Ethiopia has grown rapidly in the past decade while maintaining one of the lowest levels of income inequality in Africa. The country has achieved key milestones in the past five years. Poverty has fallen dramatically (the headcount poverty rate declined from 45.5 percent in 2000 to 23.5 percent in 2016), there have been significant reductions in child mortality, an innovative social safety net to protect some of the nation’s most vulnerable people has been rolled out, and several million more children have entered primary school.
To continue this progress, and to reach middle-income status by 2025, the government is striving for structural transformation through the development of its manufacturing sector, allowing it to drive job creation and sustainable growth. Effective governance will be a key factor in determining success or failure.