Ethiopia (2001) | Slovakia (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 ethnically-based states (kililoch, singular - kilil) and 2 self-governing administrations* (astedaderoch, singular - astedader): Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa); Afar; Amara, Binshangul Gumuz; Dire Dawa*; Gambela Hizboch; Hareri Hizb; Oromiya; Sumale; Tigray; YeDebub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region) | 8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky kraj, Bratislavsky kraj, Kosicky kraj, Nitriansky kraj, Presovsky kraj, Trenciansky kraj, Trnavsky kraj, Zilinsky kraj |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
47.18% (male 15,647,675; female 15,442,348) 15-64 years: 50.03% (male 16,584,765; female 16,378,060) 65 years and over: 2.79% (male 834,825; female 1,004,201) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.4% (male 456,105/female 435,154)
15-64 years: 71.5% (male 1,938,846/female 1,955,382) 65 years and over: 12.2% (male 247,728/female 414,287) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, sugarcane, potatoes, qat; hides, cattle, sheep, goats | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products |
Airports | 86 (2000 est.) | 35 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
12 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 20
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 10 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
74 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 35 under 914 m: 20 (2000 est.) |
total: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 7 (2007) |
Area | total:
1,127,127 sq km land: 1,119,683 sq km water: 7,444 sq km |
total: 48,845 sq km
land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | about twice the size of New Hampshire |
Background | Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule, one exception being the Italian occupation of 1936-41. In 1974 a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), in 1991. A constitution was adopted in 1994 and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A two and a half year border war with Eritrea that ended with a peace treaty on 12 December 2000 has strengthened the ruling coalition, but has hurt the nation's economy. | The dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the close of World War I allowed the Slovaks to join the closely related Czechs to form Czechoslovakia. Following the chaos of World War II, Czechoslovakia became a Communist nation within Soviet-ruled Eastern Europe. Soviet influence collapsed in 1989 and Czechoslovakia once more became free. The Slovaks and the Czechs agreed to separate peacefully on 1 January 1993. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. |
Birth rate | 44.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.65 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1 billion expenditures: $1.48 billion, including capital expenditures of $415 million (FY96/97) |
revenues: $33.07 billion
expenditures: $35.13 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Addis Ababa | name: Bratislava
geographic coordinates: 48 09 N, 17 07 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | ratified December 1994; effective 22 August 1995 | ratified 1 September 1992, effective 1 January 1993; changed in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership |
Country name | conventional long form:
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia conventional short form: Ethiopia local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik local short form: Ityop'iya former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa abbreviation: FDRE |
conventional long form: Slovak Republic
conventional short form: Slovakia local long form: Slovenska Republika local short form: Slovensko |
Currency | birr (ETB) | - |
Death rate | 17.84 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.48 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $10 billion (1999 est.) | $36.66 billion (30 June 2007) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Tibor P. NAGY, Jr. embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa mailing address: P. O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa telephone: [251] (1) 550666 FAX: [251] (1) 551328 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Vincent OBSITNIK
embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava mailing address: P.O. Box 309, 814 99 Bratislava telephone: [421] (2) 5443-3338 FAX: [421] (2) 5441-8861 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200 FAX: [1] (202) 686-9857 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rastislav KACER
chancery: 3523 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1054 FAX: [1] (202) 237-6438 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | most of the southern half of the boundary with Somalia is a Provisional Administrative Line; as a result of the 12 December 2000 peace agreement ending a two year war with Eritrea, the UN will administer a 25-km wide temporary security zone within Eritrea until a joint boundary commission delimits and demarcates a final boundary; dispute over alignment of boundary with Eritrea led to armed conflict in 1998; a peace accord signed in December 2000 provides for UN-assisted arbitration and demarcation of the border | bilateral government, legal, technical and economic working group negotiations continued in 2006 between Slovakia and Hungary over Hungary's completion of its portion of the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Slovakia has implemented the strict Schengen border rules |
Economic aid - recipient | $367 million (FY95/96) | $235 million in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004) |
Economy - overview | Ethiopia's economy is based on agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, 90% of exports, and 80% of total employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent periods of drought and poor cultivation practices, and as many as 4.6 million people need food assistance annually. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian economy, and Ethiopia earned $267 million in 1999 by exporting 105,000 metric tons. According to current estimates, coffee contributes 10% of Ethiopia's GDP. More than 15 million people (25% of the population) derive their livelihood from the coffee sector. Other exports include live animals, hides, gold, and qat. In December 1999, Ethiopia signed a $1.4 billion joint venture deal to develop a huge natural gas field in the Somali Regional State. The war with Eritrea forced the government to spend scarce resources on the military and to scale back ambitious development plans. Foreign investment has declined significantly. Government taxes imposed in late 1999 to raise money for the war depressed an already weak economy. The war forced the government to improve roads and other parts of the previously neglected infrastructure, but only certain regions of the nation benefited. Recovery from the war is mostly contingent on natural factors. A drought has continued into the end of 2000 and food relief is expected to be needed through mid-2001 at least. Ethiopia may receive Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief by the end of the year. | Slovakia has mastered much of the difficult transition from a centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The DZURINDA government made excellent progress during 2001-04 in macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform. Major privatizations are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign hands, and the government has helped facilitate a foreign investment boom with business friendly policies such as labor market liberalization and a 19% flat tax. Foreign investment in the automotive sector has been strong. Slovakia's economic growth exceeded expectations in 2001-07 despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 18% in 2003-04, dropped to 8.6% in 2007 but remains the economy's Achilles heel. Slovakia joined the EU on 1 May 2004 and will be the second of the new EU member states to adopt the euro in 2009 if it continues to meet euro adoption criteria in 2008. Despite its 2006 pre-election promises to loosen fiscal policy and reverse the previous DZURINDA government's pro-market reforms, FICO's cabinet has thus far been careful to keep a lid on spending in order to meet euro adoption criteria. The FICO government is pursuing a state-interventionist economic policy, however, and has pushed to regulate energy and food prices. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.511 billion kWh (1999) | 24.93 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 11.27 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 8.005 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.625 billion kWh (1999) | 29.89 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.08% hydro: 96.92% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Denakil Depression -125 m highest point: Ras Dejen 4,620 m |
lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m
highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification | air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health risks; acid rain damaging forests |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigre 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1% | Slovak 85.8%, Hungarian 9.7%, Roma 1.7%, Ruthenian/Ukrainian 1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | birr per US dollar (end of period) - 8.3140 (December 2000), 8.3140 (2000), 8.1340 (1999), 7.5030 (1998), 6.8640 (1997), 6.4260 (1996)
note: since May 1993, the birr market rate has been determined in an interbank market supported by weekly wholesale auction |
koruny per US dollar - 24.919 (2007), 29.611 (2006), 31.018 (2005), 32.257 (2004), 36.773 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President NEGASSO Gidada (since 22 August 1995) head of government: Prime Minister MELES Zenawi (since NA August 1995) cabinet: Council of Ministers as provided for in the December 1994 constitution; ministers are selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People's Representatives elections: president elected by the House of People's Representatives for a six-year term; election last held NA June 1995 (next to be held NA May 2001); prime minister designated by the party in power following legislative elections election results: NEGASSO Gidada elected president; percent of vote by the House of People's Representatives - NA% |
chief of state: President Ivan GASPAROVIC (since 15 June 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Robert FICO (since 4 July 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers Dusan CAPLOVIC, Robert KALINAK, Stefan HARABIN, Jan MIKOLAJ (since 4 July 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 3 April and 17 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2009); following National Council elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Ivan GASPAROVIC elected president in runoff; percent of vote - Ivan GASPAROVIC 59.9%, Vladimir MECIAR 40.1% |
Exports | $460 million (f.o.b., 1999) | 77,660 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, gold, leather products, oilseeds, qat | vehicles 25.9%, machinery and electrical equipment 21.3%, base metals 14.6%, chemicals and minerals 10.1%, plastics 5.4% (2004) |
Exports - partners | Germany 16%, Japan 13%, Djibouti 10%, Saudi Arabia 7% (1999 est.) | Germany 23.5%, Czech Republic 13.8%, Italy 6.5%, Poland 6.2%, Hungary 6.1%, Austria 6.1%, France 4.3%, Netherlands 4.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 8 July - 7 July | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the pan-African colors | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with the coat of arms of Slovakia (consisting of a red shield bordered in white and bearing a white Cross of Lorraine surmounting three blue hills); the coat of arms is centered vertically and offset slightly to the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $39.2 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
45% industry: 12% services: 43% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 32.8% services: 63.8% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $600 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 8.8% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 38 00 E | 48 40 N, 19 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked - entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May 1993 | landlocked; most of the country is rugged and mountainous; the Tatra Mountains in the north are interspersed with many scenic lakes and valleys |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total:
24,145 km paved: 3,290 km unpaved: 20,855 km (1998) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3% highest 10%: 33.7% (1995) |
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 20.9% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia and destined for Europe and North America as well as cocaine destined for markets in southern Africa; cultivates qat (khat) for local use and regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market; consumer of ecstasy |
Imports | $1.25 billion (f.o.b., 1999) | 138,200 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles | machinery and transport equipment 41.1%, intermediate manufactured goods 19.3%, fuels 12.3%, chemicals 9.8%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 10.2% (2003) |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 28%, Italy 10%, Russia 7%, US 6% (1999 est.) | Germany 23%, Czech Republic 18.1%, Russia 11.2%, Hungary 6.1%, Austria 5.6%, Poland 4.9%, Italy 4.4% (2006) |
Independence | oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world - at least 2,000 years | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 12% (2007 est.) |
Industries | food processing, beverages, textiles, chemicals, metals processing, cement | metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas, coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery; paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles; textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products |
Infant mortality rate | 99.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2000 est.) | 2.7% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,900 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,830 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Federal Supreme Court (the president and vice president of the Federal Supreme Court are recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; for other federal judges, the prime minister submits to the House of People's Representatives for appointment candidates selected by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council) | Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council); Special Court (judges elected by a council of judges and appointed by president) |
Labor force | NA | 2.661 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and animal husbandry 80%, government and services 12%, industry and construction 8% (1985) | agriculture 5.8%, industry 29.3%, construction 9%, services 55.9% (2003) |
Land boundaries | total:
5,311 km border countries: Djibouti 337 km, Eritrea 912 km, Kenya 830 km, Somalia 1,626 km, Sudan 1,606 km |
total: 1,524 km
border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km |
Land use | arable land:
12% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 40% forests and woodland: 25% other: 22% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 29.23%
permanent crops: 2.67% other: 68.1% (2005) |
Languages | Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other local languages, English (major foreign language taught in schools) | Slovak (official) 83.9%, Hungarian 10.7%, Roma 1.8%, Ukrainian 1%, other or unspecified 2.6% (2001 census) |
Legal system | currently transitional mix of national and regional courts | civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; legal code modified to comply with the obligations of Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation or upper chamber (108 seats; members are chosen by state assemblies to serve five-year terms) and the House of People's Representatives or lower chamber (548 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote from single-member districts to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 May 2000 (next to be held NA May 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - OPDO 177, ANDM 134, TPLF 38, WGGPDO 27, EPRDF 19, SPDO 18, GNDM 15, KSPDO 10, ANDP 8, GPRDF 7, SOPDM 7, BGPDUF 6, BMPDO 5, KAT 4, other regional political groupings 22, independents 8; note - 43 seats unconfirmed note: irregularities and violence at a number of polling stations necessitated the rescheduling of voting in certain constituencies; voting postponed in Somali regional state because of severe drought |
unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic or Narodna Rada Slovenskej Republiky (150 seats; members are elected on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 June 2006 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - Smer 29.1%, SDKU 18.4%, SMK 11.7%, SNS 11.7%, LS-HZDS 8.8%, KDH 8.3%, other 12%; seats by party - Smer 50, SDKU 31, SMK 20, SNS 19, LS-HZDS 16, KDH 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
44.68 years male: 43.88 years female: 45.51 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.95 years
male: 71 years female: 79.11 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 35.5% male: 45.5% female: 25.3% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2001 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, west of Somalia | Central Europe, south of Poland |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 85,382 GRT/108,526 DWT ships by type: cargo 6, container 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 54 ships (1000 GRT or over) 260,766 GRT/361,651 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 45, refrigerated cargo 3 foreign-owned: 46 (Bulgaria 7, Estonia 2, Greece 4, Israel 6, Italy 1, Poland 2, Syria 2, Turkey 11, Ukraine 10, UK 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Air Force, Police, Militia
note: Ethiopia is landlocked and has no navy; following the independence of Eritrea, Ethiopian naval facilities remained in Eritrean possession and ships which belonged to the former Ethiopian Navy and based at Djibouti have been sold |
Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic (Ozbrojene Sily Slovenskej Republiky): Land Forces (Pozemne Sily), Air Forces (Vzdusne Sily) (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $138 million (FY98/99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (FY98/99) | 1.87% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
14,537,884 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
7,581,815 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
703,625 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | National Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991) | Constitution Day, 1 September (1992) |
Nationality | noun:
Ethiopian(s) adjective: Ethiopian |
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak |
Natural hazards | geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts | NA |
Natural resources | small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower | brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land |
Net migration rate | 0.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: repatriation of Ethiopians who fled to Sudan for refuge from war and famine in earlier years is expected to continue for several years; small numbers of Sudanese and Somali refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine in their own countries, continue to return to their homes |
0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 6,769 km; oil 416 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [leader NA]; All-Amhara People's Organization or AAPO [KEGNAZ MATCH Neguea Tibeb]; Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM [TEFERA Walwa]; Bench Madji People's Democratic Organization or BMPDO [leader NA]; Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front or BGPDUF [leader NA]; Coalition of Alternative Forces for Peace and Democracy or CAFPD [Kifle TIGNEH Abate and BEYENE Petros]; Ethiopian Democratic Unity Party or EDUP [Lt. Gen. TESFAYE Gebre Kidan]; Ethiopian National Democratic Party or ENDP [FEKADU Gedamu]; Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [MELES Zenawi] (an alliance of the ANDM, OPDO, and TPLF); Gedeyo People's Revolutionary Democratic Movement or GPRDF [leader NA]; Gurange Nationalities Democratic Movement or GNDM [leader NA]; Kafa Shaka People's Democratic Organization or KSPDO [leader NA]; Kembata, Alabaa, and Tembaro or KAT [leader NA]; Oromo Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa Gudina]; Oromo People's Democratic Organization or OPDO [KUMA Demeksa]; Sidama People's Democratic Organization or SPDO [leader NA]; South Omo People's Democratic Movement or SOPDM [leader NA]; Tigrai People's Liberation Front or TPLF [MELES Zenawi]; Walayta, Gamo, Gofa, Dawro, Konta People's Democratic Organization or WGGPDO [leader NA]; dozens of small parties | Parties in the Parliament: Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Direction-Social Democracy or Smer-SD [Robert FICO]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Pal CSAKY]; People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or LS-HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU-DS [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Jan SLOTA]; Parties outside the Parliament: Agrarian Party of the Provinces or ASV [Jozef VASKEBA]; Civic Conservative Party or OKS [Peter TATAR]; Free Forum [Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Hope or NADEJ [Alexandra NOVOTNA]; Left-wing Bloc or LB [Jozef KALMAN]; Mission 21 - New Christian Democracy or MISIA 21 [Ivan SIMKO]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA]; New Citizens Alliance or ANO [Pavol RUSKO]; Party of the Democratic Left or SDL [Ladislav KOZMON]; Prosperita Slovenska or PS [Frantisek A. ZVRSKOVEC]; Slovak Communist Party or KSS [Vladimir DADO]; Slovak National Coalition or SLNKO [Vitazoslav MORIC]; Slovak People's Party or SLS [Jozef SASIK]; Union of the Workers of Slovakia or ZRS [Jan LUPTAK] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Southern Ethiopia People's Democratic Coalition; numerous small, ethnically based groups have formed since the defeat of the former MENGISTU regime in 1991, including several Islamic militant groups | Federation of Employers' Associations of the Slovak Republic; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; National Union of Employers or RUZ; Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry or SOPK; Entrepreneurs Association of Slovakia or ZPS; The Business Alliance of Slovakia or PAS |
Population | 65,891,874
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 2001 est.) |
5,447,502 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 21% (2002) |
Population growth rate | 2.7% (2001 est.) | 0.147% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; Ethiopia is landlocked and was by agreement with Eritrea using the ports of Assab and Massawa; since the border dispute with Eritrea flared, Ethiopia has used the port of Djibouti for nearly all of its imports | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 0, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 11.75 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
681 km (Ethiopian segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) narrow gauge: 681 km 1.000-m gauge note: in April 1998, Djibouti and Ethiopia announced plans to revitalize the century-old railroad that links their capitals; since May 1998 Ethiopia has expended considerable effort to repair and maintain the lines |
total: 3,662 km
broad gauge: 100 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,512 km 1.435-m gauge (1,588 km electrified) narrow gauge: 50 km (1.000-m or 0.750-m gauge) (2006) |
Religions | Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, animist 12%, other 3%-8% | Roman Catholic 68.9%, Protestant 10.8%, Greek Catholic 4.1%, other or unspecified 3.2%, none 13% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.992 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.598 male(s)/female total population: 0.942 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
open wire and microwave radio relay system adequate for government use domestic: open wire; microwave radio relay; radio communication in the HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies; two domestic satellites provide the national trunk service international: open wire to Sudan and Djibouti; microwave radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: Slovakia has a modern telecommunications system that has expanded dramatically in recent years with the growth in cellular services
domestic: analog system is now receiving digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable, especially in the larger cities; 3 companies provide nationwide cellular services international: country code - 421; 3 international exchanges (1 in Bratislava and 2 in Banska Bystrica) are available; Slovakia is participating in several international telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of external services |
Telephones - main lines in use | 157,000 (1997) | 1.167 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,000 (1999) | 4.893 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 25 (1999) | 80 (national broadcasting 6, regional 7, local 67) (2004) |
Terrain | high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley | rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south |
Total fertility rate | 7 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.33 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 8.6% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | none | 172 km (on Danube River) (2005) |