AFP – When Tadiwos Belete moved to Ethiopia from the United States a decade ago to open a luxury spa, his relatives thought he was crazy.
He built an office block on a crumbling congested thoroughfare in the centre of Addis Ababa, where there were few other businesses and seemingly few opportunities for a successful entrepreneur.
Now from his fourth floor office overlooking the newly-refurbished, six-lane Bole Road, today crammed with cafes, hotels and shopping centres — a sign of Ethiopia’s thriving economy — Tadiwos recalls almost despairing of finding other businesses to rent space in his office block.
“I remember, we were almost praying whether we could get someone to rent this building,” Tadiwos said.
“It’s amazing, I never believed it would grow this much, but it’s happened,” he added, looking down at the busy street below.
Tadiwos is part of a burgeoning diaspora community returning to Ethiopia to invest in its booming economy.
Read more at France 24.
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