Ethiopia and Rwanda have some of the fastest growing economies in Africa, but they still rank as some of the poorest countries in the world based on GDP per capita. Large portions of their populations live in poverty. Many citizens are unemployed or underemployed and rely on subsistence farming to survive. 

 

The Ethiopian and Rwandan governments are shifting from their current focus on agriculture and natural resources to create a more competitive and sustainable economy. Both countries have announced information technology (IT), tourism, and entrepreneurship as the main foundation for their country’s long-term plans for economic growth.