Travel safety comparison · Africa
Ethiopia vs South Sudan: safety comparison
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Side-by-side safety comparison of Ethiopia and South Sudan for 2026: risk scores, FCDO and US State Department advisories, drug law, women's safety, LGBTQ+ legal status, and the practical decision between the two.
Ethiopia carries a materially lower safety risk than South Sudan on the composite Warnely score: 64/100 against 87/100, a gap of 23 points. The biggest single category gap is in crime, where Ethiopia scores 3/5 against South Sudan's 5/5. The US State Department currently carries a Level 3 advisory on Ethiopia and a Level 4 on South Sudan. Women's-safety rating differs: Ethiopia is Exercise Caution and South Sudan is Do Not Travel.
| 🇪🇹Ethiopia | 🇸🇸South Sudan | |
|---|---|---|
| Warnely composite (0–100, lower is safer) | 64 / 100 | 87 / 100 |
| Risk tier | High Risk | Do Not Travel |
| UK FCDO advisory | avoid all but essential travel to parts of country; avoid all travel to parts of country | avoid all travel to whole country |
| US State Department advisory | Level 3 (Reconsider Travel) | Level 4 (Do Not Travel) |
| Global Peace Index rank | #138 | #156 |
| Drug law | Severe (long sentences) | Severe (long sentences) |
| Women's safety rating | Exercise Caution | Do Not Travel |
| LGBTQ+ legal status | illegal | illegal |
| Tap water | n/a | n/a |
| Currency | ETB | SSP |