Introduction about Ethiopia
The official name is Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. It borders Eritrea to the north, Djibouti and Somalia to the east, Kenya to the south, and Sudan to the west. Unlike other African countries, it has a long history of about 3,000 years, starting from the era of King Solomon, and has never been colonized except for 1936-1941. The country’s name means ‘mixed race’ or ‘land of sunburned faces’, and is also called ‘Abyssinia’ in Arabic. The administrative district is made up of nine counties (kilil) and two autonomous cities (astedader).
Citizen and population
The population is 76.51 million (2007 estimate), the second largest among countries on the African continent after Nigeria and Egypt. The city with the largest population is the capital, Addis Ababa, with approximately 2.89 million residents (2005). Life expectancy is somewhat lower than the overall average for the African continent, and it shows a pyramid-shaped age structure typical of underdeveloped countries.
Ethiopia’s population is very diverse. The Oromo people make up 32.1% and the Amhara people make up 30.1%, making up more than 60% of the total population. In addition, the Tigraway tribe accounts for 6.2%, the Somali tribe accounts for 5.9%, the Guragie tribe accounts for 4.3%, the Sidama tribe accounts for 3.5%, and the Welaita tribe accounts for 6.2%. 2.4%, and other races account for 15.4% (1994).
Most of the population speaks a language belonging to the Semitic or Cushitic languages, with about two-thirds speaking Amharic or Oromo (1994). English is the most widely spoken foreign language and is taught in all secondary schools.
The main religions in Ethiopia are Ethiopian Orthodoxy (50.6%) and Islam (32.8%), but many residents also believe in Christianity (10.2%) or indigenous religions (4.6%) (1994). In general, most Christians live in the highlands, while Muslims and tribes that adhere to traditional African religions tend to live in the lowlands.
As of 2004, UNDP’s Human Development Index (HDI) was 0.371, ranking 170th out of 177 countries surveyed, showing typical characteristics of underdeveloped countries on the African continent.
Ethiopian society
Ethiopia has the largest number of Semites in terms of ethnicity, but the top layer is a mixed ethnic group of Semites and Hams. The lowest class consists of black people, a very small minority. Most Ethiopians have brown skin. Some of the Semites and Hamites have been Christians since the 4th century, while other Hamites are Muslims or worship natural creatures.
Ethiopian Christianity is often called Coptic, but this is not an appropriate expression. In reality, in order to convey the flow of Syria, only the Pope was received from Egypt, or Copt, but this has also been reformed in recent years, and an Ethiopian has become the Pope. To be precise, it is called the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (Abyssinian Church) and is a sister church to the Coptic Church.
The people’s lives are often centered around the church, and festivals and fasting are more important concerns than cultivating rice fields. Ethiopia not only spreads a different form of Christianity from Europe, but also has a cultural heritage that is said to be the only written language in Africa. Ethiopia has different characteristics in each region, which can be summarized as follows.
⑴ Southern Ethiopian Plateau: This is a region that receives a lot of rain and has a lot of forest remaining. The southern province of Kappa is the origin of coffee, and the name ‘coffee’ is said to come from that place. This area originally had no urban development, and there are only a few villages, including Jima, as a coffee distribution center.
⑵ Eastern Plateau: Compared to the Ethiopian Plateau, there are fewer elevations above 2,000m and the climate is dry, so the population is small. Harer City is located at the northern end, and high-quality coffee is also grown in the surrounding area, but it has mainly functioned as a trading center for the Muslim world. The southeastern part of the Eastern Highlands borders Somalia, and there are ongoing border issues related to oil being prospected nearby.
⑶ Danakil Desert: It is a low-lying area in the northeast with very high temperatures and is a dry area, making it a living area for the Danakil people, who lead a nomadic lifestyle. The road leading to Assap Port, the shortest distance from the capital Addis Ababa, crosses the desert. There is a river flowing from the plateau, and farms using the water have recently been developed. Its share in Ethiopia’s national economy is small.
⑷ Great Rift Zone: It is a low-lying area located between the Ethiopian Plateau and the Eastern Plateau, and is an area formed by subsidence due to faulting. This rift zone continues long from north to south, but the northern part of Ethiopia’s territory becomes the Danakil Desert and is close to barren land, while the southern area is a forest area. Because the land is fertilized by rivers flowing down the plateau, farming is also practiced where there is water. There are several hot springs and lakes at the bottom of the southern rift valley, which attract many foreign tourists from Addis Ababa, where the air is thin, for day trips or overnight stays.
Ethiopia is made up of so many different ethnic groups (estimated to be about 80) that it is called a museum of races, and there are conflicting interests between ethnic groups, which is acting as a factor for social instability. Ethiopia’s social environment has continued to deteriorate over the past 20 years, with approximately half of the population living in poverty and experiencing chronic food shortages. The Meles government is establishing a new economic and development policy to improve this poor social environment, and is also actively working to eradicate diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria with the support and cooperation of international organizations and foreign countries.
As of 2004, the elementary school enrollment rate was about 70%. Educational institutions include 7 universities (Addis Ababa University is the highest educational institution), 24 colleges and technical schools, 17 vocational and technical schools, and 13 teacher training centers. Ethiopia’s most serious educational problem is the lack of educational facilities, with the average number of students per school reaching 7,000. The illiteracy rate of the population over 15 years of age is 57.3%, and the illiteracy rate of women in particular reaches 64.9% (based on 2003 estimates).
Radio stations include Ethiopian Radio (public service) and Fana Radio (operated by the ruling party EPRDF), and TV stations include Ethiopian Television, which opened in 1964. There are many daily newspapers such as Addis Zemen (Amharic), Daily Monitor (English), and Ethiopian Herald (English), and weekly newspapers such as Addis Tribune (English), Press Digest (English), and 7days Update. Following anti-government protests denouncing large-scale election fraud in June and November 2005, problems infringing on press freedom have been exposed, including the closure of many private newspapers.
The number of Internet hosts is 89 (as of 2007), and approximately 164,000 people are using the Internet (as of 2005).
Economy
The Ethiopian Plateau has weathered basalt soil that is suitable for farming, and crops such as Dehu and Mensede have been cultivated since ancient times. However, because the plateau is divided by deep canyons, the distribution economy has not developed and most farmers lead self-sufficient agriculture. Of international importance is wild (and some cultivated) coffee, mainly in the southern plateau. The South is the origin of coffee, and its taste and aroma are excellent. There was a time when the origin of coffee was thought to be Arabia because the coffee brought here by Arabian merchants was exported from Mocha Port to various parts of the world. Leather from cattle and sheep, which are grazed in large quantities in areas close to the desert in the lower plateau, are also major export products, and recently meat is also being exported.
Mineral resources are not abundant because most of the country is covered with basalt and thick layers of Mesozoic era that have not undergone folding. However, mineral resources such as gold, copper, and zinc are relatively abundant, and two natural gas fields (reserves of 4 trillion cubic feet) have been discovered, and five areas with potential oil reserves (Ogaden, Blue Nile, Mekele, and Gambela) , Southern Rift Valley), and foreign companies’ interest in resource development in Ethiopia has recently been increasing.
The Meles regime, which took power after overthrowing Mengistu’s communist regime in 1991, adopted the new economic system and is introducing a market economic system such as privatization of public enterprises and attracting foreign investment, and is strengthening economic cooperation with Western countries. A five-year economic development plan was launched in 1995 to achieve food self-sufficiency. Afterwards, the economy stabilized and the average annual real economic growth rate was about 6% and the inflation rate was below 5%, but in 1998, it was hit by drought, falling coffee prices, and a large number of refugees and refugees due to the border dispute with Eritrea. Starting in 2000, the second five-year national development plan was developed. Looking at the industrial structure according to GDP share (2007 estimate), agriculture accounts for 48.8%, mining and industry accounts for 12.9%, and service industries account for 38.3%. However, the proportion of agricultural workers exceeds 80% of all workers.
As of 2007 (estimated), total exports were $1.2 billion and total imports were $4.54 billion, showing an extreme trade balance deficit. Major export products include coffee, leather products, gold, animals, and oil seeds, with coffee accounting for more than half. Major export destinations include China (11.0%), Germany (9.1%), Japan (7.8%), the United States (7.1%), Saudi Arabia (6.1%), Djibouti (6.0%), and Italy (5.2%) (2006). (based on years). Major imported goods include food and livestock, crude oil and petroleum products, chemical products, machinery, and transportation equipment, and major importing countries include Saudi Arabia (18.1%), China (11.4%), India (8.1%), and Italy (5.1%). am.
Conclusion
A country in the northeast of the African continent, it was invaded by Italy in 1935, but was completely liberated in 1944 through the Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement. The People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was established on September 12, 1987, and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was established through general elections in 1995.