Montenegro (2007) | Eritrea (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 21 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Andrijevica, Bar, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Budva, Cetinje, Danilovgrad, Herceg Novi, Kolasin, Kotor, Mojkovac, Niksic, Plav, Pluzine, Pljevlja, Podgorica, Rozaje, Savnik, Tivat, Ulcinj, Zabljak | 6 regions (zobatat, singular - zoba); Anseba, Debub, Debubawi K'eyih Bahri, Gash Barka, Ma'akel, Semenawi Keyih Bahri |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 44.8% (male 998,404; female 993,349)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 1,140,892; female 1,166,481) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 72,776; female 75,405) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, tobacco, potatoes, citrus fruits, olives, grapes; sheepherding; commercial fishing negligible | sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish |
Airports | 5 (2007) | 18 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 14,026 sq km
land: 13,812 sq km water: 214 sq km |
total: 121,320 sq km
land: 121,320 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | slightly larger than Pennsylvania |
Background | The use of the name Montenegro began in the 15th century when the Crnojevic dynasty began to rule the Serbian principality of Zeta; over subsequent centuries Montenegro was able to maintain its independence from the Ottoman Empire. From the 16th to 19th centuries, Montenegro became a theocracy ruled by a series of bishop princes; in 1852, it was transformed into a secular principality. After World War I, Montenegro was absorbed by the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929; at the conclusion of World War II, it became a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. When the latter dissolved in 1992, Montenegro federated with Serbia, first as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and, after 2003, in a looser union of Serbia and Montenegro. In May 2006, Montenegro invoked its right under the Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro to hold a referendum on independence from the state union. The vote for severing ties with Serbia exceeded 55% - the threshold set by the EU - allowing Montenegro to formally declare its independence on 3 June 2006. | 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 is monitoring a 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone on the border with Ethiopia. An international commission, organized to resolve the border dispute, posted its findings in 2002 but final demarcation is on hold due to Ethiopian objections. |
Birth rate | 11.18 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 39.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA |
revenues: $235.7 million
expenditures: $375 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | name: Podgorica (administrative capital)
geographic coordinates: 42 26 N, 19 16 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1 hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Cetinje (capital city) |
Asmara (formerly Asmera) |
Climate | Mediterranean climate, hot dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfalls inland | 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 | 293.5 km | 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km |
Constitution | 12 October 1992 (was approved by the Assembly); note - Montenegro is currently writing a new constitution set to be presented to Parliament in spring 2007 | 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: Republic of Montenegro
conventional short form: Montenegro local long form: Republika Crna Gora local short form: Crna Gora former: People's Republic of Montenegro, Socialist Republic of Montenegro |
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 | 8.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 13.36 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $311 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Roderick W. MOORE
embassy: Ljubljanska bb, 81000 Podgorica, Montenegro mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [382] 81 225 417 FAX: [382] 81 241 358 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Scott H. DELISI
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 Miodrag VLAHOVIC
chancery: 1610 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC, 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-6108 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6109 |
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 | none | Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea Border Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but demarcation has been delayed, despite intense international intervention, by Ethiopian insistence that the decision ignored "human geography," made technical errors in the delimitation, and incorrectly awarded Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war, and other areas to Eritrea and Eritrea's insistence on not deviating from the commission's decision; UN Peacekeeping Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) continues to monitor a 25km-wide Temporary Security Zone in Eritrea until the demarcation; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; Eritrea protests Yemeni fishing around the Hanish Islands awarded to Eritrea by the ICJ in 1999 |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $77 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | The republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the MILOSEVIC era and maintained its own central bank, used the euro instead of the Yugoslav dinar as official currency, collected customs tariffs, and managed its own budget. The dissolution of the loose political union between Serbia and Montenegro in 2006 led to separate membership in several international financial institutions, such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. On 18 January 2007, Montenegro joined the World Bank and IMF. Montenegro is pursuing its own membership in the World Trade Organization as well as negotiating a Stabilization and Association agreement with the European Union in anticipation of eventual membership. Severe unemployment remains a key political and economic problem for this entire region. Montenegro has privatized its large aluminum complex - the dominant industry - as well as most of its financial sector, and has begun to attract foreign direct investment in the tourism sector. | 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 fell to zero in 1999 and to -12.1% 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. Since the war ended, the government has maintained a firm grip on the economy, expanding the use of the military and party-owned businesses to complete Eritrea's development agenda. Erratic rainfall and the delayed demobilization of agriculturalists from the military kept cereal production well below normal, holding down growth in 2002. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its ability to master social problems such as illiteracy, unemployment, and low skills, and to open its economy to private enterprise so the diaspora's money and expertise can foster economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 18.6 million kWh (2005) | 205.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh NA kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh NA kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 2.864 billion kWh (2005 est.) | 220.5 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Bobotov Kuk 2,522 m |
lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m
highest point: Soira 3,018 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters from sewage outlets, especially in tourist-related areas such as Kotor | deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ship Pollution | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Montenegrin 43%, Serbian 32%, Bosniak 8%, Albanian 5%, other (Muslims, Croats, Roma (Gypsy)) 12% | ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8089 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) | nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - NA (2003), 13.9582 (2002), 11.3095 (2001), 9.5 (2000), 7.6 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Filip VUJANOVIC (since 11 May 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Zeljko STURANOVIC (since 13 November 2006) cabinet: Ministries act as cabinet elections: president elected by direct vote for five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 11 May 2003 (next to be held in 2008); prime minister proposed by president, accepted by Assembly election results: Filip VUJANOVIC elected on the third round; Filip VUJANOVIC 63.3%, Miodrag ZIVKOVIC 30.8% |
chief of state: President ISAIAS Afworki (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 ISAIAS Afworki (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 | $171.3 million (2003) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | - | livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures (2000) |
Exports - partners | Switzerland 83.9%, Italy 6.1%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.3% (2006) | Malaysia 65.1%, Italy 10.4%, France 4.4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a red field bordered by a narrow golden-yellow stripe with the Montenegrin coat of arms centered | 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 - $3.3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 12.4%
industry: 25.3% services: 62.4% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 42 30 N, 19 18 E | 15 00 N, 39 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location along the Adriatic coast | 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 |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 4,010 km
paved: 874 km unpaved: 3,136 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $601.7 million (2003) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods (2000) |
Imports - partners | Greece 10.2%, Italy 10.2%, Germany 9.6%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 9.2% (2006) | US 39.7%, Italy 19.1%, Turkey 6.8%, Russia 5.4%, France 4.7% (2003) |
Independence | 3 June 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro) | 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA |
Industries | steelmaking, aluminum, agricultural processing, consumer goods, tourism | food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 75.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 83.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.4% (2004) | 12.3% (2003) |
International organization participation | CE, CEI, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICCt, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Irrigated land | NA | 220 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court (five judges with nine-year terms); Supreme Court (judges have life tenure) | High Court - regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts |
Labor force | 259,100 (2004) | NA (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 2%
industry: 30% services: 68% (2004 est.) |
agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% |
Land boundaries | total: 625 km
border countries: Albania 172 km, Bosnia and Herzegovina 225 km, Croatia 25 km, Serbia 203 km |
total: 1,626 km
border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.7%
permanent crops: 1% other: 85.3% |
arable land: 4.95%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 95.02% (2001) |
Languages | Serbian (official; Ijekavian dialect), Bosnian, Albanian, Croatian | Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages |
Legal system | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 | unicameral Assembly (81 seats; members elected by direct vote for four-year terms; changed from 74 seats in 2006)
elections: last held 10 September 2006 (next to be held 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - Coalition for European Montenegro 40.6%, Serbian List 15.3%, Coalition SNP-NS-DSS 14.8%, PZP 13.9%, Liberals and Bosniaks 3.8%, other (including Albanian minority parties) 11.6%; seats by party - Coalition for European Montenegro 39, Serbian List 12, Coalition SNP/NS/DSS 11, PZP 11, Liberals and Bosniaks 3, Albanian minority parties 5 |
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, that 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 indefinitely |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 52.7 years
male: 51.32 years female: 54.12 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: NA
total population: 58.6% male: 69.9% female: 47.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, between the Adriatic Sea and Serbia | Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: defined by treaty |
territorial sea: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 4 ships (1000 GRT or over) 9,458 GRT/10,172 DWT
by type: cargo 4 registered in other countries: 3 (Bahamas 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007) |
total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 16,069 GRT/19,549 DWT
by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | Montenegrin plans call for the establishment of a fully professional armed forces | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $77.9 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 11.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | NA (2004) |
National holiday | National Day, 13 July (1878) | Independence Day, 24 May (1993) |
Nationality | noun: Montenegrin(s)
adjective: Montenegrin |
noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes | frequent droughts; locust swarms |
Natural resources | bauxite, hydroelectricity | gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish |
Net migration rate | - | 0 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 (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Albanian Alternative or AA [Vesel SINISHTAJ]; Bosniak Party or BS [Rafet HUSOVIC]; Coalition for European Montenegro or DPS-SDP (bloc) [Milo DUKANOVIC] (includes DPS and SDP); Coalition SNP-NS-DSS (bloc) (includes SNP, NS, and DSS); Democratic League-Party of Democratic Prosperity or SPP [Mehmet BARHDI]; Democratic Party of Socialists or DPS [Milo DJUKANOVIC]; Democratic Serbian Party of Montenegro or DSS [Ranko KADIC]; Democratic Union of Albanians or DUA [Ferhat DINOSA]; Liberal Party of Montenegro or LP [Miodrag ZIVKOVIC]; Liberals and the Bosniak Party (bloc) [Miodrag ZIVKOVIC] (includes LP and BS); Movement for Changes or PZP [Nebojsa MEDOJEVIC]; Party of Serb Radicals or SSR [Dusko SEKULIC]; People's Party of Montenegro or NS [Predrag POPOVIC]; People's Socialist Party or NSS [Emilo LABUDOVIC]; Serbian List (bloc) [Andrija MANDIC] (includes SSR, NSS, and SNS); Serbian People's Party of Montenegro or SNS [Andrija MANDIC]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Ranko KRIVOKAPIC]; Socialist People's Party or SNP [Srdjan MILIC] | People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki]; note - a National Assembly committee drafted a law on political parties in January 2001, but the full National Assembly has not yet debated or voted on it |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ [leader NA] (also including Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement or EIJM (also known as the Abu Sihel Movement) [leader NA]); Eritrean Islamic Salvation or EIS (also known as the Arafa Movement) [leader NA]; Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean National Alliance or ENA (a coalition including EIJ, EIS, ELF, and a number of ELF factions) [HERUY Tedla Biru]; Eritrean Public Forum or EPF [ARADOM Iyob] |
Population | 684,736 (July 2007 est.) | 4,447,307 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 12.2% (2003) | 53% (1993/94) |
Population growth rate | -1% (2007 est.) | 2.57% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa) |
Radio broadcast stations | 31 (station types NA) (2004) | AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000) |
Railways | total: 250 km
standard gauge: 250 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified 169 km) (2006) |
total: 306 km
narrow gauge: 306 km 0.950-m gauge note: railway is being rebuilt; 117 km open (2003) |
Religions | Orthodox, Muslim, Roman Catholic | 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: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern telecommunications system with access to European satellites
domestic: GSM wireless service, available through 2 providers with national coverage, is growing rapidly international: country code - 382 (the old code of 381 used by Serbia and Montenegro will also remain in use until Feb 2007); 2 international switches connect the national system |
general assessment: inadequate
domestic: very inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system (2002) international: country code - 291; note - international connections exist |
Telephones - main lines in use | 353,300 (2006) | 38,100 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 821,800 (2006) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (2004) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | highly indented coastline with narrow coastal plain backed by rugged high limestone mountains and plateaus | 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 | - | 5.67 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.7% (2005) | NA (2003 est.) |