In 2019, an important chapter in the 60-year history of Finnish Refugee Council begun when we started our work in Ethiopia. Working in conditions of instability and conflict requires constant resilience from our Ethiopian staff – and even more from those trying to continue their lives in Ethiopian refugee and IDP camps.
In 2019, our work around the world expanded to Ethiopia. Ethiopia is a multifaceted East African country where economic growth, the wealth of diverse traditions, inter-ethnic communal conflicts, the harsh effects of climate change and inflow of refugees all exist at the same time. Despite its own challenges, this second most populous country in Africa and one of the lowest income countries in the world has welcomed those who have fled their homes with open doors.
FRC’s work in Ethiopia includes both humanitarian and nexus approaches. Our focus is on adult education as well as women’s and vulnerable groups’ rights through various thematic interventions including protection, cash-based assistance and skill development. The target of FRC is to prioritize women and people with disabilities, with 70% of the beneficiaries of our work being women and 10% persons with disabilities.
“People are mostly optimistic about the country’s future and hope that hardship makes us more resilient to build a better country.”
The beginning of FRC’s work in Ethiopia coincided with a year of political upheaval in the country, Abadi Amdu, our Country Director in Ethiopia recalls.
“FRC saw potential in Ethiopia in several areas, but there were also challenges: conflict, drought and, in the early stages, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2019, the country’s government split, leading to a bloody war in the north of the country in 2020,” he says.
In 2020, local elections were held in northern Ethiopia’s Tigray province against the will of the federal government, and the Tigray militias took over an Ethiopian army base. The Ethiopian national army intervened with the support of Eritrean troops. The conflict later spilled over to other parts of the Northern Ethiopia resulting in severe humanitarian crisis. According to the African Union envoy Olusegun Obasanjo, the fierce civil war led to the loss of at least 600 000 lives.
Refugee and IDP population in Ethiopia
- Ethiopia today hosts more than one million refugees and asylum seekers and nearly 5 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), including close to 3 million returned IDPs.
- Hundreds of thousands of people have fled to Ethiopia from South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea and Sudan.
- The size of the refugee population increased significantly in 2023, when more than 160,000 refugees and asylum seekers moved to Ethiopia due to the outbreak of armed conflict in Sudan and Somalia.
- The situation in Ethiopia is volatile and in constant change.
The war and the Covid-19 pandemic left their mark on the country and have affected the work of FRC. Ethiopia’s strong economic growth has slowed down, unemployment rate has risen, and high inflation makes it difficult to meet basic needs. For example, the price of food has risen by 25 per cent in 2024, according to the OHCHR. The civil war officially ended with a peace agreement in 2022, but the effects of the conflict remain and active conflicts are still ongoing in different parts of the country.
In addition, the funding cut by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) early this year has led to serious consequences for refugees, IDPs and natural disaster affected communities. The effects have been visible especially in the Gambella area where thousands of people have been supported by our work. In the Gambella area, most of the forcibly displaced come from South Sudan. Yet despite all these circumstances, hope remains in the people, confirms Hanna Abate, our Protection Specialist in the Ethiopia country office.
“The resilience of the population is remarkable, and people are doing their best to maintain traditions and hope. They are mostly optimistic about the country’s future and hope that hardship makes us more resilient to build a better country,” says Hanna.
Towards new beginnings in Ethiopia: what we do
Adult education
Mintesinot Yifru, Disability and Inclusion Officer who has been working in FRC Ethiopia country office since 2021, says that in the field of adult education, FRC has played a pioneering role:
“When we started offering Functional Adult Literacy (FAL) training for refugees and host communities, there was not even a readily available learning curriculum adopted to context. Through the cooperation with the Gambella Region Education Bureau and many other actors, we created an FAL curriculum and facilitated its translation into local languages and validated it,” Mintesinot recalls.
“People who have learned to read and write take an active role in their communities: they participate in various spheres and can support their children’s education. Literacy changes the way people see their own potential,” Protection Specialist Hanna concludes.
Cash assistance
The cash assistance provided by FRC is a very meaningful means of support for many. It is more efficient than food assistance and gives the beneficiaries the chance to make their own decisions on what they need to acquire with the money. According to the World Food Programme, 15.8 million of the country’s population face food insecurity. The cash assistance by FRC, targeted for the IDPs and conflict affected host communities, comes in times of real need.
“Cash assistance is much appreciated for its flexibility: with the money the person can buy what the household needs, whether it is food, medicine or clothes,” adds Country Director Abadi.
“Forgetting the past is not easy, but at least they can look forward to the future.”
In 2024, 7.2 million people in Ethiopia needed services for people who had experienced gender-based violence. This is 1.4 million people more compared to 2022.
Protection and gender-based violence (GBV) work
In 2024, 7.2 million people in Ethiopia needed services for people who had experienced gender-based violence. In 2022, this figure was 1.4 million lower. Gender-based and sexual violence is used as a tool of warfare. When it comes to gender-based violence and inclusion, FRC’s work has led to notable changes at the community level.
“Our work is about saving lives and helping people to build hope for the future. The people I work with have faced various challenges. They have been through traumatic experiences, lost their assets and belongings, and have outstanding challenges of not knowing where their family members are, for example. Through our work, they access counseling services and learn new skills that help them forward in life,” continues Protection Specialist Hanna, who works with empowering survivors of gender-based violence.
Disability inclusion
All our work in Ethiopia aims at supporting those who have been forced to leave their homes and start working for new beginnings. Building resilience is an important part of this, and that is why issues related to inclusivity are at the center of our work. Disabilities are more common among refugees and IDPs due to conflicts and warfare. This highlights the importance of inclusivity in our work.
“There is a great need for disability inclusion, but only limited resources are available. We are training community leaders and volunteers in partnership with other actors and developing tools to improve inclusion,” says Disability and Inclusion Officer Mintesinot.
Building for the future and defending one’s own needs require resilience
The theme of our celebratory year, resilience, is present in all our work in Ethiopia. Country Director Abadi underlines that FRC aims at creating environments that build people’s knowledge and skills, self-esteem, confidence and ability to stand up for their rights. The work of FRC in Ethiopia also requires a high level of resilience and commitment from our employees.
“The current situation in Ethiopia is difficult and there is a huge need for our services. There is internal conflict and fighting in many parts of the country that exacerbate the humanitarian situation. I am proud to serve the most marginalized and vulnerable communities. It gives me peace of mind,” says Abadi.
“Our goal is to give people hope and stability. With the support of our work, people who have gone through difficult circumstances such as conflict and displacement will feel more secure and better prepared to shape their future. Forgetting the past is not easy, but at least they can look forward to the future,” says Hanna.
Ethiopia’s future faces many uncertainties, but FRC hopes to be heading towards a time of reconstruction as there is a lot of potential in the country’s young population and resources. Country Director Abadi has a clear view on the future of FRC’s work in Ethiopia:
“In line with the policies and strategies of the Ethiopian government, we will try to diversify our interventions including recovery, development and peacebuilding, as well as social cohesion adopting a triple nexus approach. Our adult education learning materials have such component so far, but we need to strengthen it,” he tells.
Read more about our work in Ethiopia here.