Drought Situation Worsens in Ethiopia: Long-Term Aid Needed

The international community is lending a helping hand to Ethiopia as a devastating drought affects over 10 million people, according to Voice of America. Six million children face hunger, with 435,000 at risk of severe malnutrition. Ethiopia will need $1.4 billion in aid in 2016 and additional funds for next year. Officials ordered the drilling of wells to counter the effects of the drought.

The international community is lending a helping hand to Ethiopia as a devastating drought affects over 10 million people, according to Voice of America. Six million children face hunger, with 435,000 at risk of severe malnutrition. Ethiopia will need $1.4 billion in aid in 2016 and additional funds for next year. Officials ordered the drilling of wells to counter the effects of the drought.

Ethiopia has come a long way in shedding its image of a deeply impoverished nation, but the latest drought reveals the true vulnerability of the economy. Regardless of Ethiopia’s economic gains, it remains one of the poorest nations in the world. The East African country enhanced its infrastructure base and attracted foreign investment, while significantly reducing widespread destitution, but Ethiopians cannot escape the realities of inclement weather and mass crop failures.

Agriculture and the service sector form vital roles within Ethiopia’s economy, and even though manufacturing and public spending contributed a great deal to development, crop production is the most important sector. Drought and unproductive crop output place the entire economy in peril, and the government does not have a substantial sector to fall back on, such as manufacturing or commodities.

Ethiopia does not have a rich mining history, primarily extracting tantalum and gold, but the country is among the richest in Africa in terms of livestock and forestry. Forests and arable land have been severely depleted over the years, but most of the land will support the agricultural sector in the long run.

With that, Ethiopia’s deeper problem lies with a lack of water access, hampering food production, life expectancy, and migration patterns. The government needs to commence additional infrastructure projects to address water scarcity, especially as more people migrate to urban areas, but policymakers stand the risk of falling deeper into debt in the process.

Officials expect the urban population to grow from 70 million in the present to 100 million people by 2050, notes AFP. Rampant disease spreading is another issue, caused by shortfalls in water-based infrastructure and sanitation services. Many parts of Ethiopia lack basic necessities, such as toilet facilities, contributing to illnesses that could have been prevented.

Poor access to water not only affects Ethiopia, but also much of sub-Saharan Africa, as 500 children die each year due to poor living standards and dirty water. Ethiopia has made significant progress in the past few decades, reducing the number of people who could not afford safe drinking water, and over half of Ethiopians have water security.

Officials believe they will be able to meet water demand in the coming decades, but diversification and innovation within agriculture and other sectors will be paramount to success while mitigating the ravages of drought.