Ethiopia Priority Humanitarian Response and Critical Funding Gaps (February - April 2025)

The 2025 Global Humanitarian Overview indicated a placeholder financial requirement of US$2 billion for humanitarian response in 2025. While the Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) and Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) are still being finalized, this Priority Humanitarian Response and Critical Funding Gaps document identifies the key humanitarian interventions and corresponding critical funding gaps for humanitarian response in Ethiopia during February – April 2025 (and ensure pipelines until June 2025). A well-coordinated response is already underway throughout Ethiopia in 2025, despite access challenges, utilizing carry-over resources from 2024 and new funding contributions for 2025. The “critical funding gaps” included in this document only indicate the funding gaps, and exclude the funding that has already been committed or has been carried over from 2024. When determining these critical funding gaps, clusters have prioritized life-saving interventions for the most vulnerable populations. It is also important that prevention be a central part of this priority response for it is increasingly evident that preventative actions through early warning, dedicated monitoring contributes significantly in reducing shocks and impacts whether in cases of conflicts impacting on the protection of civilians, or natural environmental phenomena. The document provides a roadmap for coordinated response efforts and highlights key areas for donor engagement to address the most urgent needs.

Overview

At the beginning of 2025 humanitarian needs remains significant, driven by a confluence of factors including ongoing conflicts particularly in Amhara and western Oromia regions, back-to-back climate shocks such as droughts, floods, and landslides, and recurrent health emergencies.

Protection concerns persist in conflict-affected areas, compounding the vulnerabilities of those in need. This includes gender based violence, violence against civilians, child separation, continuous forced eviction and destruction of properties, presence of mines and other unexploded ordnance. The La Niña-impacted October-December 2024 rains which underperformed, in predominantly pastoralist areas in southern and southeastern parts of the country, are causing drought-like conditions, leading to water shortages, food insecurity and acute malnutrition in communities that are still recovering from the impact of the 2020-2023 drought. The seasonal outlooks for the March-May spring rains in these same lowland areas and in Afar are concerning.

Furthermore, seismic activities continue in the Afar and Oromia regions, with 232 earthquakes recorded since 21 December 2024. The likelihood of intensified earthquakes or a volcanic eruption remains uncertain, adding to the complexity of the crisis. The humanitarian community worked with the Government of Ethiopia to develop a plan, and aspects of this plan have been incorporated here.