Muslims and Coptic Christians are about equal in number. Only about 25 percent of the adult population is literate. In the mid-1990s, primary schools enrolled some 241,700 students, and secondary schools had about 78,900. Economy Like Ethiopia, Eritrea is among the world's poorest countries. Agriculture dominates the economy, but rainfall is scarce, and drought is a constant threat.
Many people live as pastoral nomads, although irrigated farming has increased in recent years.
Asmara has some light industry. Government National anthem of Eritrea Eritrea's government was in transition in the late 1990s. Legislative power is vested in the unicameral, 150-member National Assembly, which elects the president. A new constitution was promulgated in 1997, but promised elections were postponed. It flourished as a semi-independent state under nominal Ethiopian sovereignty until annexed in the 16th century by the Ottoman Empire.