Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained
its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of the 1936-41 Italian
occupation during World War II. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by
bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the
regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the
Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was
adopted in 1994, and
Ethiopia
's
first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with
Eritrea
late in the 1990's ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. Final
demarcation of the boundary is currently on hold due to Ethiopian objections to
an international commission's finding requiring it to surrender territory
considered sensitive to
Ethiopia.
Geography of
Ethiopia
Location:
Eastern Africa, west of
Somalia
Coordinates:
8 00 N, 38 00 E
Area:
total: 1,127,127 sq km water: 7,444 sq km land: 1,119,683 sq km
Area comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 5,328 km border countries: Djibouti 349 km, Eritrea 912 km, Kenya 861 km,
Somalia 1,600 km, Sudan 1,606 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation
Terrain:
high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great
Rift Valley
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Denakil Depression -125 m highest point: Ras Dejen 4,620 m
Natural resources:
small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural
gas, hydropower
Natural hazards:
geologically active Great Rift Valley
susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts
Environment current issues:
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification;
water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor
management
Geography - note:
landlocked - entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost
with the de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May
1993; the Blue Nile, the chief headstream of the Nile by water volume, rises
in T'ana Hayk (Lake Tana) in northwest Ethiopia; three major crops are
believed to have originated in Ethiopia: coffee, grain sorghum, and castor
bean
Population of
Ethiopia
Population:
74,777,981 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life
expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and
growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex
than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.7% (male 16,373,718/female
16,280,766) 15-64 years: 53.6% (male 19,999,482/female 20,077,014) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 929,349/female 1,117,652)
Median age:
17.8 years
Growth rate:
2.31%
Infant mortality:
93.62 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.03 years male: 47.86 years female: 50.24 years
Fertility rate:
5.22 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: Ethiopian(s) adjective: Ethiopian
Ethnic groups:
Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigre 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1%
Religions:
Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, animist 12%,
other 3%-8%
Languages:
Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other local languages,
English (major foreign language taught in schools)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 42.7% male: 50.3% female: 35.1%
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Democratic Republic
of Ethiopia local short form: Ityop'iya former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik abbreviation: FDRE
Government type:
federal republic
Capital:
Addis Ababa
Administrative divisions:
9 ethnically-based states (kililoch,
singular - kilil) and 2 self-governing
administrations* (astedaderoch, singular - astedader); Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa), Afar, Amara (Amhara), Binshangul Gumuz, Dire Dawa*, Gambela Hizboch (Gambela Peoples), Hareri Hizb (Harari People), Oromiya (Oromia), Sumale (Somali), Tigray, Ye Debub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples)
Independence:
oldest independent country in Africa
and one of the oldest in the world - at least 2,000 years
National holiday:
National Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)
Constitution:
ratified December 1994; effective 22 August 1995
Legal system:
currently transitional mix of national and regional courts
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President GIRMA Woldegiorgis head of government: Prime Minister MELES Zenawi cabinet: Council of Ministers as provided for in the December 1994
constitution; ministers are selected by the prime minister and approved by
the House of People's Representatives elections: president elected by the House of People's Representatives
for a six-year term (eligible for a second term)
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation
or upper chamber (108 seats; members are chosen by state assemblies to serve
five-year terms) and the House of People's Representatives or lower chamber
(547 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote from single-member
districts to serve five-year terms)
Judicial branch:
Federal Supreme Court (the president and vice president of
the Federal Supreme Court are recommended by the prime minister and appointed
by the House of People's Representatives; for other federal judges, the prime
minister submits to the House of People's Representatives for appointment
candidates selected by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council).
Economy
Ethiopia
's
poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture, accounting for half of GDP,
60% of exports, and 80% of total employment. The agricultural sector suffers
from frequent drought and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the
Ethiopian economy with exports of some $156 million in 2002, but historically
low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to
supplement income. The war with
Eritrea
in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have buffeted the economy, in particular
coffee production. In November 2001,
Ethiopia
qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC)
initiative, and in December 2005 the International Monetary Fund voted to
forgive
Ethiopia
's
debt to the body. Under
Ethiopia
's
land tenure system, the government owns all land and provides long-term leases
to the tenants; the system continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector
as entrepreneurs are unable to use land as collateral for loans. Drought struck
again late in 2002, leading to a 2% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather
patterns late in 2003 helped agricultural and GDP growth recover in 2004-05.
