In Ethiopia, the 2011 Horn of Africa drought left 4.5 million people in need of emergency food assistance. Pastoralist areas in southern and south-eastern Ethiopia have been worst affected by the drought. Further, cereal markets had a supply shock and food prices rose above 2008 levels resulting in high food insecurity among poor people. By the beginning of 2012, the overall food security situation had stabilized thanks to the start of the Meher harvest, resulting in improved market supply, and the sustained humanitarian assistance. The Humanitarian Requirements Document issued by the government in early 2012 estimates that 3.2 million people will require relief food assistance from January to June 2012. This number is likely to increase following the extended dry conditions and erratic start of the Belg rains.
Ethiopia remains one of the world’s least developed countries, ranked 174 out of 187 in the 2010 UNDP Human Development Index with rain-fed agriculture as the foundation of the economy employing 80 per cent fo the country's 82 million people. Thus, household food security is largely determined by external factors such as rainfall patterns, land degradation, climate change, population density, low levels of rural investment and the global market.
Despite these challenges, Ethiopia has recently made gains in education, expanded the health extension system and made notable achievements in combating HIV/AIDS. The government continues to address food insecurity through its long-term strategy of Agricultural Development-led Industrialization. This is complemented by Ethiopia’s Food Security Programme which includes the Productive Safety Net Programme, the Household Asset Building Programme and others designed to ease households out of food insecurity. Ethiopia is also one of the fastest growing economies maintaining a growth rate of over 11 per cent for the last five years.
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