- In Brief
Ethiopia
- Before the IRC installed this water station in a village near Asebe Teferi in eastern Ethiopia, children here used to have to walk for 12 hours to fetch water. Photo: Tom Skirrow/The IRC
Between 1998 and 2000, Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a war that killed 70,000 and displaced 1.4 million. Thousands have still not returned home, continuing to flee from persecution in Eritrea or unable to return because of thousands of uncleared landmines.
In addition, Ethiopia hosts thousands of refugees who fled Sudan's 21-year civil war and Somali refugees largely from the Mogadishu area. The International Rescue Committee works throughout the country assisting 56,000 refugees in six camps and 335,000 vulnerable Ethiopians in drought-prone regions.
We provide water and sanitation, agricultural support and animal health, HIV/AIDS awareness and education, and work to reduce child labour and infant mortality. In our work with communities affected by drought we are also developing unique Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to accurately map our activities and highlight areas of need.
