Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red; 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
- Economy Overview: Ethiopia is one of the poorest and least developed countries in Africa. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, which accounts for about 45% of GDP, 90% of exports, and 80% of total employment; coffee generates over 60% of export earnings. The manufacturing sector is heavily dependent on inputs from the agricultural sector. The economy is centrally planned, and over 90% of large-scale industry is state run. Favorable agricultural weather largely explains the 4.5% growth in output in FY89.
GDP: $6.6 billion, per capita $130, real growth rate 4.5% (FY89 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9.6% (FY89)
Unemployment rate: NA; shortage of skilled manpower
Budget: revenues $1.4 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $0.7 billion (FY87)
Exports: $418 million (f.o.b., FY88); commodities—coffee 60%, hides; partners—US, FRG, Djibouti, Japan, PDRY, France, Italy
Imports: $1.1 billion (c.i.f., FY88), commodities—food, fuels, capital goods; partners—USSR, Italy, FRG, Japan, UK, US, France
External debt: $2.6 billion (1988)
Industrial production: growth rate - 0.2% (FY88 est.)