World Atlas: Ethiopia. On this page you can see the map, country flag and many detailed information about the people, history and economy of Ethiopia.
Here you can find online selected information about the geography, inhabitants, government, economy and history of Ethiopia. Included are selected statistics, an overview map and the detailed map of Ethiopia. But let's start with the flag of Ethiopia here:
Ethiopia - Overview:
What you should know about Ethiopia? Let's start with this: 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Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea.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.
Geography of Ethiopia
Where on the globe is Ethiopia? The location of this country is Eastern Africa, west of Somalia. Total area of Ethiopia is 1,104,300 sq km, of which 1 million sq km is land. So this is quite a small country. How could we describe the terrain of the country? This way: high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley. The lowest point of Ethiopia is Danakil Depression -125 m, the highest point Ras Dejen 4,550 m. And the climate is tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation.
Inhabitants of Ethiopia
Let's take a look how many people live in Ethiopia. The number is: 105,350,020. So this country is among the most populous in the World. Who lives here? 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.). What are the languages in Ethiopia? 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.). And the religions: Ethiopian Orthodox 43.5%, Muslim 33.9%, Protestant 18.5%, traditional 2.7%, Catholic 0.7%, other 0.6% (2007 est.). How old are the people in average? 17.9 years. We have to add that this number is the median - so one half of the people is older than this, one half is younger. And what is their life expectancy (at birth)? This: 62.6 years. Where the people live in Ethiopia? Here: highest density is found in the highlands of the north and middle areas of the country, particularly around the centrally located capital city of Addis Ababa; the far east and southeast are sparsely populated. The major urban areas of Ethiopia are: Addis Ababa (capital) 3.238 million (2015).
Government and Economy of Ethiopia
The capital of Ethiopia is Addis Ababa and the government type federal parliamentary republic. Let's take a look at the 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). Regarding the economy of Ethiopia, important industrial products are food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, garments, chemicals, metals processing, cement. Important agricultural products are cereals, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, vegetables, khat, cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish. The most important export commodities are 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%) and the most important export partners are US 9.7%, Saudi Arabia 9.6%, Germany 8.5%, Switzerland 7.5%, China 5.1%, UAE 4.9%, Pakistan 4.4% (2016). The most important import commodities are machinery and aircraft (14%, by value), metal and metal products, (14%), electrical materials, (13%), petroleum products (12%), motor vehicles, (10%), chemicals and fertilizers (4%) and the most important import partners are China 28.8%, US 8%, India 6.7%, Kuwait 5% (2016). How rich is Ethiopia and how rich are people in this country? The most important number here is GDP per capita (PPP): $2,100 (2017 est.). This is a very low number. Let's add that this means Gross Domestic Product per person, which is recalculated with respect to the relative cost of local goods and services. And one more important number - population below poverty line: 29.6% (2014 est.).