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After independence from Italian colonial control in 1941 and 10 years of British administrative control, the UN established Eritrea as an autonomous region within the Ethiopian federation in 1952. Ethiopia's full annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a violent 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating government forces. Eritreans overwhelmingly approved independence in a 1993 referendum. ISAIAS Afworki has been Eritrea's only president since independence; his rule, particularly since 2001, has been highly autocratic and repressive. His government has created a highly militarized society by pursuing an unpopular program of mandatory conscription into national service, sometimes of indefinite length. A two-and-a-half-year border war with Ethiopia that erupted in 1998 ended under UN auspices in December 2000. A UN peacekeeping operation was established that monitored a 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) created in April 2003 was tasked "to delimit and demarcate the colonial treaty border based on pertinent colonial treaties (1900, 1902, and 1908) and applicable international law." The EEBC on 30 November 2007 remotely demarcated the border, assigning the town of Badme to Eritrea, despite Ethiopia's maintaining forces there from the time of the 1998-2000 war. Eritrea insisted that the UN terminate its peacekeeping mission on 31 July 2008. Eritrea has accepted the EEBC's "virtual demarcation" decision and repeatedly called on Ethiopia to remove its troops. Ethiopia has not accepted the demarcation decision, and neither party has entered into meaningful dialogue to resolve the impasse. Eritrea is subject to several UN Security Council Resolutions (initially in 2009 and renewed annually) imposing an arms embargo and a travel ban and assets freeze on certain individuals, in view of evidence that it has supported armed opposition groups in the region.

Location

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

Natural Resources

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

Population - distribution

density is highest in the center of the country in and around the cities of Asmara (capital) and Keren; smaller settlements exist in the north and south

5792984
Tigrinya (official), Arabic (official), English (official), Tigre, Kunama, Afar, other Cushitic languages
ASMARA (capital) 804,000 (2015)
Conventional long form
State of Eritrea
Conventional short form
Eritrea
Local long form
Hagere Ertra
Local short form
Ertra
presidential republic
Name
Asmara
Geographic coordinates
15 20 N, 38 56 E
Time difference
UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
Since formal independence from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea has faced many economic problems, including lack of financial resources and chronic drought, which have been exacerbated by restrictive economic policies. Eritrea has a command economy under the control of the sole political party, the People's Front for Democracy and Justice. Like the economies of many African nations, a large share of the population - nearly 80% in Eritrea - is engaged in subsistence agriculture, but the sector only produces a small share of the country's total output.
Inflation
None%
External debt stocks
US$ 873,145,000
Total tax rate (% of commercial profits)
83.7%
Real Interest Rate
None%
Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP)
5.65%
Current Account Balance
US$ -104,657,012
Labor Force, Total
2,482,414
Employment in Agriculture
%
Employment in Industry
%
Employment in Services
%
Unemployment Rate
7.27%
Imports of goods and services
US$ 701,541,184
Exports of goods and services
US$ 603,937,953
Total Merchandise Trade
48.75%
FDI, net inflows
US$ 49,323,061
Commercial Service Exports
US$ 54,117,988
sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, sisal; livestock, goats; fish
food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles, light manufacturing, salt, cement
Commodities
gold and other minerals, livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small industry manufactures
Partners
Commodities
machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods
Partners
Country Risk Rating
E
The highest-risk political and economic situation and the most difficult business environment. Corporate default is likely.
Business Climate Rating
E
The highest possible risk in terms of business climate. Due to a lack of available financial information and an unpredictable legal system, doing business in this country is extremely difficult.
  • Extensive mineral resources (potash, copper, gold, silver, zinc)
  • Strategic position on the Red Sea
  • Large public and external deficits
  • Critical level of debt
  • Country boycotted by the international community
  • Concerning human rights record
  • Extremely difficult business climate

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