Ethiopian Informer
ADDIS ABABA: There are now more than 1.8 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ethiopia, a new report (here) on internal displacement released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has revealed.
The report, which was completed in September and endorsed by Ethiopian authorities, contains data collected between June and July 2020 through the assessment of more than 1,200 IDP sites and over 1,200 villages where IDPs had reportedly returned.
The primary cause of displacement: conflict, which has resulted in 1,233,557 IDPs across this country. The second highest cause: drought, which displaced 351,062 IDPs, followed by seasonal floods (displacing 104,696 IDPs) and flash floods (50,093).
“We are happy to continue providing comprehensive and reliable data on internally displaced persons and returning IDPs throughout the country via our National Displacement Report. It is our hope that this data will be well used to inform humanitarian responses and guide policy making,” said Sarah Choong, who is the Acting Coordinator of DTM Ethiopia.
The data and report are used to assist national, regional and local government counterparts in tracking the fluid mobility situation in Ethiopia. IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) works closely with the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC), for its mobility tracking component under which fall the Site Assessment and Village Assessment Surveys. DTM also works with the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA) for its flow monitoring component which tracks incoming and outgoing migration flows and trends in key locations of high mobility in the country.
Besides the government, the data collected through the Displacement Tracking Matrix is also shared with humanitarian counterparts to inform programming, strategic planning, targeted humanitarian responses and for advocacy purposes. The data is also used in institutional documents, including the Humanitarian Needs Overview and Humanitarian Response Plan.
This round of IOM DTM reporting was made possible through the support of the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), the Government of Germany and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).
