Comparison Of Ethiopia And Mali

A Brief Overview of the History of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the most unique among African countries for maintaining its freedom from colonial rule, with the short exception of an occupation by the Italians from 1936-1941. A socialist state was established in 1974 with the overthrow of Emperor Selassie, who had been in control since 1930. A junta or group of military officers called the Derg was responsible for the coup. Yet, this corrupt administration has lead only to warfare and wide scale public suffering. In 1991, the junta was finally brought down by a combination of revolutionary forces who called themselves the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front. In 1994, a constitution was drafted and 1995 marked Ethiopia's first multiparty elections. Recently, a boarder feud with Eritrea, that lasted over 2 years, was ended in December of 2000; yet recent objections by Ethiopia have delayed a final declaration of border.

The landlocked country of Ethiopia is located in east Africa, just west of Somalia, and is roughly twice the size of Texas . Ethiopia's natural resources include platinum, copper, and small reserves of gold. Only .65% of the land is suitable and allotted for permanent crops. Ethiopia is currently facing several environmental concerns including deforestation, overgrazing, soil erosion, and water shortages due to poor management of water-intensive farming. Ethiopia's population is in excess of 66 million. Ethiopia is home to numerous ethnic groups, the largest being Oromo, which accounts for 40% of the population. About half of the Ethiopian population is Muslim, with the majority of the other half practicing Ethiopian Orthodox. Ethiopia's government is a federal republic which grants its citizens voting rights at 18 years of age. Currently, Ethiopia faces the problem of attempting to control the illicit drugs that come through the country, as it acts as a hub for the transportation of heroin and cocaine.

A Brief Overview of the History of Mali

Mali became a French colony in 1904 and was renamed French Sudan. In June of 1960, it gained its' independence and became known as the Sudanese Republic. The Sudanese Republic associated with the Republic of Senegal under one federation. In August of 1960, Senegal broke off connections with the federation, and the Sudanese Republic changed its name to The Republic of Mali. In the late 1960's, the government was overthrown and Mali was placed under military rule. This rule was ended in 1991 and by 1992 Mali announced its first democratically elected president.

Mali is located in western Africa and is nearly twice the size of Texas . Mali has several valuable natural resources including gold, salt, limestone, and uranium. Only .04% of Mali's land is suitable for permanent crops. Poaching, deforestation, and soil-erosion are all extensive environmental problems that Mali is faced with. Mali's population is slightly over 11.5 million and has a growth rate of 2.82%. The vast majority of Malians are Muslim (Over 90%) and French is the official language. Mali's government is a republic which grants voting rights to its citizens at 18 years of age. One of Mali's current international issues is that of bandits in Mali attacking southern Algerian towns.

Implications of the HDI Report - Ethiopia and Mali

HDI is short for human development index, which is used to measure accomplishments in life expectancy, education, and real income . Ethiopia received an HDI of .359 (out of 1), ranking it as #169, slightly better than Mali's HDI value of .337 and ranking of #172. The following is a detailed comparison of more explicit factors. Infant mortality has been a habitual problem in many developing nations. Ethiopia has an infant mortality rate of 166 per every 1,000 births. Mali's is considerably better at only 141 per 1,000 births. Life Expectancy is another factor used measure a countries development. Ethiopia has a life expectancy of 45.7 years, while Mali has a slightly better life expectancy of 48.4 years. A significant difference that exists between Mali and Ethiopia is the literacy rate. Ethiopia enjoys a 40.3% adult literacy rate while Mali only has a 26.4% adult literacy rate. Population growth rates are very comparable among the two countries. Ethiopia has a 2.7% population growth rate while Mali's is at 2.6%. HIV/AIDS is another major concern for developing nations. Only 1.65% of Mali's population is living with HIV/AIDS while 6.41% of Ethiopia's population is living with HIV/AIDS. Economic performance is most often measured through the GDP, or the total dollar value of all the goods produced by the country. Ethiopia has a GDP of 6.2 billion (USD) while Mali has a GDP of 2.6 billion. The following table summarizes the results

Indicators Ethiopia Mali

HDI Index 0.359 0.337

Infant Mortality 166 141

Life Expectancy 45.7 48.4

Literacy Rate 40.3 26.4

Population Growth 2.7 2.6

AIDS 6.41 1.65

GDP (In Billions) $6.20 $2.60

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The Poverty Problems of Ethiopia

Poverty is perhaps the most chronic and debilitating problem that the developing world faces. Extensive poverty exists in Ethiopia, the HDI report states that 81.9% of the population is living in extreme poverty. Extreme poverty can be defined as living on less than 1 U.S. dollar per day. Although the vast majority of the Ethiopian population is living in extreme poverty, the highest percentages of income earners exude culture and a rich lifestyle. Ethiopia's economy is extremely dependent upon agricultural, which accounts for 45% of the GDP . Coffee, qat, hides, and skins make up 80% of all exports from Ethiopia. Coffee is Ethiopia's most valuable export, earning the most in foreign markets. Industry only makes up 11% of Ethiopia's GDP, with the other 43% being accounted for by services.

Dependence on agriculture makes the country's economic condition an unstable phenomenon at best. Many external forces can disrupt agriculture; weather plays a key role, namely droughts, which have the ability to devastate Ethiopia's agricultural wellbeing. Another constant external threat is commodity price fluctuations. Ethiopia's two year boarder war with Eritrea has resulted in major economic set backs, but the recently