Ethiopia – Borders, Politics, and National Identity

Ethiopia has never had to claim independence from another nation.  It was briefly occupied by the Italians during Mussolini’s reign; however, the Italians were not there long enough to change the culture of this nation.  Ethiopia has largely been protected against any unwanted influences on its culture. 

Ethiopia is divided culturally with most Christians occupying the eastern and northern portions of the nation while Muslims occupy most of the southern and western parts.  Ethiopia has four major ethnic groups as well as four major languages: Oromo, Amhara (Amharic), Somali, and Tigray (Tigrigna). [1] The country is divided into administrative political areas that correspond with its major ethnic divisions.

Ethiopian Administrative Regions and Populations
Source: Ethio Visit.
http://www.ethiovisit.com/ethiopia/ethiopia.html

As you can see in the map above, the Oromo (Oromia) people group are in close proximity to the Somali peoples group.  The Oromo people are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and within this group there is a movement for liberation called the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF).  The Oromo territory was once self-governed but came under control of King Menelik, from the Amharan ethnic group in the north, during a period of empire building in the late 1800s. [2] The Oromo decry discrimination from the Amharic people.  In Ethiopia, it is illegal to speak the Oromo language for public reasons; violators are arrested. [3]  The Amharic (the ruling minority ethnic group) are “driving the Oromo from their fertile lands, and subjecting them to torture, imprisonment, forced conscription, and execution.” [4] Because of this, as well as border fighting with nation of Somalia, over 1.25 million Oromo have fled the country; many of them women and children. [5]

The age structure of Ethiopia is telling: 43.94% of the population is under 14 years of age and the median age is 17.7 years. [6] This means that half of the population of Ethiopia is younger than 18.  In comparison the median age in the United States is 36.8 years old. [7] This figure is indicative to overall health of a nation.  When people live longer the median age rises.  This nation also has an exceptionally high total dependency ratio of 81.6% which compares to the United States figure of 50.9%. [8] This means that less than 20% (working ages 15-64) of the nation is working to support 81.6% (those outside the working age groups) of the population.  This places a tremendous burden on those who are working and has also created a child labor market.

Ethiopia has a literacy rate of 49.1%; the male figure is 57.2% and the female rate is 41.1% [9].  This number is very low compared to the rest of the world which has a literacy rate of 86.1%.[10]  The literacy rate also shows a disparity between men and women; this indicates that there is a higher value placed on men’s education.  The school life rate for a child in Ethiopia is 7 years (6 years for girls and 8 years for boys) and many children (53%) are engaged in child labor (ages 5-14) to help support the family. [11]

Ethiopia Model: Investing in Quality Education for all Children
Government Spending for children's education rose
from 11% of total spending in 1999-2000
to more than 25% in 2012-2013.

Source: Global Partnership
http://www.globalpartnership.org/blog/ethiopia-model-investing-quality-education-all-children

The government of Ethiopia is a federal parliamentary republic and uses the three traditional branches of government.  The country has had a significant change in its political borders that relate to the nation of Eritrea.  After World War II the United Nations made Eritrea a federal component of Ethiopia; in 1962 Ethiopia annexed Eritrea and this resulted in war.  Eritrea gained independence in 1993 and since then relations between these two nations has been contentious.  Currently, Eritrea has faced sanctions from the UN and many people are fleeing from Eritrea into Ethiopia. [12] In fact, Ethiopia has the largest refugee population of any African nation with 700,000 refugees. [13]

Footnotes:

1. “Ethiopia: People and Society.” CIA World Fact Book. 2016. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html (accessed June 28, 2016).

2. “Oromo Continue to Flee Violence.” Cultural Survival Quarterly. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/somalia/oromo-continue-flee-violence

3. “Oromo Continue to Flee Violence.” Cultural Survival Quarterly. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/somalia/oromo-continue-flee-violence

4. “Oromo Continue to Flee Violence.” Cultural Survival Quarterly. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/somalia/oromo-continue-flee-violence

5. “Oromo Continue to Flee Violence.” Cultural Survival Quarterly. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/somalia/oromo-continue-flee-violence

6. CIA World Fact Book. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html

7. United States Demography.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demography_of_the_United_States

8. “Dependency Ratios.” CIA World Fact Book. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2261.html#et

9. CIA World Fact Book. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html

10. “Literacy.” https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2103.html#et

11. CIA World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html

12. “Eritrea Profile.” BBC News. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13349395

13. “Eritrean Refugees in Ethiopia.” http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/2016/03/eritrean-refugees-ethiopia-160306065928790.html

Missions Work in Ethiopia

The original Ethiopian religion is paganism; however, God has a different plan for this nation.  In the Old Testament story of King Solomon and Sheba, Sheba gives gifts to Solomon and blesses God. [1] After Jesus Christ was raised from the dead, he sent out his disciples to “go and create disciples of all nations.” [2] The first disciple to interact with an Ethiopian was Philip who recognized that an Ethiopian traveler was reading from the Old Testament Book of Isaiah. [3] At the end of their meeting the Ethiopian accepted Jesus Christ as Savior and was baptized by Philip. [4] Later on King Ezana in the 4^th Century would adopt Christianity as the nation’s state religion.  Since then there have been three distinct phases of mission’s work in Ethiopia: from the rise of Islam in 7^th Century AD until the 15^th Century, the colonial mission’s period from the 1800s until the end of World War II, and lastly the modern missionary period from the end of WWII until present day. [5]

The rise of Islam in Ethiopia was made possible through the use of three major kinds of Islamic missions’ work.  The first is the traditional method of a simple appeal or invitation to accept Allah as God; the second is through the manipulation of trade to coerce people into Islam for discounted goods; and the third is through conquest. [6] Ethiopia is proximate to Arabia, a major stronghold of Islam, through the Red Sea, and 33.9 % of the nation has been converted to Islam through these measures. [7] According to Open Doors, a Christian Missions group for persecuted Christians, Ethiopia is ranked the 18^th most volatile country in the world for Christian persecution; most of this comes from Islamic extremism. [8] 

Christian missions work in Ethiopia picked back up in the 1500s; from 1557-1632 there was a major move from Jesuit missionaries to convert Ethiopians to the Catholic faith which was strongly opposed to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. [9] Ignatius of Loyola sent missionaries to Ethiopia after hearing about the tale of Prester John. [10] He sent in 20 missionaries on 13 separate missions and one of the largest contributions of these missions was imported technology from Spain, Italy, and Portugal to help in military defense against Muslims, pagans, and domestic aggressors. [11] During the colonial period (1800-1945), Ethiopia did not experience the wave of missionaries like other African countries because Ethiopia was never colonized during this time.

Today there are approximately 20,930,000 unreached people in Ethiopia which represents 20.8% of the population. [12] The largest missionary group in the nation are Protestant missionaries who operate with 22 different member churches of the Evangelical Church Fellowship of Ethiopia [13].  One of the largest churches in Ethiopia is the Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church (EKHC) which has over 7,000,000 members in 6,000 congregations. [14] This church was founded in the 1920s by a church plant mission group called Serving in Missions and the two are still partnered together for mission work in Ethiopia. [15] The EKHC has its own missions school and outreach programs which provide many services to the people of Ethiopia. [16] They also have their own orphanage, college, work program for women and children, and over 127 Bile schools in the nation. [17]

God's will is that none shall perish but that all shall come to to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).  Please pray for the people of the nation of Ethiopia to receive Jesus the Christ as Savior.  Please pray for the safety of missionaries operating within the country, as well as other Christians, for protection against persecution. 

For more information on the opportunity to serve in Ethiopia please visit: http://www.sim.org/index.php/opportunity/country/ET

Footnotes:

1. Schultz, Hannah. “Beautiful Feet: The History of Missions in Africa.” Liberty University. 2016. https://learn.liberty.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_303751_1&content_id=_12472194_1 (accessed June 26, 2016).

2. Matt. 28:19 (NIV).

3. Acts 8:26-40 (NIV).

4. Acts 8:26-40 (NIV).

5. Harper, Melody. “Missions in Africa.” Liberty University. 2016. https://learn.liberty.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_303751_1&content_id=_12472194_1 (accessed June 26, 2016).

6. Schultz, Hannah. “Beautiful Feet: The History of Missions in Africa.”

7. “Ethiopia.” People and Society. CIA World Fact Book. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html (accessed June 26, 2016).

8. “Ethiopia Country Profile.” Open Doors United Kingdom. http://www.opendoorsuk.org/persecution/worldwatch/ethiopia.php (accessed June 26, 2016).

9. Fernández, Víctor. "Enlivening the Dying Ruins: History and Archaeology of the Jesuit Missions in Ethiopia, 1557–1632" Culture & History Digital Journal [Online], Volume 2 Number 2 (30 December 2013). http://cultureandhistory.revistas.csic.es/index.php/cultureandhistory/article/view/33/129 (accessed June 23, 2016).

10. Fernandez, Victor. 2013.

11. Fernandez, Victor. 2013.

12. “Ethiopia.” The Joshua Project. https://joshuaproject.net/countries/et (accessed June 26, 2016).

13. “International Religious Freedom Report: Ethiopia.” United States Department of State. http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2004/35355.htm (accessed June 26, 2016).

14. “Ethiopia.” Serving in Missions. http://www.sim.org/index.php/country/ET (accessed June 26, 2016).

15. “Ethiopia.” Serving in Missions.

16. “Ethiopia.” Serving in Missions.

17. “Ethiopia.” Serving in Missions.

18. “Missions Opportunities in Ethiopia.” Serving in Missions. http://www.sim.org/index.php/opportunity/country/ET (accessed June 26, 2016).