Thai Trade Center CAIRO Eritrea Profile Location Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan Basic Information ormation President name: Isaias Afwerki Country name: conventional long form: State of Eritrea conventional short form: Eritrea local long form: Hagere Ertra local short form: Ertra Government Type: presidential republic Independence: 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) Capital: Asmara (Asmera) Area: 117,600sq km Population: 5,918,919 (July 2017 est.) Ethnic Groups: nine recognized ethnic groups: Tigrinya 55%, Tigre 30%, Saho 4%, Kunama 2%, Rashaida 2%, Bilen 2%, other (Afar, Beni Amir, Nera) 5% (2010 est.) Languages : Tigrinya (official), Arabic (official), English (official), Tigre, Kunama, Afar, other Cushitic languages Religions: Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant Population Pyramid A population pyramidormation illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends. For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab. History After independence from Italian colonial control in 1941 and 10 years of British administrative control, the UN established Eritrea as an autonomous region within the Ethiopian federation in 1952. Ethiopia's full annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a violent 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating government forces. Eritreans overwhelmingly approved independence in a 1993 referendum. ISAIAS Afworki has been Eritrea's only president since independence; his rule, particularly since 2001, has been highly autocratic and repressive. His government has created a highly militarized society by pursuing an unpopular program of mandatory conscription into national service, sometimes of indefinite length. A two-and-a-half-year border war with Ethiopia that erupted A UN peacekeeping operation was in 1998 ended under UN auspices in December 2000. established that monitored a 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone. The Eritrea- Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) created in April 2003 was tasked "to delimit and demarcate the colonial treaty border based on pertinent colonial treaties (1900, 1902, and 1908) and applicable international law." The EEBC on 30 November 2007 remotely demarcated the border, assigning the town of Badme to Eritrea, despite Ethiopia's maintaining forces there from the time of the 1998-2000 war. Eritrea insisted that the UN terminate its peacekeeping mission on 31 July 2008. Eritrea has accepted the EEBC's "virtual demarcation" decision and repeatedly called on Ethiopia to remove its troops. Ethiopia has not accepted the demarcation decision, and neither party has entered into The Eritrean railway system was destroyed by the 30 meaningful dialogue to resolve the impasse. years war. Eritreans rebuilt it from scratch using their own Eritrea is subject to several UN Security resources and knowledge. It is the symbol of self reliance Council Resolutions (initially in 2009 and and hard work of the Eritrean people. It's among the few renewed annually) imposing an arms steam engine railways working in the world. It has been a embargo and a travel ban and assets freeze good tourist attraction for those who admire steam trains. on certain individuals, in view of evidence that it has supported armed opposition groups in the region. Economy Since formal independence from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea has faced many economic problems, including lack of financial resources and chronic drought, which have been exacerbated by restrictive economic policies. Eritrea has a command economy under the control of the sole political party, the People's Front for Democracy and Justice. Like the economies of many African nations, a large share of the population - nearly 80% in Eritrea - is engaged in subsistence agriculture, but the sector only produces a small share of the country's total output. Since the conclusion of the Ethiopia-Eritrea war in 2000, the government has expanded military- and party-owned businesses to complete President ISAIAS's development agenda. The government has strictly controlled the use of foreign currency by limiting access and availability; new regulations in 2013 aimed at relaxing currency controls have had little economic effect. Few large private enterprises exist in Eritrea and most operate in conjunction with government partners, including a number of large international mining ventures, which began production in 2013. In late 2015, the Government of Eritrea introduced a new currency, retaining the name nakfa, and restricted the amount of hard currency individuals could withdraw from banks per month. The changeover has resulted in exchange fluctuations While reliable statistics on Eritrea are difficult to and the scarcity of hard currency available in the obtain, erratic rainfall and the percentage of the market. labor force tied up in national service continue to interfere with agricultural production and economic development. Eritrea's harvests generally cannot meet the food needs of the country without supplemental grain purchases. Copper, potash, and gold production are likely to continue to drive limited economic growth and government revenue over the next few years, but military spending will continue to compete with development and investment plans. Economic Indicators Natural Resources 2017 (est.) 2016 (est.) 2015 (est.) gold, potash, zinc, copper, GDP (purchasing power parity): bn. $ 9.631 bn. $ 9.327 bn. $ 8.997 salt, possibly oil and natural GDP - real growth rate: 3.3 % 3.7 % 4.8 % gas, fish GDP - per capita (PPP): $ 1,400 $ 1,400 $ 1,400 Gross national saving ofGDP 4% 4% 1.3% Exports Export Partners $635.7 million (2017 est.) China 57.7%, India 21.9%, South $485.4 million (2016 est.) Korea 4.9%, Serbia 4.2% (2016) Exports - commodities gold and other minerals, livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small industry manufactures Imports Import partners $1.127 billion (2017 est.) China 18.1%, UAE 15.4%, Saudi $1.049 billion (2016 est.) Arabia 13.7%, Italy 6.5%, Turkey Imports - commodities 5.9%, Brazil 5.3%, Belgium 4.1% machinery, petroleum products, food, (2016) manufactured goods Crude Oil in Eritrea Crude oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2016 est.) country comparison to the world: 131 Crude oil - exports: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 119 Crude oil - imports: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 122 Crude oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2017 est.) country comparison to the world: 131 Refined petroleum products - production: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.) Refined petroleum products - country comparison to the world: 139 consumption: 3,600 bbl/day (2015 est.) country comparison to the world: 182 Refined petroleum products - exports: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 152 Refined petroleum products - imports: 3,598 bbl/day (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 173 Inflation Rate 9% (2017 est.) 9% (2016 est.) Labor force: 2.71 million (2017 est.) Current account balance $40 million (2017 est.) $-3 million (2016 est.) Unemployment Rate 8.6% (2013 est.) 10% (2012 est.) Inflation Rate Trade Relation with Thailand ●Total Thai Exports to Eritrea 2017 $ 3,198,030 ●Total Thai Imports From Eritrea 2017 $ 44,495 ●Total Thai Exports to Eritrea 2016 $ 152,850 ●Total Thai Imports From Eritrea 2016 $ 28,444 ●Total Thai Exports to Eritrea 2015 $ 6,897,616 ●Total Thai Imports From Eritrea 2015 $ 682 ●Major Thai exports to Eritrea 2017 (US$) ●Major Thai imports from Eritrea 2017 (US$) 1. Rubber and articles thereof 1,942,220 1. Pulp of wood 34,266 2. Electrical machinery 774,898 2. Articles of apparel 9,716 3. Inorganic chemical 428,353 3. Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery 324 4. Vehicles other than railway 48,585 4. Vehicles other than railway 180 5. Furniture ; bedding, mattresses 960 5. Printed books, newspapers 9 Political Parties List of political parties in Eritrea This article lists political parties in Eritrea. There are no legal Eritrean political parties, as Eritrea is ruled by a single political movement, the People's Front for Democracy and Justice. The parties listed below are considered illegal: Eritrean Liberation Front conservative party led by Hussein Khalifa Eritrean National Alliance umbrella alliance led by Tewelde Ghebreselassie Eritrean Popular Movement democratic socialist party led by Adhanom Ghbermariam Eritrean National Council for Democratic Change led by Yusuf Berhanu Eritrean Youth Solidarity for Change (EYSC) Eritrean National Salvation Front led by led by Yonas Hagos EYSC official website Abdell Mahmmud Eritrean Solidarity Movement for National Democratic Movement for the Liberation of Salvation (ESMNS) Grassroots Movement led Eritrean Kunama led by Kornelios Osman by Tesfu Atsbeha ESMNS official website Red Sea Afar Democratic Organisation led by Eritrean People's Democratic Party (EPP) Ibrahim Harun social-democratic party led by Weldeyesus