Capital: Addis Ababa
Area: 1,104.3 thousand sq. km. Population: 62.8 million (17% urban) Adult literacy: 43% male, and 32% female Per capita: US$120 Languages: Amharic, Tigrinya, Orominga, Guaraginga, Somali, Arabic, English Religion: Muslim 45%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%, animist 12%, other 5% Life expectancy: 43 years The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, founded in 1994, is divided into nine ethnically based regions. Ethiopia's population, mainly rural, supports a mixed farming economy and is vulnerable to famines and fluctuations in commodity prices. Less than 30% of Ethiopia's children are enrolled in primary school. A border conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia in May 1998 rendered many people homeless. Fewer than 20% of Ethiopians live within a two-hour walk of a modern health care facility. One of the nations hardest hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, Ethiopia continues to fight poverty, hunger and famines with assistance from Germany, Sweden, the European Union, Italy, and the US.
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