Eritrea
PROFILE
OFFICIAL NAME:
State of Eritrea
Geography
Area: 125,000 sq. km. (48,000 sq. mi.); about the size of Pennsylvania.
Cities: Capital--Asmara (est. pop. 435,000). Other cities--Keren
(57,000); Assab (28,000); Massawa (25,000); Afabet (25,000); Tessenie
(25,000); Mendefera (25,000); Dekemhare (20,000); Adekeieh (15,000);
Barentu (15,000); Ghinda (15,000).
Terrain: Central highlands straddle escarpment associated with
Rift Valley, dry coastal plains, and western lowlands.
Climate: Temperate in the highlands; hot in the lowlands.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Eritrean(s).
Population (2005 est.): 4.5 million.
Annual growth rate: 2.5%.
Ethnic groups: Tigrinya 50%, Tigre 31.4%, Saho 5%, Afar 5%, Beja
2.5%, Bilen 2.1%, Kunama 2%, Nara 1.5%, and Rashaida .5%.
Religions: Christian 50%, mostly Orthodox, Muslim 48%, indigenous
beliefs 2%.
Education: Years compulsory--none. Attendance--elementary 57%;
secondary 21%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--75/1,000. Life expectancy--52 yrs.
Work force: Agriculture--80%. Industry and commerce--20%.
Government
Type: Transitional government.
Independence: Eritrea officially celebrated its independence on
May 24, 1993.
Constitution: Ratified May 24, 1997, but not yet implemented.
Branches: Executive--president, cabinet. Legislative--Transitional
National Assembly. Judicial--Supreme Court.
Administrative subdivisions: Six administrative regions.
Political party: People's Front for Democracy and Justice (name
adopted by the Eritrean People's Liberation Front when it established
itself as a political party).
Suffrage: Universal, age 18 and above.
Central government budget (2000 est.): $442 million.
Defense: $107 million.
Economy
Real GDP (2004 est.): $700 million.
Annual growth rate (2004 est.): 1%.
Per capita income: $900 (on a purchasing power parity basis).
Avg. inflation rate (2004 est.): 18.2%.
Mineral resources: Gold, copper, iron ore, potash, oil.
Agriculture (12% of GDP in 2004): Products--millet, sorghum, teff,
wheat, barley, flax, cotton, papayas, citrus fruits, bananas,
beans and lentils, potatoes, vegetables, fish, dairy products,
meat, and skins. Cultivated land--10% of arable land.
Industry (25% of GDP in 2004): Types--processed food and dairy
products, alcoholic beverages, leather goods, textiles, chemicals,
cement and other construction materials, salt, paper, and matches.
Trade: Exports (2004)--$39 million: skins, meat, live sheep and
cattle, gum arabic. Major markets--Middle East (Saudi Arabia,
Yemen), Europe (Italy), Djibouti, and Sudan. Imports (2004)--$335
million: food, military materiel, and fuel, manufactured goods,
machinery and transportation equipment. Major suppliers--U.A.E.,
Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany, Belgium.
GEOGRAPHY
Eritrea is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered on the
northeast and east by the Red Sea, on the west and northwest by
Sudan, on the south by Ethiopia, and on the southeast by Djibouti.
The country has a high central plateau that varies from 1,800
to 3,000 meters (6,000-10,000 ft.) above sea level. A coastal
plain, western lowlands, and some 300 islands comprise the remainder
of Eritrea's landmass. Eritrea has no year-round rivers.
The climate is temperate in the mountains and hot in the lowlands.
Asmara, the capital, is about 2,300 meters (7,500 ft.) above sea
level. Maximum temperature is 26o C (80o F). The weather is usually
sunny and dry, with the short or belg rains occurring February-April
and the big or meher rains beginning in late June and ending in
mid-September.
PEOPLE
Eritrea's population comprises nine ethnic groups, most of which
speak Semitic or Cushitic languages. The Tigrinya and Tigre make
up four-fifths of the population and speak different, but related
and somewhat mutually intelligible, Semitic languages. In general,
most of the Christians live in the highlands, while Muslims and
adherents of traditional beliefs live in lowland regions. Tigrinya
and Arabic are the most frequently used languages for commercial
and official transactions, but English is widely spoken and is
the language used for secondary and university education.
HISTORY
Prior to Italian colonization in 1885, what is now Eritrea had
been ruled by the various local or international powers that successively
dominated the Red Sea region. In 1896, the Italians used Eritrea
as a springboard for their disastrous attempt to conquer Ethiopia.
Eritrea was placed under British military administration after
the Italian surrender in World War II. In 1952, a UN resolution
federating Eritrea with Ethiopia went into effect. The resolution
ignored Eritrean pleas for independence but guaranteed Eritreans
some democratic rights and a measure of autonomy. Almost immediately
after the federation went into effect, however, these rights began
to be abridged or violated.
In 1962, Emperor Haile Sellassie unilaterally dissolved the Eritrean
parliament and annexed the country, sparking the Eritrean fight
for independence from Ethiopia that continued after Haile Sellassie
was ousted in a coup in 1974. The new Ethiopian Government, called
the Derg, was a Marxist military junta led by strongman Mengistu
Haile Miriam.
During the 1960s, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) led the
Eritrean independence struggle. In 1970, some members of the group
broke away to form the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF).
By the late 1970s, the EPLF had become the dominant armed Eritrean
group fighting against the Ethiopian Government, with Isaias Afwerki
as its leader. The EPLF used material captured from the Ethiopian
Army to fight against the government.
By 1977, the EPLF was poised to drive the Ethiopians out of Eritrea.
That same year, however, a massive airlift of Soviet arms to Ethiopia
enabled the Ethiopian Army to regain the initiative and forced
the EPLF to retreat to the bush. Between 1978 and 1986, the Derg
launched eight major offensives against the independence movement--all
of which failed. In 1988, the EPLF captured Afabet, headquarters
of the Ethiopian Army in northeastern Eritrea, prompting the Ethiopian
Army to withdraw from its garrisons in Eritrea's western lowlands.
EPLF fighters then moved into position around Keren, Eritrea's
second-largest city. Meanwhile, other dissident movements were
making headway throughout Ethiopia. At the end of the 1980s, the
Soviet Union informed Mengistu that it would not be renewing its
defense and cooperation agreement. With the withdrawal of Soviet
support and supplies, the Ethiopian Army's morale plummeted, and
the EPLF--along with other Ethiopian rebel forces--advanced on
Ethiopian positions.
The United States played a facilitative role in the peace talks
in Washington during the months leading up to the May 1991 fall
of the Mengistu regime. In mid-May, Mengistu resigned as head
of the Ethiopian Government and went into exile in Zimbabwe, leaving
a caretaker government in Addis Ababa. Later that month, the United
States chaired talks in London to formalize the end of the war.
The four major combatant groups, including the EPLF, attended
these talks.
Having defeated the Ethiopian forces in Eritrea, EPLF troops took
control of their homeland. In May 1991, the EPLF established the
Provisional Government of Eritrea (PGE) to administer Eritrean
affairs until a referendum could be held on independence and a
permanent government established. EPLF leader Isaias became the
head of the PGE, and the EPLF Central Committee served as its
legislative body.
A high-level U.S. delegation was present in Addis
Ababa for the July 1-5, 1991 conference that established a transitional
government in Ethiopia. The EPLF attended the July conference
as an observer and held talks with the new transitional government
regarding Eritrea's relationship to Ethiopia. The outcome of those
talks was an agreement in which the Ethiopians recognized the
right of the Eritreans to hold a referendum on independence.
Although some EPLF cadres at one time espoused a
Marxist ideology, Soviet assistance for Mengistu limited the level
of Eritrean interest in seeking Soviet support. The fall of communist
regimes in the former Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc convinced
them it was a failed system. The EPLF (and later its successor,
the PFDJ) expressed its commitment to establishing a democratic
form of government and a free-market economy in Eritrea. The United
States agreed to provide assistance to both Ethiopia and Eritrea,
conditional on continued progress toward democracy and human rights.
On April 23-25, 1993, Eritreans voted overwhelmingly for independence
from Ethiopia in a UN-monitored free and fair referendum. The
Eritrean authorities declared Eritrea an independent state on
April 27, and Eritrea officially celebrated its independence on
May 24, 1993.
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Eritrea's Government faced formidable challenges following independence.
With no constitution, no judicial system, and an education system
in shambles, the Eritrean Government was required to build institutions
of government from scratch.
On May 19, 1993, the PGE issued a proclamation regarding the reorganization
of the government. The government was reorganized, and after a
national, freely contested election, the Transitional National
Assembly, which chose Isaias as President of the PGE, was expanded
to include both EPLF and non-EPLF members. The EPLF established
itself as a political party, the People's Front for Democracy
and Justice (PFDJ). The PGE declared that during a 4-year transition
period it would draft and ratify a constitution, draft a law on
political parties, draft a press law, and carry out elections
for a constitutional government.
In March 1994, the PGE created a constitutional commission charged
with drafting a constitution flexible enough to meet the current
needs of a population suffering from 30 years of civil war as
well as those of the future, when prospective stability and prosperity
would change the political landscape. Commission members traveled
throughout the country and to Eritrean communities abroad holding
meetings to explain constitutional options to the people and to
solicit their input. A new constitution was ratified in 1997 but
has not been implemented, and general elections have not been
held. The government had announced that Transitional National
Assembly elections would take place in December 2001, but those
were postponed and new elections have not been rescheduled.
The present government structure includes legislative, executive,
and judicial bodies. The legislature, the Transitional National
Assembly, comprises 75 members of the PFDJ and 75 additional popularly
elected members. The Transitional National Assembly is the highest
legal power in the government until the establishment of a democratic,
constitutional government. The legislature sets the internal and
external policies of the government, regulates implementation
of those policies, approves the budget, and elects the president
of the country. The president nominates individuals to head the
various ministries, authorities, commissions, and offices, and
the Transitional National Assembly ratifies those nominations.
The cabinet is the country's executive branch. It is composed
of 17 ministers and chaired by the president. It implements policies,
regulations, and laws and is accountable to the Transitional National
Assembly. The ministries are agriculture; defense; education;
energy and mines; finance; fisheries; foreign affairs; health;
information; labor and human welfare; land, water, and environment;
local governments; justice; public works; trade and industry;
transportation and communication; and tourism.
Nominally, the judiciary operates independently of both the legislative
and executive bodies, with a court system that extends from the
village through to the district, provincial, and national levels.
However, in practice, the independence of the judiciary is limited.
In 2001, the president of the High Court was detained after criticizing
the government for judicial interference.
In September 2001, after several months in which a number of prominent
PFDJ party members had gone public with a series of grievances
against the government and in which they called for implementation
of the constitution and the holding of elections, the government
instituted a crackdown. Eleven prominent dissidents, members of
what had come to be known as the Group of 15, were arrested and
held without charge in an unknown location. At the same time,
the government shut down the independent press and arrested its
reporters and editors, holding them incommunicado and without
charge. In subsequent weeks, the government arrested other individuals,
including two Eritrean employees of the U.S. Embassy. All of these
individuals remain held without charge and none are allowed visitors.
Principal Government Officials
President of the State of Eritrea and Chairman of the Executive
Council of the PFDJ--Isaias Afwerki
Director, Office of the President--Yemane Ghebremeskel
Minister of Defense--Sebhat Ephrem
Minister of Foreign Affairs--vacant
Minister of Finance--Berhane Abrehe
Minister of National Development--Dr. Woldai Futur
Eritrea maintains an embassy in the United States
at 1708 New Hampshire Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20009 (tel. 202-319-1991)
headed by Ambassador Girma Asmerom.
ECONOMY
The Eritrean economy is largely based on agriculture, which employs
80% of the population but currently may contribute as little as
12% to GDP. Agricultural export include cotton, fruit and vegetables,
hides, and meat, but farmers are largely dependent on rain-fed
agriculture, and growth in this and other sectors is hampered
by lack of a dependable water supply. Worker remittances and other
private transfers from abroad currently contribute about 32% of
GDP.
The Government of Eritrea states that it is committed to a market
economy and privatization, and it has made development and economic
recovery its priorities. Nevertheless, the government and the
ruling PFDJ party play pervasive roles in the economy. The government
has imposed an arbitrary and complex set of regulatory requirements
that discourage investment from both foreign and domestic sources.
The economy was devastated by war and the misguided policies of
the Derg, which disrupted agriculture and industry. The more recent
1998-2000 war with Ethiopia also has had a major negative impact
on the economy and further discouraged investment. Eritrea lost
many valuable economic assets in particular during the last round
of fighting in May-June 2000, when a significant portion of its
territory in the agriculturally important west and south was occupied
by Ethiopia. As a result of this last round of fighting, more
than one million Eritreans were displaced. According to World
Bank estimates, Eritreans also lost livestock worth some $225
million, and 55,000 homes worth $41 million were destroyed. Damage
to public buildings, including hospitals, is estimated at $24
million. Much of the transportation and communication infrastructure
is outmoded and deteriorating, although a large volume of intercity
road-building activity is currently underway. As a result, the
government has sought international assistance for various development
projects and has mobilized young Eritreans serving in the National
Service to repair crumbling roads and dams.
According to the IMF, post-border war recovery has been impaired
by four consecutive years of recurrent drought that have reduced
the already low domestic food production capacity. There are now
some encouraging signs that the drought may be ending. Eritrea
currently suffers from large structural fiscal deficits caused
by high levels of spending on defense and on emergency reconstruction
and humanitarian programs, which have resulted in the stock of
debt rising to unsustainable levels. Exports have collapsed, mainly
owing to the border conflict with Ethiopia and border tensions
with Sudan; however, large and persistent transfers from Eritreans
living abroad have cushioned the impact.
In Massawa, the port has been rehabilitated and is being developed.
In addition, the government has begun to export fish and sea cucumbers
from the Red Sea to markets in Europe and Asia. A newly constructed
airport in Massawa capable of handling jets could facilitate the
export of high-value perishable seafood.
DEFENSE
During the war for independence, the EPLF fighting force grew
to almost 110,000 fighters, about 3% of the total population of
Eritrea. In 1993, Eritrea embarked on a phased program to demobilize
50%-60% of the army, which had by then shrunk to about 95,000.
During the first phase of demobilization in 1993, some 26,000
soldiers--most of who enlisted after 1990--were demobilized. The
second phase of demobilization, which occurred the following year,
demobilized more than 17,000 soldiers who had joined the EPLF
before 1990 and in many cases had seen considerable combat experience.
Many of these fighters had spent their entire adult lives in the
EPLF and lacked the social, personal, and vocational skills to
become competitive in the work place. As a result, they received
higher compensation, more intensive training, and more psychological
counseling than the first group. Special attention has been given
to women fighters, who made up some 30% of the EPLF's combat troops.
By 1998, the army had shrunk to 47,000.
The moves to demobilize were abruptly reversed after the outbreak
of war with Ethiopia over the contested border. During the 1998-2000
war, which is estimated to have resulted in well over 100,000
casualties on the two sides, Eritrea's armed forces expanded to
close to 300,000 members, almost 10% of the population. This imposed
a huge economic burden on the country. The International Monetary
Fund (IMF) estimates that the economy shrank by more than 8% in
2000, although it rebounded somewhat in 2001. The war ended with
a cessation of hostilities agreement in June 2000, followed by
a peace agreement signed in December of the same year. A UN peacekeeping
mission, the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE), was established
and monitors a 25-kilometer-wide Temporary Security Zone separating
the two sides. Per the terms of the cessation of hostilities agreement,
two commissions were established: one to delimit and demarcate
the border and the other to weigh compensation claims by both
sides. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission announced its
decision in April 2002. Demarcation was expected to begin in 2003
but has been delayed by a stalemate between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The government has been slow to demobilize its military after
the most recent conflict, although it recently formulated an ambitious
demobilization plan with the participation of the World Bank.
A pilot demobilization program involving 5,000 soldiers began
in November 2001 and was to be followed immediately thereafter
by a first phase in which some 65,000 soldiers would be demobilized.
This was delayed repeatedly. In 2003, the government began to
demobilize some of those slated for the first phase. The World
Bank has not yet approved the demobilization program, and funding
for it from other donors is uncertain.
U.S. military cooperation with Eritrea, which was suspended following
the outbreak of hostilities with Ethiopia and a UN embargo on
military cooperation with either side, has resumed on a modest
basis.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Eritrea is a member of the African Union (AU) and the Common Market
of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA). It has had close relations
with the United States, Italy, and several other European nations,
including the United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands,
which have become important aid donors. Relations with these countries
became strained as a result of the 2001 government crackdown against
political dissidents and others, the closure of the independent
press, and by the expulsion of the Italian Ambassador to Eritrea.
Efforts have been made to repair relations with donor countries.
Eritrea's relations with its neighbors other than Djibouti also
are somewhat strained. Although a territorial dispute with Yemen
over the Haynish Islands was settled by international arbitration,
tensions over traditional fishing rights with Yemen resurfaced
in 2002. Relations with Sudan also were colored by occasional
incidents involving the extremist group, Eritrean Islamic Jihad
(EIJ)--which the Eritrean Government believes is supported by
the National Islamic Front government in Khartoum--and by continued
Eritrean support for the Sudanese opposition coalition, the National
Democratic Alliance.
U.S.-ERITREAN RELATIONS
The U.S. consulate in Asmara was first established in 1942. In
1953, the United States signed a mutual defense treaty with Ethiopia.
The treaty granted the United States control and expansion of
the important British military communications base at Kagnew near
Asmara. In the 1960s, as many as 4,000 U.S. military personnel
were stationed at Kagnew. In the 1970s, technological advances
in the satellite and communications fields were making the communications
station at Kagnew increasingly obsolete. In 1974, Kagnew Station
drastically reduced its personnel complement. In early 1977, the
United States informed the Ethiopian Government that it intended
to close Kagnew Station permanently by September 30, 1977. In
the meantime, U.S. relations with the Mengistu regime were worsening.
In April 1977, Mengistu abrogated the 1953 mutual defense treaty
and ordered a reduction of U.S. personnel in Ethiopia, including
the closure of Kagnew Communications Center and the consulate
in Asmara. In August 1992, the United States reopened its consulate
in Asmara, staffed with one officer. On April 27, 1993, the United
States recognized Eritrea as an independent state, and on June
11, diplomatic relations were established, with a chargé
d'affaires. The first U.S. Ambassador arrived later that year.
The United States has provided substantial assistance to Eritrea,
including food and development. In FY 2004, the United States
provided over $65 million in humanitarian aid to Eritrea, including
$58.1 million in food assistance and $3.47 million in refugee
support.
U.S. interests in Eritrea include consolidating the peace with
Ethiopia, encouraging progress toward establishing a democratic
political culture, supporting Eritrean efforts to become constructively
involved in solving regional problems, assisting Eritrea in dealing
with its humanitarian and development needs, and promoting economic
reform.
Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Scott H. DeLisi
Deputy Chief of Mission--Sue K. Brown
Political/Military Officer--Holly Holzer
Consular Officer--Elaine French
Management Officer--Michael McCarthy
Public Affairs Officer--vacant
Defense Attache--LTC Paul M. Phillips
The address of the U.S. Embassy in Eritrea is 28
Franklin D. Roosevelt Street, P.O. Box 211, Asmara (tel. 291-1-120-004;
fax: 291-1-127-584).
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