ERITERA

Eritrea is a country in northern East Africa. The name is derived from the Latin word for Red Sea, Mare Erythraeum, itself derived from a similar Greek word meaning "red". The country is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast. The east and northeast of the country have an extensive coastline on the Red Sea, directly across from Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The Dahlak Archipelago and several of the Hanish Islands are part of Eritrea.

Location

Horu of Africa (Central Eastern Africa). Sudan is to the north and west, Red Sea to the east, Djibouti and Ethiopia to the south.

Geography

Strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993.

Capital

Asmara

Population

4,786,994

Climate

Hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually, heaviest June to September); semiarid in western hills and lowlands.

Language

Afar, Bilen, Kunama, Nara, Arabic, Tobedawi, Saho, Tigre, Tigrinya

Monetary Unit

Birr

Largest Cities

The ports of Massawa and Assab

Places to Visit

Asmara, Massawa, Assab