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 three
main colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African
countries upon independence that they became known as the
pan-African colors
Economy Ethiopia
Economy - overview:
Ethiopia's poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture,
accounting for half of GDP, 60% of exports, and 80% of total
employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought
and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian
economy with exports of some $156 million in 2002, but historically
low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to supplement
income. The war with Eritrea in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have
buffeted the economy, in particular coffee production. In November
2001, Ethiopia qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted
Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Under Ethiopia's land tenure
system, the government owns all land and provides long-term leases
to the tenants; the system continues to hamper growth in the
industrial sector as entrepreneurs are unable to use land as
collateral for loans. Drought struck again late in 2002, leading to
a 2% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather patterns late in 2003
helped agricultural and GDP growth recover in 2004.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$54.89 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
11.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $800 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 47%
industry: 12.4%
services: 40.6% (2004 est.)
Labor force:
NA (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture and animal husbandry 80%, industry and construction 8%,
government and services 12% (1985)
Unemployment rate:
NA (2002)