Urban Land Lease Regime and Informal Settlements in Ethiopia: Reconciling Law with Human Rights

Abstract

 This article critically analyses Ethiopia’s urban land lease law, constitutional
provisions, municipal regulations, and policy frameworks governing urban land
rights and informal settlements, identifying key gaps and proposing reforms
consistent with international housing rights laws and standards. Drawing on a
doctrinal analysis of national urban land laws, it argues that Ethiopia lacks both
procedural safeguards and substantive protections for informal settlers facing
eviction. Although the urban land lease law allows for the regularisation of
informal settlements, legal gaps and institutional capacity constraints have limited
implementation, and informal residents continue to experience forced evictions
without due process. National laws exclude informal tenure from security-oftenure guarantees, leaving informal residents unprotected despite Ethiopia’s
housing rights commitments under international human rights instruments.
Informal settlements in Ethiopia are the direct consequence of state failures in land
administration, housing provision, and urban planning. The government’s practice
of forced evictions without due process breaches its housing rights obligations,
fails to meet rights-based standards, undermines tenure security, and excludes
informal settlements from urban planning. The article recommends
comprehensive legal reform, including a judicial review standard, to strengthen
judicial oversight, participatory planning, and equitable access to land and
housing. Thus, the article highlights the need to align Ethiopia’s laws and practices
with international human rights and urban development standards, focusing on
strengthening urban governance, ensuring inclusive planning, protecting housing
rights, and fostering just and sustainable urban development.