SITE
NAVIGATION
HOMEFLAG FINDERMAP FINDERSOURCESADD YOURSELF TO THE ATLAS!
COUNTRIES A-DCOUNTRIES E-KCOUNTRIES L-RCOUNTRIES S-Z
Google 
  My World Atlas   Web
COUNTRY
NAVIGATION
INTRODUCTIONGEOGRAPHYPEOPLEGOVERNMENTECONOMYCOMMUNICATIONSTRANSPORTATIONMILITARYTRANSNATIONAL ISSUESFLAGMAPLINKSLETTERS AND PICTURES
flag

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik


 
We rated with ICRA
 
SafeSurf Rated All Ages

cybersitter

 

 
Click Here to view visitor stats
 

 
NBC Heroes Fan Forum
 

 

 

 
Contact Us
 
Privacy Statement
 
© 1996-2006
Bob Starkgraf

INTRODUCTION

Background:
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.
TOP OF PAGE
 

GEOGRAPHY

Location:
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia
Geographic coordinates:
8 00 N, 38 00 E
Map references:
Africa
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
Land use:
arable land: 9.9%
permanent crops: 0.65%
other: 89.45% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
1,900 sq km (1998 est.)
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
Environment - international agreements:
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
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, 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
TOP OF PAGE
 

PEOPLE

Population:
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.)
Age structure:
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.)
Population growth rate:
2.64% (2002 est.)
Birth rate:
44.31 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate:
18.04 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate:
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.)
Sex ratio:
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.)
Infant mortality rate:
98.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 44.21 years
female: 45.09 years (2002 est.)
male: 43.36 years
Total fertility rate:
6.94 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
10.63% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
3 million (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
280,000 (1999 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)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.5%
male: 45.5%
female: 25.3% (1995 est.)
TOP OF PAGE