Ethiopia

Ethiopia Country Profile

Ethiopia is a country in Eastern Africa located on the Horn of Africa, covering an area of 1,104,300 sq. km. It is landlocked and shares borders with Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. With a population of over 116 million, the official language is Amharic, but at least 12 other languages are spoken in the country with many Regional States having their own official working language.

Geography & Wildlife

The climate of Ethiopia is generally tropical monsoon but with topographic-induced variation. Within Ethiopia is a vast highland complex of mountains and dissected plateaus divided by the Great Rift Valley, which runs generally southwest to northeast and is surrounded by lowlands, steppes, or semi-desert.

There is a great diversity of terrain with wide variations in climate, soils, natural vegetation and settlement patterns.

Ethiopia is an ecologically diverse country, ranging from the deserts along the eastern border to the tropical forests in the south to extensive Afromontane in the northern and southwestern parts.

It also has 31 endemic species, notably the gelada, the walia ibex and the Ethiopian wolf. The wide range of altitude has given the country a variety of ecologically distinct areas, and this has helped to encourage the evolution of endemic species in ecological isolation.

Main Conservation Challenges

Deforestation; 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.