Ethiopia has fallen to 144th place out of 163 countries in the 2024 Global Peace Index, released by the Institute for Economics & Peace. This marks a significant deterioration in Ethiopia’s ranking, down from 131st place in the previous year’s index.
The Global Peace Index is the world’s leading measure of global peacefulness, ranking countries based on 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators across three domains: the level of Societal Safety and Security, the extent of Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict, and the degree of Militarization.
According to the report, Ethiopia saw notable declines in several areas, including increased involvement in external conflicts, higher military expenditure as a percentage of GDP, and a rise in the number of deaths from internal conflict. The report also highlighted Ethiopia’s internal political instability and ethnic tensions as contributing factors to its lower ranking.
“Ethiopia’s drop in the rankings is a concerning sign of the country’s ongoing struggle to maintain peace and stability,” said the report’s lead author. “The combination of external conflicts, militarization, and internal divisions is making it increasingly difficult for Ethiopia to achieve a high level of peacefulness.”
The report found that the average level of global peacefulness deteriorated by 0.56% in 2024, marking the 12th deterioration in peacefulness in the last 16 years. This underscores the challenges many countries are facing in addressing the root causes of conflict and violence.
While Ethiopia’s ranking has fallen, the report noted that several countries in the region, including Kenya and Uganda, have seen improvements in their peacefulness rankings. This suggests that progress is possible, but will require a concerted effort by the Ethiopian government and international community to address the complex drivers of conflict.
