Ethiopia Flag adopted February 6 th of 1996 Green bar represents abundance Yellow bar represents religious freedom Red bar represents blood split for the country Star’s rays represent equality and promise for future The star’s blue background represents peace and democracy

About Ethiopia Landlocked and mountainous country on the horn of Africa Population 85.2 million and growing by 3.2% annually Size of country is about the same as California and Texas combined Amharic, a language related to Hebrew and Arabic is the official language English is taught in secondary education but only educated urban elite can speak it

History Oldest independent country in Africa with human remains dating back 5 million years 1700’s “Era of Princess” 1869 Emperor s became significant unified force 1975 social govt. in name and military in style 1990’s provisional govt. Today heavy-handed govt. (dictator style) has cast doubts on democracy 2006 officially declared war on Somalia

Religion/Culture 45% of the population belong to the Ethiopia Orthodox Church 35% are Muslims Music and dance play a significant role in culture celebrating feast days each month remembering angels, saints and religious fathers

Economy Over 80% of the population works in agriculture Only 10% of land is fit for growing crops Rural wealth is measured by the size of one’s herd Coffee accounts for more than half of all exports Drought, soil erosion, and war have all contributed to the poor economy and periodic famines Poverty and hunger run rampant

Poverty Malnutrition is responsible for over half of the deaths of children five years and younger Approximately 1.5 million people have HIV Ethiopia is home to over 4 million orphans Most people do not have safe drinking water or adequate sanitation

Health

Education Less than half of school aged children are enrolled Schools are overcrowded even with 4-hour split shifts Only 1/3 of all students complete primary school Most children not enrolled in school work to support the family

Literacy

Cultural Taboo Showing too much skin (modest society) Discussing finances Being aggressive, loud, demanding (demonstrates poor character) A reasonable distance is kept and prolonged eye contact is avoided during conversations Pointing with a finger or foot Thrilling of tongue is an expression of excitement or happiness Slow nods of the head indicate sadness while quicker nods indicate agreement

Migration From 1960 to 2000 the number of African immigrants in US grew from 33,355 to 1.4 million with biggest growth since 1990 Most immigrants into the US are from Nigeria, (13.1%), Egypt (9.6%), and Ethiopia (9.5%)

References Africa, 11 th Edition, Gemma Pitcher and David Andrew, 2007 Ethiopia and Eritrea, 4 th Edition; Jean-Bernard Carillet and Stuart Butler, Lonely Planet 2009 U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration Statistics, Annual Flow Report Ethiopia—Culture Smart! The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture, Sarah Howard; Kuperard Publishing, 2009 Culturegram, Cary Public Library Database