Legislative protection of property rights in Ethiopia: an overview

There are ambiguities, inconsistencies, gaps and outdated features in the legislative protection of some property rights in Ethiopia. Moreover, there is the bestowal of wide and undue discretion to various administrative authorities without judicial scrutiny. These problems clearly lead to discretionary and arbitrary administrative decisions and inconsistent court rulings thereby posing insecurity in the protection of property rights. Well-specified property rights stimulate private investment by encouraging property rights holders to invest on their property and they further facilitate the transfer of property to its most efficient user in the context of win-win equitable exchange. There is thus the need to enhance the clarity and coherence of Ethiopia’s property law regime that especially regulates land use rights, expropriation, intellectual property, share purchases, and the transfer of business premises.