| GEOGRAPHY |
| 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 |
| Capital: |
Addis Ababa |
| Location: |
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
8 00 N, 38 00 E |
| Area: |
total: 1,127,127 sq km
land: 1,119,683 sq km
water: 7,444 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 |
| Elavation
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 |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
federal republic |
| Administratives
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 (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister MELES Zenawi (since NA August 1995)
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; election last held 8 October 2001 (next to be held October 2007); prime minister designated by the party in power following legislative elections
election results: GIRMA Woldegiorgis elected president; percent of vote by the House of People's Representatives - 100% |
| 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 (548 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote from single-member districts to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 May 2000 (next to be held 15 May 2005)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - OPDO 177, ANDM 134, TPLF 38, WGGPDO 27, EPRDF 19, SPDO 18, GNDM 15, KSPDO 10, ANDP 8, GPRDF 7, SOPDM 7, BGPDUF 6, BMPDO 5, KAT 4, other regional political groupings 22, independents 8; note - 43 seats unconfirmed
note: irregularities and violence at some polling stations necessitated the rescheduling of voting in certain constituencies; voting postponed in Somali regional state because of severe drought |
| 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) |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [leader NA]; Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM [ADDISU Legesse]; Bench Madji People's Democratic Organization or BMPDO [leader NA]; Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front or BGPDUF [leader NA]; Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [MELES Zenawi] (an alliance of ANDM, OPDO, SEPDF, and TPLF); Gedeyo People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or GPRDF [leader NA]; Gurage Nationalities' Democratic Movement or GNDM [leader NA]; Kafa Shaka People's Democratic Organization or KSPDO [leader NA]; Kembata, Alabaa and Tembaro or KAT [leader NA]; Oromo People's Democratic Organization or OPDO [JUNEDI Sado]; Sidamo People's Democratic Organization or SPDO [leader NA]; South Omo People's Democratic Movement or SOPDM [leader NA]; Tigrayan People's Liberation Front or TPLF [MELES Zenawi]; Walayta, Gamo, Gofa, Dawro, and Konta People's Democratic Organization or WGGPDO [leader NA]; dozens of small parties |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
73,053,286
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 2005 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 43.9% (male 16,082,504/female 15,999,602)
15-64 years: 53.4% (male 19,452,737/female 19,525,746)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 905,648/female 1,087,049) (2005 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 17.75 years
male: 17.64 years
female: 17.85 years (2005 est.) |
| 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) |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
435,000 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
97,800 (2003) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: adequate for government use
domestic: open-wire; microwave radio relay; radio communication in the HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies; two domestic satellites provide the national trunk service
international: country code - 251; open-wire to Sudan and Djibouti; microwave radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Pacific Ocean) |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 8, FM 0, shortwave 1 (2001) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
1 plus 24 repeaters (2002) |
| Internet country
code: |
.et |
| Internet hosts: |
9 (2003) |
| Internet users: |
75,000 (2003) |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
total: 681 km (Ethiopian segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad)
narrow gauge: 681 km 1.000-m gauge
note: railway under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2003) |
| Highways: |
total: 33,297 km
paved: 3,996 km
unpaved: 29,301 km (2002) |
| Waterways: |
|
| Pipelines: |
|
| Ports and harbors: |
none; Ethiopia is landlocked and by agreement with Eritrea was using the ports of Assab and Massawa; since the border dispute with Eritrea flared, Ethiopia has used the port of Djibouti for nearly all of its imports |
| Merchant marine: |
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 81,933 GRT/101,287 DWT
by type: cargo 6, roll on/roll off 2 (2005) |
| Airports: |
83 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
total: 69
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 27
under 914 m: 23 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: |
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