{"id":15597,"date":"2026-10-10T12:33:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-10T12:33:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tewnet.com\/index\/?p=15597"},"modified":"2026-10-10T12:33:53","modified_gmt":"2026-10-10T12:33:53","slug":"genete-leul-palace-restoration-budget-haile-selassie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tewnet.com\/index\/15597","title":{"rendered":"Experts Ask to Double the Budget for Restoring Haile Selassie’s Genete Leul Palace"},"content":{"rendered":"

Italian experts working on Genete Leul Palace in Addis Ababa have recommended doubling the restoration budget to 8 million euros, The Reporter<\/a> said on Saturday. The palace was once the home of Emperor Haile Selassie. Today it holds the Institute of Ethiopian Studies at Addis Ababa University and the institute’s Ethnographic Museum.<\/p>\n

The first 4 million euros came as a grant from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, and the work was planned to end in 2027. The Polytechnic University of Turin, which leads the restoration, has now proposed another 4 million euros. Under that plan, the work would continue until 2030, the newspaper reported.<\/p>\n

Dr. Yohannes Adgeh, the executive director of the institute, said more than a year of technical studies showed the need for much more structural work. According to The Reporter, the foundation is getting weaker, and rain comes in through the damaged roof, which puts the objects inside at risk. The extra money has not yet been formally confirmed, the paper added.<\/p>\n

The First Tender<\/h2>\n

The project moved from design to its next stage this week. On Thursday, October 8, the Polytechnic University of Turin and the University of Turin held a seminar at the institute. It was the first time the plans were shown to the public in Addis Ababa. The event also marked the start of the tender for the first phase of the restoration, the Polytechnic University said on its website.<\/p>\n

The designs keep the historic character of the building but add new features for visitors. Among them are a passage through the building from east to west and a staircase from the basement to the roof. Visitors would also be able to enter a storage room for the collection. A new viewing tower would give views of the city and the mountains.<\/p>\n

The museum holds about 17,000 heritage objects, The Reporter said. When the building work reaches the museum rooms, the collection will move for a time to the library of the Institute of Ethiopian Studies.<\/p>\n

\"Drums<\/p>\n

Drums on display in the musical instruments room of the Ethnographic Museum inside Genete Leul Palace, Addis Ababa, November 2018 (Sailko \/ Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0) [file photo]<\/em><\/p>\n

A Palace With a Long History<\/h2>\n

Genete Leul served as a royal home before the Italian occupation of 1936 to 1941. During the occupation, it was the headquarters of the Italian commander, Marshal Rodolfo Graziani, according to The Reporter. The Polytechnic University describes it as the seat of the government of Italian East Africa in those years.<\/p>\n

After Emperor Haile Selassie returned from exile, the building was again a royal palace. Following the failed coup attempt of 1960, the emperor gave the grounds for university use, The Reporter said. The Polytechnic University<\/a> describes the palace as “the first building of Addis Ababa University upon its foundation in 1961.”<\/p>\n