Eritrea

Eritrea has a mixed legal system of civil, customary, and Islamic law. Eritrea has three types of courts: Civil, Special, and Military. The Eritrean Constitution sits at the top of the hierarchy of the Eritrean laws. The amended codes adopted from Ethiopia are next in the hierarchy, followed by regulations issued by Ministries.

Country overview

Population

5.9m

President

Isaias Afewerki

Capital city

Asmara (0.65m people)

Other major cities

Keren (0.07m people), Massawa (0.02m people) and Assab (0.02m people)

Major industries

Agriculture, metal mining (gold, silver, copper and zinc with huge potash potential)

Currency

Nakfa

Languages

Tigrigna, Tigre, Arabic and English

Major religions

Christianity, Islam and Judaism

Capital Markets

There are no comprehensive capital market laws.

Completion regulation

There are laws governing unfair trade practices.

Corruption / transparency

Corruption Perception Index rank worldwide for 2017

165

Corruption Perception Index score for 2017

General

There are provisions in the Penal Code that punish corruption and embezzlement. A Special Court has been established to adjudicate on matters of theft, corruption and embezzlement.

Disputes

Courts are functional. Cases are mainly resolved under basic laws (Codes) as well as relevant Proclamations. There are procedural laws governing court procedures.

Mediation and conciliation are encouraged. Arbitration is enforced with equal power as court judgments.

Foreign investments

Foreign investments are allowed except in retail and trading. Standards protections and guarantees apply to foreign investments.

Enforcement of arbitral awards

Local arbitral awards are enforceable. Foreign arbitral awards are enforceable only with countries that have reciprocal arrangements.

Taxation

Taxation takes the form of income tax, sales and excise tax, business income tax, tax on the rent of movables and immovables, agricultural income tax, mining tax, municipal tax and stamp duty.