Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Ethiopia: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna grade (MCB, ranked #102 of 195).
Ethiopia — in Eastern Africa, west of Somalia. Political status: federal parliamentary republic. The country's capital is Addis Ababa; it covers 1,104,300 sq km. Independence: oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world, at least 2,000 years; may be traced to the Aksumite Kingdom, which appeared in the first century B.C.. Terrain: high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley. Climate: tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation. Population: 121.4 million (2025 estimate). Population growth: +2.34% per year. Median age: 20.6 years. Life expectancy: 67.7 years (2024 est.). Languages: Oromo (official regional working language) 33…
| Capital | Addis Ababa |
|---|---|
| Population | 121,372,632 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $380.895 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $2,900 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 7.3% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 21.0% |
| Unemployment | 3.4% |
| Public debt | 31.4% of GDP (2019 est.) |
| Exports | $10.865 billion (2023 est.) |
| Imports | $22.951 billion (2023 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 67.7 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 20.6 |
| Urbanization | 23.2% of total population (2023) |
| Government | federal parliamentary republic |
| Independence | oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world, at least 2,000 years; may be traced to the Aksumite Kingdom, which appeared in the first century B.C. |
| Languages | Oromo (official regional working language) 33.8%, Amharic (official national language) 29.3%, Somali (official regional working language) 6.2%, Tigrigna (Tigrinya) (official regional working language) 5.9%, Sidamo 4%, Wolaytta 2.2%, Gurage 2%, Afar (official regional working language) 1.7%, Hadiyya 1.7%, Gamo 1.5%, Gedeo 1.3%, Opuuo 1.2%, Kafa 1.1%, other 8.1%, English (2007 est.) |
MCB · 47/100 — The Magna grade is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — five dimensions, 100+ indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
An uneventful quarter, recorded without embellishment: no breakthrough to celebrate, no setback to mourn.
The longer forces — demographics, trade routes, regional balances — kept doing what they do, and the country rode them steadily.
Platinum, Copper, Potash, Natural gas, Hydropower.
Abiy Ahmed — Prime Minister. President TAYE Atske Selassie (since 7 October 2024)
Ethiopia maintains 43 embassies and 9 consulates abroad, hosts 115 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, AU Addis Ababa. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 43 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 9 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 115 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, AU Addis Ababa |
Source: Consular Affairs Center, Diplomatic and Consular Networks Database and Rankings, January 2026 (Zenodo, CC BY 4.0). https://zenodo.org/records/18109976
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Landlocked — no seacoast; exports move through transit corridors across neighbouring countries. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 58 + 1 heliports (registration prefix ET) |
| Railways | 659 km |
Aba Tenna Dejazmach Yilma International Airport (DIR) — Dire Dawa; Addis Ababa Bole International Airport (ADD) — Addis Ababa; Gerad Wilwal International Airport (JIJ) — Jijiga; Hawassa International Airport (AWA) — Hawassa; Arba Minch Airport (AMH) — Arba Minch; Asosa Airport (ASO) — Asosa; Axum Airport (AXU) — Axum; Bahir Dar Airport (BJR) — Bahir Dar; Gambela Airport (GMB) — Gambela; Gode Airport (GDE) — Gode.
Showing 10 of 15 major airports.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | federal parliamentary republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
MCB · 47 Ranked #102 of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Ethiopia.
Historical timeline of Ethiopia
