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!
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
