Addis Ababa – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) provided over 4.5 million people in Ethiopia with multi-sectoral assistance in 2021 as the organisation continues to deliver on its mandate in the country in close collaboration with and support from the Government of Ethiopia, the United Nations, and development and humanitarian partners.               

IOM continued to support migrants and displaced people despite daunting challenges like the doubling of the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to 4.2 million in 2021 from 2.1 million in 2020 due to armed conflict and other causes, continued mixed cross border migratory flows in and out of the country and the COVID-19 pandemic that posed unprecedented risks to movements, including support to refugee resettlement.           

In 2021, IOM achieved several milestones, mainly in the areas of migration governance, migration movements, emergency and post-crisis interventions, migration health and liaison with the African Union and other UN agencies, especially the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

IOM worked to harness and improve the developmental potential of migration and to protect and assist migrants in vulnerable situations at all stages of the migration cycle as it continued to engage government and partners to strengthen institutions and networks, and to support legislative and regulatory reform and gathering of migration data and statistics.

Over 48,000 returning migrants were assisted in the year, with 1,200 receiving tailor-made economic and social support packages. Additionally, ten border control posts were assessed for the installation of new border management information system, among other support to enhance border management.

Over 3,000 refugees were assisted to depart from Ethiopia through IOM’s resettlement programme, and 16,000 individuals assisted with visa applications to Canada and Germany. Over 6,600 refugees were also transported in a humane and dignified manner to camps in safer areas of the country in close collaboration with authorities and partners.

Emergency and post-crisis work covered the spectrum of activities related to preparedness and response in humanitarian emergencies to recovery and transition towards durable solutions for the displaced. IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) gathered information on internal displacement, with more than 943,000 individuals benefitting from the provision of shelter and non-food items while 939,000 displaced people received camp coordination and camp management services. Nearly 2 million people benefitted from water, sanitation, and hygiene service.

Another 627,000 people were reached through public health emergency risk communication, with over 200,000 medical consultations and health assessments conducted, and 125,000 people supported with mental health and psychosocial support services. 

IOM also worked closely with the African Union Commission (AUC) and UNECA on migration governance and continued to support policy development, advocacy and political engagement, and strengthening the capacity of state and non-state actors on migration management and governance and embedding migration in regional and continental development and integration policies and activities.

“We look forward to building on these achievements for more fruitful cooperation by recommitting to promoting safe, regular, and dignified migration for the benefit of all,” said Jian Zhao, IOM Ethiopia Acting Chief of Mission and Representative to the AU and UNECA.

IOM Ethiopia’s annual report can be found here.

For more information contact Eric Mazango emazango@iom.int