Technical Assistance Package on Nutrition in support of the Government of Ethiopia’s ‘Seqota’ Declaration

Abstract

Ethiopia is in the ‘early’ phase of the demographic dividend transition and on the path to a population age structure that may enable it to experience a demographic dividend. The national total fertility rate has decreased from over 7 children per woman in 2000 to 4.1 in 2015. Similarly, the under-five mortality rate has steadily decreased from 205 deaths per 1000 live births in 1990 to 59 deaths per 1000 live births in 2015. Ethiopia’s maternal mortalities have also decreased since 1990 yet the current 420 deaths per 100,000 live births is still high for the country’s current demographic shift. The two graphs below illustrate the steady decline in under-five mortality rate and maternal mortality ratio as well as how the country has performed in relationship to the Millennium Goal Targets.