Eritrea



__**Flag Description**__ The flag is a red isosceles triangle 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

__**Background**__ Ethiopia recieved Eritrea in 1952 as a federation. Eritrea struggled for independance from Ethiopia for 30 years. In 1991, Eritrean rebels overthrew the Ethiopian government forces and gained their independence. A two year boarder war started between the two countries in 1998 and ended in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission set the limits of the border by coordinates, but Ethiopia still occupied several tracts of disputed territory, including the town of Badme. Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea. It's map coordinates are 15 N, 39 E. The capital of Eritrea is Asmara.
 * __Location__**

The total area of Eritrea is //117,600 sq km// with //101,000 sq km// of water and //16,600 sq km// of land. The area of Eritrea is about the size of Pennsylvania.
 * __Area__**

Djibouti //109 km// away, Ethiopia //912 km// and Sudan //605 km// away.
 * __Boardering Countries__**

Along the Red Sea is a strip of Desert, and cooler wetter climate in the central highlands. In the western hills and lowlands, there's a semiarid climate. There are many hilly terrains and flat-to-rolling plains.
 * __Climate__**

only 4% of the land can be used for agriculture due to the desert.
 * __Natural Resources__**
 * gold
 * potash
 * zinc
 * copper
 * salt
 * possibly oil and natural gas
 * fish

Farmers may experience frequent droughts and locust swarms year round.
 * __Natural Hazards__**

There are 5,647,168 people as of July 2009. Eritrea ranks 110th in the world for population. There's a 2.577% population growth which compares 29th in the world. The median age of the population is 18.4 years old. 21% of the population lives in a urban population. The increase of urbanization is 5.4% The expectancy from birth is 61.78 years which compares 179th in the world. There are 43 deaths for every 1,000 live births. The fertilty rate is 4.72 children per woman.
 * __Environmental Issues__**
 * deforestation
 * desertification
 * soil erosion
 * overgrazing
 * loss of infrastructure from civil warfare
 * __Population__**
 * __Life Expectancy__**
 * males: 59.71 years
 * females: 63.9 years
 * __Infant Mortality Rate __**

Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3%
 * __Ethnic Group__**

Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages.
 * __Religions__**
 * 1) Muslim
 * 2) Coptic Christian
 * 3) Roman Catholic
 * 4) Protestant
 * __Languages__**

__Literacy:__ total population: 58.6% male: 69.9% female: 47.6%
 * __Education__**

__School years:__ total: 5 years male: 6 years female: 4 years

Education compared to the world is ranked 161st.

Eritrea is ruled under a transitional government. Their constitution was adopted on 23 May 1997, but has not yet been implemented fully
 * __Government__**
 * Independence Day, 24 May.

The suffrage age is 18 years old. <span class="category_data" style="font-weight: normal; vertical-align: top;">The President is currently Isaias Afworki. The president acts as both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly. The P<span class="category_data" style="font-weight: normal; vertical-align: top;">resident is elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms and can eligable for a second term.

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 Eritrean government strictly controls the use of foreign currency by limiting access and availability. Few private enterprises remain in Eritrea. Its economy depends heavily on taxes paid by members of the diaspora. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its ability to master social problems such as illiteracy, unemployment, and low skills, and more importantly, on the government's willingness to support a true market economy. 50% of the population lives below the poverty line. The GDP per capita is 700 U.S. dollars which ranks 220th in the world.
 * __Economy__**

Eritrea's agricultural profts come from sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, sisal; livestock, goats; fish. Their industries are food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles, light manufacturing, salt, and cement. The industrial production growth rate is only 2%.

Eritrea exports 13 million dollars of livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, and small manufactures. Its exports partners are India, Italy, Kenya, China, and France. Eritrea's imports are 601 million dollars from machinery, petroleum products, food, and manufactured goods. The country owes 311 million dollars in debt.

__**Currency**__ The currency in Eritrea is the Nakfa. It was introduced in 1998 and has been named after the town of Nacfa. <span class="category_data" style="font-weight: normal; vertical-align: top;">Ehe exchange rate is 15 nakfa to the US dollar.

There are approximately 120,000 people that use the internet in Eritrea and 1,074 internet hosts. 108,600 people have cell phones and 40,400 have a main line phone at home.
 * __Technology__**

__**Military**__ Eritrea has its own Ground Forces, Navy, and Air Force. Citizens must be 18-40 years old to join the army. The military expenditures are 6.3% of GDP which ranks 9th in the world.

__//Travel To Eritrea//__
Eritrea is not an ideal place to travel to for a vacation. Tourism facilities are limited, and you cannot stay in Eritrea longer than your passport date. There are no direct flights from the US to Eritrea, as well. There are Eritrean forces along the boarder of Eritrea and Ethiopia, due to their boarder war in 2000. Landmines and unexploded ordnance remain a serious problem throughout the country. There are reports of accidents and numerous incidents where vehicles and people occasionally detonate mines. Also, there are limited medical facilites and hospitals in Eritrea. If visiting, you should get vaccinations beforehand and make sure vaccines are up to date. Travelers should carry around their own medical supplies and perscription drugs. There is a large count of food and water bourne illness and malaria is very common in Eritrea. If you chose to travel to Eritrea, and obtain the correct passport, you will need to prepare for your trip. It is an under developed country, and doesn't have many stores to shop in. The tourist facilities have little literature and and there are only few available, but most are equipped with english speaking employees. Cars and twice as quick as buses, so travelers should bring their own or rent a vehicle while there. Transporation is limited so having your own will help get around faster and more efficiently. Photography of the environment or people may be taken, but some people may charge for pictures or video to be taken. It is easiest to carry US dollars when traveling to Eritrea.



__Timeline of Eritrea:__
= =


 * 1) **300-600 b.c.** - Eritrea part of the Ethiopian kingdom of Aksum.
 * 2) **1890** - Eritrea becomes an Italian colony.
 * 3) **1941** - British forces occupy Eritrea.
 * 4) **1952** - UN decides to make Eritrea a federal component of Ethiopia.
 * 5) **1958** - Eritrean Liberation Front formed.
 * 6) **1962** - Ethiopia annexes Eritrea, turning it into a province; war of independence begins.
 * 7) **1993** - Eritreans almost unanimously vote for independence; Eritrea becomes independent and joins the United Nations.
 * 8) **1999** - Eritrean-Ethiopian border clashes turn into a full-scale war.
 * 9) **2000** //Decembe//r - Eritrea and Ethiopia sign a peace agreement in Algeria establishing commissions to mark the border, exchange prisoners, return displaced people and hear compensation claims.
 * 10) **2001** //February// - Ethiopia says it has withdrawn its troops from Eritrea in accordance with the 2000 peace deal.
 * 11) **2008** //July// - UN Security Council votes unanimously to end UN peacekeeping mission monitoring disputed border between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

__Works Cited__
 * http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1111.html
 * http://books.google.com/books?id=7barYwB0UWcC&pg=PA360&lpg=PA360&dq=illegal+drugs+in+eritrea&source=bl&ots=DFeyuzUnff&sig=gifZ5oL3wEAve2ZNPngh3I4NgE0&hl=en&ei=7pPYStavGoWwMMG7yOUH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CBAQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=illegal%20drugs%20in%20eritrea&f=false
 * https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/er.html
 * http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1070861.stm