Addis Ababa has been selected as one of 50 global winners in the 2025 Bloomberg Philanthropies Mayors Challenge, a competition that rewards cities for pioneering solutions to urban challenges.

Chosen from a pool of 630 applicants worldwide, the Ethiopian capital was recognized for its proposal to develop a modern, integrated information system aimed at improving service delivery and urban governance. The initiative is part of a broader push by the city administration to leverage digital tools in tackling persistent urban problems.

The Mayors Challenge, held every four years, is designed to identify and scale data-driven innovations in city management. The current edition saw participation from municipalities across six continents, with Addis Ababa joining a list of winning cities that includes Toronto, Seoul, Cape Town, San Francisco and Marseille.

The competition offers technical support from global experts to help cities further develop their proposals. Ultimately, 25 of the 50 selected cities will be awarded $1 million each to implement their initiatives.

Addis Ababa’s innovation team also took part in the Bloomberg Ideas Camp in Bogotá, Colombia, a key milestone in the challenge’s development phase.

The city has increasingly sought international platforms to showcase its reform agenda and position itself as a regional hub for innovation, urban transformation and public-sector modernization.