Background

Ethiopia is a country of 1,104,300 square kilometers with 112 million inhabitants. 24 % of the population live below the poverty threshold, despite several years of steady economic growth. 7.2 % of children under the age of 5 are suffering from malnutrition. The gross domestic product per capita is 855 US$.

The country in the Horn of Africa is seriously affected by climate change. 80% of the inhabitants rely on agriculture and livestock for their livelihoods. Farmers and pasoralists are increasingly affected by droughts, crop losses and food insecurity.

Our projects predominantly take place in the Somali Region. Here, extreme weather patterns contribute to rangeland degradation. Healthy rangelands, however, are crucial during the dry season. In addition, migration of nomads from neighboring regions leads to an increasing population pressure and the deterioration of living conditions.

Under these difficult circumstances, a lack of proper veterinarian care can rapidly lead to the spread of livestock diseases, which have direct consequences on the pastoralists who are dependent on healthy animals.

The activity of VSF-Suisse in Ethiopia consists, among other things, in providing livestock to the populations in need and strengthening animal healthcare, but also in securing the livelihoods of the most vulnerable people in order to enhance their capacities of resilience.

Key activities

• Establishing “One Health Units” for the delivery of integrated animal, human, and environmental health services
• Saving lives and livelihoods during drought through unconditional cash transfers, livestock feed distribution, and livestock vaccination & treatment campaigns
• Piloting innovative approaches to sustainably enhance livestock productivity such as silvopasture, hydroponic fodder production, and silage making
• Strengthening female-led milk producer cooperatives to increase incomes of refugee and host communities