Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required was 5.6% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia, 2003–2022
Source: Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of people at risk.
Analysis
In 2022, share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia stood at 5.6%. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.7% on the previous year and down 73.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia peaked at 30.7% in 2006 and was at its lowest, 5.6%, in 2022.
Ethiopia ranks 81st of 134 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia, year by year
| Year | % of people at risk | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 30.1% | — |
| 2004 | 23.5% | -21.9% |
| 2006 | 30.7% | +30.6% |
| 2007 | 28.7% | -6.5% |
| 2008 | 27.5% | -4.2% |
| 2009 | 29.7% | +8.0% |
| 2010 | 25.8% | -13.1% |
| 2013 | 21.2% | -17.8% |
| 2014 | 16.9% | -20.3% |
| 2015 | 13.9% | -17.8% |
| 2016 | 12.8% | -7.9% |
| 2017 | 10.9% | -14.8% |
| 2018 | 11.6% | +6.4% |
| 2021 | 6.0% | -48.3% |
| 2022 | 5.6% | -6.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 28.4% | 23.5% | 30.7% | 6 |
| 2010s | 16.2% | 10.9% | 25.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 5.8% | 5.6% | 6.0% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
More population data for Ethiopia
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.4782 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 1.28 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.4782 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.2918 % change on previous year (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.229 % change on previous year (2100)
- World population growth 0.5% (2100)
- Population density 325.45 people per km² (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 23.22 million people (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.5% (2100)
- Number of people living in urban and rural areas, annual growth rate 4.7 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia?
- Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Ethiopia was 5.6% in 2022, according to Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 30.7% in 2006.
- What is the lowest share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.6% in 2022.
- How does Ethiopia rank for share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required?
- Ethiopia ranks 81st out of 134 countries with data for 2022.
- Is share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 73.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ethiopia data come from?
- The figures come from Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Catastrophic expenditure is defined as direct out-of-pocket payments for surgical and anaesthesia care exceeding 10% of total income.