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Ethiopia: GEOGRAPHY
Location: Ethiopia is located in eastern Africa in the southern Red Sea region. It borders Sudan on the west, Eritrea on the north, Djibouti and Somalia on the east, and Kenya on the south.
Size: The total area of the country is 1,127,127 square kilometers.
Land Boundaries: Ethiopia’s borders total 5,328 kilometers. Bordering countries are: Djibouti (349 kilometers), Eritrea (912 kilometers), Kenya (861 kilometers), Somalia (1,600 kilometers), and Sudan (1,606 kilometers).
Disputed Territory: The border between Ethiopia and Eritrea has never been precisely demarcated. Between 1998 and 2000, the two countries fought a war over the issue, which involves quite small enclaves along the northern segment of their border, including the tiny village of Badme and the enclave of the Irob people. In 2002 an international boundary commission delimited the border. Although both nations agreed to accept its decision, Ethiopia has refused to accept the commission’s findings in full, much to the consternation of the Eritrean government. The central section of Ethiopia’s border with Somalia also has never been fully demarcated and is only provisional. Questions remain about the precise location of small parcels along the border with Sudan as well.
Click to Enlarge Image Length of Coastline: Ethiopia is landlocked, having surrendered its Red Sea coastline to newly independent Eritrea in May 1993.
Maritime Claims: None.
Topography: Ethiopia’s topography consists of a central high plateau bisected by the Ethiopian segment of the Great Rift Valley into northern and southern highlands and surrounded by lowlands, more extensive on the east and southeast than on the south and west. The plateau varies from 1,500 to 3,000 meters above sea level and features mountainous uplands separated by deep gorges and river valleys, especially in the north. The highest point is Ras Dashen at 4,620 meters in the northern highlands. In the east, the Denakil Depression, part of the Rift Valley, is in places 115 meters below sea level and is one of the hottest places on earth. A chain of lakes lie in the southern Rift Valley, but the largest inland body of water is Lake Tana in the northwest. The diversity of Ethiopia’s terrain determines regional variations in climate, natural vegetation, soil composition, and settlement patterns.
Principal Rivers: All of Ethiopia’s rivers originate in the highlands and drain into the surrounding lowlands. The Abay (Blue Nile), Ethiopia’s largest river, the Tekezé, and the Baro flow west into the Nile River in Sudan, the Blue Nile contributing some two-thirds of the Nile’s volume below Khartoum. The Awash flows east through the northern Rift Valley and disappears into saline lakes in the Denakil Depression. In the south, the Genale and Shebele flow southeastward into Somalia; the Omo drains the southwest and empties into Lake Turkana on the border with Kenya.
Climate: Rainfall and temperature patterns vary widely because of Ethiopia’s location in the tropics and its diverse topography. In general, the highlands above 1,500 meters enjoy a pleasant, temperate climate, with daytime temperatures between 16°C and 30°C and cool nights. In areas below 1,500 meters, such as large river valleys, the Denakil Depression, the Ogaden in the southeast, and parts of the southern and western borderlands, daytime temperatures range from very warm (30°C) to torrid (upwards of 50°C), sometimes accompanied by high humidity. Precipitation is determined by differences in elevation and by seasonal shifts in monsoon winds. The highlands receive by far the most rainfall, most of it between mid-June and mid-September, whereas lower elevations receive much less. In general, relative humidity and rainfall decrease from south to north and vary from scant to negligible in the eastern and southeastern lowlands.
Natural Resources: Ethiopia has small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, and natural gas. It has extensive hydropower potential.
Land Use: Of the total land area, about 20 percent is under cultivation, although the amount of potentially arable land is larger. Only about 10 to 15 percent of the land area is presently covered by forest as a result of rapid deforestation during the last 30 years. Of the remainder, a large portion is used as pasturage. Some land is too rugged, dry, or infertile for agriculture or any other use.
Environmental Factors: The Great Rift Valley is geologically active and susceptible to earthquakes. Hot springs and active volcanoes are found in its extreme east close to the Red Sea. Elsewhere, the land is subject to erosion, overgrazing, deforestation, and frequent droughts. Water shortages are common in some areas during the dry season.
Time Zone: Local time in Ethiopia is Greenwich Mean Time plus three hours.
International Herald Tribune,ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia One of the world's most famous fossils — the 3.2 million-year-old Lucy skeleton unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974 — is to travel to the ... Ethiopia: Open letter to Tim Clarke, Head of EU Delegation to ... - 24 Oct 2006 Nazret.com,I am deeply troubled by the information recently learned that an employee of the European Commission in Ethiopia, Ms. Yalemzewd Bekele has been arrested ... Ethiopian officer captured after fierce battle, claim Islamic ... - 24 Oct 2006 International Herald Tribune,Ethiopia and Somalia's governments had initially denied the presence of Ethiopian troops in the country, but Ethiopia's prime minister recently acknowledged he ... Muslim-Christian Violence Escalates in Ethiopia - 24 Oct 2006 Christian PostChristians are being increasingly attacked and murdered by Muslim extremists in Ethiopia as political and religious tension rise in the region, according to a ... Somalian leader urges Ethiopia revolt - 24 Oct 2006 The Benton Crier,MOGADISHU, Somalia - A senior leader of the Islamic militants who control much of southern Somalia urged people in neighboring Ethiopia on Monday to revolt ... ETHIOPIA: Child prostitution on the rise, report says - 24 Oct 2006 AND,By (AND) - www.andnetwork.com. ADDIS ABABA- Child prostitution in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is “increasing at an alarming ... Ethiopia: Row Over Expulsion of Swede And Italian EU Staff - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,..."Any international organization operating in Ethiopia needs to respect the laws of the host country and face punishment if it violates the law," it added. Ethiopia: Economic Indicator - Pressures On Local Basic Services ... - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,And Broad based. After a significant drought-induced contraction, Ethiopia's economy rebounded in 2003/04 and 2004/05. Real GDP ... Ethiopia: Profile of Somalia's Islamist Courts - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,The new chairman is clearly radical and close to Eritrea, which is promoting a proxy war on Ethiopia from Somalia. In fact, it is ... Ethiopia: Rights activist arrested, EU employees face expulsion - Oct 23, 2006 AND,Police in the Ethiopia-Kenya border town of Moyale arrested Friday a prominent Ethiopian human rights activist, her Ethiopian colleague and two foreigners ... Ethiopia: Diaspora-Supported Micro-Finance Schemes for Sustainable ... - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,The National Bank of Ethiopia puts the number at a more conservative US$ 220 million per year, but that is considering officially registered transfers only. ... Ethiopia: NGO Allocates 1.7 Mln. Birr to Carry Out Anti-HIV/Aids ... - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,The Society for Women and AIDS in Africa-Ethiopia, (SWAAE) says it has allocated 1.7 million birr for 2006 to execute anti-HIV/AIDS intervention activities ... Ethiopia: Commissioner Protests EU diplomats’ Expulsion - Oct 22, 2006 SomaliNetThe two EU diplomats were arrested by Ethiopian police on Thursday last week for allegedly attempting to smuggle two Ethiopian bandits across the border to ... Diarrhoea epidemic haunts Ethiopia - Oct 23, 2006 AND,Ethiopia's health authorities are calling it acute watery diarrhoea and are still trying to establish whether the epidemic is in fact cholera. ... Ethiopia: Ezana Ethiopia Launches Two Projects - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,Ezana Ethiopia Mahiber, a local NGO, officially launched on Thursday Tiruzer Ethiopia and Image Building Ethiopia II projects which aims at working with ... Ethiopia: Sher Ethiopia Sparks Flower Shipping Price War - Oct 22, 2006 Hortinews.com,A price war was sparked between Ethio Horti Share Company and Sher Ethiopia Plc after an email message was sent by Sher to 77 growers announcing new cargo ... Ethiopia: Israel to Train Ethiopian Medical Doctors, Nurses - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,In Ethiopia, out of the four million people living with the virus, only about 10 thousand of them receive treatment for the virus, it said. ... Ethiopia: Indian Cultural Troupe Arrives Here - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,...performances. The visit of Rang Bahar is part of the Cultural Exchange Programmes agreement signed between India and Ethiopia. At ... Ethiopia: Professionals to Contest for Innovation of Rural Housing - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,...issue. Currently, more than 40 percent of rural dwellers in Ethiopia depend on natural springs and rivers as a source of water. Ethiopia: Geological Survey in Focus - Oct 22, 2006 AllAfrica.com,For years it has been said that Ethiopia is endowed with an immense amount of natural resources which, if utilized effectively, is adequate to change the fate ... Ethiopia: Canadian Expedition Visiting Historical, Cultural Relics - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,Egypt to cross nine African countries via vehicles under the theme "Small World Big Picture Expedition Africa", has been visiting Ethiopia's historical and ... EC chief, "Officials expulsion endangers EU-Ethiopia relations" - Oct 22, 2006 EiTB,Ethiopia asked two European Union officials to leave the country on Friday, saying the pair had been caught "red handed" trying to smuggle two wanted ... Ethiopia: Supreme Council Urges Moslems to Back Poverty Reduction ... - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,The Moslem community should contribute its share in the fight against poverty and HIV/AIDS, the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council said. ... Ethiopia: Investors Undertake 1 Billion Projects - Oct 23, 2006 AllAfrica.com,The Sebetta town administration in the South West Shoa zone of Oromia State said that investors with an aggregate capital of close to one billion birr are ... This series of profiles of foreign nations is part of the Country Studies Program, formerly the Army Area Handbook Program. The profiles offer brief, summarized information on a country’s historical background, geography, society, economy, transportation and telecommunications, government and politics, and national security. In addition to being featured in the front matter of published Country Studies, they are now being prepared as stand-alone reference aides for all countries in the series, as well as for a number of additional countries of interest. The profiles offer reasonably current country information independent of the existence of a recently published Country Study and will be updated annually or more frequently as events warrant. |
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