Ethiopia and the World Bank held discussions in Addis Ababa on expanding cooperation to strengthen the country’s human capital agenda.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the inaugural Ethiopia Human Capital Forum 2025, co-hosted by the government and the World Bank Group. The event featured a Social Protection and Labour session under the theme “Building Social Protection Pathways to Prosperity in Ethiopia,” highlighting the central role of safety nets in fostering resilient livelihoods, job creation, and improved outcomes in education, nutrition, and health. 

Finance Minister Ahmed Shide met World Bank Vice President for Human Development Mamta Murthi during the event, which also included her field visit to Hawassa.

Finance Minister Ahmed Shide said Ethiopia’s priorities include improving education quality, expanding healthcare to cut infant and maternal mortality, and scaling up safety net programmes. He acknowledged the Bank’s role in supporting initiatives in education, skills development, health, and social protection.

Murthi reaffirmed the Bank’s commitment, noting support for the Health Compact and efforts to accelerate progress toward Universal Health Coverage. She underlined the importance of sustaining Ethiopia’s flagship Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP), one of Africa’s largest, which has helped improve food security and protect household assets. The PSNP, together with the Urban Productive Safety Net Project, has been credited with mitigating the impact of shocks such as Covid-19, though both face growing financing gaps.

According to government officials, nearly 60% of Ethiopia’s public expenditure is now directed toward human capital priorities. About 60 billion birr has been channelled to rural and urban safety nets, underscoring their role in linking economic reform with improved living standards. Development partners warn, however, that declining donor support and rising costs present risks to sustaining these programmes.