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OVERVIEW
The Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition (SHCC) identified 14 incidents of violence against or obstruction of health care in Ethiopia in 2023, 13 in 2022, and 64 in 2021, when the last SHCC Ethiopia country chapter was published. In 2023, at least four health workers were killed. The actual number of incidents and the severity of the problem are likely much greater, because of probable under-reporting.
This factsheet is based on the dataset 2022-2023 ETH SHCC Health Care Data, which is available for download on the Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX).
THE CONTEXT
Despite an end to the conflict in Tigray following a cessation of hostilities agreement between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian central government in November 2022, 2023 saw an escalation of conflict in neighb oring Amhara and Oromia regions between the Ethiopian government and regional security forces.
In the Amhara region, violent protests and militia activity escalated following attempts by the government to integrate regional security forces into the national security services. In August 2023, the Ethiopian federal cabinet declared a six-month state of emergency and the Amhara region was placed under military command.
Tensions and fighting in the Oromia region also increased, and in November a third attempt at holding peace talks between the Ethiopian government and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) failed.
All parties to the conflict have been accused of human rights abuses, including violence affecting health care. Ongoing conflict and insecurity, internal displacement, telecommunications blackouts, and natural hazards, including floods and drought, all increased humanitarian needs in the country in 2023.