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Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2008) - Eritrea (2002)

Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2008) z Eritrea (2002)

 Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2008)Eritrea (2002)
 Congo, Democratic Republic of theEritrea
Administrative divisions 10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and 1 city* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu


note: according to the Constitution adopted in December 2005, the current administrative divisions will be subdivided into 26 new provinces by 2009
6 regions (regions, singular - region); Central, Anelba, Southern Red Sea, Northern Red Sea, Southern, Gash-Barka
Age structure 0-14 years: 47.6% (male 15,718,614/female 15,557,058)


15-64 years: 49.9% (male 16,224,734/female 16,571,549)


65 years and over: 2.6% (male 680,313/female 999,244) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 42.9% (male 958,564; female 955,625)


15-64 years: 53.9% (male 1,192,454; female 1,213,313)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 73,017; female 72,678) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish
Airports 237 (2007) 21 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 26


over 3,047 m: 4


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


1,524 to 2,437 m: 17


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
total: 4


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 211


1,524 to 2,437 m: 17


914 to 1,523 m: 95


under 914 m: 99 (2007)
total: 14


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Area total: 2,345,410 sq km


land: 2,267,600 sq km


water: 77,810 sq km
total: 121,320 sq km


land: 121,320 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US slightly larger than Pennsylvania
Background Established as a Belgian colony in 1908, the Republic of the Congo gained its independence in 1960, but its early years were marred by political and social instability. Col. Joseph MOBUTU seized power and declared himself president in a November 1965 coup. He subsequently changed his name - to MOBUTU Sese Seko - as well as that of the country - to Zaire. MOBUTU retained his position for 32 years through several sham elections, as well as through the use of brutal force. Ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow of refugees in 1994 from fighting in Rwanda and Burundi, led in May 1997 to the toppling of the MOBUTU regime by a rebellion backed by Rwanda and Uganda and fronted by Laurent KABILA. He renamed the country the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but in August 1998 his regime was itself challenged by a second insurrection again backed by Rwanda and Uganda. Troops from Angola, Chad, Namibia, Sudan, and Zimbabwe intervened to support KABILA's regime. A cease-fire was signed in July 1999 by the DRC, Congolese armed rebel groups, Angola, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zimbabwe but sporadic fighting continued. Laurent KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and his son, Joseph KABILA, was named head of state. In October 2002, the new president was successful in negotiating the withdrawal of Rwandan forces occupying eastern Congo; two months later, the Pretoria Accord was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and establish a government of national unity. A transitional government was set up in July 2003. Joseph KABILA as president and four vice presidents represented the former government, former rebel groups, the political opposition, and civil society. The transitional government held a successful constitutional referendum in December 2005 and elections for the presidency, National Assembly, and provincial legislatures in 2006. KABILA was inaugurated president in December 2006. The National Assembly was installed in September 2006. Its president, Vital KAMERHE, was chosen in December. Provincial assemblies were constituted in early 2007, and elected governors and national senators in January 2007. Eritrea was awarded to Ethiopia in 1952 as part of a federation. Ethiopia's annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating governmental forces; independence was overwhelmingly approved in a 1993 referendum. A two and a half year border war with Ethiopia that erupted in 1998 ended under UN auspices on 12 December 2000. Eritrea currently hosts a UN peacekeeping operation that will monitor the border region until an international commission determines and demarcates the boundary between the two countries.
Birth rate 42.96 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 42.25 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $700 million


expenditures: $2 billion (2006 est.)
revenues: $206.4 million


expenditures: $615.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Capital name: Kinshasa


geographic coordinates: 4 19 S, 15 18 E


time difference: UTC+1 (six hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Asmara (formerly Asmera)
Climate tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season (April to October), dry season (December to February); south of Equator - wet season (November to March), dry season (April to October) hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually); semiarid in western hills and lowlands; rainfall heaviest during June-September except in coastal desert
Coastline 37 km 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km
Constitution 18 February 2006 the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented
Country name conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo


conventional short form: none


local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo


local short form: none


former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire


abbreviation: DRC
conventional long form: State of Eritrea


conventional short form: Eritrea


local long form: Hagere Ertra


local short form: Ertra


former: Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia
Currency - nakfa (ERN)
Death rate 10.34 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 11.82 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $10 billion (2006 est.) $281 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador William GARVELINK


embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa


mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828


telephone: [243] (81) 556-0151


FAX: [243] (81) 556-0175
chief of mission: Ambassador Donald J. McCONNELL


embassy: Franklin D. Roosevelt Street, Asmara


mailing address: P. O. Box 211, Asmara


telephone: [291] (1) 120004


FAX: [291] (1) 127584
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Faida MITIFU


chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009: note - Consular Office at 1726 M Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20036


telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691


FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609
chief of mission: Ambassador GIRMA Asmerom


chancery: 1708 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 319-1991


FAX: [1] (202) 319-1304


consulate(s) general: Oakland (California)
Disputes - international heads of the Great Lakes states and UN pledge to abate tribal, rebel, and militia fighting in the northeastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC); in 2006, the UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) maintained over 18,000 uniformed peacekeepers in the region, first deployed in 1999; despite significant repatriation efforts by governments and international organizations, in 2006, Angolans, Rwandans, Sudanese, and residents of other neighboring states reside as refugees in the DROC; members of Uganda's Lords Resistance Army forces take refuge in DROC's Garamba National Park; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area Eritrea and Ethiopia have expressed general approval of the April 2002 arbitration commission ruling re-delimiting the boundary, the focus of their 1998-2000 war; United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) will monitor activities within the 25-km wide temporary security zone in Eritrea until demarcation and de-mining are complete; Yemen has asserted traditional fishing rights to islands ceded to Eritrea in ICJ ruling
Economic aid - recipient $1.828 billion (2005) $77 million (1999) (1999)
Economy - overview The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - is slowly recovering from two decades of decline. Conflict, which began in August 1998, dramatically reduced national output and government revenue, increased external debt, and resulted in the deaths of more than 3.5 million people from violence, famine, and disease. Foreign businesses curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. Conditions began to improve in late 2002 with the withdrawal of a large portion of the invading foreign troops. The transitional government reopened relations with international financial institutions and international donors, and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms, although progress is slow and the International Monetary Fund curtailed their program for the DRC at the end of March 2006 because of fiscal overruns. Much economic activity still occurs in the informal sector, and is not reflected in GDP data. Renewed activity in the mining sector, the source of most export income, boosted Kinshasa's fiscal position and GDP growth. Government reforms and improved security may lead to increased government revenues, outside budget assistance, and foreign direct investment, although an uncertain legal framework, corruption, and a lack of transparency in government policy are continuing long-term problems. Since independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993, Eritrea has faced the economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. 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 in 1999 fell to less than 1%, and GDP decreased by 8.2% in 2000. The May 2000 Ethiopian offensive into northern Eritrea caused some $600 million in property damage and loss, including losses of $225 million in livestock and 55,000 homes. The attack prevented planting of crops in Eritrea's most productive region, causing food production to drop by 62%. Even during the war, Eritrea developed its transportation infrastructure, asphalting new roads, improving its ports, and repairing war damaged roads and bridges. Eritrea's economic future remains mixed. The cessation of Ethiopian trade, which mainly used Eritrean ports before the war, leaves Eritrea with a large economic hole to fill. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its ability to master fundamental social problems like illiteracy, unemployment, and low skills, and to convert the diaspora's money and expertise into economic growth.
Electricity - consumption 572 million kWh (2005) 195.3 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh NA kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 418 million kWh (2005) 0 kWh NA kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 352 million kWh (2005) 210 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m
lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m


highest point: Soira 3,018 m
Environment - current issues poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3%
Exchange rates Congolese francs per US dollar - NA (2007), 464.69 (2006), 437.86 (2005), 401.04 (2004), 405.34 (2003) nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - 9.5 (January 2000), 7.6 (January 1999), 7.2 (March 1998 est.)
Executive branch chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 17 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency which he retained through the 2003-2006 transition; he was subsequently elected president in October 2006


head of government: Prime Minister Antoine GIZENGA (since 30 December 2006);


cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president


elections: under the new constitution the president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term (eligible for a second term); elections last held 30 July 2006 with a second round held on 29 October 2006 (next to be held in 2011); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: results of 29 October 2006 elections (second round); Joseph KABILA 58%, Jean-Pierre BEMBA Gombo 42%


note: Joseph KABILA succeeded his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, following the latter's assassination in January 2001; negotiations with rebel leaders led to the establishment of a transitional government in July 2003 with free elections held on 30 July 2006 and 29 October 2006 confirming Joseph KABILA as president
chief of state: President Afworki ISAIAS (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly


head of government: President Afworki ISAIAS (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly


cabinet: State Council is the collective executive authority; members appointed by the president


elections: president elected by the National Assembly; election last held 8 June 1993 (next election date uncertain as the National Assembly did not hold a presidential election in December 2001 as anticipated)


election results: ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95%
Exports 229,700 bbl/day (2004 est.) $34.8 million f.o.b. (2000)
Exports - commodities diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures
Exports - partners Belgium 29.4%, China 21.1%, Brazil 12.3%, Chile 7.8%, Finland 7.2%, US 4.9% (2006) Sudan 27.2%, Ethiopia 26.5%, Japan 13.2%, UAE 7.3%, Italy 5.3% (1998)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description sky blue field divided diagonally from the lower hoist corner to upper fly corner by a red stripe bordered by two narrow yellow stripes; a yellow, five-pointed star appears in the upper hoist corner red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) 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
GDP - purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 55%


industry: 11%


services: 34% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 17%


industry: 29%


services: 54% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $740 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 7% (2007 est.) 7% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 0 00 N, 25 00 E 15 00 N, 39 00 E
Geography - note straddles equator; has very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993
Highways - total: 3,850 km


paved: 810 km


unpaved: 3,040 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs one of Africa's biggest producers of cannabis, but mostly for domestic consumption; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center -
Imports 8,220 bbl/day (2006 est.) $470.5 million c.i.f. (2000)
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods
Imports - partners South Africa 17.7%, Belgium 10.9%, France 8.5%, Zimbabwe 8.1%, Zambia 6.9%, Kenya 6.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.4% (2006) Italy 17.4%, UAE 16.2%, Germany 5.7%, UK 4.5%, Korea 4.4% (1998)
Independence 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia)
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA%
Industries mining (diamonds, gold, copper, cobalt, coltan zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement, commercial ship repair food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles
Infant mortality rate total: 65.52 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 71.55 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 59.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
73.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 18.2% (2006 est.) 15% (2001 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (suspended), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (associate), IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 5 (2001)
Irrigated land 110 sq km (2003) 220 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Constitutional Court; Appeals Court or Cour de Cassation; Council of State; High Military Court; plus civil and military courts and tribunals High court, regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts
Labor force 15 million (2006 est.) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
agriculture 80%, industry and services 20%
Land boundaries total: 10,730 km


border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km
total: 1,626 km


border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km
Land use arable land: 2.86%


permanent crops: 0.47%


other: 96.67% (2005)
arable land: 3.87%


permanent crops: 0.02%


other: 96.11% (1998 est.)
Languages French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages
Legal system a new constitution was adopted by referendum 18 December 2005; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations primary basis is the Ethiopian legal code of 1957, with revisions; new civil, commercial, and penal codes have not yet been promulgated; also relies on customary and post-independence-enacted laws and, for civil cases involving Muslims, Sharia law
Legislative branch bicameral legislature consists of a National Assembly (500 seats; 61 members elected by majority vote in single-member constituencies, 439 members elected by open list proportional-representation in multi-member constituencies; to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (108 seats; members elected by provincial assemblies to serve five-year terms)


elections: National Assembly - last held 30 July 2006 (next to be held in 2011); Senate - last held 19 January 2007 (next to be held by 2012)


election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PPRD 111, MLC 64, PALU 34, MSR 27, FR 26, RCD 15, independents 63, others 160 (includes 63 political parties that won 10 or fewer seats); Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PPRD 22, MLC 14, FR 7, RCD 7, PDC 6, CDC 3, MSR 3, PALU 2, independents 26, others 18 (political parties that won a single seat)
unicameral National Assembly (150 seats; term limits not established)


elections: in May 1997, following the adoption of the new constitution, 75 members of the PFDJ Central Committee (the old Central Committee of the EPLF), 60 members of the 527-member Constituent Assembly which had been established in 1997 to discuss and ratify the new constitution, and 15 representatives of Eritreans living abroad were formed into a Transitional National Assembly to serve as the country's legislative body until countrywide elections to a National Assembly were held; although only 75 of 150 members of the Transitional National Assembly were elected, the constitution stipulates that once past the transition stage, all members of the National Assembly will be elected by secret ballot of all eligible voters; National Assembly elections scheduled for December 2001 were postponed indefinately
Life expectancy at birth total population: 57.2 years


male: 54.97 years


female: 59.5 years (2007 est.)
total population: 56.57 years


male: 54.09 years


female: 59.13 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba


total population: 65.5%


male: 76.2%


female: 55.1% (2003 est.)
definition: NA


total population: 25%


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Central Africa, northeast of Angola Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Map references Africa Africa
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors
territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,004 GRT/1,640 DWT


by type: petroleum tanker 1


foreign-owned: 1 (Congo, Republic of the 1) (2007)
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 19,100 GRT/23,399 DWT


ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 2, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC): Army, Navy, Congolese Air Force (Force Aerienne Congolaise, FAC) (2008) Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $138.3 million (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.5% (2006) 19.8% (FY01)
National holiday Independence Day, 30 June (1960) Independence Day, 24 May (1993)
Nationality noun: Congolese (singular and plural)


adjective: Congolese or Congo
noun: Eritrean(s)


adjective: Eritrean
Natural hazards periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes frequent droughts; locust swarms
Natural resources cobalt, copper, niobium, tantalum, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, uranium, coal, hydropower, timber gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish
Net migration rate 1.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 7.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population


note: UNHCR began repatriating about 150,000 Eritrean refugees from Sudan in 2001 following the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2000 (2002 est.)
Pipelines gas 62 km; oil 71 km (2007) -
Political parties and leaders Christian Democrat Party or PDC [Jose ENDUNDO]; Congolese Rally for Democracy or RCD [Azarias RUBERWA]; Convention of Christian Democrats or CDC; Forces of Renewal or FR [Mbusa NYAMWISI]; Movement for the Liberation of the Congo or MLC [Jean-Pierre BEMBA]; People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy or PPRD [Joseph KABILA]; Social Movement for Renewal or MSR [Pierre LUMBI]; Unified Lumumbist Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI]; Union of Mobutuist Democrats or UDEMO [MOBUTU Nzanga] People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [Afworki ISAIAS]; note - a National Assembly committee drafted a law on political parties in January 2001, but the full National Assembly had not yet debated or voted on it as of December 2001
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ; Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean Liberation Front-Revolutionary Council or ELF-RC [Ahmed NASSER]; Eritrean Liberation Front-United Organization or ELF-UO [Mohammed Said NAWD]; Eritrean Public Forum or EPF [ARADOM Iyob]
Population 65,751,512


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
4,465,651 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% NA%
Population growth rate 3.39% (2007 est.) 3.8% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors - Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa)
Radio broadcast stations AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001) AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000)
Radios - 345,000 (1997)
Railways total: 5,138 km


narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2006)
total: 317 km


narrow gauge: 317 km 0.950-m gauge


note: links Ak'ordat and Asmara with the port of Massawa; nonoperational since 1978 except for about a 5 km stretch that was reopened in Massawa in 1994; rehabilitation of the remainder and of the rolling stock is under way (2001 est.)
Religions Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other (includes syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs) 10% Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Sex ratio at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.979 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.681 male(s)/female


total population: 0.985 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female


total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: Inadequate; state-owned fixed-line operator has been unable to expand fixed-line connections and there are now fewer than 10,000 connections; given the backdrop of a wholly inadequate fixed-line infrastructure, the use of cellular services has surged and subscribership now exceeds 4 million - roughly 7 per 100 persons


domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations


international: country code - 243; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
general assessment: inadequate


domestic: very inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system (2002)


international: NA; note - international connections exist
Telephones - main lines in use 9,700 (2006) 30,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4.415 million (2006) NA; note - mobile cellular service was introduced in May 2001
Television broadcast stations 4 (2001) 1 (2000)
Terrain vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling plains
Total fertility rate 6.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) 5.8 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% NA%
Waterways 15,000 km (2005) none
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