Ethiopia





The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is a nation of northeastern
Africa. Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian
monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule, one exception being the
Italian occupation of 1936-41. In 1974 a military junta, the Derg, deposed
Emperor Haile Selassie (who had ruled since 1930) and established a
socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and
massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled by a coalition of
rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF),
in 1991. A constitution was adopted in 1994 and Ethiopia's first multiparty
elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea that erupted in May
1998 has strengthened the ruling coalition, but has hurt the nation's economy.

The capital is Addis Ababa.