ETHIOPIA
Ethiopia is an ancient civilisation, rich with culture and tradition. Yet since the 1980’s, Ethiopia has been synonymous with famine and hardship. Few could forget the harrowing images and news headlines broadcast on televisions around the world at that time. Many did what they could to help, with events such as Band Aid and Live Aid helping to bring Ethiopia’s plight to the world’s attention.
Since then, Ethiopia has been in and out of the public eye but the problems have not gone away. Ethiopia is heavily reliant upon its agricultural industry, but all too often things still go wrong. There is a severe lack of knowledge and expertise as to how to effectively manage land and natural resources to drastically reduce the chance of crop failure and the loss of livestock. In times of drought, disaster is inevitable.
Political instability in the Horn of Africa and a border dispute with neighbouring Eritrea have added to Ethiopia’s problems in recent years. Against this backdrop, people struggle to survive. Little support is available to those living in extreme poverty and the desperately inadequate healthcare system and limited access to schooling and education both present major obstacles in Ethiopia’s pursuit of lasting and positive change.
Ethiopia today remains one of the poorest countries on earth and its people continue to endure terrible suffering.
Addis Ababa
The modern downtown district of Addis Ababa is surrounded by a sprawl of slums whose occupants endure appalling living conditions. The residents of the Kebeles (urban villages) live packed together between plastered wooden walls and under tin roofs. The large majority of houses are in a terrible state of disrepair. Less than half the population have access to a latrine, and sewage flows uncovered through the narrow streets and alleys. The fragile urban economy provides many with only the barest subsistence.
Conditions in Addis Ababa are under constant pressure from rapid population growth. It is one of the fastest growing cities in Africa and in the last 35 years it has expanded eightfold as thousands of rural immigrants have sought relief from war, poverty and famine. The population is currently four million, of which at least one million live under conditions of extreme poverty.
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