Asmara - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the relative size of the expatriate community? How would you describe overall morale among expatriates?
Small community, overall pretty good morale. The type of people who come to Asmara are usually well prepared for the hardships. - Apr 2021
It's a small, tight-knit community. Morale is good. - Dec 2019
The expat community is richly inter-connected, with lots of opportunities to socialize with members of other organizations. I don't really know the size, but I'd guess probably about 100 or so people. The Italian community is the largest single group, and a bit of a community unto itself, though we certainly do interact with them. Alleance Francaise has a weekly movie night (customarily French movies with English subtitles) at which the whole expat community is welcome. The American Center also shows movies, perhaps monthly. There is a weekly Sunday morning hiking club, whose listserv is often used to publicize other events and opportunities in the local expat community. - Feb 2019
About 17 embassies plus several UN agencies make a decent size expat community that is super friendly. It’s easy to make friends and find things in common to do, like hiking or playing football. There is a hiking group that meets every Sunday. Morale is pretty good. - Sep 2018
When I was there the morale of the expat community was high. There were about 50 core expats. We all got along. Different people would host lunches, dinners, etc. at their residences. People would often throw parties at their residences. Most of the people who were there with me have moved on, so that dynamic of Eritrea really ebbs and flows. You would have to reach out to someone there to see what it was like. The Chief of Mission at the time put a priority on post morale, because in many respects it was a difficult place to work. - Dec 2016
Small and getting smaller as NGO's and others are being expelled by the local government. - Aug 2007
