By Anne Okello
Majorities say using police or military to enforce health mandates, postponing elections, and censoring media are justified steps during a pandemic.
Key findings
- About one in four Ethiopians (26%) said someone in their household had lost a job, business, or primary source of income due to the pandemic, while 3% said a household member became ill or tested positive for COVID-19.
- Almost two-thirds (64%) of adults said they had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine; 20% said they were unlikely to try to get vaccinated.
- Respondents who were reluctant to get vaccinated offered a variety of reasons, including reliance on God’s protection (31%), concern about the vaccine’s safety (12%), and the belief that COVID-19 is not serious or life-threatening (12%) or doesn’t exist (11%).
- Seven in 10 Ethiopians (69%) said they trust the government to ensure the safety of vaccines, while 29% expressed little or no such trust.
- Overall, most Ethiopians (89%) approved of the government’s response to COVID-19.
- In particular, majorities were satisfied with the government’s efforts to minimise disruptions to children’s education (77%) and to ensure that health facilities were adequately resourced (74%). However, only 10% reported receiving relief assistance from the government.
- More than three in five citizens (63%) believed that “a lot” (18%), “some” (26%), or “a little” (19%) of the resources available to combat the pandemic were lost due to corruption.
- In response to a public health emergency like a pandemic, majorities considered it justified to use the police or military to enforce public health mandates (78%), to postpone elections (71%), and to censor media reporting (63%).
- More than six in 10 Ethiopians (64%) said they believe that the government is “somewhat” or “very” prepared to deal with future public health emergencies.
- Even so, three-fourths (75%) said the government needs to invest more in preparations for such a crisis, even if that would mean fewer resources are available for other health services.
Ethiopia confirmed its first COVID-19 case in March 2020, prompting school closures, bans on public gatherings, and quarantine measures for incoming travelers (World Health Organization, 2020; United Nations Children’s Fund, 2020). Citing concerns about the pandemic, the government postponed the August 2020 general elections, which were eventually held in June/September 2021 (Schwikowski, 2020; IPU Parline, 2025).
While the Ethiopian government did not impose a nationwide lockdown, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared a five-month-long state of emergency on 8 April 2020 after the country recorded 55 COVID-19 cases and two deaths (Al Jazeera, 2020; Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 2020). The emergency decree extended public health mandates and introduced strict penalties for violations, including prison sentences of up to three years or fines of up to 200,000 birr (Ayele, Fessha, Dessalegn, & Gebeye, 2024; Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 2020).
In March 2021, Ethiopia launched a COVID-19 vaccination campaign, prioritising frontline health workers, the elderly, and those with underlying health conditions (World Health Organization, 2021). As of March 2025, Ethiopia had administered 68.86 million vaccine doses and recorded 501,304 COVID-19 cases and 7,574 deaths (World Health Organization, 2025).
COVID-19 also adversely impacted economic activity, resulting in repressed growth and reduced income (World Bank, 2021). By April 2020, 8% of Ethiopians reported losing their jobs, with 63% attributing these losses to COVID-19. Urban residents were particularly affected, with 20% experiencing job losses compared to just 3% of their rural counterparts (Ambel, Sosa, Tsegay, & Wieser, 2020).