Ethiopia
Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. 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 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea.
In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades.
Ethiopian Flag
Geography
Location:
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia
Geographic coordinates:
8 00 N, 38 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 1,104,300 sq km
country comparison to the world: 27
land: 1 million sq km
water: 104,300 sq km
Area – comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 5,925 km
border countries: Djibouti 342 km, Eritrea 1,033 km, Kenya 867 km, Somalia 1,640 km, South Sudan 1,299 km, Sudan 744 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: Danakil Depression -125 m
highest point: Ras Dejen 4,533 m
Natural resources:
small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 13.19%
permanent crops: 1.01%
other: 85.8% (2011)
Irrigated land:
2,896 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
122 cu km (2011)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 5.56 cu km/yr (13%/1%/86%)
per capita: 80.5 cu m/yr (2005)
Natural hazards:
geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts
volcanism: volcanic activity in the Great Rift Valley; Erta Ale (elev. 613 m), which has caused frequent lava flows in recent years, is the country’s most active volcano; Dabbahu became active in 2005, causing evacuations; other historically active volcanoes include Alayta, Dalaffilla, Dallol, Dama Ali, Fentale, Kone, Manda Hararo, and Manda-Inakir
Environment – current issues:
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor management
Environment – international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea
Geography – note:
landlocked – entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May 1993; Ethiopia is, therefore, the most populous landlocked country in the world; 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
People & Society
Nationality:
noun: Ethiopian(s)
adjective: Ethiopian
Ethnic groups:
Oromo 34.4%, Amhara (Amara) 27%, Somali (Somalie) 6.2%, Tigray (Tigrinya) 6.1%, Sidama 4%, Gurage 2.5%, Welaita 2.3%, Hadiya 1.7%, Afar (Affar) 1.7%, Gamo 1.5%, Gedeo 1.3%, Silte 1.3%, Kefficho 1.2%, other 10.5% (2007 est.)
Languages:
Oromo (official working language in the State of Oromiya) 33.8%, Amharic (official national language) 29.3%, Somali (official working language of the State of Sumale) 6.2%, Tigrigna (Tigrinya) (official working language of the State of Tigray) 5.9%, Sidamo 4%, Wolaytta 2.2%, Gurage 2%, Afar (official working language of the State of Afar) 1.7%, Hadiyya 1.7%, Gamo 1.5%, Gedeo 1.3%, Opuuo 1.2%, Kafa 1.1%, other 8.1%, English (major foreign language taught in schools), Arabic (2007 est.)
Religions:
Ethiopian Orthodox 43.5%, Muslim 33.9%, Protestant 18.5%, traditional 2.7%, Catholic 0.7%, other 0.6% (2007 est.)
Population:
96,633,458
country comparison to the world: 14
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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2014 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 44.2% (male 21,376,243/female 21,308,454)
15-24 years: 19.9% (male 9,557,462/female 9,692,275)
25-54 years: 29.2% (male 14,023,218/female 14,176,263)
55-64 years: 3.9% (male 1,826,602/female 1,919,212)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 1,242,171/female 1,511,558) (2014 est.)
population pyramid:
Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 83.5 %
youth dependency ratio: 77.2 %
elderly dependency ratio: 6.3 %
potential support ratio: 15.8 (2014 est.)
Median age:
total: 17.6 years
male: 17.4 years
female: 17.7 years (2014 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.89% (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Birth rate:
37.66 births/1,000 population (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Death rate:
8.52 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 77
Net migration rate:
-0.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population
country comparison to the world: 122
note: repatriation of Ethiopian refugees residing in Sudan is expected to continue for several years; some Sudanese, Somali, and Eritrean refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine in their own countries, continue to return to their homes (2014 est.)
Urbanization:
urban population: 17% of total population (2011)
rate of urbanization: 3.57% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
Major urban areas – population:
ADDIS ABABA (capital) 2.979 million (2011)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2014 est.)
Mother’s mean age at first birth:
19.6
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2011 est.)
Maternal mortality rate:
350 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)
country comparison to the world: 33
Infant mortality rate:
total: 55.77 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 29
male: 63.77 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 47.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2014 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 60.75 years
country comparison to the world: 193
male: 58.43 years
female: 63.15 years (2014 est.)
Total fertility rate:
5.23 children born/woman (2014 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Contraceptive prevalence rate:
28.6% (2010/11)
Health expenditures:
4.7% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 148
Physicians density:
0.03 physicians/1,000 population (2009)
Hospital bed density:
6.3 beds/1,000 population (2011)
Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 96.8% of population
rural: 42.1% of population
total: 51.5% of population
unimproved:
urban: 3.2% of population
rural: 57.9% of population
total: 48.5% of population (2012 est.)
Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 27.4% of population
rural: 22.8% of population
total: 23.6% of population
unimproved:
urban: 72.6% of population
rural: 77.2% of population
total: 76.4% of population (2012 est.)
HIV/AIDS – adult prevalence rate:
1.3% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
HIV/AIDS – people living with HIV/AIDS:
758,600 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
HIV/AIDS – deaths:
47,200 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
animal contact disease: rabies
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2013)
Obesity – adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 191
Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
29.2% (2011)
country comparison to the world: 17
Education expenditures:
4.7% of GDP (2010)
country comparison to the world: 85
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 39%
male: 49.1%
female: 28.9% (2007 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 7 years
male: 8 years
female: 6 years (2005)
Child labor – children ages 5-14:
total number: 10,693,164
percentage: 53 % (2005 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24:
total: 24.9%
country comparison to the world: 40
male: 19.5%
female: 29.4% (2006)
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
conventional short form: Ethiopia
local long form: Ityop’iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik
local short form: Ityop’iya
former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa
abbreviation: FDRE
Government type:
federal republic
Capital:
name: Addis Ababa
geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
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 (may be traced to the Aksumite Kingdom, which coalesced in the first century B.C.)
National holiday:
National Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)
Constitution:
several previous; latest drafted June 1994, adopted 8 December 1994, entered into force 21 August 1995 (2013)
Legal system:
civil law system
International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President MULATU Teshome Wirtu (since 7 October 2013)
head of government: Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn (since 21 September 2012); Deputy Prime Ministers ASTER Mamo, DEBRETSION Gebre-Michael, DEMEKE Mekonnen Hassen; note – prior to his approval as prime minister, HAILEMARIAM had been acting prime minister due to the death of former Prime Minister MELES
cabinet: Council of Ministers – ministers selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People’s Representatives
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elections: president elected by both chambers of Parliament for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 7 October 2013 (next to be held in October 2019); prime minister designated by the party in power following legislative elections
election results: MULATU Teshome Wirtu elected president by acclamation
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation (or upper chamber responsible for interpreting the constitution and federal-regional issues) (108 seats; members chosen by state assemblies to serve five-year terms) and the House of People’s Representatives (or lower chamber responsible for passing legislation) (547 seats; members directly elected by popular vote from single-member districts to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 23 May 2010 (next to be held in 2015)
election results: percent of vote – NA; seats by party – EPRDF 499, SPDP 24, BGPDP 9, ANDP 8, GPUDM 3, HNL 1, FORUM 1, APDO 1, independent 1
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Federal Supreme Court or Supreme Imperial Court (consists of 11 judges)
note – the Federal Supreme Court has jurisdiction for all constitutional issues
judge selection and term of office: president and vice president of Federal Supreme Court nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the House of People’s Representatives; other Supreme Court judges nominated by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council and appointed by the House of People’s Representatives; judges serve until retirement at age 60
subordinate courts: federal high courts and federal courts of first instance; state court systems (mirror structure of federal system); sharia courts and customary and traditional courts
Political parties and leaders:
Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [Mohammed KEDIR]
All Ethiopian Unity Organization or AEUO [Hailu SHAWEL]
Arena Tigray [GEBRU Asrat]
Argoba People’s Democratic Organization or APDO [Abdulkader MOHAMMED]
Benishangul Gumuz People’s Democratic Party or BGPDP [Mulualem BESSE]
Coalition for Unity and Democratic Party or CUDP [AYELE Chamiso]
Ethiopian Democratic Party or EDP [MUSHE Semu]
Ethiopian Federal Democratic Forum or FORUM (a UDJ-led 6-party alliance established for the 2010 parliamentary elections) [Dr. Moga FRISSA]
Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF (including the following organizations: Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM; Oromo People’s Democratic Organization or OPDO; Southern Ethiopian People’s Democratic Movement or SEPDM; and Tigray People’s Liberation Front or TPLF)
Gambella Peoples Unity Democratic Movement or GPUDM
Gurage Peoples Democratic Front [GIRMA Bogale]
Harari National League or HNL [YASIN Husein]
Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement or OFDM
Oromo People’s Congress or OPC [IMERERA Gudina]
Somali Democratic Alliance Forces or SODAF [BUH Hussien]
Somali People’s Democratic Party or SPDP [Abdulfetah Sheck ABDULAHI]
South Ethiopian People’s Democratic Union or SEPDU [TILAHUN Endeshaw]
United Ethiopian Democratic Forces or UEDF [BEYENE Petros]
Unity for Democracy and Justice or UDJ [Dr. NEGASSO Gidada]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Ethiopian People’s Patriotic Front or EPPF
Ogaden National Liberation Front or ONLF
Oromo Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa]
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador GIRMA Birru (since 6 January 2011)
chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200
FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia Marie HASLACH (since 14 August 2013)
embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa
mailing address: P. O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa
telephone: 130-6000
FAX: 124-2401
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red, with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; green represents hope and the fertility of the land, yellow symbolizes justice and harmony, while red stands for sacrifice and heroism in the defense of the land; the blue of the disk symbolizes peace and the pentagram represents the unity and equality of the nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia
note: Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three main colors of her flag (adopted ca. 1895) were so often adopted by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the Pan-African colors; the emblem in the center of the current flag was added in 1996
National symbol(s):
Abyssinian lion
National anthem:
name: “Whedefit Gesgeshi Woud Enat Ethiopia” (March Forward, Dear Mother Ethiopia)
Economy
Economy – overview:
Ethiopia’s economy is based on agriculture but the government is pushing to diversify into manufacturing, textiles, and energy generation. Coffee is a major export crop. The agricultural sector suffers from poor cultivation practices and frequent drought, but recent joint efforts by the Government of Ethiopia and donors have strengthened Ethiopia’s agricultural resilience, contributing to a reduction in the number of Ethiopians threatened with starvation.
The banking, insurance, telecommunications, and micro-credit industries are restricted to domestic investors, but Ethiopia has attracted significant foreign investment in textiles, leather, commercial agriculture and manufacturing. Under Ethiopia’s constitution, the state owns all land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; land use certificates are now being issued in some areas so that tenants have more recognizable rights to continued occupancy and hence make more concerted efforts to improve their leaseholds. While GDP growth has remained high, per capita income is among the lowest in the world.
Ethiopia’s economy continues on its state-led Growth and Transformation Plan under the new collective leadership that followed Prime Minister MELES’s death. The five-year economic plan has achieved high single-digit growth rates through government-led infrastructure expansion and commercial agriculture development. Ethiopia in 2014 will continue construction of its Grand Renaissance Dam on the Nile – a controversial five billion dollar effort to develop electricity for domestic consumption and export.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$118.2 billion (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69
$110.4 billion (2012 est.)
$101.8 billion (2011 est.)
note: data are in 2013 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$47.34 billion (2013 est.)
GDP – real growth rate:
7% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
8.5% (2012 est.)
11.4% (2011 est.)
GDP – per capita (PPP):
$1,300 (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 211
$1,300 (2012 est.)
$1,200 (2011 est.)
note: data are in 2013 US dollars
Gross national saving:
18.8% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85
18.2% of GDP (2012 est.)
22.9% of GDP (2011 est.)
GDP – composition, by end use:
household consumption: 83.1%
government consumption: 8.6%
investment in fixed capital: 26.1%
investment in inventories: 0%
exports of goods and services: 11.5%
imports of goods and services: -29.3%
(2013 est.)
GDP – composition, by sector of origin:
agriculture: 47%
industry: 10.8%
services: 42.2% (2013 est.)
Agriculture – products:
cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, khat, cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Industries:
food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals processing, cement
Industrial production growth rate:
9% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21
Labor force:
45.65 million (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Labor force – by occupation:
agriculture: 85%
industry: 5%
services: 10% (2009 est.)
Unemployment rate:
17.5% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 154
18% (2011 est.)
Population below poverty line:
39% (2012 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (2005)
Distribution of family income – Gini index:
33 (2011)
country comparison to the world: 101
30 (2000)
Budget:
revenues: $6.702 billion
expenditures: $8.042 billion (2013 est.)
Taxes and other revenues:
14.2% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 197
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-):
-2.8% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 116
Public debt:
50.4% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 67
39.7% of GDP (2012 est.)
note: official data cover central government debt, including debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury and treasury debt owned by foreign entities; the data exclude debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions
Fiscal year:
8 July – 7 July
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
8.4% (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 198
22.9% (2012 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
NA%
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
12% (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
14.5% (31 December 2012 est.)
Stock of narrow money:
$9.006 billion (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 81
$9.107 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Stock of broad money:
$15.43 billion (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 91
$15.45 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Stock of domestic credit:
$16.07 billion (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 86
$16.09 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA
Current account balance:
-$2.744 billion (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 156
-$2.031 billion (2012 est.)
Exports:
$3.214 billion (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 126
$3.039 billion (2012 est.)
Exports – commodities:
coffee, khat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds
Exports – partners:
China 13%, Germany 10.8%, US 8%, Belgium 7.7%, Saudi Arabia 7.6% (2012)
Imports:
$10.68 billion (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 98
$10.25 billion (2012 est.)
Imports – commodities:
food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles
Imports – partners:
China 13.1%, US 11%, Saudi Arabia 8.4%, India 5.4% (2012)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$3.382 billion (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103
$3.272 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Debt – external:
$11.99 billion (31 December 2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 95
$10.03 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Exchange rates:
birr (ETB) per US dollar –
19.92 (2013 est.)
17.705 (2012 est.)
14.41 (2010 est.)
11.78 (2009)
9.57 (2008)
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