ET is the abbreviation for Ethiopia, the 28th largest country in the world. Officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Ethiopia is a country located in East Africa, bordering 6 countries – Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan. Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia. Top 10 biggest cities are Addis Ababa (population: 2,757,718), Dire Dawa (population: 252,268), Mek’ele (population: 215,535), Nazrēt (population: 213,984), Bahir Dar (population: 168,888), Gonder (population: 153,903), Dessie (population: 136,045), Awasa (population: 133,086), Jimma (population: 128,295), and Bishoftu (population: 104,204).
Country Profile
- Capital: Addis Ababa
- Language: Amharic
- Area: 1,104,300 km2
- Population: 102,403,185
- Currency: Birr (ETB)
- Time zone: UTC+3
- Calling code: 251
- ISO 2-Letter Abbreviation: ET
- UN 3-Letter Abbreviation: ETH
- Internet TLD: .et
- State Government Website:
List of Ethiopia Acronyms
The most commonly used abbreviations about Ethiopia are ET which stands for Ethiopia and ETB which means Birr (Ethiopia currency). In the following table, you can see all acronyms related to Ethiopia, including abbreviations for airport, city, school, port, government, and etc.
Geography
Ethiopia is an agricultural country with high mountain plateaus and deep valleys. The country is in the area called the Horn of Africa, and is about three times larger than Norway in area. Since neighboring Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, the country has lacked coast. The highlands, which dominate the landscape, are mainly made up of lava mass from previous volcanic eruptions. In the mountains there are cool temperatures, but otherwise it is warm and the climate is subtropical. In the highlands, which also include Addis Ababa, there is rainy season from June to September/October each year.
The amount of rainfall varies considerably from year to year. Ethiopia is regularly hit by drought, which in turn can lead to famine when crops are destroyed. The weather phenomenon of El Niño in 2015 and 2016 led to the worst drought in decades. Ethiopian agriculture lacks good irrigation systems. Overgrazing and cutting down forests also leads to soil erosion. In July 2019, 350 million trees were planted in an initiative to restore forest areas.
History
Some of the oldest traces of people are found on the Horn of Africa. Around 5000 BCE Aksum empire grew as a great power in today’s Ethiopia. This became a Christian kingdom in the 300s, and since then there has been an independent state formation in the area.
Ethiopia was never colonized, but was occupied by the Italians in the period 1936-1941. After World War II, Eritrea entered into a loose federation with Ethiopia, where Eritrea had self-government. In 1952, Eritrea was annexed by Ethiopia. This was the start of a long and bloody liberation struggle for the Eritreans.
After many years of discontent, famine and corruption, the monastic emperor Haile Selassie was overthrown in 1974, after sitting in power for 44 years. A military junta took over and declared Ethiopia a socialist republic. The regime implemented reforms and plans that cost thousands of lives. In 1991, Eritrean and Ethiopian liberation movements succeeded in toppling the dictatorial communist regime. Eritrea was declared independent in 1993, as part of the agreement between the rebels. Disagreements over where the border was going led to a bloody war that claimed 100,000 human lives between 1998 and 2000. The long border conflict was not over even though the war ended. The situation was locked up until July 2018. At that time, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki signed a peace agreement, which formally ended the long border dispute.
Society and politics
Ethiopia is a federal republic made up of nine states, divided by ethnic and linguistic divides. The president is the head of state, but has a symbolic role. The Prime Minister has the political power, and is nominated and approved by the majority in the National Assembly.
Formally, the country is a liberal democracy, but in practice it is a one-party state. The Government Coalition The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Honor Democratic Front (EPRDF) has been in power since 1991, and has not faced real competition from the opposition in elections. The regime has pursued political opponents, controlled the media and carried out attacks on protesters, human rights activists and journalists.
Due to the unrest in the country, the authorities introduced a state of emergency from October 2016 – August 2017. The state of emergency gave the authorities expanded room for maneuver, e.g. to imprison people without law and judgment. In February 2018, a new state of emergency was introduced. Abiy Ahmed was named prime minister in April 2018, raising the state of emergency shortly thereafter. Abiy also initiated measures that move the country in a democratic direction. He opened up for greater freedom of the press and released political prisoners. He signed a peace agreement with Eritrea and is in talks with other neighboring countries. Abiy Ahmed has promoted equality. The government today consists of 50 per cent women. Ethiopia, as the first country in Africa, has a female president. Ethiopia has another way to go to become a democratic country. In 2020, elections will be held. The goal is for this to be free and democratic. All of this is why Abiy Ahmed is the winner of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize.
Economics and Commerce
Ethiopia has long been one of the world’s poorest and least developed countries. Large economic growth in recent years has improved the situation somewhat. Most Ethiopians live in the countryside and feed on agriculture. Coffee is the most important export commodity. The fact that the economy is dependent on agriculture makes the country particularly vulnerable to periods of drought. The country has been starved several times, and even during periods of normal weather, many lack food access.
Hydropower is Ethiopia’s most important natural resource. The country is developing dams and power plants. The development meets protests for environmental reasons, because the dam damages ecosystems, drying areas and endangering food production. The hydropower development also creates conflicts with neighboring countries such as Egypt, which are concerned that the containment of rivers will damage their water supply.
Recent years’ rapid economic growth has made it possible to focus on education, poverty reduction and infrastructure. Yet Ethiopia is one of the most aid-dependent countries in the world. Ethiopia is in dire need of importing goods, mainly oil, electronics and machinery. This means that the country has a trade deficit. China is the most important trading partner.
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