Ethiopia is etched on the world’s collective memory because of the widespread famine which hit the country in 1984. Failed rains and chronic food and water shortages mean that parts of the country are still at great risk of hunger and malnutrition.

Ethiopia is one of the least developed and poorest countries in the world. Most of the population depends on rain-fed agriculture for food and work.

By October 2009, 6.2 million people needed help from humanitarian agencies following failed rains. The Government was already helping eight million people.

In Ethiopia, Caritas links emergency work to rehabilitation and sustainable development. It has launched an eight month project to help 68,300 people. Its response to the current drought has been to create projects around:

• Employment generating schemes around soil and water conservation
• Boosting the nutrional levels of children and vulnerable mothers
• Improving communities’ water supplies
• Providing healthcare
• Helping improve agricultural activity

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