Part 19

_#_Defense expenditures: $2.8 billion, 7.3% of GDP (1991) _%_ _@_El Salvador _*_Geography _#_Total area: 21,040 km2; land area: 20,720 km2

_#_Comparative area: slightly smaller than Massachusetts

_#_Land boundaries: 545 km total; Guatemala 203 km, Honduras 342 km

_#_Coastline: 307 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Territorial sea: 200 nm (overflight and navigation permitted beyond 12 nm)

_#_Disputes: dispute with Honduras over several sections of the land boundary; dispute over Golfo de Fonseca maritime boundary because of disputed sovereignty of islands

_#_Climate: tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season (November to April)

_#_Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central plateau

_#_Natural resources: hydropower, geothermal power, crude oil

_#_Land use: arable land 27%; permanent crops 8%; meadows and pastures 29%; forest and woodland 6%; other 30%; includes irrigated 5%

_#_Environment: The Land of Volcanoes; subject to frequent and sometimes very destructive earthquakes; deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution

_#_Note: smallest Central American country and only one without a coastline on Caribbean Sea

_*_People _#_Population: 5,418,736 (July 1991), growth rate 2.0% (1991)

_#_Birth rate: 34 births/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Net migration rate: - 6 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Infant mortality rate: 47 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

_#_Life expectancy at birth: 63 years male, 68 years female (1991)

_#_Total fertility rate: 4.1 children born/woman (1991)

_#_Nationality: noun--Salvadoran(s); adjective--Salvadoran

_#_Ethnic divisions: mestizo 89%, Indian 10%, white 1%

_#_Religion: Roman Catholic about 75%, with extensive activity by Protestant groups throughout the country (more than 1 million Protestant evangelicals in El Salvador at the end of 1990)

_#_Language: Spanish, Nahua (among some Indians)

_#_Literacy: 73% (male 76%, female 70%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

_#_Labor force: 1,700,000 (1982 est.); agriculture 40%, commerce 16%, manufacturing 15%, government 13%, financial services 9%, transportation 6%, other 1%; shortage of skilled labor and a large pool of unskilled labor, but manpower training programs improving situation (1984 est.)

_#_Organized labor: total labor force 15%; agricultural labor force 10%; urban labor force 7% (1987 est.)

_*_Government _#_Long-form name: Republic of El Salvador

_#_Type: republic

_#_Capital: San Salvador

_#_Administrative divisions: 14 departments (departamentos, singular--departamento); Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, Santa Ana, San Vicente, Sonsonate, Usulutan

_#_Independence: 15 September 1821 (from Spain)

_#_Constitution: 20 December 1983

_#_Legal system: based on civil and Roman law, with traces of common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 15 September (1821)

_#_Executive branch: president, vice president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

_#_Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa)

_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)

_#_Leaders:

Chief of State and Head of Government--President Alfredo CRISTIANI (since 1 June 1989); Vice President Jose Francisco MERINO (since 1 June 1989)

_#_Political parties and leaders: National Republican Alliance (ARENA), Armando CALDERON Sol; Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Fidel CHAVEZ Mena; National Conciliation Party (PCN), Ciro CRUZ Zepeda; National Democratic Union (UDN), Mario AGUINADA Carranza; the Democratic Convergence (CD) is a coalition of three

## parties--the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Wilfredo BARILLAS;

the National Revolutionary Movement (MNR), Rene FLORES; and the Popular Social Christian Movement (MPSC), Ruben ZAMORA; Authentic Christian Movement (MAC), Julio REY PRENDES; Democratic Action (AD), Ricardo GONZALEZ Camacho

_#_Suffrage: universal at age 18

_#_Elections:

President--last held 19 March 1989 (next to be held March 1994); results--Alfredo CRISTIANI (ARENA) 53.8%, Fidel CHAVEZ Mena (PDC) 36.6%, other 9.6%;

Legislative Assembly--last held 10 March 1991 (next to be held March 1994); results--ARENA 44.3%, PDC 27.96%, CD 12.16%, PCN 8.99%, MAC 3.23%, UDN 2.68%; seats--(84 total) ARENA 39, PDC 26, PCN 9, CD 8, UDN 1, MAC 1

_#_Other political or pressure groups:

Leftist revolutionary movement--Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN), leadership body of the insurgency, four factions--Popular Liberation Forces (FPL), Armed Forces of National Resistance (FARN), People's Revolutionary Army (ERP), Salvadoran Communist Party/Armed Forces of Liberation (PCES/FAL), and Central American Workers' Revolutionary Party (PRTC)/Popular Liberation Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARLP);

Leftist political parties--National Democratic Union (UDN), National Revolutionary Movement (MNR), and Popular Social Movement (MPSC);

FMLN front organizations:

Labor fronts include--National Union of Salvadoran Workers (UNTS), leftist umbrella front group, leads FMLN front network; National Federation of Salvadoran Workers (FENASTRAS), best organized of front groups and controlled by FMLN's National Resistance (RN); Social Security Institute Workers Union (STISSS), one of the most militant fronts, is controlled by FMLN'S Armed Forces of National Resistance (FARN) and RN; Association of Telecommunications Workers (ASTTEL); Centralized Union Federation of El Salvador (FUSS); Treasury Ministry Employees (AGEMHA);

Nonlabor fronts include--Committee of Mothers and Families of Political Prisoners, Disappeared Persons, and Assassinated of El Salvador (COMADRES); Nongovernmental Human Rights Commission (CDHES); Committee of Dismissed and Unemployed of El Salvador (CODYDES); General Association of Salvadoran University Students (AGEUS); National Association of Salvadoran Educators (ANDES-21 DE JUNIO); Salvadoran Revolutionary Student Front (FERS), associated with the Popular Forces of Liberation (FPL); Association of National University Educators (ADUES); Salvadoran University Students Front (FEUS); Christian Committee for the Displaced of El Salvador (CRIPDES), an FPL front; The Association for Communal Development in El Salvador (PADECOES), controlled by the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP); Confederation of Cooperative Associations of El Salvador (COACES);

Labor organizations--Federation of Construction and Transport Workers Unions (FESINCONSTRANS), independent; Salvadoran Communal Union (UCS), peasant association; Unitary Federation of Salvadoran Unions (FUSS), leftist; National Federation of Salvadoran Workers (FENASTRAS), leftist; Democratic Workers Central (CTD), moderate; General Confederation of Workers (CGT), moderate; National Unity of Salvadoran Workers (UNTS), leftist; National Union of Workers and Peasants (UNOC), moderate labor coalition of democratic labor organizations; United Workers Front (FUT);

Business organizations--National Association of Private Enterprise (ANEP), conservative; Productive Alliance (AP), conservative; National Federation of Salvadoran Small Businessmen (FENAPES), conservative

_#_Member of: BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Miguel Angel SALAVERRIA; Chancery at 2308 California Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 265-3480 through 3482; there are Salvadoran Consulates General in Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco;

US--Ambassador William G. WALKER; Embassy at 25 Avenida Norte No. 1230, San Salvador (mailing address is APO Miami 34023); telephone [503] 26-7100

_#_Flag: three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band--it features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of Honduras which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band

_*_Economy _#_Overview: The agricultural sector accounts for 25% of GDP, employs about 40% of the labor force, and contributes about 66% to total exports. Coffee is the major commercial crop, accounting for 45% of export earnings. The manufacturing sector, based largely on food and beverage processing, accounts for 18% of GDP and 15% of employment. Economic losses because of guerrilla sabotage total more than $2.0 billion since 1979. The costs of maintaining a large military seriously constrain the government's efforts to provide essential social services. Nevertheless, growth in national output last year exceeded growth in population for the first time since 1987.

_#_GDP: $5.4 billion, per capita $1,030; real growth rate 2.8% (1990 est.)

_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 20% (1990)

_#_Unemployment rate: 10% (1989)

_#_Budget: revenues $751 million; expenditures $790 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.)

_#_Exports: $571 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.);

commodities--coffee 45%, sugar, cotton, shrimp;

partners--US 49%, FRG 24%, Guatemala 7%, Costa Rica 4%, Japan 4%

_#_Imports: $1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1990 est.);

commodities--petroleum products, consumer goods, foodstuffs, machinery, construction materials, fertilizer;

partners--US 40%, Guatemala 12%, Venezuela 7%, Mexico 7%, FRG 5%, Japan 4%

_#_External debt: $2.1 billion (December 1990 est.)

_#_Industrial production: growth rate 2.4% (1990); accounts for 22% of GDP

_#_Electricity: 682,000 kW capacity; 1,849 million kWh produced, 350 kWh per capita (1990)

_#_Industries: food processing, textiles, clothing, beverages, petroleum, tobacco products, chemicals, furniture

_#_Agriculture: accounts for 25% of GDP and 40% of labor force (including fishing and forestry); coffee most important commercial crop; other products--sugarcane, corn, rice, beans, oilseeds, beef, dairy products, shrimp; not self-sufficient in food

_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $2.95 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $455 million

_#_Currency: Salvadoran colon (plural--colones); 1 Salvadoran colon (C) = 100 centavos

_#_Exchange rates: Salvadoran colones (C) per US$1--8.0 (April 1991, floating rate since mid-1990); 5.0000 (fixed rate 1986 to mid-1990)

_#_Fiscal year: calendar year

_*_Communications _#_Railroads: 602 km 0.914-meter gauge, single track

_#_Highways: 10,000 km total; 1,500 km paved, 4,100 km gravel, 4,400 km improved and unimproved earth

_#_Inland waterways: Rio Lempa partially navigable

_#_Ports: Acajutla, Cutuco

_#_Civil air: 7 major transport aircraft

_#_Airports: 116 total, 82 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 5 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

_#_Telecommunications: nationwide trunk radio relay system; connection into Central American Microwave System; 116,000 telephones; stations--77 AM, no FM, 5 TV, 2 shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

_*_Defense Forces _#_Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, National Police, Treasury Police

_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,220,088; 780,108 fit for military service; 71,709 reach military age (18) annually

_#_Defense expenditures: $220 million, 3.6% of GDP (1990) _%_ _@_Equatorial Guinea _*_Geography _#_Total area: 28,050 km2; land area: 28,050 km2

_#_Comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland

_#_Land boundaries: 539 km total; Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km

_#_Coastline: 296 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;

Territorial sea: 12 nm

_#_Disputes: maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay

_#_Climate: tropical; always hot, humid

_#_Terrain: coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic

_#_Natural resources: timber, crude oil, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium

_#_Land use: arable land 8%; permanent crops 4%; meadows and pastures 4%; forest and woodland 51%; other 33%

_#_Environment: subject to violent windstorms

_#_Note: insular and continental regions rather widely separated

_*_People _#_Population: 378,729 (July 1991), growth rate 2.6% (1991)

_#_Birth rate: 42 births/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Death rate: 16 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Infant mortality rate: 116 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

_#_Life expectancy at birth: 49 years male, 53 years female (1991)

_#_Total fertility rate: 5.4 children born/woman (1991)

_#_Nationality: noun--Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s); adjective--Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean

_#_Ethnic divisions: indigenous population of Bioko, primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos; Rio Muni, primarily Fang; less than 1,000 Europeans, mostly Spanish

_#_Religion: natives all nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic; some pagan practices retained

_#_Language: Spanish (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo

_#_Literacy: 50% (male 64%, female 37%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

_#_Labor force: 172,000 (1986 est.); agriculture 66%, services 23%, industry 11% (1980); labor shortages on plantations; 58% of population of working age (1985)

_#_Organized labor: no formal trade unions

_*_Government _#_Long-form name: Republic of Equatorial Guinea

_#_Type: republic

_#_Capital: Malabo

_#_Administrative divisions: 2 provinces (provincias, singular--provincia); Bioko, Rio Muni; note--there may now be 6 provinces named Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele Nzas

_#_Independence: 12 October 1968 (from Spain; formerly Spanish Guinea)

_#_Constitution: 15 August 1982

_#_Legal system: in transition; partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom

_#_National holiday: Independence Day, 12 October (1968)

_#_Executive branch: president, prime minister, deputy prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

_#_Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives of the People (Camara de Representantes del Pueblo)

_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Tribunal

_#_Leaders:

Chief of State--President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979);

Head of Government--Prime Minister Cristino SERICHE BIOKO MALABO (since 15 August 1982); Deputy Prime Minister Isidoro Eyi MONSUY ANDEME (since 15 August 1989)

_#_Political parties and leaders: only party--Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea (PDGE), Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO, party leader

_#_Suffrage: universal adult at age NA

_#_Elections:

President--last held 25 June 1989 (next to be held 25 June 1996); results--President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO was reelected without opposition;

Chamber of People's Representatives--last held 10 July 1988 (next to be held 10 July 1993); results--PDGE is the only party; seats--(41 total) PDGE 41

_#_Communists: no significant number

_#_Member of: ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS (associate), NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, UDEAC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO

_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Damaso OBIANG NDONG; Chancery at 801 Second Avenue, Suite 1403, New York, NY 10017; telephone (212) 599-1523;

US--Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires William MITHOEFER; Embassy at Calle de Los Ministros, Malabo (mailing address is P. O. Box 597, Malabo; telephone [240] (9) 2185, 2406, 2507

_#_Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)

_*_Economy _#_Overview: The economy, destroyed during the regime of former President Macias Nguema, is now based on agriculture, forestry, and fishing, which account for about 60% of GNP and nearly all exports. Subsistence agriculture predominates, with cocoa, coffee, and wood products providing income, foreign exchange, and government revenues. There is little industry. Commerce accounts for about 10% of GNP, and the construction, public works, and service sectors for about 34%. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Oil exploration, taking place under concessions offered to US, French, and Spanish firms, has been moderately successful, and some revenues from oil exports will begin rolling in by mid-1991.

_#_GDP: $144 million, per capita $411; real growth rate 2.9% (1988 est.)

_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.9% (1989 est.)

_#_Unemployment rate: NA%

_#_Budget: revenues $23 million; expenditures $31 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1988)

_#_Exports: $41 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.);

commodities--coffee, timber, cocoa beans;

partners--Spain 44%, FRG 19%, Italy 12%, Netherlands 11% (1987)

_#_Imports: $57.1 million (c.i.f., 1988);

commodities--petroleum, food, beverages, clothing, machinery;

partners--Spain 34%, Italy 16%, France 14%, Netherlands 8% (1987)

_#_External debt: $195 million (1989)

_#_Industrial production: growth rate - 6.8% (1990 est.); acounts for about 4% of GDP

_#_Electricity: 23,000 kW capacity; 60 million kWh produced, 170 kWh per capita (1989)

_#_Industries: fishing, sawmilling

_#_Agriculture: cash crops--timber and coffee from Rio Muni, cocoa from Bioko; food crops--rice, yams, cassava, bananas, oil palm nuts, manioc, livestock

_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY81-89), $14 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $112 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $55 million

_#_Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (plural--francs); 1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes

_#_Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1--256.54 (January 1991), 272.26 (1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988), 300.54 (1987), 346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)

_#_Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March

_*_Communications _#_Highways: Rio Muni--1,024 km; Bioko--216 km

_#_Ports: Malabo, Bata

_#_Merchant marine: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,413 GRT/6,699 DWT; includes 1 cargo and 1 passenger-cargo

_#_Civil air: 1 major transport aircraft

_#_Airports: 4 total, 3 usable; 2 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

_#_Telecommunications: poor system with adequate government services; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; 2,000 telephones; stations--2 AM, no FM, 1 TV; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station

_*_Defense Forces _#_Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, National Police

_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 79,641; 40,369 fit for military service

_#_Defense expenditures: $NA, 11% of GNP (FY81 est.) _%_ _@_Ethiopia _*_Geography _#_Total area: 1,221,900 km2; land area: 1,101,000 km2

_#_Comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of Texas

_#_Land boundaries: 5,141 km total; Djibouti 459 km, Kenya 861 km, Somalia 1,600 km, Sudan 2,221 km

_#_Coastline: 1,094 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Territorial sea: 12 nm

_#_Disputes: southern half of the boundary with Somalia is a Provisional Administrative Line; possible claim by Somalia based on unification of ethnic Somalis; territorial dispute with Somalia over the Ogaden; separatist movement in Eritrea; antigovernment insurgencies in Tigray and other areas

_#_Climate: tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation; some areas prone to extended droughts

_#_Terrain: high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley

_#_Natural resources: small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash

_#_Land use: arable land 12%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 41%; forest and woodland 24%; other 22%; includes irrigated NEGL%

_#_Environment: geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; frequent droughts; famine

_#_Note: strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes and close to Arabian oilfields; major resettlement project--that was ongoing in rural areas and would have significantly altered population distribution and settlement patterns over the next several decades--has been derailed because of ongoing civil wars

_*_People _#_Population: 53,191,127 (July 1991), growth rate 3.1% (1991)

_#_Birth rate: 45 births/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Death rate: 15 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Net migration rate: NEGL migrants/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Infant mortality rate: 114 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

_#_Life expectancy at birth: 50 years male, 53 years female (1991)

_#_Total fertility rate: 7.0 children born/woman (1991)

_#_Nationality: noun--Ethiopian(s); adjective--Ethiopian

_#_Ethnic divisions: Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigrean 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1%

_#_Religion: Muslim 40-45%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35-40%, animist 15-20%, other 5%

_#_Language: Amharic (official), Tigrinya, Orominga, Guaraginga, Somali, Arabic, English (major foreign language taught in schools)

_#_Literacy: 62% (male NA%, female NA%) age 10 and over can read and write (1983 est.)

_#_Labor force: 18,000,000; agriculture and animal husbandry 80%, government and services 12%, industry and construction 8% (1985)

_#_Organized labor: All Ethiopian Trade Union formed by the government in January 1977 to represent 273,000 registered trade union members

_*_Government _#_Long-form name: People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

_#_Type: on 28 May 1991 the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) took control in Addis Ababa; on 29 May 1991 Issayas AFEWORKE, secretary general of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), announced the formation of a provisional government in Eritrea, in preparation for an eventual referendum on independence for the province

_#_Capital: Addis Ababa

_#_Administrative divisions: 25 administrative regions (astedader akababiwach, singular--astedader akababi) and 5 autonomous regions* (rasgez akababiwach, singular--rasgez akababi); Addis Abeba (Addis Ababa), Arsi, Aseb*, Asosa, Bale, Borena, Debub Gonder, Debub Shewa, Debub Welo, Dire Dawa*, Ertra (Eritrea)*, Gambela, Gamo Gofa, Ilubabor, Kefa, Metekel, Mirab Gojam, Mirab Harerge, Mirab Shewa, Misrak Gojam, Misrak Harerge, Nazaret, Ogaden*, Omo, Semen Gonder, Semen Shewa, Semen Welo, Sidamo, Tigray*, Welega

_#_Independence: oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world--at least 2,000 years

_#_Constitution: 12 September 1987

_#_Legal system: complex structure with civil, Islamic, common, and customary law influences; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

_#_National holiday: National Revolution Day, 12 September (1974)

_#_Executive branch: president, vice president, Council of State prime minister, five deputy prime ministers, Council of Ministers

_#_Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Shengo)

_#_Judicial branch: Supreme Court

_#_Leaders:

Chief of State--Interim President Meles ZENAWI (since 1 June 1991);

Head of Government--Acting Prime Minister Tamrat LAYNE (since 6 June 1991)

_#_Political parties and leaders: only party--Workers' Party of Ethiopia (WPE)

_#_Suffrage: universal at age 18

_#_Elections:

President--last held 10 September 1987 (next to be held September 1992); results--MENGISTU Haile-Mariam elected by the National Assembly, but resigned and left Ethiopia on 21 May 1991;

National Assembly--last held 14 June 1987 (next to be held NA); results--WPE was the only party; seats--(835 total) WPE 835

_#_Other political or pressure groups: Oromo Liberation Front; Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party (EPRP)

_#_Member of: ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IGADD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

_#_Diplomatic representation: Counselor, Charge d'Affaires ad interim GIRMA Amare; Chancery at 2134 Kalorama Road NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 234-2281 or 2282;

US--Charge d'Affaires Robert G. HOUDEK; Embassy at Entoto Street, Addis Ababa (mailing address is P.O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa); telephone [251] (01) 550666

_#_Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red; Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa and the colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the pan-African colors

_*_Economy _#_Overview: Ethiopia is one of the poorest and least developed countries in Africa. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, which accounts for about 45% of GDP, 90% of exports, and 80% of total employment; coffee generates 60% of export earnings. The manufacturing sector is heavily dependent on inputs from the agricultural sector. Over 90% of large-scale industry, but less then 10% of agriculture, is state run. Favorable agricultural weather largely explains the 4.5% growth in output in FY89.

_#_GDP: $6.6 billion, per capita $130, real growth rate - 0.4% (FY89 est.)

_#_Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.2% (1989)

_#_Unemployment rate: NA

_#_Budget: revenues $1.8 billion; expenditures $1.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $842 million (FY88)

_#_Exports: $429 million (f.o.b., FY88);

commodities--coffee 60%, hides;

partners--US, FRG, Djibouti, Japan, PDRY, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia

_#_Imports: $1.1 billion (c.i.f., FY88);

commodities--food, fuels, capital goods;

partners--USSR, Italy, FRG, Japan, UK, US, France

_#_External debt: $2.6 billion (1988)

_#_Industrial production: growth rate 2.3% (FY89 est.); accounts for 13% of GDP

_#_Electricity: 330,000 kW capacity; 700 million kWh produced, 14 kWh per capita (1989)

_#_Industries: food processing, beverages, textiles, chemicals, metals processing, cement

_#_Agriculture: accounts for 45% of GDP and is the most important sector of the economy even though frequent droughts and poor cultivation practices keep farm output low; famines not uncommon; export crops of coffee and oilseeds grown partly on state farms; estimated 50% of agricultural production at subsistence level; principal crops and livestock--cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseeds, sugarcane, potatoes and other vegetables, hides and skins, cattle, sheep, goats

_#_Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $504 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $3.1 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $8 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $2.0 billion

_#_Currency: birr (plural--birr); 1 birr (Br) = 100 cents

_#_Exchange rates: birr (Br) per US$1--2.0700 (fixed rate)

_#_Fiscal year: 8 July-7 July

_*_Communications _#_Railroads: 988 km total; 681 km 1.000-meter gauge; 307 km 0.950-meter gauge (nonoperational)

_#_Highways: 44,300 km total; 3,650 km bituminous, 9,650 km gravel, 3,000 km improved earth, 28,000 km unimproved earth

_#_Ports: Aseb, Mitsiwa

_#_Merchant marine: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 69,398 GRT/89,457 DWT; includes 9 cargo, 1 roll-on/roll off cargo, 1 livestock carrier, 2 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker

_#_Civil air: 21 major transport aircraft

_#_Airports: 153 total, 111 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 13 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 49 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

_#_Telecommunications: open-wire and radio relay system adequate for government use; open-wire to Sudan and Djibouti; radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; stations--4 AM, no FM, 1 TV; 45,000 TV sets; 3,300,000 radios; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

_*_Defense Forces _#_Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense, Police Force

_#_Manpower availability: males 15-49, 11,717,614; 6,072,112 fit for military service; 609,346 reach military age (18) annually

_#_Defense expenditures: $NA, 8.5% of GDP (1988) _%_ _@_Europa Island (French possession) _*_Geography _#_Total area: 28 km2; land area: 28 km2

_#_Comparative area: about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC

_#_Land boundaries: none

_#_Coastline: 22.2 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;

Territorial sea: 12 nm

_#_Disputes: claimed by Madagascar

_#_Climate: tropical

_#_Terrain: NA

_#_Natural resources: negligible

_#_Land use: arable land NA%; permanent crops NA%; meadows and pastures NA%; forest and woodland NA%; other NA%; heavily wooded

_#_Environment: wildlife sanctuary

_#_Note: located in the Mozambique Channel 340 km west of Madagascar

_*_People _#_Population: uninhabited

_*_Government _#_Long-form name: none