Geography People Government Economy Transportation Communications Defense Forces

ERITREA

@Eritrea:Geography

 Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and
 Sudan

 Map references: Africa

 Area:
 total area: 121,320 sq km
 land area: 121,320 sq km
 comparative area: slightly larger than Pennsylvania

 Land boundaries: total 1,630 km, Djibouti 113 km, Ethiopia 912 km,
 Sudan 605 km

 Coastline: 1,151 km (land and island coastline is 2,234 km)

 Maritime claims: NA

 International disputes: none

 Climate: hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter
 in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually); semiarid
 in western hills and lowlands; rainfall heaviest during June-September
 except on coastal desert

 Terrain: dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending
 highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the
 northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling
 plains

 Natural resources: gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, probably oil
 (petroleum geologists are prospecting for it), fish

 Land use:
 arable land: 3%
 permanent crops: 2% (coffee)
 meadows and pastures: 40%
 forest and woodland: 5%
 other: 50%

 Irrigated land: NA sq km

 Environment:
 current issues: famine; deforestation; desertification; soil erosion;
 overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare
 natural hazards: frequent droughts
 international agreements: party to - Endangered Species; signed, but
 not ratified - Desertification

 Note: strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping
 lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red
 Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 27 April 1993

@Eritrea:People

 Population: 3,578,709 (July 1995 est.)

 Age structure:
 0-14 years: 43% (female 763,416; male 774,922)
 15-64 years: 54% (female 965,124; male 965,435)
 65 years and over: 3% (female 52,950; male 56,862) (July 1995 est.)

 Population growth rate: 9.04% (1995 est.)

 Birth rate: 44.34 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

 Death rate: 15.67 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

 Net migration rate: NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
 note: repatriation of up to a half million Eritrean refugees in Sudan
 is now underway; 100,000 are expected to return during 1995

 Infant mortality rate: 120.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

 Life expectancy at birth:
 total population: 50 years
 male: 48.28 years
 female: 51.78 years (1995 est.)

 Total fertility rate: 6.53 children born/woman (1995 est.)

 Nationality:
 noun: Eritrean(s)
 adjective: Eritrean

 Ethnic divisions: ethnic Tigrays 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%,
 Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%

 Religions: Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant

 Languages: Tigre and Kunama, Cushitic dialects, Tigre, Nora Bana,
 Arabic

 Labor force: NA

@Eritrea:Government

 Names:
 conventional long form: State of Eritrea
 conventional short form: Eritrea
 local long form: none
 local short form: none
 former: Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia

 Digraph: ER

 Type: transitional government
 note: on 29 May 1991 ISAIAS Afworke, secretary general of the Peoples'
 Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), which then served and still
 serves as the country's legislative body, announced the formation of
 the Provisional Government in Eritrea (PGE) in preparation for the
 23-25 April 1993 referendum on independence for the autonomous region
 of Eritrea; the result was a landslide vote for independence which was
 proclaimed on 27 April 1993

 Capital: Asmara (formerly Asmera)

 Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Akole Guzay, Baraka, Danakil,
 Hamasen, Sahil, Samhar, Senhit, Seraye, Sahil

 Independence: 27 May 1993 (from Ethiopia; formerly the Eritrea
 Autonomous Region)

 National holiday: National Day (independence from Ethiopia), 24 May
 (1993)

 Constitution: transitional "constitution" decreed 19 May 1993

 Legal system: NA

 Suffrage: NA

 Executive branch:
 chief of state and head of government: President ISAIAS Afworke (since
 22 May 1993)
 cabinet: State Council; the collective executive authority
 note: election to be held before 20 May 1997

 Legislative branch: unicameral
 National Assembly: PFDJ Central Committee serves as the country's
 legislative body until country-wide elections are held (before 20 May
 1997)

 Judicial branch: Judiciary

 Political parties and leaders: People's Front for Democracy and
 Justice (PFDJ), ISAIAS Afworke, PETROS Solomon (the only party
 recognized by the government)

 Other political or pressure groups: Eritrean Islamic Jihad (EIJ);
 Islamic Militant Group; Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF), ABDULLAH
 Muhammed; Eritrean Liberation Front - United Organization (ELF-UO),
 Mohammed Said NAWUD; Eritrean Liberation Front - Revolutionary Council
 (ELF-RC), Ahmed NASSER

 Member of: ACP, ECA, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IGADD, ILO, IMF, IMO,
 INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), ITU, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU

 Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission: Ambassador AMDEMICHAEL Berhane Khasai
 chancery: Suite 400, 910 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20006
 telephone: [1] (202) 429-1991
 FAX: [1] (202) 429-9004

 US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. HOUDEK
 embassy: 34 Zera Yacob St., Asmara
 mailing address: P.O. Box 211, Asmara
 telephone: [291] (1) 120004
 FAX: [291] (1) 127584

 Flag: red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) dividing the
 flag into two right triangles; the upper triangle is green, the lower
 one is blue; a gold wreath encircling a gold olive branch is centered
 on the hoist side of the red triangle

Economy

 Overview: With independence from Ethiopia on 27 April 1993, Eritrea
 faces the bitter economic problems of a small, desperately poor
 African country. Most of the population will continue to depend on
 subsistence farming. Domestic output is substantially augmented by
 worker remittances from abroad. Government revenues come from custom
 duties and income and sales taxes. Eritrea has inherited the entire
 coastline of Ethiopia and has long-term prospects for revenues from
 the development of offshore oil, offshore fishing, and tourism. For
 the time being, Ethiopia will be largely dependent on Eritrean ports
 for its foreign trade.

 National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.8 billion (1994
 est.)

 National product real growth rate: 2% (1994 est.)

 National product per capita: $500 (1994 est.)

 Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%

 Unemployment rate: NA%

 Budget:
 revenues: $NA
 expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

 Exports: $NA
 commodities: NA
 partners: NA

 Imports: $NA
 commodities: NA
 partners: NA

 External debt: $NA

 Industrial production: growth rate NA%

 Electricity:
 capacity: NA kW
 production: NA kWh
 consumption per capita: NA kWh

 Industries: food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles

 Agriculture: products - sorghum, livestock (including goats), fish,
 lentils, vegetables, maize, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal (for making
 rope)

 Economic aid: $NA

 Currency: 1 birr (Br) = 100 cents; at present, Ethiopian currency used

 Exchange rates: 1 birr (Br) per US$1 - 5.9500 (January 1995), 5.9500
 (1994), 5.000 (fixed rate 1992-93); note - official rate pegged to US$

 Fiscal year: NA

@Eritrea:Transportation

 Railroads:
 total: 307 km; note - nonoperational since 1978; links Ak'ordat and
 Asmara (formerly Asmera) with the port of Massawa (formerly Mits'iwa)
 narrow gauge: 307 km 1.000-m gauge (1993 est.)

 Highways:
 total: 3,845 km
 paved: 807 km
 unpaved: gravel 840 km; improved earth 402 km; unimproved earth 1,796
 km

 Ports: Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa)

 Merchant marine: none

 Airports:
 total: 20
 with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1
 with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
 with paved runways under 914 m: 2
 with unpaved runways over 3,047 m: 1
 with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
 with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 6
 with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 7

@Eritrea:Communications

 Telephone system: NA
 local: NA
 intercity: NA
 international: NA

 Radio:
 broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave 0
 radios: NA

 Television:
 broadcast stations: NA
 televisions: NA

@Eritrea:Defense Forces

 Branches: Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF)

 Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP


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