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Ethiopia vs. Sudan

Economy

EthiopiaSudan
Economy - overview

Ethiopia - the second most populous country in Africa - is a one-party state with a planned economy. For more than a decade before 2016, GDP grew at a rate between 8% and 11% annually - one of the fastest growing states among the 188 IMF member countries. This growth was driven by government investment in infrastructure, as well as sustained progress in the agricultural and service sectors. More than 70% of Ethiopia's population is still employed in the agricultural sector, but services have surpassed agriculture as the principal source of GDP.

Ethiopia has the lowest level of income-inequality in Africa and one of the lowest in the world, with a Gini coefficient comparable to that of the Scandinavian countries. Yet despite progress toward eliminating extreme poverty, Ethiopia remains one of the poorest countries in the world, due both to rapid population growth and a low starting base. Changes in rainfall associated with world-wide weather patterns resulted in the worst drought in 30 years in 2015-16, creating food insecurity for millions of Ethiopians.

The state is heavily engaged in the economy. Ongoing infrastructure projects include power production and distribution, roads, rails, airports and industrial parks. Key sectors are state-owned, including telecommunications, banking and insurance, and power distribution. Under Ethiopia's constitution, the state owns all land and provides long-term leases to tenants. Title rights in urban areas, particularly Addis Ababa, are poorly regulated, and subject to corruption.

Ethiopia's foreign exchange earnings are led by the services sector - primarily the state-run Ethiopian Airlines - followed by exports of several commodities. While coffee remains the largest foreign exchange earner, Ethiopia is diversifying exports, and commodities such as gold, sesame, khat, livestock and horticulture products are becoming increasingly important. Manufacturing represented less than 8% of total exports in 2016, but manufacturing exports should increase in future years due to a growing international presence.

The banking, insurance, telecommunications, and micro-credit industries are restricted to domestic investors, but Ethiopia has attracted roughly $8.5 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI), mostly from China, Turkey, India and the EU; US FDI is $567 million. Investment has been primarily in infrastructure, construction, agriculture/horticulture, agricultural processing, textiles, leather and leather products.

To support industrialization in sectors where Ethiopia has a comparative advantage, such as textiles and garments, leather goods, and processed agricultural products, Ethiopia plans to increase installed power generation capacity by 8,320 MW, up from a capacity of 2,000 MW, by building three more major dams and expanding to other sources of renewable energy. In 2017, the government devalued the birr by 15% to increase exports and alleviate a chronic foreign currency shortage in the country.

Sudan has experienced protracted social conflict and the loss of three quarters of its oil production due to the secession of South Sudan. The oil sector had driven much of Sudan's GDP growth since 1999. For nearly a decade, the economy boomed on the back of rising oil production, high oil prices, and significant inflows of foreign direct investment. Since the economic shock of South Sudan's secession, Sudan has struggled to stabilize its economy and make up for the loss of foreign exchange earnings. The interruption of oil production in South Sudan in 2012 for over a year and the consequent loss of oil transit fees further exacerbated the fragile state of Sudan's economy. Ongoing conflicts in Southern Kordofan, Darfur, and the Blue Nile states, lack of basic infrastructure in large areas, and reliance by much of the population on subsistence agriculture, keep close to half of the population at or below the poverty line.

Sudan was subject to comprehensive US sanctions, which were lifted in October 2017. Sudan is attempting to develop non-oil sources of revenues, such as gold mining and agriculture, while carrying out an austerity program to reduce expenditures. The world's largest exporter of gum Arabic, Sudan produces 75-80% of the world's total output. Agriculture continues to employ 80% of the work force.

Sudan introduced a new currency, still called the Sudanese pound, following South Sudan's secession, but the value of the currency has fallen since its introduction. Khartoum formally devalued the currency in June 2012, when it passed austerity measures that included gradually repealing fuel subsidies. Sudan also faces high inflation, which reached 47% on an annual basis in November 2012 but fell to about 35% per year in 2017.

(2017)

GDP (purchasing power parity)$248.972 billion (2019 est.)

$229.755 billion (2018 est.)

$215.094 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$168.28 billion (2019 est.)

$172.601 billion (2018 est.)

$176.646 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - real growth rate10.9% (2017 est.)

8% (2016 est.)

10.4% (2015 est.)
1.4% (2017 est.)

3% (2016 est.)

1.3% (2015 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$2,221 (2019 est.)

$2,104 (2018 est.)

$2,022 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$3,958 (2019 est.)

$4,161 (2018 est.)

$4,363 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - composition by sectoragriculture: 34.8% (2017 est.)

industry: 21.6% (2017 est.)

services: 43.6% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 39.6% (2017 est.)

industry: 2.6% (2017 est.)

services: 57.8% (2017 est.)
Population below poverty line23.5% (2015 est.)46.5% (2009 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage sharelowest 10%: 4.1%

highest 10%: 25.6% (2005)
lowest 10%: 2.7%

highest 10%: 26.7% (2009 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)15.7% (2019 est.)

13.9% (2018 est.)

10.8% (2017 est.)
50.2% (2019 est.)

62.8% (2018 est.)

32.5% (2017 est.)
Labor force52.82 million (2017 est.)11.92 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupationagriculture: 72.7%

industry: 7.4%

services: 19.9% (2013 est.)
agriculture: 80%

industry: 7%

services: 13% (1998 est.)
Unemployment rate17.5% (2012 est.)

18% (2011 est.)
19.6% (2017 est.)

20.6% (2016 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index35 (2015 est.)

30 (2000)
34.2 (2014 est.)
Budgetrevenues: 11.24 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 13.79 billion (2017 est.)
revenues: 8.48 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 13.36 billion (2017 est.)
Industriesfood processing, beverages, textiles, leather, garments, chemicals, metals processing, cementoil, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments, automobile/light truck assembly, milling
Industrial production growth rate10.5% (2017 est.)4.5% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productsmaize, cereals, wheat, sorghum, milk, barley, sweet potatoes, roots/tubers nes, sugar cane, milletsugar cane, sorghum, milk, groundnuts, onions, sesame seed, goat milk, millet, bananas, wheat
Exports$3.23 billion (2017 est.)

$2.814 billion (2016 est.)
$4.1 billion (2017 est.)

$3.094 billion (2016 est.)
Exports - commoditiescoffee, sesame seeds, gold, cut flowers, zinc (2019)gold, crude petroleum, sesame seeds, sheep, goats, cotton, ground nuts (2019)
Exports - partnersChina 17%, United States 16%, United Arab Emirates 8%, Saudi Arabia 6%, South Korea 5%, Germany 5% (2019)United Arab Emirates 31%, China 19%, Saudi Arabia 14%, India 12%, Egypt 5% (2019)
Imports$15.59 billion (2017 est.)

$14.69 billion (2016 est.)
$8.22 billion (2017 est.)

$7.48 billion (2016 est.)
Imports - commoditiesaircraft, gas turbines, packaged medicines, electric filament, cars (2019)raw sugar, wheat, packaged medicines, jewelry, tires, cars and vehicle parts (2019)
Imports - partnersChina 27%, India 9%, United Arab Emirates 9%, France 9%, United Kingdom 7% (2019)China 31%, India 14%, United Arab Emirates 11%, Egypt 6% (2019)
Debt - external$27.27 billion (2019 est.)

$26.269 billion (2018 est.)
$56.05 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$51.26 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Exchange ratesbirr (ETB) per US dollar -

25 (2017 est.)

21.732 (2016 est.)

21.732 (2015 est.)

21.55 (2014 est.)

19.8 (2013 est.)
Sudanese pounds (SDG) per US dollar -

6.72 (2017 est.)

6.14 (2016 est.)

6.14 (2015 est.)

6.03 (2014 est.)

5.74 (2013 est.)
Fiscal year8 July - 7 Julycalendar year
Public debt54.2% of GDP (2017 est.)

53.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
121.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

99.5% of GDP (2016 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$3.013 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$3.022 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$198 million (31 December 2017 est.)

$168.3 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance-$6.551 billion (2017 est.)

-$6.574 billion (2016 est.)
-$4.811 billion (2017 est.)

-$4.213 billion (2016 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$92.154 billion (2019 est.)$24.918 billion (2019 est.)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 48 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 71.7 (2020)

Trading score: 56 (2020)

Enforcement score: 62.8 (2020)
Overall score: 44.8 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 76.7 (2020)

Trading score: 19 (2020)

Enforcement score: 47.8 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues13.9% (of GDP) (2017 est.)18.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-3.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)-10.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24total: 25.2%

male: 17.1%

female: 30.9% (2016 est.)
total: 32.6%

male: 27.4%

female: 43.5% (2011 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 69.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 10% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 43.5% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: -0.1% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 8.1% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -31.2% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 77.3% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 5.8% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 18.4% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 0.6% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 9.7% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -11.8% (2017 est.)
Gross national saving33.2% of GDP (2018 est.)

30.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

32.4% of GDP (2015 est.)
43.7% of GDP (2018 est.)

29.3% of GDP (2017 est.)

12.2% of GDP (2015 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook