The index, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development for twenty years, documents the development of civil society in seventy-one countries around the world, including Ethiopia. ICNL and FHI 360 work with local partners to produce the index annually.

The earliest forms of civil society in Ethiopia were traditional community-based organizations and informal self-help organizations. Philanthropy grew during the Ethiopian famines in 1973-74 and 1984-85, both of which caused mass migration and loss of lives and property. This report explores the current state of laws and regulations affecting philanthropy, unpacking the history, and the present-day legal environment.