The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is a landlocked country on the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia has about 85 million inhabitants and is three times the size of Germany. Its capital, Addis Ababa, is often called the capital city of Africa, as the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) are based here.

Despite the fact the country has enjoyed an average economic growth rate of 10 % since 2005, half of all Ethiopians are thought to live under the poverty line. In UNDP’s 2010 Human Development Index, Ethiopia is ranked 157th in the list of 169 countries (category: low human development). For decades the rural people in the Ethiopian highlands have suffered from increasing food insecurity as a result of high population growth, deforestation and unsuitable agricultural production techniques. At the same time, the private sector shows little diversity, and industry, mining and the tertiary sector remain underdeveloped.

In response to these challenges, the Ethiopian Government passed its ambitious Growth and Transformation Plan, with which it aims to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and nearly double the size of  the economy within the next five years.  Combating poverty and encouraging economic growth are therefore high on the agenda, and are declared objectives of the Ethiopian Government.

Since the end of the 1970s, GIZ has been working in Ethiopia on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). In line with the objectives of the Ethiopian Government, German development cooperation with Ethiopia is currently concentrated in three priority areas:

• Sustainable land management 
• Urban governance and decentralisation
• Economic development.

Outside these priority areas, GIZ Ethiopia is supporting the development of the renewable energy sector, and is involved in eight development partnerships with the private sector.

GIZ is also working for a number of international clients as well as the Ethiopian Government. These contracts are the responsibility of GIZ International Services (IS). They include the University Capacity Building Programme for the Ministry of Education, the construction of 490 health centres on behalf of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, and project management for the construction of the African Union Peace and Security Building.

Download

• Promoting Sustainable Development in Ethiopia
  GTZ Ethiopia 2007
  en-GTZ-Ethiopia-2007.pdf, 1.03 MB (English)