Ethiopia is characterised by several different kinds of emergencies. While it is enduring a chronic emergency in drought-affected areas it is also confronted with seasonal flash flooding and from time to time is also affected by internal conflicts.
In 2018, Ethiopia faced a significant spike in conflict-induced displacement. Even though drought-related relief food needs decreased in 2018 due to the overall good seasonal rains received during the year; the relief food requirement is still significantly high due to new needs resulting from increasing conflict-induced displacement and IDP returnees. Drought conditions are expected to increase across 2019 and will again become a significant challenge. Many communities affected by drought in recent years have also yet to recover and, having exhausted their coping capacity, they still remain highly vulnerable to shocks.

The people in need (PIN) in Ethiopia includes millions of IDPs, IDP returnees and people who are not displaced but have been affected by climate and conflict shocks. Fifty-one (51) per cent of the people in need are estimated to be in acute need, meaning that they are exposed to a range of humanitarian risk factors; have limited access to basic services, or face disruption in basic goods and services. They mostly belong to the lowest wealth group and are particularly vulnerable. There are 58 woredas in the country that face a convergence of different needs and are considered high severity areas, requiring a multi-sector humanitarian response.

The key child protection and gender-based violence concerns faced by IDPs and IDP returnees and other affected populations in Ethiopia include gender-based, sexual and physical violence, family violence, family separation (including unaccompanied and separated children), psychosocial distress and trauma, harmful practices including child marriage, child abandonment, child Labour, persons with specific needs not receiving or being able to access life-saving services, persons missing documentation including children not registered at birth, out of school children and youth, families without adequate shelter. According to the Protection Cluster severity analysis, over 90 per cent of the people currently in need of protection services, are located in Oromia and Somali regions.

The overall objectives are: 

• To strengthen national policies, including the Disaster Risk Management Strategic Programme and Investment Framework, and prevention and response capacity in the area of child protection, gender equality and gender-based violence in humanitarian settings.
• To support the implementation of the UN Development Assistance Framework