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Why Ethiopia?



1. The door is wide-open right now... it is a relatively smooth and quick process compared to other countries.
2. The people are beautiful- okay, this isn't really a reason, it's just a nice benefit!
3. The need is absolutely staggering. Here are some facts from Hope for Children:  

In General
·       Ethiopia is ranked by the UN’s Human Development Index as one of the four poorest countries in the world
·       Annual per capita income is less than $160
·       47% of the population lives below the poverty rate

Children's Health
·       1 in 10 children die before their first birthday
·       1 in 6 children die before age 5
·       Over 50% of children are stunted
·       Malnutrition is the underlying cause of more than half of all child death

General Health/Life Expectancy
·       Average life expectancy is 48 for men, 50 for women
·       1 physician for every 34,988 people
·       Population per hospital bed:  4,141
·       1 in 4 women dies in childbirth or from a pregnancy-related illness

Education
·       Only 50% of children attend primary school (K-3)
·       Average class size in government schools – 85-100 children
·       Overall literacy rate is 42%, with many more girls and women illiterate than men

Youth
·       44% of Ethiopia’s population is under age 15
·       Estimated number of street children:  100,000 nationwide, 40,000 in Addis

HIV/AIDS
  • Although accurate statistics are hard to come by, it is estimated that there are approximately 1 million AIDS orphans