{"id":3496,"date":"2026-06-29T09:58:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T09:58:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/?p=3496"},"modified":"2026-06-29T09:58:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T09:58:10","slug":"addis-ababa-mayor-credits-citizens-for-kebena-rivers-remarkable-revival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/addis-ababa-mayor-credits-citizens-for-kebena-rivers-remarkable-revival\/","title":{"rendered":"Addis Ababa Mayor Credits Citizens for Kebena River’s Remarkable Revival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

AMN Plus- June 29, 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a message shared on her official social media page, Addis Ababa Mayor Adanech Abiebie reflected on the remarkable restoration of the Kebena River, saying, “People destroyed it; people restored it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The Creator gave us the Kebena River, but it was people who destroyed it,” the Mayor said. “Yet it was also people, saddened by the loss of this precious natural gift, who worked tirelessly to restore it, giving it a new life as though it had been born again.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

She noted that for generations the Kebena River survived only in songs and cherished memories. Although its name continued to inspire admiration, the river itself had disappeared from the everyday lives of residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, however, she said, Kebena has been revived through an ambitious restoration effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recalling the river’s cultural significance, Mayor Adanech said artist Tsehaye Yohannes’ famous song “Bishan Kebena” evoked childhood memories for countless Addis Ababa residents who once swam in its waters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

She also remembered the late honorary Dr. Ali Birra, whose song “Bishan Addis Ababa” celebrated the city’s natural beauty. Over time, however, the river lost its identity, becoming a channel for sewage, a dumping ground for waste, and a source of foul odors that forced people away, existing only in memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Mayor, those rivers that had become symbols of pollution, disease, and environmental degradation are now being restored through determination and hard work. They are being transformed into clean, attractive public spaces that provide recreation, improve the environment, and bring renewed hope and joy to the people of Addis Ababa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mayor Adanech reaffirmed that the successful completion of the Kebena River restoration project within a relatively short period, together with the city’s other major development initiatives, has transformed Addis Ababa into a model of beauty, environmental renewal, and modern urban development.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AMN Plus- June 29, 2026 In a message shared on her official social media page, Addis Ababa Mayor Adanech Abiebie reflected on the remarkable restoration of the Kebena River, saying, “People destroyed it; people restored it.” “The Creator gave us the Kebena River, but it was people who destroyed it,” the Mayor said. “Yet it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-addis-ababa-affairs","category-development","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3496","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3496"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3496\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3501,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3496\/revisions\/3501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amn.gov.et\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}