Map of Djibouti | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became Djibouti in 1977. A peace accord in 1994 ended a three-year uprising by Afars rebels.


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Location: Eastern Africa bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea between Eritrea and Somalia

Geographic coordinates: 11 30 N 43 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 23,000 km²
Water: 20 km²
Land: 22,980 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Massachusetts

Land boundaries
Total: 516 km
Border countries: (3) Eritrea 109 km; , Ethiopia 349 km; , Somalia 58 km

Coastline: 314 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 NM
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: desert; torrid dry

Terrain: coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Lac Assal -155 m
Extremes highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m

Natural resources: geothermal areas

Land use
Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Other: 100% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 10 km² (1998 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods

Geography
Note: strategic location near world's busiest shipping lanes and close to Arabian oilfields; terminus of rail traffic into Ethiopia; mostly wasteland; Lac Assal (Lake Assal) is the lowest point in Africa


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Population: 472,810 (July 2002 est.)
Growth rate: 2.59% (2002 est.)
Below poverty line: 50% (2001 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Djiboutian
Adjective: Djiboutian

Ethnic groups: Somali 60% Afar 35% French Arab Ethiopian and Italian 5%

Languages: French (official) Arabic (official) Somali Afar

Religions: Muslim 94% Christian 6%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 42.6% (male 100,903; female 100,420)
15-64 years: 54.5% (male 135,409; female 122,209)
65 years and over: 2.9% (male 7,220; female 6,649) (2002 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 2.59% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 40.33 births/1000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 14.43 deaths/1000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2002 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; endangered species
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 1 male/female
15-64 years: 1.11 male/female
65 years and over: 1.09 male/female
Total population: 1.06 male/female (2002 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 99.7 deaths/1000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 51.6 years
Female: 53.52 years (2002 est.)
Male: 49.73 years

Total fertility rate: 5.64 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 11.75% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 37,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 4,400 (2002 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 46.2%
Male: 60.3%
Female: 32.7% (1995 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti
Conventional short form: Djibouti
Former: French Territory of the Afars and Issas, French Somaliland

Government type: republic

Capital: Djibouti

Administrative divisions: 5 districts (cercles singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih Dikhil Djibouti Obock Tadjoura

Dependent areas

Independence: 27 June 1977 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day 27 June (1977)

Constitution: multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992

Legal system: based on French civil law system traditional practices and Islamic law

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal adult

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999)
Head of government: Prime Minister DILEITA Mohamed Dileita (since 4 March 2001)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 9 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Ismail Omar GUELLEH elected president; percent of vote - Ismail Omar GUELLEH 74.4%, IDRIS Moussa Ahmed 25.6%

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 10 January 2003 (next to be held NA January 2008)
Election results: percent of vote - RPP 62.2%, FRUD 36.9%; seats - RPP 65, FRUD 0; note - RPP (the ruling party) dominated the election

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Political parties and leaders: Democratic National Party or PND [ADEN Robleh Awaleh]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH]; Front pour la Restauration de l'Unite Democratique or FRUD [Ali Mohamed DAOUD]; People's Progress Assembly or RPP (governing party) [Ismail Omar GUELLEH]

International organization participation: ACCT ACP AfDB AFESD AL AMF ECA FAO G-77 IBRD ICAO ICFTU ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS IGAD ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC ITU NAM OAU OIC OPCW (signatory) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WFTU WHO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador ROBLE Olhaye Oudine
In the us fax: [1] (202) 331-0302
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270
In the us chancery: Suite 515, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20,005
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Donald YAMAMOTO
From the us embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal Joffre, Djibouti
From the us mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti
From the us telephone: [253] 35 39 95
From the us fax: [253] 35 39 40

Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and light green with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a red five-pointed star in the center

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: The economy is based on service activities connected with the country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in northeast Africa. Two-thirds of the inhabitants live in the capital city the remainder being mostly nomadic herders. Scanty rainfall limits crop production to fruits and vegetables and most food must be imported. Djibouti provides services as both a transit port for the region and an international transshipment and refueling center. It has few natural resources and little industry. The nation is therefore heavily dependent on foreign assistance to help support its balance of payments and to finance development projects. An unemployment rate of 50% continues to be a major problem. Inflation is not a concern however because of the fixed tie of the franc to the US dollar. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35% over the last seven years because of recession civil war and a high population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Faced with a multitude of economic difficulties the government has fallen in arrears on long-term external debt and has been struggling to meet the stipulations of foreign aid donors. Another factor limiting growth is the negative impact on port activity now that Ethiopia has more trade route options.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 0% (2001 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1400 (2001 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 3%
Industry: 10%
Services: 87% (2001 est.)

Agriculture products: fruits vegetables; goats sheep camels

Industries: construction agricultural processing

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (1996 est.)

Labor force: 282,000
By occupation: NA%

Unemployment rate: 50% (2000 est.) (2000 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 50% (2001 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $135 million
Expenditures: $182 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2% (2001 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $260 million f.o.b. (1999 est.)
Commodities: reexports hides and skins coffee (in transit)
Partners: Somalia 53% Yemen 23% Ethiopia 5% (1998)

Imports: $440 million f.o.b. (1999 est.)
Commodities: foods beverages transport equipment chemicals petroleum products
Partners: France 13% Ethiopia 12% Italy 9% Saudi Arabia 6% UK 6% (1998)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $366 million (2002 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.721 (fixed rate since 1973)


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Electricity
Production: 180 million kWh (2000)
Production by source fossil fuel: 100%
Production by source hydro: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (2000)
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Consumption: 167.4 million kWh (2000)
Exports: 0 kWh (2000)
Imports: 0 kWh (2000)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 10,000 (2002)
Mobile cellular: 5,000 (2002)

Telephone system
General assessment: telephone facilities in the city of Djibouti are adequate as are the microwave radio relay connections to outlying areas of the country
Domestic: microwave radio relay network
International: submarine cable to Jiddah, Suez, Sicily, Marseilles, Colombo, and Singapore; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; Medarabtel regional microwave radio relay telephone network

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .dj
Service providers isps: 1 (2000)
Users: 3,300 (2002)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $26.5 million (FY01)
Percent of gdp: 4.4% (FY01)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 12 (2001)
With paved runways total: 3
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1 (2002)
With unpaved runways total: 10
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 5
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 3 (2002)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways
Total: 100 km (Djibouti segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad)
Narrow gauge: 100 km 1.000-m gauge
Note: Djibouti and Ethiopia plan to revitalize the century-old railroad that links their capitals by 2003 (2001 est.)

Roadways

Waterways: none

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with 'Somaliland' leadership while politically supporting the Somali Transitional National Government in Mogadishu

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs