Today, Ethiopia, located in East Africa and just above the equator, has an expanding middle class and the fastest growing millionaire class in Africa. According to a 2013 report by the consulting firm New World Wealth, the nation had the most rapidly surging GDP in Africa – with 93 percent growth from 2004 to 2009. And its projected expansion for the 2014-15 fiscal year is another 11.4 percent. That said, it’s still in the early stages of a turnaround. It ranks 174th out of 187 countries on the United Nation’s human development index.
Growing up without parents is not uncommon in a country that perhaps is still most familiar to the West as the starvation capital of the world. Drought, politics and civil war led to a massive famine in the 1980s. The 1984 hit single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” by the charity musical group Band Aid brought international attention to the country’s plight, resulting in images of kids with swollen bellies being broadcast around the globe. It’s a reputation that Ethiopians, who now have one of the fastest growing economies in the world, are eager to shake.
Expanding the middle class could be key to the country’s future, especially when a common criticism is the sharp disparity between rich and poor. A healthy middle class is often viewed as essential to a robust economy, creating a dependable demand for goods and services, nurturing entrepreneurs and promoting a well-educated citizenry.
The government has stated its goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2025. And it’s betting on higher education, particularly in engineering, to both grow the economy and help the nation become a bigger player in the world market. The number of public universities in the country has grown from two to more than 30 over the last 20 years. And Ethiopia is looking to other, more established higher education systems to serve as models.
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