It looks like there is a big East-West divide in AA. Eastern part is nicely built up, but nothing much to see west of the Debre Zeit road.
Very true. However, this will change very very soon.
The area from Mexico Sqaure all the way to Kera has been totally demolished and reserved for tall buildings (20+ stories). Plus the entire district of Teklehaimanot and thebe astern part of Merkato have beed demolished and designated for large scale construction projects as well. In fact, eastern Merkato is already moving fast with construction of multiple 20+ story buildings all in one area.
Plus keep in mind tjat Senga Tera, where all the major bank HQs are being built (except CBE and Wogagen), is part of Western Addis and the amount of business activity created in the area will generate more developmnet.