Bishoftu City, with its seven beautiful lakes, its luxury resorts and its proximity to the capital makes the city among the best tourist destination and conference center of Ethiopia. Due to its proximity to the capital, its suitable weather condition and water and land availability, it is among the destinations of big investments. Bishoftu is the rising city and it is the busiest city during the weekends due to its suitableness for weekend vacations.
These comparative advantages coupled with its hard-working and hospitable inhabitants make the city among the fast growing cities of Ethiopia. Considering its rapid growth, the city is applying various efforts to make the city favorable for its residents and its guests by introducing technological advancements.
Pressing ahead with its efforts to modernize the city, Bishoftu City officially launched Digital Addressing System (eDAS) last week, which makes the city the first city to apply eDAS in Ethiopia. The Digital Address System, which was developed by the Ethiopian Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI) aims to provide accurate location identification service, which is crucial for its residents and visitors of the city. The system is expected to facilitate service delivery and digitalizing the city’s activities which will play its role in enhancing the development of the city.
According to Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI), which develops the system, the eDAS initiative applied in Bishoftu city will have multiple functions for especially to easily identify locations of institutions, public service providing offices, hotels and other basic locations of the city. Among its benefits of the system is that it enables to provide precise location for residents, businesses and eases emergency services. The accurate address information using the new digital system will make movement of people easy.
The system would facilitate service delivery, accelerate logistics and transform businesses within the city. Similarly, it would help for quick emergency responses in case of incidents in the city, using the accurate location identification. This can improve the effectiveness and timely response of emergency services that helps to protect the safety and well-being of the city. The system can stimulate and facilitate efficiency of businesses by easing the logistics and making easy delivery services.
Similarly, eDAS would play vital role to apply better urban planning through providing valuable data on the distribution of residents, commercial areas and public spaces and the infrastructure of the city, according to SSGI. This, finally, would play its role for the development of smart city initiative that enables digitalizing every system of cities. In the near future, the system would help to apply internet of things (IoT) applications and other technologies that rely on accurate and standardized location and data. It promotes trade transactions, creates smooth traffic flow.
To manage the fast growing cities in Ethiopia, applying digital address system in cities gets new attention in recent years. In this regard, efforts are underway to develop Digital Address System in 73 cities across Ethiopia, according to Ministry of Innovation and Technology. Speaking during the inauguration ceremony of the Bishoftu Digital Addressing System last week, Minister of Innovation and Technology, Belete Molla (PhD) said that due attention has been given for infrastructural development and networking in Digital Ethiopia 2025 Strategy. ‘Digital Addressing System is among the key players in creating suitable ecosystem to realize Digital Economy in urban areas,” Belete said.
According to the Minister, applying fully functional digital addressing system helps to have a digital address for every building and roads in a city. This would help to create enabling ecosystem for other national platforms and digital infrastructures. eDAS is crucial to develop tourist flow and to ease movement of tourists within the city, movement of residents within the city and to realize and accelerates electronic payments.
Belete further stated that the development of urbanization is fast in Ethiopia and demands are growing parallel to the expansion and growth of cities. “The digital addressing system will have a significant contribution in making cities suitable for their residents and ease the lifestyle, to make effective and efficient service delivery of institutions,” he added. It would improve the effectiveness and efficiency of service delivery of administrative, economic and social service delivery institutions within the cities.
“Achieving digital economy is unthinkable without having appropriate and functional Digital Addressing System in cities” Belete said adding the system is crucial to deliver services timely and in an efficient and in cost-effective way. According to the minister, ensuring and realizing digital economy is among the priority areas of the ten years perspective plan adding based on this plan, efforts are underway to apply Digital Address System in 73 big and medium cities in Ethiopia.
As to him, the system applied in Bishoftu city is the first of its type in Ethiopia and becomes exemplary for other cities; Belete stated appreciating SSGI’s efforts to develop the system and calls the institute to accelerate its endeavors to apply the system in other cities. He officially announced that official opening of the Bishoftu Digital System which started its function since February 21, 2024.
For his part, Space Science and Geospatial Institute (SSGI) Director-General Abdisa Yilma stated that Bishoftu becomes an icebreaker in applying digital addressing system in Ethiopia. It is a new lesson for Ethiopia in interconnecting geospatial information and digital technology for easing urban lifestyle. As to him, applying technological advancements is crucial to go parallel with world’s fast growing technological advancements so as to maintain Ethiopia’s economic development sustainably.
Taking the lessons from its first project applied in Bishoftu, Abdisa stated that the institute will work to apply the system in other cities of Ethiopia. “SSGI is working with Adama and Addis Ababa cities to apply the system” Abdisa said adding the Adama’s eDAS installing system has completed 70% of the work so far and Addis Ababa’s system development work has officially started.
Bishoftu City Mayor, Alemayehu Assefa stated for his part that Bishoftu city is home to seven beautiful lakes, suitable and non-variable weather condition, a city hosting cultural and religious festivals, destination for many local and foreign tourists. In the near future there is a plan to build an international airport four times bigger than Addis Ababa Bole International Airport and the city is home to big industries and its proximity to the capital makes the city fast growing city and hosts a lot of tourists and guests.
This implies that, Alemayehu stated, the city is growing in to an international destination and trade center, in addition to the growing population of the city. Similarly, Bishoftu is identified among the tourist destination cities of Oromia and gets new attention to develop the potential. Hence, the newly implemented Digital Addressing System is a timely action and would play crucial role for the development of the city and to make the city suitable for its residents and guests.
BY DARGIE KAHSAY
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 1 MARCH 2024
