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Ethiopia Ethiopia in Crisis: Famine and Its Aftermath,1984-88
Toward the end of the 1980s, several crises, including
famine, economic collapse, and military setbacks in Eritrea
and Tigray, confronted the Derg. In addition, as democratic
reform swept through the communist world, it became evident
that Addis Ababa no longer could rely on its allies for
support.
Famine and Economic Collapse
Ethiopia had never recovered from the previous great famine
of the early 1970s, which was the result of a drought that
affected most of the countries of the African Sahel. The
late 1970s again brought signs of intensifying drought. By
the early 1980s, large numbers of people in central Eritrea,
Tigray, Welo, and parts of Gonder and Shewa were beginning
to feel the effects of renewed famine.
By mid-1984 it was evident that another drought and
resulting famine of major proportions had begun to affect
large parts of northern Ethiopia. Just as evident was the
government's inability to provide relief. The almost total
failure of crops in the north was compounded by fighting in
and around Eritrea, which hindered the passage of relief
supplies. Although international relief organizations made a
major effort to provide food to the affected areas, the
persistence of drought and poor security conditions in the
north resulted in continuing need as well as hazards for
famine relief workers. In late 1985, another year of drought
was forecast, and by early 1986 the famine had spread to
parts of the southern highlands, with an estimated 5.8
million people dependent on relief food. Exacerbating the
problem in 1986 were locust and grasshopper plagues.
The government's inability or unwillingness to deal with
the 1984-85 famine provoked universal condemnation by the
international community. Even many supporters of the
Ethiopian regime opposed its policy of withholding food
shipments to rebel areas. The combined effects of famine and
internal war had by then put the nation's economy into a
state of collapse.
The primary government response to the drought and famine
was the decision to uproot large numbers of peasants who
lived in the affected areas in the north and to resettle
them in the southern part of the country. In 1985 and 1986,
about 600,000 people were moved, many forcibly, from their
home villages and farms by the military and transported to
various regions in the south. Many peasants fled rather than
allow themselves to be resettled; many of those who were
resettled sought later to return to their native regions.
Several human rights organizations claimed that tens of
thousands of peasants died as a result of forced
resettlement (see
The Politics of Resettlement, ch. 4).
Another government plan involved villagization, which was a
response not only to the famine but also to the poor
security situation. Beginning in 1985, peasants were forced
to move their homesteads into planned villages, which were
clustered around water, schools, medical services, and
utility supply points to facilitate distribution of those
services. Many peasants fled rather than acquiesce in
relocation, which in general proved highly unpopular.
Additionally, the government in most cases failed to provide
the promised services. Far from benefiting agricultural
productivity, the program caused a decline in food
production. Although temporarily suspended in 1986,
villagization was subsequently resumed.
Data as of 1991
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