Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Introduction

It stands as one of the oldest nations of the world, dating back to 1000 BC when the Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon. Ethiopia was a nation with promise, a nation with riches and the greatest Ivory market as far as the eye can see. So one would assume that Ethiopia is the place to live. Well if you have been to Ethiopia you would see this is not the case. Ethiopia is a povershed country where people are fighting to live everyday. There economy is nearly in ruins and there main export, is almost stolen from them. But the promise that Ethiopia had when the Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon is still there. But in order to restore Ethiopia to its previous glory, we need your help. We need that $50 million to give life back to the Ethiopian people.

General Facts

Official Name: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

Capital City: Addis Ababa

Independence Day: September 12

Total Area: 1,127,127 km^2

Land Area: 1,119,683 km^2

Water Area: 7,444 km^2

Population: 72,400,000

Languages: Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other local languages, English (major foreign language taught in schools)

Religion: Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, Animist 12%, Other 3%-8%

Life Expectancy: 37

Currency: Birr (As of January 26, 2005, 1 birr = 0.14783 CAN, 1 CAN =6.764 birr)

GDP: 700 (per capita)

Labour Force by Occupation: agriculture and animal husbandry 80%; government and services 12%; industry and construction 8%

Industries: food processing, beverages, textiles, chemicals, metals processing, cement

Imports: coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds

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Exports: food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles

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Problems Today

Ethiopia has a very bad basic health status compared to other countries with a low income. The health service coverage is 50.4%. Almost one out of every ten babies who are born in Ethiopia dies in their first year. Mortality rate for those under five is also high; statistics show that one out of every six children dies before they turn five. Malnutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and HIV/AIDS dominate Ethiopia's problem of disease. Diseases such as meningitis, malaria, cholera, measles, and shigellosis have become epidemic.

Economic Problems

There are more than 50 million people who still have the same daily life as their ancestors did. Over 50 million people completely depend on traditional agriculture. Ethiopian economy is had agriculture account for 51% of the GDP, 85% of total employment, and 85% of exports and more than 70% of total export earnings. During the same year, the service sector accounted for 24% of GDP while the industrial sector contributed about 11% of GDP, 15% of export earnings and less than 2% of the labour force. Trade and transport contribute 14% of GDP. In spite of recent achievements in economic growth, poverty remains a problem.

Climate

The current climatic trends have caused food availability to be very short countrywide. The lack of rain experienced in many areas has caused serious food shortage in several parts of the country. The impact of the rain on three important sources of food has particularly been severe.

* The belg and Meher crops in a number of areas did not grow

* Early maturing non-Belg crops, which are important sources of food before the Meher Harvest and the Meher rain also failed

* Livestock condition in some of the pastoral areas has been affected incredibly

The severe drought in Ethiopia has caused their main economic source to be hit really hard. Many farmers and their families are dying of malnutrition.

Health Problems

Ethiopia has become a country plagued with famine and disease. Many people die every day because there is no money to treat them. Ethiopia has an extremely poor health status, even compared to poorer countries. The health service coverage is 50.4%. As we stated earlier, one out of ten babies don't make it to their first birthday. And one out of six children doesn't live to see their fifth birthday. Ethiopia's total burden of disease as measured by early death from all causes is approximately 350 Discounted Life Years lost per 1000 population. HIV/Aids, nutrition deficiency and communicable diseases have now dominated Ethiopia.

Poor Food Distribution

All of the crop failures and the poor livestock have caused food shortages in almost all areas. The poor livestock has had a tremendous effect on the milk supply and has especially impacted the children. Now, because of the poor livestock, the price of grain has gone up, making it unaffordable for many. Because of all the factors that have caused this food shortage, the DPPC predicts that 6,000,000 people will become ill and die if nothing is done.

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