Ethiopia

Economy - overview:
Ethiopia’s poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture, accounting for almost half of GDP, 60% of exports, and 80% of total employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian economy with exports of some $350 million in 2006, but historically low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to supplement income. The war with Eritrea in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have buffeted the economy, in particular coffee production. In November 2001, Ethiopia qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in December 2005 the IMF voted to forgive Ethiopia’s debt to the body. Under Ethiopia’s constitution, the state owns all land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; the system continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector as entrepreneurs are unable to use land as collateral for loans. Drought struck again late in 2002, leading to a 3.3% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather patterns helped agricultural and GDP growth recover during 2004-08.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$66.29 billion (2008 est.)
$61.09 billion (2007)
$54.99 billion (2006)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$25.08 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
8.5% (2008 est.)
11.1% (2007 est.)
10.9% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$800 (2008 est.)
$800 (2007 est.)
$700 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 45.9%
industry: 12.9%
services: 41.2% (2008 est.)
Labor force:
27.27 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 80.2%
industry: 6.6%
services: 13.2% (2005)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.9%
highest 10%: 25.5% (2000)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
30 (2000)
Investment (gross fixed):
25.4% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $4.586 billion
expenditures: $5.729 billion (2008 est.)
Public debt:
34.4% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
41% (2008 est.)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
7% (31 December 2006)
Stock of money:
$3.651 billion (31 December 2006)
Stock of quasi money:
$3.258 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$6.694 billion (31 December 2006)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA
Agriculture - products:
cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qat, cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Industries:
food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals processing, cement
Industrial production growth rate:
6% (2008 est.)
Electricity - production:
3.268 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
2.941 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production:
7.334 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
30,450 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
29,820 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:
428,000 bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
24.92 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:
-$1.609 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:
$1.439 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:
coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds
Exports - partners:
Germany 8.2%, Saudi Arabia 7%, US 6.9%, Djibouti 6.6%, China 6.5%, Italy 6.5%, Japan 5.9%, Netherlands 4.8% (2007)
Imports:
$6.218 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:
food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles
Imports - partners:
Saudi Arabia 17%, China 15.9%, India 7.8%, Italy 5.1% (2007)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.008 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$3.158 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Exchange rates:
birr (ETB) per US dollar - 9.57 (2008 est.), 8.96 (2007), 8.69 (2006), 8.68 (2005), 8.6356 (2004)
note: since 24 October 2001, exchange rates are determined on a daily basis via interbank transactions regulated by the Central Bank