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South Sudan vs. Ethiopia

Introduction

South SudanEthiopia
Background

British explorer Samuel BAKER established the colony of Equatoria in 1870, in the name of the Ottoman Khedive of Egypt who claimed the territory. Headquartered in Gondokoro (near modern day Juba), Equatoria in theory composed most of what is now South Sudan. After being cut off from colonial administration during the Mahdist War from 1885-1898, Equatoria was made a state under the Anglo-Egyptian condominium in 1899. It was largely left to itself over the following decades, but Christian missionaries converted much of the population and facilitated the spread of English, rather than Arabic. Equatoria was ruled by British colonial administrators separately from what is now Sudan until the two colonies were combined at the 1947 Juba Conference, as part of British plans to prepare the region for independence. When Sudan gained its independence in 1956, it was with the understanding that the southerners would be able to participate fully in the political system. When the Arab Khartoum government reneged on its promises, a mutiny began that led to two prolonged periods of conflict (1955-1972 and 1983-2005) in which perhaps 2.5 million people died - mostly civilians - due to starvation and drought. Ongoing peace talks finally resulted in a Comprehensive Peace Agreement, signed in January 2005. As part of this agreement, the south was granted a six-year period of autonomy to be followed by a referendum on final status. The result of this referendum, held in January 2011, was a vote of 98% in favor of secession.

Since independence on 9 July 2011, South Sudan has struggled with good governance and nation building and has attempted to control opposition forces operating in its territory. Economic conditions have deteriorated since January 2012 when the government decided to shut down oil production following bilateral disagreements with Sudan. In December 2013, conflict between government and opposition forces killed tens of thousands and led to a dire humanitarian crisis with millions of South Sudanese displaced and food insecure. The warring parties signed a peace agreement in August 2015 that created a transitional government of national unity in April 2016. However, in July 2016, fighting broke out in Juba between the two principal signatories, plunging the country back into conflict. A "revitalized" peace agreement was signed in September 2018 ending the fighting. Under the agreement, the government and various rebel groups agreed that the sides would form a unified national army and create a transitional government by May 2019. The agreement was extended until November 2019 and then subsequently to February 2020. However, implementation has been stalled, in part by a failure to agree on the country's internal political boundaries.

Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995.

A border war with Eritrea in the late 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia did not accept them and maintained troops in previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea. This intransigence resulted in years of heightened tension between the two countries. In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades. Following a wave of popular dissent and anti-government protest that began in 2015, HAILEMARIAM resigned in February 2018 and ABIY Ahmed Ali took office in April 2018 as Ethiopia's first ethnic Oromo prime minister. In June 2018, ABIY announced Ethiopia would accept the border ruling of 2000, prompting rapprochement between Ethiopia and Eritrea that was marked with a peace agreement in July 2018 and a reopening of the border in September 2018. In November 2019, Ethiopia's nearly 30-year ethnic-based ruling coalition - the EPRDF - merged into a single unity party called the Prosperity Party, however, one of the four constituent parties (the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front or TPLF) refused to join.

Geography

South SudanEthiopia
LocationEast-Central Africa; south of Sudan, north of Uganda and Kenya, west of EthiopiaEastern Africa, west of Somalia
Geographic coordinates8 00 N, 30 00 E8 00 N, 38 00 E
Map referencesAfricaAfrica
Areatotal: 644,329 sq km

land: NA

water: NA
total: 1,104,300 sq km

land: 1,096,570 sq km

water: 7,730 sq km

note: area numbers are approximate since a large portion of the Ethiopia-Somalia border is undefined
Area - comparativemore than four times the size of Georgia; slightly smaller than Texasslightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundariestotal: 6,018 km

border countries (6): Central African Republic 1055 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 714 km, Ethiopia 1299 km, Kenya 317 km, Sudan 2158 km, Uganda 475 km

note: South Sudan-Sudan boundary represents 1 January 1956 alignment; final alignment pending negotiations and demarcation; final sovereignty status of Abyei Area pending negotiations between South Sudan and Sudan
total: 5,925 km

border countries (6): Djibouti 342 km, Eritrea 1033 km, Kenya 867 km, Somalia 1640 km, South Sudan 1299 km, Sudan 744 km
Coastline0 km (landlocked)0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claimsnone (landlocked)none (landlocked)
Climatehot with seasonal rainfall influenced by the annual shift of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone; rainfall heaviest in upland areas of the south and diminishes to the northtropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation
Terrainplains in the north and center rise to southern highlands along the border with Uganda and Kenya; the White Nile, flowing north out of the uplands of Central Africa, is the major geographic feature of the country; The Sudd (a name derived from floating vegetation that hinders navigation) is a large swampy area of more than 100,000 sq km fed by the waters of the White Nile that dominates the center of the countryhigh plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley
Elevation extremeshighest point: Kinyeti 3,187 m

lowest point: White Nile 381 m
highest point: Ras Dejen 4,550 m

lowest point: Danakil Depression -125 m

mean elevation: 1,330 m
Natural resourceshydropower, fertile agricultural land, gold, diamonds, petroleum, hardwoods, limestone, iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silversmall reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower
Land useagricultural land: 45% (2018)

arable land: 4.4% (2018)

permanent pasture: 40.7% (2018)

forest: 11.3% (2018)

other: 43.5% (2018)
agricultural land: 36.3% (2018 est.)

arable land: 15.2% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.1% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 20% (2018 est.)

forest: 12.2% (2018 est.)

other: 51.5% (2018 est.)
Irrigated land1,000 sq km (2012)2,900 sq km (2012)
Environment - current issueswater pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife conservation and loss of biodiversity; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; periodic droughtdeforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; loss of biodiversity; water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor management; industrial pollution and pesticides contribute to air, water, and soil pollution
Environment - international agreementsparty to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
Geography - notelandlocked; The Sudd is a vast swamp in the north central region of South Sudan, formed by the White Nile, its size is variable but can reach some 15% of the country's total area during the rainy season; it is one of the world's largest wetlandsnote 1: landlocked - entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May 1993; Ethiopia is, therefore, the most populous landlocked country in the world; the Blue Nile, the chief headstream of the Nile by water volume, rises in T'ana Hayk (Lake Tana) in northwest Ethiopia

note 2: three major crops are believed to have originated in Ethiopia: coffee, grain sorghum, and castor bean
Total renewable water resources49.5 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)122 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Population distributionclusters found in urban areas, particularly in the western interior and around the White Nile as shown in this population distribution maphighest density is found in the highlands of the north and middle areas of the country, particularly around the centrally located capital city of Addis Ababa; the far east and southeast are sparsely populated as shown in this population distribution map

Demographics

South SudanEthiopia
Population10,984,074 (July 2021 est.)110,871,031 (July 2021 est.)

note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
Age structure0-14 years: 41.58% (male 2,238,534/female 2,152,685)

15-24 years: 21.28% (male 1,153,108/female 1,094,568)

25-54 years: 30.67% (male 1,662,409/female 1,577,062)

55-64 years: 3.93% (male 228,875/female 186,571)

65 years and over: 2.53% (male 153,502/female 113,930) (2020 est.)
0-14 years: 39.81% (male 21,657,152/female 21,381,628)

15-24 years: 19.47% (male 10,506,144/female 10,542,128)

25-54 years: 32.92% (male 17,720,540/female 17,867,298)

55-64 years: 4.42% (male 2,350,606/female 2,433,319)

65 years and over: 3.38% (male 1,676,478/female 1,977,857) (2020 est.)
Median agetotal: 18.6 years

male: 18.9 years

female: 18.3 years (2020 est.)
total: 19.8 years

male: 19.6 years

female: 20.1 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate5.05% (2021 est.)2.5% (2021 est.)
Birth rate38.26 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)31.03 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Death rate9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)5.8 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Net migration rate22.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)-0.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Sex ratioat birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.23 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 1.35 male(s)/female

total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2020 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female

total population: 1 male(s)/female (2020 est.)
Infant mortality ratetotal: 64.77 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 70.75 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 58.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
total: 34.62 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 39.56 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 29.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
Life expectancy at birthtotal population: 58.6 years

male: 56.92 years

female: 60.36 years (2021 est.)
total population: 67.9 years

male: 65.79 years

female: 70.06 years (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate5.43 children born/woman (2021 est.)4.07 children born/woman (2021 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate2.3% (2020 est.)0.9% (2020 est.)
Nationalitynoun: South Sudanese (singular and plural)

adjective: South Sudanese
noun: Ethiopian(s)

adjective: Ethiopian
Ethnic groupsDinka (Jieng) 35.8%, Nuer (Naath) 15.6%, Shilluk (Chollo), Azande, Bari, Kakwa, Kuku, Murle, Mandari, Didinga, Ndogo, Bviri, Lndi, Anuak, Bongo, Lango, Dungotona, Acholi, Baka, Fertit (2011 est.)Oromo 34.9%, Amhara (Amara) 27.9%, Tigray (Tigrinya) 7.3%, Sidama 4.1%, Welaita 3%, Gurage 2.8%, Somali (Somalie) 2.7%, Hadiya 2.2%, Afar (Affar) 0.6%, other 12.6% (2016 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS180,000 (2020 est.)620,000 (2020 est.)
Religionsanimist, Christian, MuslimEthiopian Orthodox 43.8%, Muslim 31.3%, Protestant 22.8%, Catholic 0.7%, traditional 0.6%, other 0.8% (2016 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths8,900 (2020 est.)13,000 (2020 est.)
LanguagesEnglish (official), Arabic (includes Juba and Sudanese variants), regional languages include Dinka, Nuer, Bari, Zande, Shilluk

major-language sample(s):
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. (English)

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Oromo (official working language in the State of Oromiya) 33.8%, Amharic (official national language) 29.3%, Somali (official working language of the State of Sumale) 6.2%, Tigrigna (Tigrinya) (official working language of the State of Tigray) 5.9%, Sidamo 4%, Wolaytta 2.2%, Gurage 2%, Afar (official working language of the State of Afar) 1.7%, Hadiyya 1.7%, Gamo 1.5%, Gedeo 1.3%, Opuuo 1.2%, Kafa 1.1%, other 8.1%, English (major foreign language taught in schools), Arabic (2007 est.)

major-language sample(s):
Kitaaba Addunyaa Waan Qabataamaatiif - Kan Madda Odeeffannoo bu'uraawaatiif baay'ee barbaachisaa ta'e. (Oromo)

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The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Literacydefinition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 34.5%

male: 40.3%

female: 28.9% (2018)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 51.8%

male: 57.2%

female: 44.4% (2017)
Major infectious diseasesdegree of risk: very high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, Trypanosomiasis-Gambiense (African sleeping sickness)

water contact diseases: schistosomiasis

animal contact diseases: rabies

respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis
degree of risk: very high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever

water contact diseases: schistosomiasis

animal contact diseases: rabies

respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis
Food insecuritywidespread lack of access: due to economic downturn, civil insecurity, lingering impact of floods and prolonged conflict - despite sustained humanitarian assistance, food insecurity still affects large segments of the population, driven by insufficient food supplies, an economic downturn, high food prices and the lingering impact of widespread floods in 2020; about 7.2 million people (about 60% of the total population) are estimated to be severely food insecure in the April-July 2021 period; particular concern exists for households in Jonglei, Northern Bahr-el-Ghazal and Warrap states and in neighboring Pibor Administrative Area, where 60-85% of the  population is estimated to be severely food insecure, with a total of 108,000 people facing "Catastrophe" levels of food insecurity (2021)widespread lack of access: due to civil conflict - more than 16 million people were estimated to be severely food insecure in the May-June 2021 period; particular concerns exist for the Tigray Region and neighboring zones of Amhara and Afar regions, where 5.5 million people (about 60 percent of the population) are estimated to face severe food insecurity due to the conflict which started in November 2020 (2021)
Education expenditures1.5% of GDP (2016)4.7% of GDP (2015)
Urbanizationurban population: 20.5% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 4.12% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
urban population: 22.2% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 4.4% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Drinking water sourceimproved: urban: 85.2% of population

rural: 71.7% of population

total: 74.3% of population

unimproved: urban: 14.8% of population

rural: 28.3% of population

total: 25.7% of population (2017 est.)
improved: urban: 97% of population

rural: 61.7% of population

total: 68.9% of population

unimproved: urban: 3% of population

rural: 38.3% of population

total: 31.1% of population (2017 est.)
Sanitation facility accessimproved: urban: 54.1% of population

rural: 10.7% of population

total: 19.1% of population

unimproved: urban: 45.9% of population

rural: 89.3% of population

total: 80.9% of population (2017 est.)
improved: urban: 49.7% of population

rural: 5.7% of population

total: 14.7% of population

unimproved: urban: 50.3% of population

rural: 94.3% of population

total: 85.3% of population (2017 est.)
Major cities - population421,000 JUBA (capital) (2021)5.006 million ADDIS ABABA (capital) (2021)
Maternal mortality rate1,150 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)401 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight27.7% (2010)21.1% (2019)
Health expenditures6.4% (2018)3.3% (2018)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate6.6% (2014)4.5% (2016)
Demographic profile

South Sudan, independent from Sudan since July 2011 after decades of civil war, is one of the world's poorest countries and ranks among the lowest in many socioeconomic categories. Problems are exacerbated by ongoing tensions with Sudan over oil revenues and land borders, fighting between government forces and rebel groups, and inter-communal violence. Most of the population lives off of farming, while smaller numbers rely on animal husbandry; more than 80% of the populace lives in rural areas. The maternal mortality rate is among the world's highest for a variety of reasons, including a shortage of health care workers, facilities, and supplies; poor roads and a lack of transport; and cultural beliefs that prevent women from seeking obstetric care. Most women marry and start having children early, giving birth at home with the assistance of traditional birth attendants, who are unable to handle complications.

Educational attainment is extremely poor due to the lack of schools, qualified teachers, and materials. Less than a third of the population is literate (the rate is even lower among women), and half live below the poverty line. Teachers and students are also struggling with the switch from Arabic to English as the language of instruction. Many adults missed out on schooling because of warfare and displacement.

Almost 2 million South Sudanese have sought refuge in neighboring countries since the current conflict began in December 2013. Another 1.96 million South Sudanese are internally displaced as of August 2017. Despite South Sudan's instability and lack of infrastructure and social services, more than 240,000 people have fled to South Sudan to escape fighting in Sudan.

Ethiopia is a predominantly agricultural country - more than 80% of the population lives in rural areas - that is in the early stages of demographic transition. Infant, child, and maternal mortality have fallen sharply over the past decade, but the total fertility rate has declined more slowly and the population continues to grow. The rising age of marriage and the increasing proportion of women remaining single have contributed to fertility reduction. While the use of modern contraceptive methods among married women has increased significantly from 6 percent in 2000 to 27 percent in 2012, the overall rate is still quite low.

Ethiopia's rapid population growth is putting increasing pressure on land resources, expanding environmental degradation, and raising vulnerability to food shortages. With more than 40 percent of the population below the age of 15 and a fertility rate of over 5 children per woman (and even higher in rural areas), Ethiopia will have to make further progress in meeting its family planning needs if it is to achieve the age structure necessary for reaping a demographic dividend in the coming decades.

Poverty, drought, political repression, and forced government resettlement have driven Ethiopia's internal and external migration since the 1960s. Before the 1974 revolution, only small numbers of the Ethiopian elite went abroad to study and then returned home, but under the brutal Derg regime thousands fled the country, primarily as refugees. Between 1982 and 1991 there was a new wave of migration to the West for family reunification. Since the defeat of the Derg in 1991, Ethiopians have migrated to escape violence among some of the country's myriad ethnic groups or to pursue economic opportunities. Internal and international trafficking of women and children for domestic work and prostitution is a growing problem.

Contraceptive prevalence rate4% (2010)37% (2019)
Dependency ratiostotal dependency ratio: 80.8

youth dependency ratio: 74.7

elderly dependency ratio: 6.1

potential support ratio: 16.5 (2020 est.)
total dependency ratio: 76.8

youth dependency ratio: 70.6

elderly dependency ratio: 6.3

potential support ratio: 16 (2020 est.)

Government

South SudanEthiopia
Country nameconventional long form: Republic of South Sudan

conventional short form: South Sudan

etymology: self-descriptive name from the country's former position within Sudan prior to independence; the name "Sudan" derives from the Arabic "bilad-as-sudan" meaning "Land of the Black [peoples]"
conventional long form: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

conventional short form: Ethiopia

local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik

local short form: Ityop'iya

former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa

abbreviation: FDRE

etymology: the country name derives from the Greek word "Aethiopia," which in classical times referred to lands south of Egypt in the Upper Nile region
Government typepresidential republicfederal parliamentary republic
Capitalname: Juba

geographic coordinates: 04 51 N, 31 37 E

time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: the name derives from Djouba, another name for the Bari people of South Sudan
name: Addis Ababa

geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E

time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: the name in Amharic means "new flower" and was bestowed on the city in 1889, three years after its founding
Administrative divisions10 states; Central Equatoria, Eastern Equatoria, Jonglei, Lakes, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Unity, Upper Nile, Warrap, Western Bahr el Ghazal, Western Equatoria; note - in 2015, the creation of 28 new states was announced and in 2017 four additional; following the February 2020 peace agreement, the country was reportedly again reorganized into the 10 original states, plus 2 administrative areas, Pibor and Ruweng, and 1 special administrative status area, Abyei; this latest administrative revision has not yet been vetted by the US Board on Geographic Names10 ethnically based regional states (kililoch, singular - kilil) and 2 self-governing administrations* (astedaderoch, singular - astedader); Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa), Afar, Amara (Amhara), Binshangul Gumuz, Dire Dawa*, Gambela Hizboch (Gambela Peoples), Hareri Hizb (Harari People), Oromiya (Oromia), Sidama, Sumale (Somali), Tigray, Ye Debub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples)
Independence9 July 2011 (from Sudan)oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world - at least 2,000 years (may be traced to the Aksumite Kingdom, which coalesced in the first century B.C.)
National holidayIndependence Day, 9 July (2011)Derg Downfall Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)
Constitutionhistory: previous 2005 (preindependence); latest signed 7 July 2011, effective 9 July 2011 (Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan, 2011)

amendments: proposed by the National Legislature or by the president of the republic; passage requires submission of the proposal to the Legislature at least one month prior to consideration, approval by at least two-thirds majority vote in both houses of the Legislature, and assent of the president; amended 2013, 2015, 2018 (2021)
history: several previous; latest drafted June 1994, adopted 8 December 1994, entered into force 21 August 1995

amendments: proposals submitted for discussion require two-thirds majority approval in either house of Parliament or majority approval of one-third of the State Councils; passage of amendments other than constitutional articles on fundamental rights and freedoms and the initiation and amendment of the constitution requires two-thirds majority vote in a joint session of Parliament and majority vote by two thirds of the State Councils; passage of amendments affecting rights and freedoms and amendment procedures requires two-thirds majority vote in each house of Parliament and majority vote by all the State Councils
Suffrage18 years of age; universal18 years of age; universal
Executive branchchief of state: President Salva KIIR Mayardit (since 9 July 2011); First Vice President Riek MACHAR Teny Dhurgon (since 22 February 2020); Vice President James Wani IGGA (since 26 April 2016); Vice President TABAN Deng Gai (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng Chol GARANG de Mabior (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Hussein ABDELBAGI Ayii (since 22 February 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government: President Salva KIIR Mayardit (since 9 July 2011); First Vice President Taban Deng GAI (since 26 July 2016); Vice President James Wani IGGA (since 26 April 2016); Vice President TABAN Deng Gai (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng Chol GARANG de Mabior (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Hussein ABDELBAGI Ayii (since 22 February 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

cabinet: National Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Transitional National Legislative Assembly

elections/appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 11-15 April 2010 (next election scheduled for 2015 postponed to 2018 and again to 2021)

election results: Salva KIIR Mayardit elected president; percent of vote - Salva KIIR Mayardit (SPLM) 93%, Lam AKOL (SPLM-DC) 7%
chief of state: President SAHLE-WORK Zewde (since 25 October 2018)

head of government: Prime Minister ABIY Ahmed (since 2 April 2018); Deputy Prime Minister DEMEKE Mekonnen Hassen (since 29 November 2012)

cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People's Representatives

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by both chambers of Parliament for a 6-year term (eligible for a second term); snap election held on 25 October 2018 due to resignation of President MULATA Teshome (next election postponed by Prime Minister ABIY due to the COVID-19 pandemic); prime minister designated by the majority party following legislative elections

election results: SAHLE-WORK Zewde elected president; Parliament vote - 659 (unanimous)

note: SAHLE-WORK Zewde is the first female elected head of state in Ethiopia; she is currently the only female president in Africa. Former President Dr. Mulatu TESHOME resigned on 25 October 2018, one year ahead of finishing his six-year term.
Legislative branchdescription: bicameral National Legislature consists of:
Council of States, established by presidential decree in August 2011 (50 seats; 20 former members of the Council of States and 30 appointed representatives)
Transitional National Legislative Assembly, established on 4 August 2016, in accordance with the August 2015 Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (400 seats; 170 members elected in April 2010, 96 members of the former National Assembly, 66 members appointed after independence, and 68 members added as a result of the 2016 Agreement); the TNLA will be expanded to 550 members after the transitional government forms

elections:
Council of States - established and members appointed 1 August 2011
National Legislative Assembly - last held 11-15 April 2010 but did not take office until July 2011; current parliamentary term extended until 2021)

election results:
Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SPLM 20, unknown 30; composition - men 44, women 6, percent of women 12%
National Legislative Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SPLM 251, DCP 10, independent 6, unknown 133; composition - men 291, women 109, percent of women 27.3%; note - total National Legislature percent of women 25.6%
description: bicameral Parliament consists of:
House of Federation or Yefedereshein Mikir Bete (153 seats; members indirectly elected by state assemblies to serve 5-year terms)
House of People's Representatives or Yehizb Tewokayoch Mekir Bete (547 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; 22 seats reserved for minorities; all members serve 5-year terms)

elections: House of Federation - last held 24 May 2015 (next originally scheduled on 29 August 2020 but postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic)
House of People's Representatives - last held on 24 May 2015 (next election to be held June 2021)

election results: House of Federation - percent of vote by coalition/party - NA; seats by coalition/party - NA; composition - men 104, women 49, percent of women 32%
House of Representatives - percent of vote by coalition/party - NA; seats by coalition/party - EPRDF 501, SPDP 24, BGPDUP 9, ANDP 8, GPUDM 3, APDO 1, HNL 1; composition - men 335, women 212, percent of women  38.8%; note - total Parliament percent of women 37.3%

note: House of Federation is responsible for interpreting the constitution and federal-regional issues and the House of People's Representatives is responsible for passing legislation
Judicial branchhighest courts: Supreme Court of South Sudan (consists of the chief and deputy chief justices, 9 other justices and normally organized into panels of 3 justices, except when sitting as a Constitutional panel of all 9 justices chaired by the chief justice)

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president upon proposal of the Judicial Service Council, a 9-member judicial and administrative body; justice tenure set by the National Legislature

subordinate courts: national level - Courts of Appeal; High Courts; County Courts; state level - High Courts; County Courts; customary courts; other specialized courts and tribunals
highest courts: Federal Supreme Court (consists of 11 judges); note - the House of Federation has jurisdiction for all constitutional issues

judge selection and term of office: president and vice president of Federal Supreme Court recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; other Supreme Court judges nominated by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council (a 10-member body chaired by the president of the Federal Supreme Court) and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; judges serve until retirement at age 60

subordinate courts: federal high courts and federal courts of first instance; state court systems (mirror structure of federal system); sharia courts and customary and traditional courts
Political parties and leadersDemocratic Change or DC [Onyoti Adigo NYIKWEC] (formerly Sudan People's Liberation Movement-Democratic Movement or SPLM-DC)
Sudan People's Liberation Movement or SPLM [Salva KIIR Mayardit]
Sudan People's Liberation Movement-In Opposition or SPLM-IO [Riek MACHAR Teny Dhurgon]
Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [Taha AHMED]
Argoba People Democratic Organization or APDO
Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Party or BGPDUP
Ethiopian Federal Democratic Unity Forum or MEDREK or FORUM [Beyene PETROS] (includes ESD-SCUP, OFC, SLM, and UTDS)
Ethiopia Citizens for Social Justice or ECSJ Party (formed in May 2019 from 7 other parties, including Patriotic Genbot 7, Ethiopian Democratic Party (EDP), All Ethiopian Democratic Party (AEDP), Semayawi Party, New Generation Party, Gambella Regional Movement (GRM), Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) Party [Berhanu Negu])
Prosperity Party or PP [ABIY Ahmed] (created in November 2019 from member parties of the former Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF, which included the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM),  Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO), Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement  (SEPDM), plus other ERPRF allies
Ethiopian Social Democracy-Southern Coalition Unity Party or ESD-SCUP
Gambella Peoples Unity Democratic Movement or GPUDM
Harari National League or HNL [Murad ABDULHADI]
Oromo Fderalist Congress or OFC
Sidama Liberaton Movement or SLM
Somali People's Democratic Party or SPDP
Union of Tigraians for Democracy & Sovergnty or UTDS
Tigray People's Liberation Front or TPLF [DEBRETSION Gebremichael] (note: de-registered by Ethiopian electoral board in Jan 2021)
Tigray Independence Party [Girmay BERHE] (2020)
International organization participationAU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOM, IPU, ITU, MIGA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMOACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UN Security Council (temporary), UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the USchief of mission: Ambassador Philip Jada NATANA (since 17 September 2018)

chancery: 1015 31st Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20007

telephone: [1] (202) 600-2238

FAX: [1] (202) 644-9910

email address and website:
info.ssdembassy@gmail.com

https://www.southsudanembassyusa.org/
chief of mission: Ambassador FISTUM Arega Gebrekidan (since 9 April 2019)

chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200

FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195

email address and website:
ethiopia@ethiopianembassy.org

https://ethiopianembassy.org/

consulate(s) general: Los Angeles

consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the USchief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission Jon F. DANILOWICZ (since September 2020)


embassy: Kololo Road adjacent to the EU's compound, Juba

mailing address: 4420 Juba Place, Washington DC  20521-4420

telephone: [211] 912-105-188

email address and website:
ACSJuba@state.gov

https://ss.usembassy.gov/
chief of mission: Ambassador Geeta PASI (since 1 March 2021)

 



embassy: Entoto Street, P.O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa

mailing address: 2030 Addis Ababa Place, Washington DC  20521-2030

telephone: [251] 111-30-60-00

FAX: [251] 111-24-24-01

email address and website:
AddisACS@state.gov

https://et.usembassy.gov/

Flag descriptionthree equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green; the red band is edged in white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side contains a gold, five-pointed star; black represents the people of South Sudan, red the blood shed in the struggle for freedom, green the verdant land, and blue the waters of the Nile; the gold star represents the unity of the states making up South Sudan

note: resembles the flag of Kenya; one of only two national flags to display six colors as part of its primary design, the other is South Africa's
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red, with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; green represents hope and the fertility of the land, yellow symbolizes justice and harmony, while red stands for sacrifice and heroism in the defense of the land; the blue of the disk symbolizes peace and the pentagram represents the unity and equality of the nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia

note: Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three main colors of her flag (adopted ca. 1895) were so often appropriated by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the Pan-African colors; the emblem in the center of the current flag was added in 1996
National anthemname: South Sudan Oyee! (Hooray!)

lyrics/music: collective of 49 poets/Juba University students and teachers

note: adopted 2011; anthem selected in a national contest
name: "Whedefit Gesgeshi Woud Enat Ethiopia" (March Forward, Dear Mother Ethiopia)

lyrics/music: DEREJE Melaku Mengesha/SOLOMON Lulu

note: adopted 1992
National symbol(s)African fish eagle; national colors: red, green, blue, yellow, black, whiteAbyssinian lion (traditional), yellow pentagram with five rays of light on a blue field (promoted by current government); national colors: green, yellow, red
Citizenshipcitizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of South Sudan

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years
citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Ethiopia

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years

Economy

South SudanEthiopia
Economy - overview

Industry and infrastructure in landlocked South Sudan are severely underdeveloped and poverty is widespread, following several decades of civil war with Sudan. Continued fighting within the new nation is disrupting what remains of the economy. The vast majority of the population is dependent on subsistence agriculture and humanitarian assistance. Property rights are insecure and price signals are weak, because markets are not well-organized.

South Sudan has little infrastructure - about 10,000 kilometers of roads, but just 2% of them paved. Electricity is produced mostly by costly diesel generators, and indoor plumbing and potable water are scarce, so less than 2% of the population has access to electricity. About 90% of consumed goods, capital, and services are imported from neighboring countries - mainly Uganda, Kenya and Sudan. Chinese investment plays a growing role in the infrastructure and energy sectors.

Nevertheless, South Sudan does have abundant natural resources. South Sudan holds one of the richest agricultural areas in Africa, with fertile soils and abundant water supplies. Currently the region supports 10-20 million head of cattle. At independence in 2011, South Sudan produced nearly three-fourths of former Sudan's total oil output of nearly a half million barrels per day. The Government of South Sudan relies on oil for the vast majority of its budget revenues, although oil production has fallen sharply since independence. South Sudan is one of the most oil-dependent countries in the world, with 98% of the government's annual operating budget and 80% of its gross domestic product (GDP) derived from oil. Oil is exported through a pipeline that runs to refineries and shipping facilities at Port Sudan on the Red Sea. The economy of South Sudan will remain linked to Sudan for some time, given the existing oil infrastructure. The outbreak of conflict in December 2013, combined with falling crude oil production and prices, meant that GDP fell significantly between 2014 and 2017. Since the second half of 2017 oil production has risen, and is currently about 130,000 barrels per day.

Poverty and food insecurity has risen due to displacement of people caused by the conflict. With famine spreading, 66% of the population in South Sudan is living on less than about $2 a day, up from 50.6% in 2009, according to the World Bank. About 80% of the population lives in rural areas, with agriculture, forestry and fishing providing the livelihood for a majority of the households. Much of rural sector activity is focused on low-input, low-output subsistence agriculture.

South Sudan is burdened by considerable debt because of increased military spending and high levels of government corruption. Economic mismanagement is prevalent. Civil servants, including police and the military, are not paid on time, creating incentives to engage in looting and banditry. South Sudan has received more than $11 billion in foreign aid since 2005, largely from the US, the UK, and the EU. Inflation peaked at over 800% per year in October 2016 but dropped to 118% in 2017. The government has funded its expenditures by borrowing from the central bank and foreign sources, using forward sales of oil as collateral. The central bank's decision to adopt a managed floating exchange rate regime in December 2015 triggered a 97% depreciation of the currency and spawned a growing black market.

Long-term challenges include rooting out public sector corruption, improving agricultural productivity, alleviating poverty and unemployment, improving fiscal transparency - particularly in regard to oil revenues, taming inflation, improving government revenues, and creating a rules-based business environment.

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.

GDP (purchasing power parity)$20.01 billion (2017 est.)

$21.1 billion (2016 est.)

$24.52 billion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$248.972 billion (2019 est.)

$229.755 billion (2018 est.)

$215.094 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - real growth rate-5.2% (2017 est.)

-13.9% (2016 est.)

-0.2% (2015 est.)
10.9% (2017 est.)

8% (2016 est.)

10.4% (2015 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$1,600 (2017 est.)

$1,700 (2016 est.)

$2,100 (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$2,221 (2019 est.)

$2,104 (2018 est.)

$2,022 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
Population below poverty line76.4% (2016 est.)23.5% (2015 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)187.9% (2017 est.)

379.8% (2016 est.)
15.7% (2019 est.)

13.9% (2018 est.)

10.8% (2017 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index46 (2010 est.)35 (2015 est.)

30 (2000)
Budgetrevenues: 259.6 million (FY2017/18 est.)

expenditures: 298.6 million (FY2017/18 est.)
revenues: 11.24 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 13.79 billion (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productsmilk, sorghum, vegetables, cassava, goat milk, fruit, beef, sesame seed, sheep milk, muttonmaize, cereals, wheat, sorghum, milk, barley, sweet potatoes, roots/tubers nes, sugar cane, millet
Exports$1.13 billion (2016 est.)$3.23 billion (2017 est.)

$2.814 billion (2016 est.)
Exports - commoditiescrude petroleum, gold, forage crops, lumber, insect resins (2019)coffee, sesame seeds, gold, cut flowers, zinc (2019)
Exports - partnersChina 88%, United Arab Emirates 5% (2019)China 17%, United States 16%, United Arab Emirates 8%, Saudi Arabia 6%, South Korea 5%, Germany 5% (2019)
Imports$3.795 billion (2016 est.)$15.59 billion (2017 est.)

$14.69 billion (2016 est.)
Imports - commoditiescars, delivery trucks, packaged medicines, foodstuffs, clothing and apparel (2019)aircraft, gas turbines, packaged medicines, electric filament, cars (2019)
Imports - partnersUnited Arab Emirates 37%, Kenya 18%, China 18% (2019)China 27%, India 9%, United Arab Emirates 9%, France 9%, United Kingdom 7% (2019)
Exchange ratesSouth Sudanese pounds (SSP) per US dollar -

0.885 (2017 est.)

0.903 (2016 est.)

0.9214 (2015 est.)

0.885 (2014 est.)

0.7634 (2013 est.)
birr (ETB) per US dollar -

25 (2017 est.)

21.732 (2016 est.)

21.732 (2015 est.)

21.55 (2014 est.)

19.8 (2013 est.)
Public debt62.7% of GDP (2017 est.)

86.6% of GDP (2016 est.)
54.2% of GDP (2017 est.)

53.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$73 million (31 December 2016 est.)$3.013 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$3.022 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance-$154 million (2017 est.)

$39 million (2016 est.)
-$6.551 billion (2017 est.)

-$6.574 billion (2016 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$3.06 billion (2017 est.)$92.154 billion (2019 est.)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 34.6 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 71 (2020)

Trading score: 26.2 (2020)

Enforcement score: 59 (2020)
Overall score: 48 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 71.7 (2020)

Trading score: 56 (2020)

Enforcement score: 62.8 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues8.5% (of GDP) (FY2017/18 est.)13.9% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-1.3% (of GDP) (FY2017/18 est.)-3.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24total: 38.6%

male: 39.5%

female: 37.4% (2017 est.)
total: 25.2%

male: 17.1%

female: 30.9% (2016 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 34.9% (2011 est.)

government consumption: 17.1% (2011 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 10.4% (2011 est.)

exports of goods and services: 64.9% (2011 est.)

imports of goods and services: -27.2% (2011 est.)
household 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.)
Gross national saving3.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

18.7% of GDP (2016 est.)

7.4% of GDP (2015 est.)
33.2% of GDP (2018 est.)

30.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

32.4% of GDP (2015 est.)

Energy

South SudanEthiopia
Electricity - production412.8 million kWh (2016 est.)11.15 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - consumption391.8 million kWh (2016 est.)9.062 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - exports0 kWh (2016 est.)166 million kWh (2015 est.)
Electricity - imports0 kWh (2016 est.)0 kWh (2016 est.)
Oil - production150,200 bbl/day (2017 est.)0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Oil - imports0 bbl/day (2015 est.)0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Oil - exports147,300 bbl/day (2015 est.)0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Oil - proved reserves3.75 billion bbl (1 January 2017 est.)428,000 bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves63.71 billion cu m (1 January 2016 est.)24.92 billion cu m (1 January 2018 est.)
Natural gas - production0 cu m (2017 est.)0 cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - consumption0 cu m (2017 est.)0 cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - exports0 cu m (2017 est.)0 cu m (2017 est.)
Natural gas - imports0 cu m (2017 est.)0 cu m (2017 est.)
Electricity - installed generating capacity80,400 kW (2016 est.)2.784 million kW (2016 est.)
Electricity - from fossil fuels100% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)3% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)86% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Electricity - from nuclear fuels0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Electricity - from other renewable sources1% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)11% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Refined petroleum products - production0 bbl/day (2017 est.)0 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Refined petroleum products - consumption8,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)74,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Refined petroleum products - exports0 bbl/day (2015 est.)0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Refined petroleum products - imports7,160 bbl/day (2015 est.)69,970 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Electricity accesselectrification - total population: 28.2% (2018)

electrification - urban areas: 46.8% (2018)

electrification - rural areas: 23.6% (2018)
electrification - total population: 47% (2019)

electrification - urban areas: 96% (2019)

electrification - rural areas: 34% (2019)

Telecommunications

South SudanEthiopia
Telephones - main lines in usesubscriptions per 100 inhabitants: less than 1 (2018 est.)total subscriptions: 1,095,946

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1.04 (2019 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellulartotal subscriptions: 2,221,967

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 21.61 (2019 est.)
total subscriptions: 38,147,361

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 36.2 (2019 est.)
Internet country code.ss.et
Internet userstotal: 814,326

percent of population: 7.98% (July 2018 est.)
total: 19,118,470

percent of population: 18.62% (July 2018 est.)
Telecommunication systemsgeneral assessment:

landlocked and war-torn with little infrastructure and electricity, Sudan has one of the least developed telecom and Internet systems in the world and one of the lowest mobile penetration rates in Africa; instability, widespread poverty, and low literacy rate all contribute to a struggling telecom sector; due to revenue losses, the few carriers in the market have reduced the areas in which they offer service; the government recognizes positive effects of ICT on development and is providing a range of investment incentives; international community provided billions in aid to help the young country; Chinese investment plays a growing role in the infrastructure build-out and energy sectors; by 2020, one operator had initiated e-money service; international fiber cable link from Juba to Mombasa will drive down costs of Internet; government utilizes unchecked power to conduct surveillance and monitor communications; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2021)

(2020)

domestic: fixed-line less than 1 per 100 subscriptions, mobile-cellular 33 per 100 persons (2019)

international: country code - 211 (2017)

note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments

general assessment:

telecom market challenged by political factionalism and reorganization of ruling party; despite some gains in access, Ethiopia remains one of the least-connected countries in the world; state-owned telecom held a monopoly over services until 2019 when government approved legislation and opened the market to competition and foreign investment; new expansion of LTE services; government reduced tariffs leading to increases in data and voice traffic; government launched mobile app as part of e-government initiative to build smart city; Huawei provides infrastructure to government operator and built data center in Addis Ababa; government disrupted service during political crises; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2020)

(2020)

domestic: fixed-line subscriptions at 1 per 100 while mobile-cellular stands at 36 per 100; the number of mobile telephones is increasing steadily (2019)

international: country code - 251; open-wire to Sudan and Djibouti; microwave radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; 2 domestic satellites provide the national trunk service; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Pacific Ocean) (2016)

note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments

Broadband - fixed subscriptionstotal: 200

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: less than 1 (2018 est.)
total: 580,120

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 1 (2017 est.)
Broadcast media

a single TV channel and a radio station are controlled by the government; several community and commercial FM stations are operational, mostly sponsored by outside aid donors; some foreign radio broadcasts are available

(2019)

6 public TV stations broadcasting nationally and 10 public radio broadcasters; 7 private radio stations and 19 community radio stations (2017)

Transportation

South SudanEthiopia
Railwaystotal: 248 km (2018)

note: a narrow gauge, single-track railroad between Babonosa (Sudan) and Wau, the only existing rail system, was repaired in 2010 with $250 million in UN funds, but is not currently operational
total: 659 km (Ethiopian segment of the 756 km Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) (2017)

standard gauge: 659 km 1.435-m gauge (2017)

note: electric railway with redundant power supplies; under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia and managed by a Chinese contractor
Roadwaystotal: 90,200 km (2019)

paved: 300 km (2019)

unpaved: 89,900 km (2019)

note: most of the road network is unpaved and much of it is in disrepair
total: 120,171 km (2018)
Airportstotal: 89 (2020)total: 57 (2013)
Airports - with paved runwaystotal: 4 (2020)

over 3,047 m: 1

2,438 to 3,047 m: 2

1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
total: 17 (2017)

over 3,047 m: 3 (2017)

2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 (2017)

1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2017)

under 914 m: 2 (2017)
Airports - with unpaved runwaystotal: 84 (2020)

2,438 to 3,047 m: 1

1,524 to 2,437 m: 12

914 to 1,523 m: 38

under 914 m: 33
total: 40 (2013)

2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2013)

1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 (2013)

914 to 1,523 m: 20 (2013)

under 914 m: 8 (2013)
National air transport systemnumber of registered air carriers: 2 (2020)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 2

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 0 mt-km
number of registered air carriers: 1 (2020)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 75

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 11,501,244 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 2,089,280,000 mt-km (2018)
Civil aircraft registration country code prefixZ8ET

Military

South SudanEthiopia
Military branchesSouth Sudan People's Defence Force (SSPDF): Ground Force (includes Presidential Guard), Air Force, Air Defense Forces (2021)Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian Air Force (Ye Ityopya Ayer Hayl, ETAF) (2020)

note(s): in January 2020 the Ethiopian Government announced it had re-established a navy, which was disbanded in 1996; in March 2019 Ethiopia signed a defense cooperation agreement with France which stipulated that France would support the establishment of an Ethiopian navy, which will reportedly be based out of Djibouti

in 2018, Ethiopia established a Republican Guard for protecting senior officials; the Republican Guard is a military unit accountable to the Prime Minister

Military service age and obligation18 is the legal minimum age for compulsory and voluntary military service; the Government of South Sudan signed agreements in March 2012 and August 2015 that included the demobilization of all child soldiers within the armed forces and opposition, but the recruitment of child soldiers by the warring parties continues; as of July 2019, UNICEF estimated that more than 19,000 child soldiers had been used in the country's civil war since it began in December 2013 (2019)18 years of age for voluntary military service; no compulsory military service, but the military can conduct callups when necessary and compliance is compulsory (2019)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP3.5% of GDP (2019 est.)

3.7% of GDP (2018 est.)

2.8% of GDP (2017 est.)

4.6% of GDP (2016 est.)

10.6% of GDP (2015 est.)
0.7% of GDP (2019 est.)

0.7% of GDP (2018 est.)

0.7% of GDP (2017 est.)

0.7% of GDP (2016 est.)

0.7% of GDP (2015 est.)
Military - notethe South Sudan People's Defense Force (SSPDF), formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), was founded as a guerrilla movement against the Sudanese Government in 1983 and participated in the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983-2005); the Juba Declaration that followed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005 unified the SPLA and the South Sudan Defense Forces (SSDF), the second-largest rebel militia remaining from the civil war, under the SPLA name; in 2017, the SPLA was renamed the South Sudan Defense Forces (SSDF) and in September 2018 was renamed again as the SSPDF

under the September 2018 peace agreement, all armed groups in South Sudan were to assemble at designated sites where fighters could be either disarmed and demobilized, or integrated into unified military and police forces; the unified forces were then to be retrained and deployed prior to the formation of a national unity government; all fighters were ordered to these sites in July 2019; some progress toward merging the various armed forces into a national army has been made; for example, in May 2020, South Sudan announced that it was graduating some unified forces at various training centers across the country, and in June the SSPDF incorporated some senior officers from the main opposition force, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement Army - in Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) into its rank structure; nevertheless, overall progress has been slow, and as of early 2021 armed clashes continued to occur between government forces and armed militant groups in several states

the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has operated in the country since 2011 with the objectives of consolidating peace and security and helping establish conditions for the successful economic and political development of South Sudan; UNMISS had more than 19,000 personnel, including about 14,000 troops, deployed in the country as of March 2021

United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) has operated in the disputed Abyei region along the border between Sudan and South Sudan since 2011; UNISFA's mission includes ensuring security, protecting civilians, strengthening the capacity of the Abyei Police Service, de-mining, monitoring/verifying the redeployment of armed forces from the area, and facilitating the flow of humanitarian aid; as of July 2021, UNISFA had some 3,800 personnel deployed
each of the nine states has a regional and/or a "special" paramilitary security forces that report to regional civilian authorities; local militias operate across the country in loose and varying coordination with these regional security and police forces, the Ethiopian Federal Police (EFP), and the Ethiopian military; the EFP reports to the Ministry of Peace, which was created in October of 2018

 

Military and security service personnel strengthsthe South Sudan People's Defense Force (SSPDF) has an estimated 150-200,000 active personnel, mostly ground forces with small contingents of air and riverine forces (2021)

note - some active SSPDF personnel may be militia
information varies; approximately 150,000 active duty troops, including about 3,000 Air Force personnel (no personnel numbers available for the newly-established Navy) (2020)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitionsthe SSPDF inventory is primarily of Soviet origin; from 2010 to 2015, Russia and the United Arab Emirates were the leading suppliers of arms and equipment; South Sudan has been under a UN arms embargo since 2018 (2020)the ENDF's inventory is comprised mostly of Soviet-era equipment from the 1970s; since 2010, Russia and Ukraine are the leading suppliers of largely second-hand weapons and equipment to the ENDF, followed by China and Hungary; Ethiopia has a modest industrial defense base centered on small arms and production of armored vehicles (2020)

Transnational Issues

South SudanEthiopia
Disputes - international

South Sudan-Sudan boundary represents 1 January 1956 alignment, final alignment pending negotiations and demarcation; final sovereignty status of Abyei Area pending negotiations between South Sudan and Sudan; periodic violent skirmishes with South Sudanese residents over water and grazing rights persist among related pastoral populations along the border with the Central African Republic; the boundary that separates Kenya and South Sudan's sovereignty is unclear in the "Ilemi Triangle," which Kenya has administered since colonial times

Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but neither party responded to the revised line detailed in the November 2006 EEBC Demarcation Statement; the undemarcated former British administrative line has little meaning as a political separation to rival clans within Ethiopia's Ogaden and southern Somalia's Oromo region; Ethiopian forces invaded southern Somalia and routed Islamist courts from Mogadishu in January 2007; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities in Berbera and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; civil unrest in eastern Sudan has hampered efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia; Ethiopia's construction of a large dam (the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam) on the Blue Nile since 2011 has become a focal point of relations with Egypt and Sudan; as of 2020, four years of three-way talks between the three capitals over operating the dam and filling its reservoir had made little progress; Ethiopia began filling the dam in July 2020

Refugees and internally displaced personsrefugees (country of origin): 296,762 (Sudan), 16,985 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (2021)

IDPs: 1,436,000 (alleged coup attempt and ethnic conflict beginning in December 2013; information is lacking on those displaced in earlier years by: fighting in Abyei between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in May 2011; clashes between the SPLA and dissident militia groups in South Sudan; inter-ethnic conflicts over resources and cattle; attacks from the Lord's Resistance Army; floods and drought) (2020)

stateless persons: 10,000 (2020)
refugees (country of origin): 374,680 (South Sudan), 212,236 (Somalia), 172,768 (Eritrea), 45,648 (Sudan) (2021)

IDPs: 1,990,168 (includes conflict- and climate-induced IDPs, excluding unverified estimates from the Amhara region; border war with Eritrea from 1998-2000; ethnic clashes; and ongoing fighting between the Ethiopian military and separatist rebel groups in the Somali and Oromia regions; natural disasters; intercommunal violence; most IDPs live in Sumale state) (2021)

Environment

South SudanEthiopia
Air pollutantsparticulate matter emissions: 41.12 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 1.73 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 7.61 megatons (2020 est.)
particulate matter emissions: 34.36 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 14.87 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 114.21 megatons (2020 est.)
Total water withdrawalmunicipal: 193 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial: 225 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 240 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
municipal: 810 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial: 51.1 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 9.687 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Revenue from forest resourcesforest revenues: 2.65% of GDP (2015 est.)forest revenues: 5.81% of GDP (2018 est.)
Waste and recyclingmunicipal solid waste generated annually: 2,680,681 tons (2013 est.)municipal solid waste generated annually: 6,532,787 tons (2015 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook