (World War II)|East African Campaign]]. According to Soviet estimates, 15,000 Ethiopians casualties were victims of chemical weapons, especially by [[sulfur mustard]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w0q6DQAAQBAJ&pg=PT66 |title=Weapons of War: Environmental Impact: Environmental Impact |date=2013-08-15 |publisher=KW Publishers Pvt Ltd |isbn=978-93-85714-71-9 |language=en |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230704145512/https://books.google.com/books?id=w0q6DQAAQBAJ&pg=PT66 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Italian ambition regarding Addis Ababa was to create a beautified colonial capital city along with a new master plan launched by seven architects such as [[Marcello Piacentini]], Alessandro Bianchi, [[Enrico Del Debbio]], [[Giuseppe Vaccaro]], [[Le Corbusier]], [[Ignazio Guidi]] and [[Cesare Valle]]. Despite contradictory and different ideas for each other, the plan was intended to focus on the general architectural plan of the city. Two preparations were approved from the master plan: the Le Corbusier and Guidi and Valle. During an invitation to Mussolini, the French Swiss architect Le Corbusier illustrated the master plan in a guideline sketch involving a traversing route monumental structure by a grand [[boulevard]] across the city from north to south, as he extracted from his 1930–1933 Radiant City concept. His two counterparts, Guildi and Valle prepared the master plan in summer 1936 likely emphasizing fascist ideology with monumental structure and no native Ethiopian participation in designing sector. Two parallel axis were drawn in European character connecting [[Arada (district of Addis Ababa)|Arada]]/Giyorgis with the railway station to the south end five kilometers long and varied width spanning from 40 to 90 meters.<ref name=":4" />

On 5 May 1941, the city was liberated by Major [[Orde Wingate]] and [[Emperor of Ethiopia|Emperor]] [[Haile Selassie]] for Ethiopian [[Gideon Force]] and Ethiopian resistance in time to permit Emperor Haile Selassie's return on 5 May 1941, five years to the day after he had left.

====Post-Italian occupation (1941–1974)====
In the aftermath, Addis Ababa suffered from economic stagnation and rapid population growth, the inner-city affected by urban morphology initiated by Italian occupation and the peripheral area were in urban sprawl. In 1946, Haile Selassie invited famous British master planner Sir [[Patrick Abercrombie]] with goals of modelling and beautifying the city to become the capital for Africa. By this organizing model, Abercrombie launched the master plan with neighborhood units surrounded by green parkways, and he was encouraged to draw [[ring road]]s characterized by radial shapes to channel traffic pathway from the central area.<ref name=":4" />

His careful master plan of a major traffic route was completed by segregating neighborhood units, as he extracted from his 1943 [[London]] traffic problem. In 1959, the British consultant team named Bolton Hennessy and Partners commissioned an improvement of Abercrombie's 1954–1956 satellite towns. From the place, they did not incorporated outer area like Mekenissa and West of the old Air Port in the proposal, while Rapi, Gefersa, [[Akaky Kaliti|Kaliti]] and Kotebe proposed as outlet of [[Jimma]], [[Ambo, Oromia|Ambo]] and [[Dessie]] respectively (the four regional highways). The Hennessy and Partners illustration would be physically larger to current size of Addis Ababa with surrounded [[Satellite city|satellite towns]]. In 1965, the French Mission for Urban Studies and Habitat led by [[Luis De Marien]] launched another master plan responsible to create monumental axis through [[Addis Ababa City Hall]] with an extension across Gofa Mazoria in the southern part of the city.  Marien's difference to the previous Italian master plan was the use of single [[Monumental Axis|monumental axis]] while they used the double one.<ref name=":4" />

Haile Selassie also helped to form the [[Organisation of African Unity]] in 1963, which was later dissolved in 2002 and replaced by the [[African Union]] (AU), which is also headquartered in the city, airports and industrial parks. The [[United Nations Economic Commission for Africa]] founded in 1958, also has its headquarters in Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa was also the site of the Council of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in 1965. Pankhurst (1962) noted in a survey of total land of 212 square kilometers, 58% owned by 1,768, owing to 10,000 square meters, and 12% were given to church whereas other small areas were still acquired in the name of posthumous nobilities such as ''Dejazemach'' [[Wube Haile Mariam]], ''Fitawrari'' Aba Koran, and a bridge named "Fitawrari Habtegiorgis" after [[Habte Giyorgis Dinagde]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last1=Alemayehu |first1=Elias Yitbarek |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E9l9DwAAQBAJ&q=addis+ababa+history |title=The Transformation of Addis Ababa: A Multiform African City |last2=Stark |first2=Laura |date=2018-11-30 |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |isbn=978-1-5275-2272-5 |language=en |access-date=31 May 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230704145437/https://books.google.com/books?id=E9l9DwAAQBAJ&q=addis+ababa+history |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the 1965 master plan, the city covered an area of 21,000 hectares and would increase to 51,000 hectares by 1984 master plan.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last=Tufa |first=Dandena |date=2008 |title=Historical Development of Addis Ababa: plans and realities |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41967609 |journal=Journal of Ethiopian Studies |volume=41 |issue=1/2 |pages=27–59 |jstor=41967609 |issn=0304-2243 |access-date=19 July 2021 |archive-date=19 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210719135031/https://www.jstor.org/stable/41967609 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Churchill road ca 1960.jpg|thumb|Churchill Road in 1960]]
In 1965, the first student march took place in response to the feudal imperial government of Haile Selassie, in which they chanted "Land for the Tiller", culminating in a [[Marxist–Leninist]] movement in Ethiopia. In addition, the [[1973 oil crisis]] heavily impacted the city. 1,500 peasants in Addis Ababa marched to plead for food to be returned by police, and intellectual from [[Addis Ababa University]] forced the government to take a measure against the spreading famine, a report which Haile Selassie government denounced as "fabrication". Haile Selassie responded later "rich and poor have always existed and will, Why? Because there are those that work...and those that prefer to do nothing...Each individual is responsible for his misfortunes, his fate." Students around the city gathered to protest in February 1974; eventually Haile Selassie was successfully deposed from office in 1974 by a group of police officers. Later, the group named themselves [[Derg]], officially "Provisional Military Administrative Council" (PMAC).<ref>{{Citation |last=Kumar |first=B. G. |editor1-first=Jean |editor1-last=Drèze |editor2-first=Amartya |editor2-last=Sen |title=3 Ethiopian Famines 1973–1985: A Case-Study |date=1991 |url=https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198286363.001.0001/acprof-9780198286363-chapter-4 |work=The Political Economy of Hunger: Volume 2: Famine Prevention |place=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198286363.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-828636-3 |access-date=2022-03-20 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The city had only 10 woredas.<ref name=":4" />
[[File:Addis Ababa 6 Oct 1973 - 03.jpg|thumb|Marketplace on 3 October 1973]]

====The Derg administration (1974–1991)====
After the Derg came to power, roughly two-third of housing stock transferred to rental housing. The population growth declined from 6.5% to 3.7%. In 1975, the Derg nationalized "extra" rental structures built by private stockholders. As a result, the ''Proclamationon No. 47/1975'' issued weakened buildings with small amount of living was administered by ''[[Wards of Ethiopia|kebele]]'' units, while rental houses with large quality fell under [[Agency for Rental Housing Administration]] (ARHA). If those rental properties value less than 100 birr (US$48.31), they would be put under kebele administration.<ref name=":2" /> The administrative divisions showed an increase of woredas to 25 and 284 kebeles.<ref name=":4" />

Hungarian architect C.K. Polonyi was the first person to embark the city's master plan during the Derg period with assistance of the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing. He used two formula concentrating an integration Addis Ababa with suburbs of rural areas and developing inner-city. Polonyi also worked to redesign [[Meskel Square]], which was renamed Abiyot Square by the time, implemented immediately after the name change.<ref name=":4" />

In 1986, the Italo-Ethiopian master plan was set up by 45 Ethiopian professional along with 75 Italian experts with 207 sectorial reports documented as references. The plan dealt with a balanced urban system and services in urban area such as water supply. Akaki incorporated to Addis Ababa to supply industrial and freight terminal services. The bureaucratic rule of the Derg postponed the master plan for eight years until 1994, which caused failure of basic issues in public service and unplanned development.<ref name=":4" />

====Federal Democratic Republic (since 1991)====
On 28 May 1991, the [[Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front]] (EPRDF), a coalition party in course of [[Fall of the Derg regime|overthrowing the Derg]], seized Addis Ababa. They entered Menelik II Avenue and ordered a curfew for 24 hours. According to a witness, residents of Addis Ababa were ignorant and not terrified by the event, as the military told them everything was safe. The military went to central locations of the city (such as Hilton Hotel) and displayed banners  "Peace, Solidarity, Friendship". At 5:30 am, they took control of the presidential palace and large-scale tanks were seen entering the area.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Addis Ababa falls to dawn onslaught |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/1991/may/29/fromthearchive |access-date=2022-03-20 |website=The Guardian |archive-date=20 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201354/https://amp.theguardian.com/theguardian/1991/may/29/fromthearchive |url-status=live }}</ref> 
 
[[File:T-55 Ethiopian Civil War 1991.JPEG|thumb|Tank in street of Addis Ababa shortly after the seizure of [[Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front]] (EPRDF) from the [[Derg]] in 1991]]
A [[1995 Constitution of Ethiopia|new constitution]] was adapted in 1994 and enacted a year later; while all cities in Ethiopia accountable rule by regional authority, Addis Ababa (Proclamation No 87/1997) and [[Dire Dawa]] (Proclamation No 416/2004) remained chartered cities, with mandates for self-governing and developmental centers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 April 2022 |title=Addis Ababa City Government Revised Charter Proclamation |url=https://chilot.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/proclamation-no-35.pdf |website=Federal Negarit Gazeta |access-date=22 April 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220704202543/https://chilot.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/proclamation-no-35.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The ''Proclamation No. 112/1995'' legitimized privatization of many government buildings, with a few exceptions, and the kebele buildings remained in tenure. The kebele dwelling and their largely unplanned settings continued to incorporated core areas of Addis Ababa{{Clarify|date=September 2023}}.<ref name=":2" />

===21st century===
[[File:Addis Ababa aerial approach 2009-08-27 15-26-13.jpg|thumb|Addis Ababa landscape taken on 27 August 2009]]
From the end of 1998, new project was launched by Addis Ababa City Administration naming Office for Revision of Addis Ababa Master Plan (ORAAMP), covering from 1999 to 2003. The plan goal was to meet the standard of market economy with favorable political system resembles the revised 1986 master plan in terms of urban area.<ref name=":4" />

====2014 Addis Ababa Master Plan====
{{main|2014 Addis Ababa Master Plan}}
A controversial plan to expand the boundaries of Addis Ababa, by 1.1 million hectares into the [[Oromia Special Zone Surrounding Finfinne|Oromia special zone]] in April 2014,<ref>{{citation|title=Ethiopia's 'Master Plan' – good for development, damaging for minorities|date=12 August 2014|url=https://minorityrights.org/2014/08/12/ethiopias-master-plan-good-for-development-damaging-for-minorities-2/|access-date=12 August 2014|archive-date=2 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002090251/http://minorityrights.org/2014/08/12/ethiopias-master-plan-good-for-development-damaging-for-minorities-2/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=The Roots of Popular Mobilization in Ethiopia|date=16 June 2017|url=https://theglobalobservatory.org/2017/06/ethiopia-protests-oromo-addis-ababa-master-plan/#:~:text=The%20protests%20in%20the%20Oromia,the%20Addis%20Ababa%20Master%20Plan).|access-date=16 June 2017|archive-date=21 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171121234920/https://theglobalobservatory.org/2017/06/ethiopia-protests-oromo-addis-ababa-master-plan/#:~:text=The%20protests%20in%20the%20Oromia,the%20Addis%20Ababa%20Master%20Plan).|url-status=live}}</ref> sparked the [[2014–2016 Oromo protests|Oromo protests]] on 25 April 2014 against expansion of the boundaries of Addis Ababa. The government responded by shooting at and beating peaceful protesters.<ref>{{citation|title=Ethiopia: Brutal Crackdown on Protests|date=5 May 2014|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/05/05/ethiopia-brutal-crackdown-protests|access-date=5 May 2014|archive-date=8 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140508195000/http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/05/05/ethiopia-brutal-crackdown-protests|url-status=live}}</ref> This escalated to full blown strikes and street protests on 12 November 2015 by university students in Ginchi town, located 80&nbsp;km southwest of Addis Ababa city, encircled by Oromia Region.<ref>{{citation|title=Oromo Protests: Defiance Amidst Pain and Suffering|date=16 December 2015|url=https://addisstandard.com/oromo-protests-defiance-amidst-pain-and-suffering/|access-date=16 December 2015|archive-date=19 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151219081145/http://addisstandard.com/oromo-protests-defiance-amidst-pain-and-suffering/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Ethiopia: Lethal Force Against Protesters|date=18 December 2015|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/12/18/ethiopia-lethal-force-against-protesters|access-date=18 December 2015|archive-date=22 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222130005/https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/12/18/ethiopia-lethal-force-against-protesters|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Country Policy and Guidance Note Ethiopia Oromos including the Oromo Protests|date=November 2017|url=https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/5a1d65e14.pdf|access-date=22 July 2021|archive-date=2 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202031124/https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/5a1d65e14.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The controversial master plan was cancelled on 12 January 2016. By that time, 140 protesters were killed.<ref>{{citation|title=Ethiopia Scraps Plan for Capital Area that Sparked Protests|url=https://www.voanews.com/africa/ethiopia-scraps-plan-capital-area-sparked-protests|access-date=13 January 2016|archive-date=23 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923104951/https://www.voanews.com/africa/ethiopia-scraps-plan-capital-area-sparked-protests|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{citation|title=Ethiopia scraps Addis Ababa 'master plan' after protests kill 140|newspaper=The Guardian|date=14 January 2016|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/14/ethiopia-addis-master-plan-abandoned|access-date=14 January 2016|last1=Chala|first1=Endalk|archive-date=14 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160114115037/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/14/ethiopia-addis-master-plan-abandoned|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Ethiopia cancels Addis Ababa master plan after Oromo protests|work=BBC News|date=13 January 2016|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35300471|access-date=13 January 2016|archive-date=13 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113105635/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35300471|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Recent history ====
United Nations Population Projections estimated the population of metro area of Addis Ababa to be 5,228,000 in 2022, a 4.43% increase from 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Metro Area Population 1950-2022 |url=https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/20921/addis-ababa/population |access-date=2022-04-17 |website=www.macrotrends.net |archive-date=15 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220315200804/https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/20921/addis-ababa/population |url-status=live }}</ref> During [[Abiy Ahmed]]'s premiership, Addis Ababa and its vicinities underwent [[Beautifying Sheger]]. This project is aimed to enhance the green coverage and beauty of the city. In 2018, Abiy initiated a project called "Riverside" planned to expand riverbanks for {{convert|56|km}}, from the [[Entoto Mountains]] to the [[Akaki River]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Danger of Ambition and Neglect: The Case of Beautifying Sheger Project|url=https://wcscd.com/index.php/projects/the-danger-of-ambition-and-neglect-the-case-of-beautifying-sheger-project/|access-date=2021-08-31|language=zh-CN|archive-date=24 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924112907/https://wcscd.com/index.php/projects/the-danger-of-ambition-and-neglect-the-case-of-beautifying-sheger-project/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Arada|url=http://www.ethiopians.com/tadelle1.html|access-date=2021-08-31|website=www.ethiopians.com|archive-date=9 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309134731/http://www.ethiopians.com/tadelle1.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Riverside: green redevelopment for Addis Ababa {{!}}|url=https://www.belex.com/en/news/riverside-green-redevelopment-for-addis-ababa/|access-date=2021-08-31|website=en|language=en-US|archive-date=24 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924105902/https://www.belex.com/en/news/riverside-green-redevelopment-for-addis-ababa/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-08-18|title=Ethiopia: 'Sheger Project Signals Premier's Promise-Fulfilling' - Residents|url=https://allafrica.com/stories/202008180524.html|access-date=2021-08-31|website=allAfrica.com|language=en|archive-date=2 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220602054925/https://allafrica.com/stories/202008180524.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=addis ababa city administration latest news|url=https://casabrasilis.com.br/a7pft80/addis-ababa-city-administration-latest-news|access-date=2021-08-31|website=casabrasilis.com.br|archive-date=31 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210831115052/https://casabrasilis.com.br/a7pft80/addis-ababa-city-administration-latest-news|url-status=dead}}</ref> In October 2022, the government launched [[Sheger City]], an urban development model that contains 12 sub-cities, 36 districts and 40 rural kebeles with its seat located in Saris area in Addis Ababa.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2023-01-01 |title='Sheger City' plan will fuel Ethiopia tensions |url=https://doi.org/10.1108/OXAN-DB279805 |journal=Emerald Expert Briefings |volume=oxan-db |issue=oxan-db |doi=10.1108/OXAN-DB279805 |issn=2633-304X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Tasfaye |first=Ermias |date=2023-04-12 |title=Opposition to Oromia megacities echoes Ethiopia's master plan turmoil |url=https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2023/04/12/opposition-to-oromia-megacities-echoes-ethiopias-master-plan-turmoil/ |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=Ethiopia Insight |language=en-US}}</ref> The project objective was to feed other satellite cities into Addis Ababa and contribute economic development within enclave. Several human rights groups as well as politicians criticized the process to build Sheger City due to inciting [[House demolition in Ethiopia under Abiy Ahmed rule|mass house demotions]] that belonged to non-Oromo ethnic group, regional disparity by violating the constitutional rights of Oromo people.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Oromia region's new Sheger city encase Addis Ababa |url=https://ground.news/article/oromia-regions-new-sheger-city-encase-addis-ababa |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=Ground News |language=en}}</ref>