Promoting Basic Services in Ethiopia
SPONSOR WIRE Ethiopia's economy enjoyed robust growth from 2004 to 2011, averaging 11.3% GDP growth per year. Initially led by agriculture, growth subsequently became more broad-based, with a rising contribution from the mining, services and manufacturing sectors. Ethiopia has also improved considerably on basic service delivery indicators in recent years. The focus on decentralized basic service delivery coupled with rapid growth has led to a decline in the population living below the poverty line from 38.7% in 2004 to 29.6% in 2010. Despite this, Ethiopia still faces serious challenges, and the Government remains committed to improving social indicators, with a particular emphasis on increasing access to and quality of basic services. The African Development Bank's Promoting Basic Services Programme (PBS III) provides resources to safeguard and scale up expenditures on basic services for the poor and to help maintain macroeconomic stability by easing pressure on