BACKGROUND :
Africa covers 6 per cent of the surface of the Earth and provides 20.4 per cent
of Earth’s landmass. Occupying this massive and significant territory there are
1.1 Billion people. Africa is the second largest and second most populous
continent on Earth.
HUMBLE CONFESSION :
As you will have noticed, I have paused in my "discovery" research of Africa and , far from doing one country per week, I have not done one country in the last 7 weeks : Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa! I can only plead the lead up to my 75th Birthday which became pre-occupying one way and another, and of course Holy Week and Easter. So now I have to catch up, and at different times I will be doing 2 countries per week.
HUMBLE CONFESSION :
As you will have noticed, I have paused in my "discovery" research of Africa and , far from doing one country per week, I have not done one country in the last 7 weeks : Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa! I can only plead the lead up to my 75th Birthday which became pre-occupying one way and another, and of course Holy Week and Easter. So now I have to catch up, and at different times I will be doing 2 countries per week.
ERITREA
Bordered by Djibouti , which we last "visited" , in the South East, by Ethiopia in the South, by Sudan in the West and in the North East and East by the Red Sea, Eritrea has as its capital the city of Asmara which is located inland approximately in the middle of the country opposite the Port city of Massawa.
It is the 101st largest country in the World and the 34th largest in Africa. By population, it is the 106th largest country in the world and the 33rd largest country in Africa.
Wth some 6,000,000 inhabitants, of nine recognised ethnic groups, Eritrea has a policy of recognising only four "official" religious groups : the Eritrean Orthodox, Catholics, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Eritrea and Sunni Mohammedans. Adherents of other religions risk arrest! Whilst the Government claims the country is 50% Christian and 50% Sunni Mohammedan, there are suggestions by an NGO that the true situation is 63% Christian and 37% Mohammedan. The same body claims that 57% of the population is Orthodox, 4% Catholic and 1-2 % is Protestant including Evangelical Lutherans and all others. the Mohammedans are concentrated in the Eastern and Western lowlands , whilst the Christians mainly occupy the central highlands. It is estimated that 1,500 adherents of non-"official" religions are held in prison.
History tells us that there are records of civilisation here dating back to around 980 B.C.and even further for it believed to have formed part o what the ancient Egyptians termed the land of Punt. In the first or second century A.D. present day Eritrea was the ancient Kingdom of Aksum. In about A.D.600 just as Mohammedanism was being founded and beginning its wars of conquest, the Kingdom became Christian. In medieval times different Mohammedan Empires controlled parts of Eritrea. The following centuries were subject to the tedious Mohammedan internal strife fragmenting the area until the Turkish Ottoman Empire gained sway only to collapse in the last Century .In 1947 Eritrea was federated with Ethiopia, but after a few years Ethiopia absorbed Eritrea, which did not regain its independence until Eritreans fought a war of independence ending in a referendum in 1993. Although this was won by the independence voters, the war continued against Ethiopia until 1998 -2000.Along the way skirmishes had taken place with Djibouti.
The economy is not huge at US 5 Billions per annum made up of 11.7% Agriculture, 26.9% Industry and 61.4 % Services. The labour force of 3,000,000 is devoted to Agriculture 80% and Industry and Services 20 %.
The country is rated among those in which it is most difficult to do business, and this is not surprising give the authoritarian streak shown in matters of Religion.
Wth some 6,000,000 inhabitants, of nine recognised ethnic groups, Eritrea has a policy of recognising only four "official" religious groups : the Eritrean Orthodox, Catholics, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Eritrea and Sunni Mohammedans. Adherents of other religions risk arrest! Whilst the Government claims the country is 50% Christian and 50% Sunni Mohammedan, there are suggestions by an NGO that the true situation is 63% Christian and 37% Mohammedan. The same body claims that 57% of the population is Orthodox, 4% Catholic and 1-2 % is Protestant including Evangelical Lutherans and all others. the Mohammedans are concentrated in the Eastern and Western lowlands , whilst the Christians mainly occupy the central highlands. It is estimated that 1,500 adherents of non-"official" religions are held in prison.
History tells us that there are records of civilisation here dating back to around 980 B.C.and even further for it believed to have formed part o what the ancient Egyptians termed the land of Punt. In the first or second century A.D. present day Eritrea was the ancient Kingdom of Aksum. In about A.D.600 just as Mohammedanism was being founded and beginning its wars of conquest, the Kingdom became Christian. In medieval times different Mohammedan Empires controlled parts of Eritrea. The following centuries were subject to the tedious Mohammedan internal strife fragmenting the area until the Turkish Ottoman Empire gained sway only to collapse in the last Century .In 1947 Eritrea was federated with Ethiopia, but after a few years Ethiopia absorbed Eritrea, which did not regain its independence until Eritreans fought a war of independence ending in a referendum in 1993. Although this was won by the independence voters, the war continued against Ethiopia until 1998 -2000.Along the way skirmishes had taken place with Djibouti.
The economy is not huge at US 5 Billions per annum made up of 11.7% Agriculture, 26.9% Industry and 61.4 % Services. The labour force of 3,000,000 is devoted to Agriculture 80% and Industry and Services 20 %.
The country is rated among those in which it is most difficult to do business, and this is not surprising give the authoritarian streak shown in matters of Religion.
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