Eritrea (2002) | Saint Lucia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 regions (regions, singular - region); Central, Anelba, Southern Red Sea, Northern Red Sea, Southern, Gash-Barka | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort |
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:
32.13% (male 25,951; female 24,874) 15-64 years: 62.59% (male 48,568; female 50,430) 65 years and over: 5.28% (male 3,120; female 5,235) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa |
Airports | 21 (2001) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 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:
620 sq km land: 610 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Pennsylvania | 3.5 times the size of 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. | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. |
Birth rate | 42.25 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $206.4 million
expenditures: $615.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$141.2 million expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (FY97/98 est.) |
Capital | Asmara (formerly Asmera) | Castries |
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 | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August |
Coastline | 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km | 158 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 | 22 February 1979 |
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: Saint Lucia |
Currency | nakfa (ERN) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 11.82 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $281 million (2000 est.) | $131.6 million (1998) |
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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia |
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) |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6728 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $77 million (1999) (1999) | $51.8 million (1995) |
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. | The recent changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. Improvement in the construction sector and growth of the tourism industry helped expand GDP in 1998-99. The agriculture sector registered its fifth year of decline in 1997 primarily because of a severe decline in banana production. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean, and the government is beginning to develop regulations for the small offshore financial sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 195.3 million kWh (2000) | 102.3 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) | 110 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:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3% | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% |
Exchange rates | nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - 9.5 (January 2000), 7.6 (January 1999), 7.2 (March 1998 est.) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
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 General Dr. Perlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
Exports | $34.8 million f.o.b. (2000) | $68.3 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil |
Exports - partners | Sudan 27.2%, Ethiopia 26.5%, Japan 13.2%, UAE 7.3%, Italy 5.3% (1998) | UK 50%, US 24%, Caricom countries 16% (1995) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.2 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $700 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17%
industry: 29% services: 54% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
10.7% industry: 32.3% services: 57% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $740 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | 0.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 39 00 E | 13 53 N, 60 68 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 | - |
Highways | total: 3,850 km
paved: 810 km unpaved: 3,040 km (2000) |
total:
1,210 km paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | $470.5 million c.i.f. (2000) | $319.4 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
Imports - partners | Italy 17.4%, UAE 16.2%, Germany 5.7%, UK 4.5%, Korea 4.4% (1998) | US 36%, Caricom countries 22%, UK 11%, Japan 5%, Canada 4% (1995) |
Independence | 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) | 22 February 1979 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -8.9% (1997 est.) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing |
Infant mortality rate | 73.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2001 est.) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
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 | ACCT (associate), ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2001) | 15 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 220 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | High court, regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) |
Labor force | NA | 43,800 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% | agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,626 km
border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.87%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 96.11% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
8% permanent crops: 21% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 13% other: 53% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages | English (official), French patois |
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 | based on English common 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 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 23 May 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SLP 16, UWP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 56.57 years
male: 54.09 years female: 59.13 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
72.57 years male: 69 years female: 76.39 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 25% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 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.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $138.3 million (FY01) | $5 million (FY91/92) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 19.8% (FY01) | 2% (FY91/92) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 May (1993) | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean |
noun:
Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian |
Natural hazards | frequent droughts; locust swarms | hurricanes and volcanic activity |
Natural resources | gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential |
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.) |
-4.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
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 | National Freedom Party or NFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] |
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] | NA |
Population | 4,465,651 (July 2002 est.) | 158,178 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.8% (2002 est.) | 1.23% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa) | Castries, Vieux Fort |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000) | AM 2, FM 7 (plus 3 repeaters), shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 345,000 (1997) | 111,000 (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.) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant | Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3% |
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:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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 system domestic: system is automatically switched international: direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
Telephones - main lines in use | 30,000 (2001) | 37,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA; note - mobile cellular service was introduced in May 2001 | 1,600 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 3 (of which two are commercial stations and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (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 | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys |
Total fertility rate | 5.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.38 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15% (1996 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |