Eritrea Facts and Figures. BASIC FACTS Official name Capital Area State of Eritrea Asmara 121,144 sq km 46,774 sq mi PEOPLE Population 5,028,475 (2008 estimate) Population growth Population growth rate 2.45 percent (2008 estimate) Projected population in 2025 7,244,126 (2025 estimate) Projected population in 2050 10,164,076 (2050 estimate) Population density 41 persons per sq km (2008 estimate) 107 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate) Urban/rural distribution Share urban 20 percent (2003 estimate) Share rural 80 percent (2003 estimate) Largest cities, with population Asmara 563,948 (2005 estimate) ? seb 56,300 (2003 estimate) Keren 58,080 (2005 estimate) Massawa 39,098 (2005 estimate) Ethnic groups Tigrinya 50 percent Tigre, Kunama 40 percent Afar 4 percent Saho 3 percent Bilen, Hedareb, Nara, Rashaida 3 percent Languages Tigrinya, Tigre, Arabic, Afar, Bilen, Hedareb, Kunama, Nara, Rashaida, Saho, English Religious affiliations Orthodox Christian 46 percent Muslim 45 percent Roman Catholic 3 percent Nonreligious 4 percent O ther 2 percent HEALTH AND EDUCATION Life expectancy Total 60 years (2008 estimate) Female 61.9 years (2008 estimate) Male 58.3 years (2008 estimate) Infant mortality rate Population per physician Population per hospital bed 44 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008 estimate) 19,986 people (2004) Not available Literacy rate Total 55.7 percent (2000 estimate) Female 44.5 percent (2000 estimate) Male 67.3 percent (2000 estimate) Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) Number of years of compulsory schooling Number of students per teacher, primary school 3.3 percent (2002-2003) 7 years (2002-2003) 47 students per teacher (2002-2003) GOVERNMENT Form of government Transitional government Voting qualifications Universal at age 18 Constitution 23 May 1997 Armed forces Total number of military personnel Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 201,750 (2004) 9.2 percent (2003) ECONOMY Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) GDP per capita (U.S.$) GDP by economic sector Agriculture, forestry, fishing $1,085 million (2006) $231.20 (2006) 17.5 percent (2006) I ndustry 23 percent (2006) Services 59.5 percent (2006) Employment Number of workers 1,971,520 (2006) Workforce share of economic sector Agriculture, forestry, fishing 81 percent (1990) I ndustry 5 percent (1990) Services 15 percent (1990) Unemployment rate 16.8 percent (1984) National budget (U.S.$) Total revenue Not available Total expenditure Not available Monetary unit 1 nakfa, consisting of 100 cents Major trade partners for exports Sudan, Ethiopia, Japan, Italy, United States Major trade partners for imports Italy, United Arab Emirates, Germany, United States, South Korea ENERGY, COMMUNICATIONS, AND TRANSPORTATION Electricity production Electricity from thermal sources 100 percent (2003 estimate) Electricity from hydroelectric sources 0 percent (2003 estimate) Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2003 estimate) Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 0 percent (2003 estimate) Number of radios per 1,000 people 439 (2000 estimate) Number of telephones per 1,000 people 9 (2005) Number of televisions per 1,000 people 24 (2000 estimate) Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people Paved road as a share of total roads 2.5 (2003) Not available 1.6 (1997) 22 percent (1999) SOURCES Basic Facts and People sections Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org). Health and Education section Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Government section Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance. Economy section Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications. Energy, Communication, and Transportation section Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Note Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
