Addis Abeba — An estimated 50,600 people left Ethiopia through the Eastern Route during the first quarter of 2026, as migrants increasingly used alternative routes and faced exploitation by smugglers, according to a new report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The data was published against the backdrop of a string of similar reports tracking migration trends among Ethiopians in recent months.
This week, the IOM said Ethiopian nationals accounted for 91% of the 13,687 migrants who arrived in Yemen in July 2026, making them by far the largest group recorded entering the conflict-affected country during the month.
Earlier, similar tracking found that conflict, insecurity, limited access to protection, and worsening economic conditions continued to drive thousands of people from the Horn of Africa onto the Eastern Route toward Yemen and the Gulf.
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The figure for the first quarter of 2026 is down from the 65,200 exits recorded during the same period in 2025. IOM attributed the decline partly to increased authorities' presence along major migration routes, which pushed migrants toward alternative routes bypassing urban areas and villages. Migrants reported that these routes were "more challenging and hazardous."
Despite the decline in movements from Ethiopia, migration along the broader Eastern Route increased by eight percent year-on-year to 152,700 movements. Migration through Somalia nearly tripled, reaching 18,600 movements, amid the continued operation of smuggling and trafficking networks linking several locations to Bossaso.
The organization documented cases of financial exploitation by smugglers, reporting that migrants were transported through parts of Somalia before smugglers "demanded payments from their families, guardians, or relatives under pressure to secure the migrants' safety." The agency classified such incidents as "smuggling-related exploitation and extortion."
Discover morenewsSocial affairs analysisgovernment'sForeign policy newsPolitical science coursesGovernmentAfricans & DiasporaHistoryDemographicsNews subscription service The report does not specify the amount of money demanded. It does, however, document cases involving ransom demands, physical abuse, confiscation of documents and labor exploitation among Ethiopian migrants in Bossaso.
Ethiopia travel guide Some migrants also exhausted their resources during the journey. Ethiopian migrants stranded in Bossaso reportedly faced severe food shortages after spending their money on food and transportation before leaving Ethiopia. Some were reportedly eating only once a day.
Economic pressure was the dominant driver of migration from Ethiopia. Some 57 percent of migrants cited economic reasons, while 42 percent said they were travelling to work or seek work. Conflict, violence and persecution accounted for one percent of reported drivers.
Amhara and Tigray regions each accounted for 35 percent of recorded departures from Ethiopia, followed by Oromia at 22 percent. Men represented 65 percent of migrants, while women accounted for 17 percent, boys 12 percent and girls six percent.
The journey also carried deadly risks. IOM recorded 92 deaths and disappearances along the Eastern Route during the first quarter, including 23 in Ethiopia. Drowning and vehicle accidents linked to hazardous transport were the leading reported causes.
In Ethiopia, at least 22 migrants died and 65 others were injured in January when a cargo truck transporting migrants overturned near Semera in the Afar Region. Another migrant was found dead near Dewele in March with reported signs of violence.
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IOM's Migration Response Centers in Ethiopia assisted 2,200 migrants during the quarter. The agency said 95 percent of those assisted reported lacking basic services, while 24 percent said they had been held against their will and 16 percent reported extortion.
At the same time, returns from Saudi Arabia to Ethiopia more than doubled, rising from 12,800 in the first quarter of 2025 to 26,400 during the same period in 2026. Tigray accounted for the largest share of returnees at 36 percent, followed by Amhara at 31 percent and Oromia at 29 percent.
IOM expects migration along the Eastern Route to remain high as economic pressures, food insecurity, household debt and limited livelihood opportunities continue to drive movement toward Gulf countries.
