Eritrea

C

Natural Resources

Eritrea’s resources have traditionally supported a largely agricultural way of life, although a significant industrial base was developed during Italian rule around Asmara. The nation possesses potentially valuable potash deposits and possibly gold, iron, and oil, but exploration and exploitation of such mineral resources have been severely hindered by three decades of war. The country suffers repeated droughts and severe problems of famine, desertification, soil erosion from overgrazing, and loss of infrastructure from civil war.

D

Environmental Concerns

Eritrea's environment suffers from frequent droughts and from the effects of the country's decades-long war of independence. Only 22 per cent (1990-1998) of the people in Eritrea have access to safe water, and only 13 per cent (1990-1998) have access to sanitation; in rural areas sanitation is not available at all. Much of the country's highland forests have been destroyed for fuel wood, and only 2.8 per cent (1995) of Eritrea's total land area is forested. Only 3.9 per cent (1997) of the country's land is arable or under permanent crop cultivation. The intense pressure on agricultural land is made worse by a 3.9 per cent (2000) population growth rate and extremely high temperatures in some regions. Consequently, marginal lands have been cultivated and overgrazed, leading to soil erosion and desertification.

The Eritrean administration has planted millions of trees in recent years to help stop erosion and desertification. In addition, the administration has designated 5 per cent (1997) of the country's total land area as protected. The government has ratified international environmental agreements pertaining to biodiversity, climate change, desertification, and endangered species.

III

Population

Eritrea has a population of 4,906,585 (2007 estimate), giving it a population density of about 40 people per sq km (105 per sq mi). Approximately 80 per cent of the population is rural, with cultivation and pastoralism as the main means of subsistence. Despite ethnic diversity, friction between Eritrean groups has not been a major problem; Eritreans have remained united by their opposition to Ethiopian control.

The war with Ethiopia and the famines that hit the entire region in the 1970s and 1980s caused a great deal of disruption and population movement, especially in the rural areas. At independence in 1993 approximately 20 per cent of the population within Eritrea was displaced, while an estimated 500,000 Eritreans were living as refugees in Sudan. In addition to problems of food shortage, poverty, and illiteracy, the new nation faces a huge task of resettling people uprooted by war and famine. Life expectancy in 2007 was 58 years for men and 61 years for women.

A

Principal Cities

Eritrea’s major cities include the capital and largest city Asmara, with a population of 563,948 (2005 estimate), the seaports Mitsiwa, population 39,098 (2005 estimate), and Āseb, 56,300 (2003 estimate), and Keren, Nak’fa, Āk’ordat, and Tessenei.

B

Religion

Islam is the religion of half the population, spread over several ethnic and linguistic groups. Mainly Muslim, but some Christian, the Saho live near Mitsiwa and in the foothills of the coastal plain. The majority of the Bilen-speaking people around Keren are Muslims (although some are Christian), as are the Afar who inhabit the south-eastern portion of the coastal plain and the Dahlak Archipelago. The Beja (Bedawi-speaking) people of the north-west and north-east are predominantly Muslim. The Higir, Mogareb, Koyta, Santora (Nara-speaking) peoples, and Kunama-speaking peoples of the west are also Muslim.