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The Lease Board of the Addis Abeba city Caretaker
Administration passed a decision in its meeting last
Friday to grant all the requests forwarded to it
from the African Union (AU) related to the
conference centre, office complex and five-star
hotel constructions the continental organisation is
planning to carry out at the former prison camp
a.k.a Kerchele.
The AU, which had requested the City Administration
to grant a free 60-year lease title deed to MIDROC
Ethiopia for the 25,000sqm plot of land it is using
to erect a five-star hotel on the AU’s premises, has
succeeded in swaying the Administration.
Moreover, the side road between the existing and new
sites of the AU will be part of its compound and the
clearance of private properties within the
boundaries of the AU will be undertaken in
accordance with the decision of the Lease Board. The
surrounding areas of the AU are also expected to be
included in the city’s master plan.
The other request of including surrounding areas in
the master plan’s function stipulations, aesthetics
and security requirements of the AU’s projects has
also been accepted.
According to Mayor Brehane Deressa, the current
market price of the 120,000sqm lease free plot
granted to the AU for the project is 500 million Br.
The AU requested the Administration to grant the
deed to MIDROC following the giant conglomerate’s
proposal to cover the 1.5 billion Br needed to
construct the hotel. MIDROC Ethiopia has won the
tender floated by the AU Commission and has signed a
memorandum of understanding (MoU) on November 19,
2007.
The Ethiopian government has granted 120,000sqm of
land to the AU Commission for the construction of
the new conference centre and office complex and a
five-star hotel project. The AU finances the
constructions with 150 million dollar funding it
secured from China.
According to the Commission, the hotel construction
is needed due to lack of appropriate accommodation
in the city for its guests, delegates and invitees.
A
study conducted by the Ministry of Works and Urban
Development (MWUD) revealed that Addis Abeba needs
hotels with 10,000 more beds.
The 276-room AU Grand Hotel is expected to have
luxurious rooms and suites as well as a
3,500-capacity hall and be suitable for 2,200-guest
banquets.
The construction schedule of the AU projects
including the conference centre and office complex
is expected to be completed at the end of 2010.
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