Ethiopia

Abstract

Although not impressive in their physical output of newly built houses Ethiopian housing and settlement policies contain a number of important innovations for the majority of the population with respect to the situation before the revolution. There are few squatter settlements, but nevertheless the proportion of slums in the capital is greater than in other Third World states. Less successful have been attempts to develop the building materials and construction industry. Therefore many building materials must be imported which results in extremely expensive cost of construction. Official urban planning and housing design solutions bear little relation to the population's traditions and needs. Particularly critical are some aspects of the villagization programme, the ignorance of ecological considerations, the lack of investment capacity as a consequence of the war. -from Authors