Ethiopia must address Tigray crisis

As the UN warns of famine in Tigray, prime minister Abiy Ahmed must pursue an immediate ceasefire and allow humanitarian access, says David Thomas

No amount of positive news from Ethiopia on the economic front will drown out the cries of despair coming from the north of the country. As Ethiopia’s devastating civil war continues to unfold, the Tigray region faces a tragedy of unimaginable proportions. UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said that “there is famine now... this is going to get a lot worse” after a UN report found that over 350,000 people are in the “catastrophe” phase of the IPC Acute Food Insecurity Classification, the highest number of people under that designation since the 2011 Somalia famine.

As of May 2021, 5.5m people were facing high levels of acute food insecurity: 3.1m were in the crisis phase and 2.1m in the emergency phase, despite humanitarian food assistance that had reached up to 5m in previous months. The situation is expected to worsen through September, with 4.4m predicted to be in crisis or worse and an estimated 400,000 expected to face catastrophe.

Samantha Power, administrator of USAID, summed up the increasing international concern in a tweet: “I’ve spoken to several humanitarian aid leaders, veterans of decades of devastating crises. Nearly all say the same thing: the situation in Tigray is the worst they have ever seen.”

If the conflict escalates or aid is further impeded, most parts of Tigray will be at risk of famine. Many of the causes are man-made – the UN cites the effects of conflict, including population displacements, movement restrictions, limited humanitarian access, loss of harvest and livelihood assets, and dysfunctional or non-existent markets.

The famine raises the need for Ethiopia prime

If the conflict escalates or aid is further impeded, most parts of Tigray will be at risk of famine

minister Abiy Ahmed’s government to pursue an immediate ceasefire with rebels and allow unimpeded humanitarian access to the devastated areas. In less than a year, Ethiopia has plunged from being one of Africa’s most promising investment destinations to one of its most concerning humanitarian situations.

The US recently announced visa restrictions and limits to economic and security aid to the Ethiopian government, suggesting that supportive partners are losing patience. The US has called for Ethiopia to rein in Eritrean and Amharan allies who are helping to prosecute the war.

African Business has been supportive of Ethiopia and its reform-minded agenda. The country has made remarkable progress on several fronts, including the economy, but all this will be rendered meaningless until peace is restored. Immediate action will not only save lives, but what remains of the government’s optimistic vision for the country’s future. ■