Jimma Creative Hub

Entrance of the Jimma Creative Hub building
Project box

Geographical area: Africa

Location: Jimma, Ethiopia

City size: Large (between 1,000,000 and 5,000,000 inhabitants)

Promoter: United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS)

Developer: United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS)

Start year:

End-year: In progress

Implementation phase: Planning and design

Project size: Building

Total area of intervention (in sqm): 2.350

Total investments (in USD): 1500000

Project overview

The Jimma Creative Hub is an urban regeneration project aimed at transforming an abandoned building into a multifunctional innovation and community space in Jimma, the largest city in southwestern Oromia Region, Ethiopia. The project repurposes a 2,350 sqm former theatre and ballroom, complemented by a garden. It will be adapted to meet contemporary social and economic needs while preserving its historical and cultural value. The regeneration of this site is part of a broader strategy to foster entrepreneurship, creativity, and skills development, particularly benefiting women and young people and creative industries.

The building, dating to the 1930s, was constructed at a time when Ethiopia was a colony of the Italian fascist regime: its architectural style reflects this origin. The theatre is now being revitalised to serve as a dynamic hub for learning and sharing knowledge. The structure will be divided into three functional areas: the Learning Area will house offices, classrooms, and a start-up incubator, offering training and business development opportunities. The Making Area will feature craft workshops, coworking spaces, and a coffee training centre, supporting artisans and entrepreneurs. The Sharing Area will offer a café, a shop, and a design gallery. The building’s layout was designed to encourage collaboration and cultural exchange. The hub’s Fab Lab will provide access to digital fabrication tools and manufacturing technologies, allowing local innovators to develop prototypes and scale up their businesses. A new pavilion, situated in the garden, hosts the bar and the coffee training centre.

The Jimma municipality owns the building, while the project is being carried out with operational support from United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and funding by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), with a total investment of USD 1,5 million. The governance of the project is based on a formal agreement between the Italian government and UNIDO and is part of a wider cooperation framework signed in 2024 between Italy and Ethiopia. The Ethiopian government will also be actively involved in the implementation phase. 

The Jimma Creative Hub is expected to generate significant economic and social benefits. It will provide employment opportunities by creating jobs during both the construction and operational phases while supporting small businesses and start-ups with its services. By hosting training programs, a start-up incubator, and networking events, the hub will foster a new generation of entrepreneurs and contribute to local economic growth. The project will also enhance the area’s attractiveness, encouraging further investments in infrastructure and public services.

By integrating sustainable design principles, resource efficiency and adaptive reuse, the Jimma Creative Hub represents a model for sustainable urban regeneration, promoting innovation, cultural preservation, and economic empowerment while positioning Jimma as a centre for creative industries and entrepreneurship.

The Jimma Creative Hub is a multifunctional space that integrates institutional, commercial, and recreational areas to support entrepreneurship, learning, and community engagement. Most of the building (65%) is dedicated to institutional and public spaces, including classrooms, offices, training facilities, and the Fab Lab, which provide essential resources for skills development and business incubation. Open and recreational spaces account for 30% of the hub, fostering a collaborative environment through coworking areas, a design gallery, and communal gathering spots. The remaining 5% is allocated to commercial activities, including a café in the new garden pavilion and a shop, which enhance interaction between creatives and the local community. This mixed-use approach ensures that the hub functions as both an educational and economic catalyst, strengthening Jimma’s creative and entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Benefits

The Jimma Creative Hub is expected to stimulate local economic growth by creating jobs during the construction phase, and by supporting small businesses and fostering entrepreneurship through its operations. The renovation and adaptation of the 2,350 sqm abandoned theatre and ballroom will generate employment opportunities in construction and restoration work. Once operational, the hub will provide long-term job opportunities across various sectors, including training, business incubation, and creative industries. 

A key focus of the project is to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), particularly in design, leather, fashion, textiles, ecotourism, and coffee production sectors identified as strategic priorities under Ethiopia’s Ten-Year Development Plan. The Fab Lab will enable young entrepreneurs to develop prototypes and innovative products, while dedicated training programs will enhance market access and production efficiency.

The initiative follows the success of the Addis Ababa Creative Hub, which in just one year has provided over 100 training sessions and assisted more than 150 local manufacturers. The exchange of knowledge and resources between the two hubs will strengthen Ethiopia’s creative ecosystem, enabling entrepreneurs and artisans in Jimma to access training, funding opportunities, and networking events. 

Several measures have been implemented to minimize the environmental impact of the renovation. First, by repurposing an existing building, the Jimma Creative Hub minimizes construction waste and reduces its environmental footprint. Instead of demolishing and rebuilding, the project follows a conservative approach, preserving the original structure and façade and expanding its lifecycle. Resource efficiency is ensured by the integration of a rainwater harvesting system on the building’s rooftop, providing water for garden irrigation and sanitary use. The rooftop will also have photovoltaic panels, which will generate renewable energy on-site. The construction of a double roof in the building’s new pavilion will foster its climate resilience. This technology serves two purposes: on one hand it enhances natural ventilation, ensuring natural cooling, on the other hand it will stabilize indoor temperatures, reducing the overall need for artificial cooling.

The Jimma Creative Hub is designed to empower local entrepreneurs, particularly youth and women, by fostering skills development, business creation, and market access. Implemented in close coordination with Ethiopia’s Ministry of Labor & Skills (MoLS), the hub will provide technical training, and entrepreneurial support, equipping participants with the tools to enter and thrive in the job market.

The hub is structured into three main areas, each dedicated to fostering innovation, craftsmanship, and collaboration. The Learning Area will host classrooms, offices, and a start-up incubator, offering entrepreneurship training, vocational education, and digital services to help young professionals and business owners scale their ideas. The Making Area, featuring craft workshops and coworking spaces, will support artisans and designers in refining their skills, experimenting with new materials and techniques, and connecting with local and international markets. Meanwhile, the Sharing Area, comprising a café, design gallery, and a shop, will serve as a dynamic community hub, encouraging cultural exchange, recreation, networking, and collaboration.

A key feature of the Jimma Creative Hub is its Fab Lab, a fabrication and digital innovation space that transforms ideas from the incubator into prototypes and scalable models. Launched by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Fab Lab network provides users with fabrication and electronics tools powered by open-source software, allowing users to engage in hands-on, project-based learning. The Jimma Fab Lab will be part of this global network, enabling local talent to develop technical skills, innovate, and gain deeper knowledge of materials, design, and engineering.

Building on the success of the Addis Ababa Creative Hub, the Jimma Creative Hub applies best practices from its predecessor, ensuring that young innovators gain the necessary resources, knowledge, and opportunities to succeed. By bridging educational gaps, facilitating public-private partnerships (PPPs), and fostering economic inclusion, the hub will contribute to social cohesion. 

The project did not achieve, nor is it planning to achieve, any sustainability certifications.

Finance model

The Jimma Creative Hub is being developed through a USD 1,5 million public investment from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) directed to the Ethiopian Ministry of Labor & Skills (MoLS), as part of a broader development initiative in collaboration with the Ethiopian government.

The Jimma Creative Hub is funded primarily through grants, particularly intergovernmental transfers from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), in partnership with UNIDO. The Ethiopian Ministry of Labor & Skills (MoLS), as the direct recipient of the AICS funds, is responsible for managing and allocating financial resources to ensure the effective implementation of the project. The initiative is part of a broader USD 3.8 million program aimed at supporting entrepreneurship and job creation in both Jimma and Addis Ababa. Additionally, it is embedded within a USD 13 million bilateral agreement between Italy and Ethiopia, which includes a USD 2.2 million grant and a USD 10.9 million loan. This agreement supports broader goals such as job creation, infrastructure development, and skills training. Finally, the project is aligned with Ethiopia’s national economic development strategies, contributing to the country's long-term development objectives.

References and Credits

Form response and additional information kindly provided by Park Associati and UNIDO. Accessed on 20/03/2025

AICS (2023). UNIDO and the Italian Cooperation sign 3.5 million euro to support youth and women for the development of micro-small and medium-sized enterprises in Ethiopia – Ethiopia. ReliefWeb. Accessed on 03/03/2025. https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/unido-and-italian-cooperation-sign-35-million-euro-support-youth-and-women-development-micro-small-and-medium-sized-enterprises-ethiopia

The Fab Foundation. Getting Started with Fab Labs. Accessed on 18/03/2025. https://fabfoundation.org/getting-started/

Fana BC (2024). Ethiopia, Italy sign €12mln worth of Implementing Agreement to support job creation. Accessed on 13/03/2025 https://www.fanabc.com/english/ethiopia-italy-sign-e12mln-worth-of-implementing-agreement-to-support-job-creation/

Image kindly provided by Park Associati. Accessed on 20/03/2025