Given its magnitude and indefinite duration, the ENS has affected, directly or indirectly, every aspect of Eritrean society's economic, social, cultural and political life. Nevertheless, in any socially and economically differentiated society, where power is concentrated on an unelected personal ruler and a few of his cronies, none of whom is accountable to citizens, and where actual and perceived levels of corruption are rife (Chapter 7), the impact of an open-ended national service on various sectors of society is likely to be highly differentiated.

Drawing on the experiences and perceptions of the respondents and the key informants, who served on average six years before fleeing the country, and supplemented by data derived from studies conducted by United Nations agencies, the International Monetary Fund (2003), the World Bank (2002b), the African Development Bank and independent analysts, this chapter assesses the overarching impacts of the national service on all aspects of Eritrean society. As expected, the conscripts, notwithstanding their shared experiences throughout the time they served in the national service in a variety of capacities, do not speak with a single voice. The ENS has profound impacts on the social fabric of the country. Here these impacts are documented and examined in detail. The incidence of sexual violence perpetrated by military commanders and military trainers against female conscripts is also discussed briefly. The question of sexual violence perpetrated by male conscripts against female servers is beyond the scope of the book. (On sexual violence see Kibreab 2017). The chapter also discusses the level of militarisation and securitisation of the educational system in the country. The plight of conscripts who suffer at the hands of ruthless traffickers and smugglers while en route to Israel via eastern Sudan and the Sinai desert, as well as to the EU+ countries through Ethiopia, Sudan, the Sahara desert, Libya and the Mediterranean Sea are discussed very briefly in the chapter.

THE IMPACT OF THE ENS ON THE COUNTRY

Since one of the main aims of the ENS is to (re)construct the war-torn economy of the country, the respondents were asked to assess the impact of the ENS on Eritrea's economy.