Chapter XXII: Front Matter (22)

Coastline:
2,234 km (mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km)

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm

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

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

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m
highest point: Soira 3,018 m

Natural resources:
gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish

Land use:
arable land: 4.78%
permanent crops: 0.03%
other: 95.19% (2005)

Irrigated land:
210 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
frequent droughts; locust swarms

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of
infrastructure from civil warfare

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - 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 24 May 1993

People Eritrea

Population:
4,786,994 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 44% (male 1,059,458/female 1,046,955)
15-64 years: 52.5% (male 1,244,153/female 1,268,189)
65 years and over: 3.5% (male 82,112/female 86,127) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 17.8 years
male: 17.6 years
female: 18 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.47% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
34.33 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
9.6 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 46.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 52.22 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 40.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 59.03 years
male: 57.44 years
female: 60.66 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.08 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
2.7% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
60,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
6,300 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and
typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria is a high risk in some locations (2007)

Nationality:
noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean

Ethnic groups:
Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast
dwellers) 3%, other 3%

Religions:
Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant

Languages:
Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 58.6%
male: 69.9%
female: 47.6% (2003 est.)

Government Eritrea

Country name:
conventional long form: State of Eritrea
conventional short form: Eritrea
local long form: Hagere Ertra
local short form: Ertra
former: Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia

Government type:
transitional government
note: following a successful referendum on independence for the
Autonomous Region of Eritrea on 23-25 April 1993, a National
Assembly, composed entirely of the People's Front for Democracy and
Justice or PFDJ, was established as a transitional legislature; a
Constitutional Commission was also established to draft a
constitution; ISAIAS Afworki was elected president by the
transitional legislature; the constitution, ratified in May 1997,
did not enter into effect, pending parliamentary and presidential
elections; parliamentary elections had been scheduled in December
2001, but were postponed indefinitely; currently the sole legal
party is the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)

Capital:
name: Asmara (Asmera)
geographic coordinates: 15 20 N, 38 53 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:
6 regions (zobatat, singular - zoba); Anseba, Debub (Southern),
Debubawi K'eyih Bahri (Southern Red Sea), Gash Barka, Ma'akel
(Central), Semenawi Keyih Bahri (Northern Red Sea)

Independence:
24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 May (1993)

Constitution:
a transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced
by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented

Legal system:
primary basis is the Ethiopian legal code of 1957, with revisions;
new civil, commercial, and penal codes have not yet been
promulgated; also relies on customary and post-independence-enacted
laws and, for civil cases involving Muslims, Sharia law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of government
and is head of the State Council and National Assembly
head of government: President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly
cabinet: State Council is the collective executive authority;
members appointed by the president
elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a
five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8
June 1993 (next election date uncertain as the National Assembly did
not hold a presidential election in December 2001 as anticipated)
election results: ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of
National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95%

Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly (150 seats; term limits not
established)
elections: in May 1997, following the adoption of the new
constitution, 75 members of the PFDJ Central Committee (the old
Central Committee of the EPLF), 60 members of the 527-member
Constituent Assembly, that had been established in 1997 to discuss
and ratify the new constitution, and 15 representatives of Eritreans
living abroad were formed into a Transitional National Assembly to
serve as the country's legislative body until countrywide elections
to a National Assembly were held; although only 75 of 150 members of
the Transitional National Assembly were elected, the constitution
stipulates that once past the transition stage, all members of the
National Assembly will be elected by secret ballot of all eligible
voters; National Assembly elections scheduled for December 2001 were
postponed indefinitely

Judicial branch:
High Court - regional, subregional, and village courts; also have
military and special courts

Political parties and leaders:
People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party
recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki]; note - a National
Assembly committee drafted a law on political parties in January
2001, but the full National Assembly has not yet debated or voted on
it

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ (also including Eritrean Islamic
Jihad Movement or EIJM (also known as the Abu Sihel Movement));
Eritrean Islamic Salvation or EIS (also known as the Arafa
Movement); Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed];
Eritrean National Alliance or ENA (a coalition including EIJ, EIS,
ELF, and a number of ELF factions) [HERUY Tedla Biru]; Eritrean
Public Forum or EPF [ARADOM Iyob]

International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt
(signatory), IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador GHIRMAI Ghebremariam
chancery: 1708 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 319-1991
FAX: [1] (202) 319-1304
consulate(s) general: Oakland (California)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Scott H. DELISI
embassy: 179 Alaa Street, Asmara
mailing address: P. O. Box 211, Asmara
telephone: [291] (1) 120004
FAX: [291] (1) 127584

Flag description:
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 Eritrea

Economy - overview:
Since independence from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea has faced the
economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. Like the
economies of many African nations, the economy is largely based on
subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in
farming and herding. The Ethiopian-Eritrea war in 1998-2000 severely
hurt Eritrea's economy. GDP growth fell to zero in 1999 and to
-12.1% in 2000. The May 2000 Ethiopian offensive into northern
Eritrea caused some $600 million in property damage and loss,
including losses of $225 million in livestock and 55,000 homes. The
attack prevented planting of crops in Eritrea's most productive
region, causing food production to drop by 62%. Even during the war,
Eritrea developed its transportation infrastructure, asphalting new
roads, improving its ports, and repairing war-damaged roads and
bridges. Since the war ended, the government has maintained a firm
grip on the economy, expanding the use of the military and
party-owned businesses to complete Eritrea's development agenda.
Erratic rainfall and the delayed demobilization of agriculturalists
from the military kept cereal production well below normal, holding
down growth in 2002-06. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its
ability to master social problems such as illiteracy, unemployment,
and low skills, as well as the willingness to open its economy to
private enterprise so that the diaspora's money and expertise can
foster economic growth.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$4.471 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.244 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$1,000 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 9.9%
industry: 25.4%
services: 64.6% (2006 est.)

Labor force:
NA

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20%

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
50% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
14% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
24.5% of GDP (2006 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $257.6 million
expenditures: $424 million; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2006 est.)

Agriculture - products:
sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal;
livestock, goats; fish

Industries:
food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles, light
manufacturing, salt, cement, commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
276.1 million kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
256.7 million kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
5,300 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day (2001)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Current account balance:
$-440.5 million (2006 est.)

Exports:
$17.65 million f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports - commodities:
livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures (2000)

Exports - partners:
Italy 36.4%, US 13.8%, Belarus 6.8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 4.6% (2005)

Imports:
$701.8 million f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods (2000)

Imports - partners:
Germany 21.3%, Italy 19.5%, France 15.3%, US 12.3%, Ireland 7.9%,
Jordan 5.5% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$30.6 million (2006 est.)

Debt - external:
$311 million (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$77 million (1999)

Currency (code):
nakfa (ERN)

Currency code:
ERN

Exchange rates:
nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - 14 (2006), 14.5 (2005), 13.788 (2004),
13.878 (2003), 13.958 (2002)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Eritrea

Telephones - main lines in use:
37,700 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
58,000 (2006)

Telephone system:
general assessment: inadequate
domestic: inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is
seeking international tenders to improve the system (2002)
international: country code - 291; note - international connections
exist

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000)

Radios:
345,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
2 (2006)

Televisions:
1,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.er

Internet hosts:
1,088 (2006)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
5 (2001)

Internet users:
70,000 (2005)

Transportation Eritrea

Airports:
17 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 2 (2006)

Railways:
total: 306 km
narrow gauge: 306 km 0.950-m gauge (2005)

Roadways:
total: 4,010 km
paved: 874 km
unpaved: 3,136 km (1999)

Merchant marine:
total: 6 ships (1000 GRT or over) 19,506 GRT/23,649 DWT
by type: cargo 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll
off 1 (2006)

Ports and terminals:
Assab, Massawa

Military Eritrea

Military branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary and compulsory military service;
conscript service obligation - 16 months (2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 893,361
females age 18-49: 891,662 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 555,553
females age 18-49: 562,426 (2005)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 50,156
females age 18-49: 49,746 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$220.1 million (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
17.7% (2005 est.)

Transnational Issues Eritrea

Disputes - international:
Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea
Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but despite
international intervention, mutual animosities, accusations, and
armed posturing have prevented demarcation; Ethiopia refuses to
withdraw to the delimited boundary until claimed technical errors
made by the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed,
including the award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war;
Eritrea insists that the EEBC decision be implemented immediately
without modifications; in 2005 Eritrea began severely restricting
the operations of the UN Peacekeeping Mission to Ethiopia and
Eritrea (UNMEE) monitoring the 25km-wide Temporary Security Zone in
Eritrea since 2000; Sudan sustains over 110,000 Eritrean refugees
and accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 40,000-45,000 (border war with Ethiopia from 1998-2000; most
IDPs are near the central border region) (2006)

This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007

======================================================================

@Estonia

Introduction Estonia

Background:
After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule,
Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into
the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US - it
regained its freedom in 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to
promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. It joined
both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.

Geography Estonia

Location:
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland,
between Latvia and Russia

Geographic coordinates:
59 00 N, 26 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km
water: 2,015 sq km
note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined

Land boundaries:
total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km

Coastline:
3,794 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with
neighboring states

Climate:
maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers

Terrain:
marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m

Natural resources:
oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite,
arable land, sea mud

Land use:
arable land: 12.05%
permanent crops: 0.35%
other: 87.6% (2005)

Irrigated land:
40 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
sometimes flooding occurs in the spring

Environment - current issues:
air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power
plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to
the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 80% less
than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to
water bodies in 2000 was one twentieth the level of 1980; in
connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the
pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400
natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural
areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain
locations

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution,
Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore
lie more than 1,500 islands

People Estonia

Population:
1,324,333 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 15.2% (male 103,367/female 97,587)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 427,043/female 468,671)
65 years and over: 17.2% (male 75,347/female 152,318) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 39.3 years
male: 35.8 years
female: 42.6 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.64% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
10.04 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
13.25 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
-3.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female
total population: 0.84 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.73 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.91 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.04 years
male: 66.58 years
female: 77.83 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.4 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
7,800 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian

Ethnic groups:
Estonian 67.9%, Russian 25.6%, Ukrainian 2.1%, Belarusian 1.3%,
Finn 0.9%, other 2.2% (2000 census)

Religions:
Evangelical Lutheran 13.6%, Orthodox 12.8%, other Christian
(including Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic,
Pentecostal) 1.4%, unaffiliated 34.1%, other and unspecified 32%,
none 6.1% (2000 census)

Languages:
Estonian (official) 67.3%, Russian 29.7%, other 2.3%, unknown 0.7%
(2000 census)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.8% (2003 est.)

Government Estonia

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia
local long form: Eesti Vabariik
local short form: Eesti
former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type:
parliamentary republic

Capital:
name: Tallinn
geographic coordinates: 59 25 N, 24 45 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October

Administrative divisions:
15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn),
Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa
(Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa
(Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare),
Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa
(Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in
parentheses

Independence:
20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 is
the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20
August 1991 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet
Union

Constitution:
adopted 28 June 1992

Legal system:
based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Toomas Hendrik ILVES (since 9 October
2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Andrus ANSIP (since 12 April 2005)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister,
approved by Parliament
elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); if a candidate does not secure
two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the
Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus
members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between
the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election
last held 23 September 2006 (next to be held fall of 2011); prime
minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament
election results: Toomas Hendrik ILVES elected president on 23
September 2006 by a 345-member electoral assembly; ILVES received
174 votes to incumbent Arnold RUUTEL's 162; remaining 9 ballots left
blank or invalid

Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected
by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - Center Party of Estonia
25.4%, Res Publica 24.6%, Estonian Reform Party 17.7%, Estonian
People's Union 13%, Pro Patria Union (Fatherland League) 7.3%
People's Party Moodukad 7%; seats by party - Res Publica 26, Center
Party 20, Reform Party 19, Estonian People's Union 13, Pro Patria
Union 7, Social Democrats (formerly People's Party Moodukad) 6,
non-affiliated (Social Liberals and independents) 10

Judicial branch:
National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life)

Political parties and leaders:
Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman];
Estonian People's Union (Rahvaliit) [Villu REILJAN, chairman];
Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Andrus ANSIP]; Estonian
United Russian People's Party or EUVRP [Yevgeniy TOMBERG, chairman];
Social Democratic Party (formerly People's Party Moodukad or
Moderates) [Ivari PADAR, chairman]; Social Liberals (group of eight
parliamentarians, former Center Party members) [Peeter KREITZBERG];
Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Isamaa je Res Publica Liit)
[Tonis LUKAS and Taavi VESKIMAGI, co-chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG,
OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNTSO, UPU,
WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juri LUIK
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101
FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Jeffrey
GOLDSTEIN
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [372] 668-8100
FAX: [372] 668-8134

Flag description:
pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal
horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white

Economy Estonia

Economy - overview:
Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization and the
European Union, has transitioned effectively to a modern market
economy with strong ties to the West, including the pegging of its
currency to the euro. The economy benefits from strong electronics
and telecommunications sectors and is greatly influenced by
developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading
partners. The current account deficit remains high; however, the
state budget is essentially in balance, and public debt is low.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$26 billion (2006 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$13.62 billion (2006 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
9.2% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$19,600 (2006 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 28%
services: 68.6% (2006 est.)

Labor force:
673,000 (2006 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 11%
industry: 20%
services: 69% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate:
5.8% (2006 est.)

Population below poverty line:
5% (2003)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.9%
highest 10%: 28.5% (2000)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
33 (2003)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.4% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
32.4% of GDP (2006 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $5.994 billion
expenditures: $5.718 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2006 est.)

Public debt:
3.6% of GDP (2006 est.)

Agriculture - products:
potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish

Industries:
engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile;
information technology, telecommunications

Industrial production growth rate:
8% (2006 est.)

Electricity - production:
9.29 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 99.8%
hydro: 0.1%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0.2% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
6.846 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
2.141 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
347 million kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
6,819 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
60,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
54,000 bbl/day (2004)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
1.44 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
1.44 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Current account balance:
$-1.919 billion (2006 est.)

Exports:
$9.68 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports - commodities:
machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food
products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001)

Exports - partners:
Finland 26.3%, Sweden 13.2%, Latvia 8.8%, Russia 6.5%, Germany
6.2%, Lithuania 4.6% (2005)

Imports:
$12.03 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles
10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001)

Imports - partners:
Finland 19.8%, Germany 13.9%, Russia 9.2%, Sweden 8.9%, Lithuania
6%, Latvia 4.7% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.344 billion (2006 est.)

Debt - external:
$13.94 billion (30 June 2006 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$108 million (2000)

Currency (code):
Estonian kroon (EEK)

Currency code:
EEK

Exchange rates:
krooni per US dollar - 12.5153 (2006), 12.584 (2005), 12.596
(2004), 13.856 (2003), 16.612 (2002), note - the krooni is pegged to
the euro

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Estonia

Telephones - main lines in use:
442,000 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.445 million (2005)

Telephone system:
general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint
business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial
fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in
the digital mode; Internet services are available throughout most of
the country
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and Internet
services is available throughout the country
international: country code - 372; fiber-optic cables to Finland,
Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched
service; two international switches are located in Tallinn (2001)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios:
1.01 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
3 (2001)

Televisions:
605,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.ee

Internet hosts:
52,241 (2006)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
38 (2001)

Internet users:
690,000 (2005)

Transportation Estonia

Airports:
24 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 5 (2006)

Heliports:
1 (2006)

Pipelines:
gas 859 km (2006)

Railways:
total: 958 km
broad gauge: 958 km 1.520 m/1.524-m gauge (2005)

Roadways:
total: 56,856 km
paved: 13,384 km (including 99 km of expressways)
unpaved: 43,472 km (2004)

Waterways:
500 km (2005)

Merchant marine:
total: 35 ships (1000 GRT or over) 388,723 GRT/98,393 DWT
by type: cargo 7, passenger/cargo 26, petroleum tanker 2
foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 2)
registered in other countries: 72 (Antigua and Barbuda 12, Bahamas
1, Belize 3, Cyprus 6, Dominica 11, Isle of Man 2, Liberia 1, Malta
4, Norway 1, Panama 3, Russia 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
25, Slovakia 1, Vanuatu 1) (2006)

Ports and terminals:
Kopli, Kuivastu, Muuga, Tallinn, Virtsu

Military Estonia

Military branches:
Estonian Defense Forces: Land Force, Navy, Air Force, Volunteer
Defense League (Kaitseliit, KL) (2006)

Military service age and obligation:
compulsory military service for men between 19 and 28; conscription
lasts 11 months for junior NCOs and reserve platoon leaders; reserve
officers and designated specialists have a different conscript
service obligation; Estonia has committed to retaining conscription
for men up to 2010 and, unlike Latvia and Lithuania, has no plan to
transition to a contract armed forces; 17 years of age for
volunteers; reserve commitment up to the age of 60 (2006)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 291,696
females age 18-49: 304,961 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 200,382 (in 2004, 51% of the young men called up
for service were determined to be unfit; main obstacles to
conscription were psychiatric and behavioral)
females age 18-49: 250,351 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 11,146
females age 18-49: 10,605 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$155 million (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
2% (2002 est.)

Transnational Issues Estonia

Disputes - international:
in 2005, Russia refuses to sign the 1996 technical border agreement
with Estonia when Estonia prepares a unilateral declaration
referencing Soviet occupation and territorial losses; Russia demands
better accommodation of Russian-speaking population in Estonia;
Estonian citizen groups continue to press for realignment of the
boundary based on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the
now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within
Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external
border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules

Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia
and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western
Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to
Scandinavia; increasing domestic drug abuse problem; possible
precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking; potential money
laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a
concern, as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds

This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007

======================================================================

@Ethiopia

Introduction Ethiopia

Background:
Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy
maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of the
1936-41 Italian occupation during World War II. 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 (EPRDF). A
constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty
elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the
1990's ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. Final demarcation
of the boundary is currently on hold due to Ethiopian objections to
an international commission's finding requiring it to surrender
territory considered sensitive to Ethiopia.

Geography Ethiopia

Location:
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia

Geographic coordinates:
8 00 N, 38 00 E

Map references:
Africa

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

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: 10.01%
permanent crops: 0.65%
other: 89.34% (2005)

Irrigated land:
2,900 sq km (2003)

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

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 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

People Ethiopia

Population:
74,777,981
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
2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.7% (male 16,373,718/female 16,280,766)
15-64 years: 53.6% (male 19,999,482/female 20,077,014)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 929,349/female 1,117,652) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 17.8 years
male: 17.7 years
female: 17.9 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.31% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
37.98 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
14.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: repatriation of Ethiopian refugees residing in Sudan is
expected to continue for several years; some Sudanese, Somali, and
Eritrean refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine
in their own countries, continue to return to their homes (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 93.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 103.43 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 83.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.03 years
male: 47.86 years
female: 50.24 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.22 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
4.4% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1.5 million (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
120,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, typhoid fever, and hepatitis E
vectorborne diseases: malaria and cutaneous leishmaniasis are high
risks in some locations
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
animal contact disease: rabies
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2007)

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: 42.7%
male: 50.3%
female: 35.1% (2003 est.)

Government Ethiopia

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

Government type:
federal republic

Capital:
name: Addis Ababa
geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)

Administrative 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 (eligible for a second 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 (547 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote
from single-member districts to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 May 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPRDF 327,
CUD 109, UEDF 52, SPDP 23, OFDM 11, BGPDUF 8, ANDP 8, independent 1,
others 6, undeclared 2
note: irregularities at some polling stations necessitated the
rescheduling of voting in certain constituencies

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; Benishangul Gumuz People's
Democratic Unity Front or BGPDUF [Mulualem BESSE]; Coalition for
Unity and Democracy or CUD [HAILU Shawel]; Ethiopian People's
Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [MELES Zenawi] (an alliance
of Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM, Oromo People's
Democratic Organization or OPDO, the South Ethiopean People's
Democratic Front or SEPDF, and TigrAyan Peoples' Liberation Front or
TPLF); Gurage Nationalities' Democratic Movement or GNDM; Oromo
Federalist Democratic Movement or OFDM [BULCHA Demeksa]; Somali
People's Democratic Party or SPDP; United Ethopian Democratic Forces
or UEDF [BEYENE Petros]; dozens of small parties

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front or EPPF; Ogaden National
Liberation Front or ONLF; Oromo Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa]

International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Samuel ASSEFA
chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200
FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
consulate(s): New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Donald Y. YAMAMOTO
embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa
mailing address: P. O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa
telephone: [251] (1) 517-4000
FAX: [251] (1) 517-4888

Flag description:
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;
Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three
main colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African
countries upon independence that they became known as the
pan-African colors

Economy Ethiopia

Economy - overview:
Ethiopia's poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture,
accounting for half of GDP, 60% of exports, and 80% of total
employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought
and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian
economy with exports of some $156 million in 2002, but historically
low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to supplement
income. The war with Eritrea in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have
buffeted the economy, in particular coffee production. In November
2001, Ethiopia qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted
Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in December 2005 the
International Monetary Fund voted to forgive Ethiopia's debt to the
body. Under Ethiopia's land tenure system, the government owns all
land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; the system
continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector as entrepreneurs
are unable to use land as collateral for loans. Drought struck again
late in 2002, leading to a 2% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather
patterns helped agricultural and GDP growth recover in 2004-06.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$71.63 billion (2006 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$9.789 billion (2006 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
8.5% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$1,000 (2006 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 49.2%
industry: 9.1%
services: 41.7% (2006 est.)

Labor force:
27.27 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 80%
industry: 8%
services: 12% (1985)

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
50% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 33.7% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
30 (2000)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
10.5% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
21.3% of GDP (2006 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $2.565 billion
expenditures: $3.165 billion; including capital expenditures of $788
million (2006 est.)

Public debt:
78.1% of GDP (2006 est.)

Agriculture - products:
cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qat,
cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish

Industries:
food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals
processing, cement

Industrial production growth rate:
6.7% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production:
2.294 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 1.3%
hydro: 97.6%
nuclear: 0%
other: 1.2% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
2.133 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
29,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves:
214,000 bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
24.92 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)

Current account balance:
$-1.34 billion (2006 est.)

Exports:
$1.085 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports - commodities:
coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds

Exports - partners:
Germany 15.5%, China 10.5%, Japan 8.5%, Saudi Arabia 6.9%, Djibouti
6.8%, Switzerland 6.4%, Italy 5.9%, US 5.5%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005)

Imports:
$4.105 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports - commodities:
food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals,
machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles

Imports - partners:
Saudi Arabia 14.7%, China 12.6%, US 12.4%, India 6.7%, Italy 4.6%
(2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.186 billion (2006 est.)

Debt - external:
$2.789 billion (2006 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$308 million (FY00/01)

Currency (code):
birr (ETB)

Currency code:
ETB

Exchange rates:
birr per US dollar - 8.69 (2006), 8.68 (2005), 8.6356 (2004),
8.5997 (2003), 8.5678 (2002), note, since 24 October 2001 exchange
rates are determined on a daily basis via interbank transactions
regulated by the Central Bank

Fiscal year:
8 July - 7 July

Communications Ethiopia

Telephones - main lines in use:
610,300 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
410,600 (2005)

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)

Radios:
15.2 million (2002)

Television broadcast stations:
1 plus 24 repeaters (2002)

Televisions:
682,000 (2002)

Internet country code:
.et

Internet hosts:
88 (2006)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)

Internet users:
113,000 (2005)

Transportation Ethiopia

Airports:
84 (2006)

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 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 70
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 28
under 914 m: 23 (2006)

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 (2005)

Roadways:
total: 36,469 km
paved: 6,980 km
unpaved: 29,489 km (2004)

Merchant marine:
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 79,441 GRT/97,669 DWT
by type: cargo 6, roll on/roll off 2 (2006)

Ports and terminals:
Ethiopia is landlocked and uses the port of Djibouti

Military Ethiopia

Military branches:
Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian
Air Force
note: Ethiopia is landlocked and has no navy; following the
secession of Eritrea, Ethiopian naval facilities remained in
Eritrean possession

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service (2001)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 14,568,277
females age 18-49: 14,482,885 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 8,072,755
females age 18-49: 7,902,660 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 803,777
females age 18-49: 801,789 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$295.9 million (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3.4% (2005 est.)

Transnational Issues Ethiopia

Disputes - international:
Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia
Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but mutual
animosities, accusations, and armed posturing prevail, preventing
demarcation despite international intervention; Ethiopia refuses to
withdraw to the delimited boundary until technical errors made by
the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the
award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that
the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications;
Ethiopia has only an administrative line and no international border
with the Oromo region of southern Somalia where it maintains
alliances with local clans in opposition to the unrecognized Somali
Interim Government in Mogadishu; "Somaliland" secessionists provide
port facilities and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; efforts to
demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan have been delayed by civil
war

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 73,927 (Sudan), 15,901 (Somalia),
10,700 (Eritrea)
IDPs: 100,000-280,000 (border war with Eritrea from 1998-2000 and
ethnic clashes in Gambela; most IDPs are in Tigray and Gambela
Provinces) (2006)

Illicit drugs:
transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia
and destined for Europe and North America, 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

This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007

======================================================================

@European Union

Introduction European Union

Preliminary statement:
The evolution of the European Union (EU) from a regional economic
agreement among six neighboring states in 1951 to today's
supranational organization of 27 countries across the European
continent stands as an unprecedented phenomenon in the annals of
history. Dynastic unions for territorial consolidation were long the
norm in Europe. On a few occasions even country-level unions were
arranged - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the
Austro-Hungarian Empire were examples - but for such a large number
of nation-states to cede some of their sovereignty to an overarching
entity is truly unique. Although the EU is not a federation in the
strict sense, it is far more than a free-trade association such as
ASEAN, NAFTA, or Mercosur, and it has many of the attributes
associated with independent nations: its own flag, anthem, founding
date, and currency, as well as an incipient common foreign and
security policy in its dealings with other nations. In the future,
many of these nation-like characteristics are likely to be expanded.
Thus, inclusion of basic intelligence on the EU has been deemed
appropriate as a new, separate entity in The World Factbook.
However, because of the EU's special status, this description is
placed after the regular country entries.

Background:
Following the two devastating World Wars of the first half of the
20th century, a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became
convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to
unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both
economically and politically. In 1950, the French Foreign Minister
Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all Europe, the first
step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel
industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal
and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members, Belgium,
France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed
the Treaty of Paris. The ECSC was so successful that within a few
years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the
countries' economies. In 1957, the Treaties of Rome created the
European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy
Community (Euratom), and the six member states undertook to
eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common
market. In 1967, the institutions of all three communities were
formally merged into the European Community (EC), creating a single
Commission, a single Council of Ministers, and the European
Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially
selected by national parliaments, but in 1979 the first direct
elections were undertaken and they have been held every five years
since. In 1973, the first enlargement of the EC took place with the
addition of Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw
further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain
and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis
for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy, in
judicial and internal affairs, and in the creation of an economic
and monetary union - including a common currency. This further
integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995, Austria,
Finland, and Sweden joined the EU, raising the membership total to
15. A new currency, the euro, was launched in world money markets on
1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU
states except the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002,
citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using the euro
banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 -
Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania,
Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and
Romania joined, bringing the current membership to 27. In order to
ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an
expanded membership, the Treaty of Nice (in force as of 1 February
2003) set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU
institutions. An EU Constitutional Treaty, signed in Rome on 29
October 2004, gave member states two years to ratify the document
before it was scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006. Referenda
held in France and the Netherlands in May-June 2005 rejected the
proposed constitution. This development set back the ratification
effort and left the longer-term political integration of the EU in
limbo.

Geography European Union

Location:
Europe between the North Atlantic Ocean in the west and Russia,
Belarus, and Ukraine to the east

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 4,324,782 sq km

Area - comparative:
less than one-half the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 12,440.8 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050
km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein 34.9 km,
Macedonia 394 km, Moldova 450 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km,
Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia 945 km, Switzerland 1,811
km, Turkey 446 km, Ukraine 1,257 km
note: data for European Continent only

Coastline:
65,992.9 km

Maritime claims:
NA

Climate:
cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate;
mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south

Terrain:
fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the
central and southern areas

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands
-7 m
highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m; note - situated on the border
between France and Italy

Natural resources:
iron ore, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead, zinc,
bauxite, uranium, potash, salt, hydropower, arable land, timber, fish

Land use:
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA%
other: NA%

Irrigated land:
168,050 sq km (2003 est.)

Natural hazards:
flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes
in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in
Spain; ice floes in the Baltic

Environment - current issues:
NA

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical
Timber 94
signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds

People European Union

Population:
486,642,177 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.03% (male 37,608,010/female 35,632,351)
15-64 years: 67.17% (male 154,439,536/female 152,479,619)
65 years and over: 16.81% (male 31,515,921/female 45,277,821) (2006
est.)

Median age:
NA

Population growth rate:
0.15% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
10 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
10.1 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: NA
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female

Infant mortality rate:
total: 5.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.3 years
male: 75.1 years
female: 81.6 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.47 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Religions:
Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish

Languages:
Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish,
French, Gaelic, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian,
Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene,
Spanish, Swedish; note - only official languages are listed

Government European Union

Union name:
conventional long form: European Union
abbreviation: EU

Political structure:
a hybrid intergovernmental and supranational organization

Capital:
name: Brussels (Belgium), Strasbourg (France), Luxembourg
geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 20 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
note: the Council of the European Union meets in Brussels, the
European Parliament meets in Brussels and Strasbourg, France, and
the Court of Justice of the European Communities meets in Luxembourg

Member states:
27 countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,
Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands,
Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK;
note - Canary Islands (Spain), Azores and Madeira (Portugal), French
Guyana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Reunion (France) are sometimes
listed separately even though they are legally a part of Spain,
Portugal, and France; candidate countries: Croatia, Macedonia, Turkey

Independence:
7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1
November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)

National holiday:
Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that
Robert SCHUMAN proposed the creation of the European Coal and Steel
Community to achieve an organized Europe