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. A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea in the late 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Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea.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.
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia
8 00 N, 38 00 E
Africa
total: 1,104,300 sq km
land: 1 million sq km
water: 104,300 sq km
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
total: 5,925 km
border countries (6): Djibouti 342 km, Eritrea 1,033 km, Kenya 867 km, Somalia 1,640 km, South Sudan 1,299 km, Sudan 744 km
0 km (landlocked)
none (landlocked)
tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation
high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley
mean elevation: 1,330 m
elevation extremes: lowest point: Danakil Depression -125 m
highest point: Ras Dejen 4,533 m
small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower
agricultural land: 36.3%
arable land 15.2%; permanent crops 1.1%; permanent pasture 20%
forest: 12.2%
other: 51.5% (2011 est.)
2,900 sq km (2012)
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, forcing evacuations; other historically active volcanoes include Alayta, Dalaffilla, Dallol, Dama Ali, Fentale, Kone, Manda Hararo, and Manda-Inakir
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor management
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
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
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 8.8% (2007 est.)
36.9 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
102,374,044
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 2016 est.)
noun: Ethiopian(s)
adjective: Ethiopian
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.)
Ethiopian Orthodox 43.5%, Muslim 33.9%, Protestant 18.5%, traditional 2.7%, Catholic 0.7%, other 0.6% (2007 est.)
Ethiopia is a predominantly agricultural country – more than 80% of the population lives in rural areas – that is in the early stages of demographic transition. Infant, child, and maternal mortality have fallen sharply over the past decade, but the total fertility rate has declined more slowly and the population continues to grow. The rising age of marriage and the increasing proportion of women remaining single have contributed to fertility reduction. While the use of modern contraceptive methods among married women has increased significantly from 6 percent in 2000 to 27 percent in 2012, the overall rate is still quite low.
Ethiopia’s rapid population growth is putting increasing pressure on land resources, expanding environmental degradation, and raising vulnerability to food shortages. With more than 40 percent of the population below the age of 15 and a fertility rate of over 5 children per woman (and even higher in rural areas), Ethiopia will have to make further progress in meeting its family planning needs if it is to achieve the age structure necessary for reaping a demographic dividend in the coming decades.
Poverty, drought, political repression, and forced government resettlement have driven Ethiopia’s internal and external migration since the 1960s. Before the 1974 revolution, only small numbers of the Ethiopian elite went abroad to study and then returned home, but under the brutal Derg regime thousands fled the country, primarily as refugees. Between 1982 and 1991 there was a new wave of migration to the West for family reunification. Since the defeat of the Derg in 1991, Ethiopians have migrated to escape violence among some of the country’s myriad ethnic groups or to pursue economic opportunities. Internal and international trafficking of women and children for domestic work and prostitution is a growing problem.
0-14 years: 43.71% (male 22,430,798/female 22,316,910)
15-24 years: 20.04% (male 10,182,973/female 10,332,626)
25-54 years: 29.45% (male 14,970,645/female 15,178,999)
55-64 years: 3.89% (male 1,939,635/female 2,047,041)
65 years and over: 2.91% (male 1,338,985/female 1,635,432) (2016 est.)
total dependency ratio: 81.6%
youth dependency ratio: 75.2%
elderly dependency ratio: 6.3%
potential support ratio: 15.8% (2015 est.)
total: 17.8 years
male: 17.6 years
female: 18 years (2016 est.)
2.88% (2016 est.)
7.9 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
-0.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
urban population: 19.5% of total population (2015)
rate of urbanization: 4.89% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
ADDIS ABABA (capital) 3.238 million (2015)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2016 est.)
total number: 10,693,164
percentage: 53% (2005 est.)
353 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
total: 51.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 58.5 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 43.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
total population: 62.2 years
male: 59.8 years
female: 64.7 years (2016 est.)
5.07 children born/woman (2016 est.)
28.6% (2010/11)
4.9% of GDP (2014)
0.03 physicians/1,000 population (2009)
6.3 beds/1,000 population (2011)
improved:
urban: 93.1% of population
rural: 48.6% of population
total: 57.3% of population
unimproved:
urban: 6.9% of population
rural: 51.4% of population
total: 42.7% of population (2015 est.)
improved:
urban: 27.2% of population
rural: 28.2% of population
total: 28% of population
unimproved:
urban: 72.8% of population
rural: 71.8% of population
total: 72% of population (2015 est.)
1.15% (2014 est.)
730,300 (2014 est.)
23,400 (2014 est.)
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 (2016)
3.3% (2014)
25.2% (2014)
4.5% of GDP (2013)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 49.1%
male: 57.2%
female: 41.1% (2015 est.)
total: 8 years
male: 9 years
female: 8 years (2012)
19.6
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2011 est.)
total: 7.3%
male: 5%
female: 9.6% (2013 est.)
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
etymology: the country name derives from the Greek word "Aethiopia," which in classical times referred to lands south of Egypt in the Upper Nile region
federal parliamentary republic
name: Addis Ababa
geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
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)
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 Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)
several previous; latest drafted June 1994, adopted 8 December 1994, entered into force 21 August 1995 (2016)
civil law system
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Ethiopia
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years
18 years of age; universal
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 DEMEKE Mekonnen Hassen and DEBRETSION Gebre-Michael
cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People's Representatives
elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by both chambers of Parliament for a 6-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 majority party following legislative elections
election results: MULATU Teshome Wirtu (OPDO) elected president by acclamation
bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation or Yefedereshein Mikir Bete (108 seats; members indirectly elected by state assemblies to serve 5-year terms) and the House of People's Representatives or Yehizb Tewokayoch Mekir Bete (547 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms); note - the House of Federation is responsible for interpreting the constitution and federal-regional issues and the House of People's Representatives is responsible for passing legislation
elections: last held on 24 May 2015 (next to be held in 2020)
election results: House of Representatives percent of vote - NA; seats by party - EPRDF 500, SPDP 24, BGPDP 9, ANDP 8, GPUDM 3, APDO 1, HNL 1, independent 1
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
Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [Mohammed KEDIR]
Argoba People Democratic Organization or APDO
Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Party or BGPDP
Blue Party (Semayawi Party) [Yanatan TESFAYE, spokesman]
Ethiopian Federal Democratic Forum or FORUM [Dr. Moga FRISSA] (a UDJ-led 6-party alliance established for the 2010 parliamentary elections)
Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [Hailemarian DESALEGN] (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; Tigray People's Liberation Front or TPLF)
Gambella Peoples Unity Democratic Movement or GPUDM
Harari National League or HNL [YASIN Husein]
Somali People's Democratic Party or SPDP
Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front or EPPF
Ogaden National Liberation Front or ONLF
Oromo Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa]
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, EITI (candidate country), 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)
chief of mission: Ambassador GIRMA Birru Geda (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, Seattle
consulate(s): Houston, New York
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Peter H. VROOMAN (since 2016)
embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa
mailing address: P.O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa
telephone: [251] 11 130-6000
FAX: 124-2401 [251] 11 124 2401
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 appropriated 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
Abyssinian lion (traditional), yellow pentagram with five rays of light on a blue field (promoted by current government); national colors: green, yellow, red
name: "Whedefit Gesgeshi Woud Enat Ethiopia" (March Forward, Dear Mother Ethiopia)
lyrics/music: DEREJE Melaku Mengesha/SOLOMON Lulu
note: adopted 1992
For more than a decade before 2016 Ethiopia grew at a rate between 8% and 11% annually; the country was the fifth-fastest growing economy among the 188 IMF member countries. This growth was driven by sustained progress in the agricultural and service sect
Almost 80% of Ethiopia’s population is still employed in the agricultural sector, but services have surpassed agriculture as the principal source of GDP. Under Ethiopia's constitution, the state owns all land and provides long-term leases to tenants. Sinc
Ethiopia’s export earnings are led by the services sector - primarily Ethiopian airlines - followed by several commodities. While coffee remains the largest foreign exchange earner, Ethiopia is diversifying exports and commodities such as gold, sesame, kh
Ethiopia remains a one-party state with a planned economy. In the fall of 2015, the government finalized and published the current 2016-2020 five year plan, known as the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II). GTP II emphasizes developing manufactures in
$174.7 billion (2016 est.)
$164.1 billion (2015 est.)
$148.9 billion (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars
$69.22 billion (2015 est.)
6.5% (2016 est.)
10.2% (2015 est.)
10.3% (2014 est.)
$1,900 (2016 est.)
$1,800 (2015 est.)
$1,700 (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars
29% of GDP (2016 est.)
31.7% of GDP (2015 est.)
30.2% of GDP (2014 est.)
household consumption: 65.9%
government consumption: 10.2%
investment in fixed capital: 37.6%
investment in inventories: -0.1%
exports of goods and services: 8.7%
imports of goods and services: -22.3% (2016 est.)
agriculture: 36.2%
industry: 17%
services: 46.8% (2016 est.)
cereals, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, vegetables, khat, cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish
food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, garments, chemicals, metals processing, cement
9% (2016 est.)
50.97 million (2016 est.)
agriculture: 85%
industry: 5%
services: 10% (2009 est.)
17.5% (2012 est.)
18% (2011 est.)
29.6% (2014 est.)
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (2005)
33 (2011)
30 (2000)
revenues: $10.07 billion
expenditures: $11.85 billion (2016 est.)
14.6% of GDP (2016 est.)
-2.6% of GDP (2016 est.)
54.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
49.6% of GDP (2015 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 intragov
8 July - 7 July
9.1% (2016 est.)
10.1% (2015 est.)
NA%
12.2% (31 December 2016 est.)
11.5% (31 December 2015 est.)
$14.43 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$11.97 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$28 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$24.4 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$36.33 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$28.41 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$NA
-$7.427 billion (2016 est.)
-$7.392 billion (2015 est.)
$2.932 billion (2016 est.)
$2.935 billion (2015 est.)
coffee (27%, by value), oilseeds (17%), edible vegetables including khat (17%), gold (13%), flowers (7%), live animals (7%), raw leather products (3%), meat products (3%)
Switzerland 14.3%, China 11.7%, US 9.5%, Netherlands 8.8%, Saudi Arabia 5.9%, Germany 5.7% (2015)
$14.7 billion (2016 est.)
$15.87 billion (2015 est.)
machinery and aircraft (14%, by value), metal and metal products, (14%), electrical materials, (13%), petroleum products (12%), motor vehicles, (10%), chemicals and fertilizers (4%)
China 20.4%, US 9.2%, Saudi Arabia 6.5%, India 4.5% (2015)
$2.956 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$3.113 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$22.49 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$19.04 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
birr (ETB) per US dollar -
23.25 (2016 est.)
21.55 (2015 est.)
21.55 (2014 est.)
19.8 (2013 est.)
17.71 (2012 est.)
9.5 billion kWh (2014 est.)
population without electricity: 71,200,000
electrification - total population: 24%
electrification - urban areas: 85%
electrification - rural areas: 10% (2013)
6.7 billion kWh (2014 est.)
1.1 billion kWh (2014 est.)
0 kWh (2013 est.)
2.4 million kW (2014 est.)
8.3% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
88.2% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
3.6% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
430,000 bbl (1 January 2016 es)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
61,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)
0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
58,740 bbl/day (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
0 cu m (2013 est.)
24.92 billion cu m (1 January 2016 es)
9.3 million Mt (2013 est.)
total subscriptions: 890,642
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1 (July 2015 est.)
total: 42.312 million
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 43 (July 2015 est.)
general assessment: inadequate telephone system with the Ethio Telecom maintaining a monopoly over telecommunication services; open-wire, microwave radio relay; radio communication in the HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies; 2 domestic satellites provide the national trunk service
domestic: the number of mobile telephones is increasing steadily from a small base and now stands at over 40 per 100 persons
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) (2015)
6 public TV stations broadcasting nationally and 10 public radio broadcasters; 7 private radio stations and 18 community radio stations (2015)
.et
total: 11.538 million
percent of population: 11.6% (July 2015 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 1
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 75
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 7,074,779
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,228,738,320 mt-km (2015)
ET (2016)
57 (2013)
total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
under 914 m: 2 (2013)
total: 40
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 20
under 914 m: 8 (2013)
total: 681 km (Ethiopian segment of the 781 km Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad)
narrow gauge: 681 km 1.000-m gauge
note: railway is under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2015)
total: 110,414 km
paved: 14,354 km
unpaved: 96,060 km (2015)
total: 8
by type: cargo 8 (2010)
Ethiopia is landlocked and uses the ports of Djibouti in Djibouti and Berbera in Somalia
Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian Air Force (Ye Ityopya Ayer Hayl, ETAF) (2013)
18 years of age for voluntary military service; no compulsory military service, but the military can conduct callups when necessary and compliance is compulsory (2012)
0.91% of GDP (2012)
1.1% of GDP (2011)
0.91% of GDP (2010)
Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but neither party responded to the revised line detailed in the November 2006 EEBC Demarcation Statement; the undemarcated former British administrative line has little meaning as a political separation to rival clans within Ethiopia's Ogaden and southern Somalia's Oromo region; Ethiopian forces invaded southern Somalia and routed Islamist courts from Mogadishu in January 2007; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities in Berbera and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; civil unrest in eastern Sudan has hampered efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia
refugees (country of origin): 337,925 (South Sudan) (refugees and asylum seekers); 254,965 (Somalia) (refugees); 155,276 (Eritrea) (refugees and asylum seekers); 37,959 (Sudan) (refugees and asylum seekers) (2016)
IDPs: 450,000 (border war with Eritrea from 1998-2000; ethnic clashes; and ongoing fighting between the Ethiopian military and separatist rebel groups in the Sumale and Oromiya regions; natural disasters; intercommunal violence; most IDPs live in Sumale state) (2015)
transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia and destined for Europe, as well as cocaine destined for markets in southern Africa; cultivates qat (khat) for local use and regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia (legal in all three countries); the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money laundering center
