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NAVIGATION
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik
INTRODUCTION
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Background:
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Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule, one exception being the Italian occupation of 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 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), in 1991. A constitution was adopted in 1994 and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A two and a half year border war with Eritrea ended with a peace treaty on 12 December 2000. |
GEOGRAPHY
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Location:
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Eastern Africa, west of Somalia |
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Geographic coordinates:
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8 00 N, 38 00 E |
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Map references:
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Africa |
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Area:
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total: 1,127,127 sq km
water: 7,444 sq km land: 1,119,683 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 5,328 km
border countries: Djibouti 349 km, Eritrea 912 km, Kenya 861 km, Somalia 1,600 km, Sudan 1,606 km |
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked) |
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked) |
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Climate:
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tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation |
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Terrain:
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high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Denakil Depression -125 m
highest point: Ras Dejen 4,620 m |
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Natural resources:
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small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable land: 9.9%
permanent crops: 0.65% other: 89.45% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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1,900 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts |
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor management |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
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Geography - note:
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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, 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
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Population:
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67,673,031
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 2002 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 47.2% (male 16,098,191; female 15,879,065)
15-64 years: 50% (male 17,005,387; female 16,801,536) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 854,023; female 1,034,829) (2002 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.64% (2002 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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44.31 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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Death rate:
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18.04 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: repatriation of Ethiopians who fled to Sudan for refuge from war and famine in earlier years is expected to continue for several years; some Sudanese and Somali refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine in their own countries, continue to return to their homes (2002 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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98.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 44.21 years
female: 45.09 years (2002 est.) male: 43.36 years |
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Total fertility rate:
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6.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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10.63% (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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3 million (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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280,000 (1999 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Ethiopian(s)
adjective: Ethiopian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigre 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1% |
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Religions:
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Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, animist 12%, other 3%-8% |
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Languages:
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Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other local languages, English (major foreign language taught in schools) |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.5% male: 45.5% female: 25.3% (1995 est.) |