transitional government note: following a successful referendum on independence for the Autonomous Region of Eritrea on 23-25 April 1993, a National Assembly, composed entirely of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, was established as a transitional legislature; a Constitutional Commission was also established to draft a constitution; ISAIAS Afworki was elected president by the transitional legislature; the constitution, ratified in May 1997, did not enter into effect, pending parliamentary and presidential elections; parliamentary elections were scheduled in December 2001, but were postponed indefinitely; currently the sole legal party is the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)
Independence date
9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from the Ottoman Empire; independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin); 26 March 1881 (kingdom proclaimed); 30 December 1947 (republic proclaimed)
Religions
Eastern Orthodox (including all sub-denominations) 86.8%, Protestant (various denominations including Reformate and Pentecostal) 7.5%, Roman Catholic 4.7%, other (mostly Muslim) and unspecified 0.9%, none 0.1% (2002 census)
Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Languages
Romanian 91% (official), Hungarian 6.7%, Romany (Gypsy) 1.1%, other 1.2%
Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages
Exports
machinery and equipment, textiles and footwear, metals and metal products, machinery and equipment, minerals and fuels, chemicals, agricultural products
External Debt
$136,100,000,000 $
Exchange Rate
lei (RON) per US dollar - 2.5 (2008 est.), 2.43 (2007), 2.809 (2006), 3 (2005), 3 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.900%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
8
0
Location
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Ukraine
Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Area
238,391 km sq
117,600 km sq
Coastline
225 km
2,234 km
Climate
temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms
hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually, heaviest June to September); semiarid in western hills and lowlands
