| 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. |
| Location: |
Eastern Africa,
bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea
and Somalia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
11 30 N, 43 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
22,000 sq km
land: 21,980 sq km
water: 20 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller
than Massachusetts |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
508 km
border countries: Eritrea 113 km, Ethiopia 337
km, Somalia 58 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
highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m |
| Natural
resources: |
geothermal areas |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 9%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 91% (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
earthquakes;
droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian
Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods |
| Environment
- current issues: |
inadequate
supplies of potable water; desertification |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
strategic
location near world's busiest shipping lanes and close to
Arabian oilfields; terminus of rail traffic into Ethiopia;
mostly wasteland |
| Population: |
460,700 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
42.58% (male 98,314; female 97,859)
15-64 years: 54.58% (male 132,619; female
118,841)
65 years and over: 2.84% (male 6,787; female
6,280) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
2.6% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
40.66
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
14.66
deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.08 male(s)/female
total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
101.51
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 51.21 years
male: 49.37 years
female: 53.1 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
5.72 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
11.75% (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
37,000 (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
3,100 (1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Djiboutian(s)
adjective: Djiboutian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Somali 60%, Afar
35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5% |
| Religions: |
Muslim 94%,
Christian 6% |
| Languages: |
French
(official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.2%
male: 60.3%
female: 32.7% (1995 est.) |
| 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 |
| Administrative
divisions: |
5 districts (cercles,
singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock,
Tadjoura |
| 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 |
| Suffrage: |
NA years of age;
universal adult |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President GUELLEH Ismail Omar (since 8 May
1999);
head of government: Prime Minister DILLEITA
Mohamed Dilleita (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: GUELLEH Ismail Omar elected
president; percent of vote - GUELLEH Ismail Omar 74.4%,
IDRIS Moussa Ahmed 25.6% |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (65 seats;
members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 December 1997 (next to
be held NA 2002)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats
- RPP 65; 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]; People's
Progress Assembly or RPP (governing party) [Ismail Omar
GELLEH] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Front for the
Restoration of Unity and Democracy or FRUD and affiliates;
Movement for Unity and Democracy or MUD |
| 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, Intelsat (nonsignatory
user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador ROBLE Olhaye Oudine
chancery: Suite 515, 1156 15th Street NW,
Washington, DC 20005
telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270
FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302 |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Donald YAMAMOTO
embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal
Joffre, Djibouti
mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti
telephone: [253] 35 39 95
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 |
| 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 40% to 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. The year 2001 will see only small growth as port
activity should decrease now that Ethiopia has more trade
route options. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $574 million (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
2% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $1,300 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
3%
industry: 22%
services: 75% (1998 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
2% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 75%,
industry 11%, services 14% (1991 est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
50% (2000 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$133 million
expenditures: $187 million, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
| Industries: |
limited to a few
small-scale enterprises, such as dairy products and
mineral-water bottling |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
3% (1996 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
180 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
167.4 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
fruits,
vegetables; goats, sheep, camels |
| Exports: |
$260 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
reexports, hides
and skins, coffee (in transit) |
| Exports
- partners: |
Somalia 53%,
Yemen 23%, Ethiopia 5%, (1998) |
| Imports: |
$440 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
foods, beverages,
transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products |
| Imports
- partners: |
France 13%,
Ethiopia 12%, Italy 9%, Saudi Arabia 6%, UK 6% (1998) |
| Debt
- external: |
$356 million
(1999 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$106.3 million
(1995) |
| Currency: |
Djiboutian franc
(DJF) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Djiboutian francs
per US dollar - 177.721 (fixed rate since 1973) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
8,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
203 (1997) |
| 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 |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 2, FM 2,
shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
1 (plus 5
low-power repeaters) (1998) |
| Televisions: |
28,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.dj |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
1,000 (2000) |
| 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 |
| Highways: |
total:
2,890 km
paved: 364 km
unpaved: 2,526 km (1996) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Djibouti |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
2
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Djibouti National
Army (includes Navy and Air Force) |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 108,038 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 63,589 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$23 million
(FY97) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
4.5% (FY97) |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
|
