Copyright addisfortune
Pay Penalty, Convert Lease Hold, or Cease Business Crackdown on zoning violations in Addis Abeba sends shockwaves through small businesses In commercial corridors once busy with informal trade, from Bethel to Ayat, the clang of rolling shutters has been replaced by silence. Nearly 3,000 small shops have been shut since last September, sealed by district authorities enforcing the city’s 2011 lease law that forbids the use of residential properties for commercial purposes. Traders now operate in legal limbo, some hawking goods from balconies, others forced into complete inactivity, reports Nahom Ayele, Fortune Staff Writer. Oct 26 , 2025 By NAHOM AYELE ( FORTUNE STAFF WRITER )
