Ethiopia's economy is primarily dependent on agriculture, which employs above two-thirds of the population. The country’s export is almost exclusively of agricultural commodities: coffee is the major export crop. The government however is aiming at reducing this overdependence at the benefit of a more diversified economy including manufacturing, garments, and energy.

The agricultural sector suffers from poor cultivation practices and frequent droughts. Although the government of Ethiopia has formulated several policies to strengthen agricultural productivity and resilience, the decreased rainfall still poses a threat for many food-insecure Ethiopians. For instance, about 10 million people were at risk of hunger as a result of the El Niño related drought in 2016.

Ethiopia could record significant success in the HDI score throughout the years, but it continues to rank among countries with a low level of human development. The country exhibits one of the lowest GDP per capita worldwide and in 2012 the unemployment rate was estimated to average 17.5%. Hunger and poverty are issues that have to be addressed with the highest priority, given that one-third of the total population lives in extreme poverty and, as assessed by the GHI (2015), hunger severity is alarming. Significant improvements were achieved in the education and health care system. In order to combat the widespread food insecurity, the further resilience of the agricultural sector has been promoted next to training of households to reduce their exposure to shocks.