Eritrea (2002) | Gibraltar (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 regions (regions, singular - region); Central, Anelba, Southern Red Sea, Northern Red Sea, Southern, Gash-Barka | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years:
18.73% (male 2,652; female 2,528) 15-64 years: 66.33% (male 9,473; female 8,866) 65 years and over: 14.94% (male 1,733; female 2,397) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish | none |
Airports | 21 (2001) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | 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: 121,320 sq km
land: 121,320 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
6.5 sq km land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Pennsylvania | about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | 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. | Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In a 1967 referendum, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. |
Birth rate | 42.25 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 11.25 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $206.4 million
expenditures: $615.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$307 million expenditures: $284 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.) |
Capital | Asmara (formerly Asmera) | Gibraltar |
Climate | 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 | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers |
Coastline | 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km | 12 km |
Constitution | the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented | 30 May 1969 |
Country name | 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 |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Gibraltar |
Currency | nakfa (ERN) | Gibraltar pound (GIP) |
Death rate | 11.82 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.82 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $281 million (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | 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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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) |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | 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 | source of friction between Spain and the UK |
Economic aid - recipient | $77 million (1999) (1999) | $NA |
Economy - overview | 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. | Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 11% to the local economy. The financial sector accounts for 20% of GDP; tourism (almost 6 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. |
Electricity - consumption | 195.3 million kWh (2000) | 88.4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh NA kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh NA kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 210 million kWh (2000) | 95 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m
highest point: Soira 3,018 m |
lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare | limited natural freshwater resources; large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3% | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese |
Exchange rates | nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - 9.5 (January 2000), 7.6 (January 1999), 7.2 (March 1998 est.) | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | 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% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander-in-Chief David DURIE (since 5 April 2000); note - DURIE was appointed in February 2000 but took office in April 2000 head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister; note - there is also a Gibraltar Council that advises the governor elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; chief minister appointed by the governor |
Exports | $34.8 million f.o.b. (2000) | $81.1 million (f.o.b., 1997) |
Exports - commodities | livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% |
Exports - partners | Sudan 27.2%, Ethiopia 26.5%, Japan 13.2%, UAE 7.3%, Italy 5.3% (1998) | UK, Morocco, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, US, Germany |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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 | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17%
industry: 29% services: 54% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $740 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 39 00 E | 36 11 N, 5 22 W |
Geography - note | 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 | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea |
Highways | total: 3,850 km
paved: 810 km unpaved: 3,040 km (2000) |
total:
46.25 km paved: 46.25 km unpaved: 0 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $470.5 million c.i.f. (2000) | $492 million (c.i.f., 1997) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Italy 17.4%, UAE 16.2%, Germany 5.7%, UK 4.5%, Korea 4.4% (1998) | UK, Spain, Japan, Netherlands |
Independence | 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles | tourism, banking and finance, ship-building and repairing; support to large UK naval and air bases; tobacco, mineral water, beer, canned fish |
Infant mortality rate | 73.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 5.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2001 est.) | 1.5% (1998) |
International organization participation | 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 | Interpol (subbureau) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2001) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 220 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | High court, regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | NA | 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% | services 60%, industry 40%, agriculture NEGL% |
Land boundaries | total: 1,626 km
border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km |
total:
1.2 km border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.87%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 96.11% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian |
Legal system | 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 | English law |
Legislative branch | 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 |
unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 56.57 years
male: 54.09 years female: 59.13 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
79.09 years male: 76.23 years female: 82.1 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 25% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
NA total population: above 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM | territorial sea:
3 NM |
Merchant marine | 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.) |
total:
49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 669,056 GRT/1,003,809 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, chemical tanker 6, container 7, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 14, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $138.3 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 19.8% (FY01) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 May (1993) | Commonwealth Day, second Monday of March |
Nationality | noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean |
noun:
Gibraltarian(s) adjective: Gibraltar |
Natural hazards | frequent droughts; locust swarms | NA |
Natural resources | gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 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.) |
NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | 0 km |
Political parties and leaders | 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 | Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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] | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Housewives Association |
Population | 4,465,651 (July 2002 est.) | 27,649 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.8% (2002 est.) | 0.24% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa) | Gibraltar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 345,000 (1997) | 37,000 (1997) |
Railways | 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.) |
total:
NA km; 1.000-m gauge system in dockyard area only |
Religions | Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant | Roman Catholic 76.9%, Church of England 6.9%, Muslim 6.9%, Jewish 2.3%, none or other 7% (1991) |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more |
Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment:
adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities domestic: automatic exchange facilities international: radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 30,000 (2001) | 19,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA; note - mobile cellular service was introduced in May 2001 | 1,620 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | 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 | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar |
Total fertility rate | 5.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 13.5% (1996) |
Waterways | none | none |