Introduction

 

Background: The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became Djibouti in 1977. Hassan Gouled APTIDON installed an authoritarian one-party state and proceeded to serve as president until 1999. Unrest among the Afars minority during the 1990s led to a civil war that ended in 2001 following the conclusion of a peace accord between Afar rebels and the Issa-dominated government. Djibouti's first multi-party presidential elections in 1999 resulted in the election of Ismail Omar GUELLEH. Djibouti occupies a very strategic geographic location at the mouth of the Red Sea and serves as an important transshipment location for goods entering and leaving the east African highlands. The present leadership favors close ties to France, which maintains a significant military presence in the country, but has also developed increasingly stronger ties with the United States in recent years. Djibouti currently hosts the only United States military base in sub-Saharan Africa and is a front-line state in the global war on terrorism.

 

Geography

 

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 references: Africa

 

Area: total: 23,000 sq km; land: 22,980 sq km; water: 20 sq km

 

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Massachusetts

 

Land boundaries: total: 516 km; border countries: Eritrea 109 km, Ethiopia 349 km,Somalia 58 km

Coastline: 314 km

 

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm; contiguous zone: 24 nm; exclusive economic zone: 200 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, gold, clay, granite, limestone, marble, salt, diatomite, gypsum, pumice, petroleum

Land use: arable land: 0.04%; permanent crops: 0%; other: 99.96% (2001)

 

Irrigated land: 10 sq km (1998 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; limited arable land; desertification; endangered species

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, 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; Lac Assal (Lake Assal) is the lowest point in Africa

 

People

 

Population: 476,703 (July 2005 est.)

 

Age structure: 0-14 years: 43.3% (male 103,516/female 102,860)

15-64 years: 53.5% (male 133,168/female 121,823)

65 years and over: 3.2% (male 7,748/female 7,588) (2005 est.)

 

Median age: total: 18.23 years; male: 18.77 years; female: 17.69 years (2005 est.)

 

Population growth rate: 2.06% (2005 est.)

 

Birth rate: 39.98 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Death rate: 19.39 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female; total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

 

Infant mortality rate: total: 104.13 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 111.82 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 96.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

 

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 43.1 years; male: 41.84 years; female: 44.39 years (2005 est.)

 

Total fertility rate: 5.4 children born/woman (2005 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 2.9% (2003 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 9,100 (2003 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 690 (2003 est.)

 

Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: high

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever; vectorborne disease: malaria (2004)

 

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: 67.9%

male: 78%; female: 58.4% (2003 est.)

 

Government

 

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

 

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: 18 years of age; universal adult

 

Executive branch: chief of state: President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999)

head of government: Prime Minister Mohamed Dileita 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 8 April 2005 (next to be held by April 2011); prime minister appointed by the president

election results: Ismail Omar GUELLEH reelected president; percent of vote - Ismail Omar GUELLEH 100%

 

Legislative branch: unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (65 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)

elections: last held 10 January 2003 (next to be held 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

 

Economy

 

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 are 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. Djibouti 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 at least 50% continues to be a major problem. While inflation is not a concern, due to the fixed tie of the Djiboutian franc to the US dollar, the artificially high value of the Djiboutian franc adversely affects Djibouti's balance of payments. 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.

 

GDP: purchasing power parity - $619 million (2002 est.)

 

GDP - real growth rate: 3.5% (2002 est.)

 

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2002 est.)

 

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3.5%; industry: 15.8%; services: 80.7% (2001 est.)

 

Labor force: 282,000 (2000)

 

Labor force - by occupation: NA

 

Unemployment rate: 50% (2004 est.)

 

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

 

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA

highest 10%: NA

 

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (2002 est.)

 

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

 

Agriculture - products: fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels, animal hides

 

Industries: construction, agricultural processing, salt

 

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

 

Electricity - production: 180 million kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - consumption: 167.4 million kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)

 

Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

 

Oil - consumption: 11,300 bbl/day (2001 est.)

 

Oil - exports: NA

 

Oil - imports: NA

 

Exports: $155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

 

Exports - commodities: reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit)

 

Exports - partners: Somalia 63.9%, Yemen 22.6%, Ethiopia 5% (2004)

 

Imports: $665 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

 

Imports - commodities: foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products

 

Imports - partners: Saudi Arabia 21%, Ethiopia 9.9%, India 8.2%, China 7.8%, US 6.1%, France 6% (2004)

 

Debt - external: $366 million (2002 est.)

 

Economic aid - recipient: $36 million (2001)

 

Currency (code): Djiboutian franc (DJF)

 

Exchange rates: Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.72 (2004), 177.72 (2003), 177.72 (2002), 177.72 (2001), 177.72 (2000)

 

Fiscal year: calendar year

 

Communications

 

Telephones - main lines in use: 9,500 (2003)

 

Telephones - mobile cellular: 23,000 (2003)

 

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: country code - 253; 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 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002)

 

Internet country code: .dj

 

Internet hosts: 702 (2004)

 

Internet users: 6,500 (2003)

 

Transportation

 

Railways: total: 100 km (Djibouti segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway); narrow gauge: 100 km 1.000-m gauge; note: railway under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2004)

 

Highways: total: 2,890 km; paved: 364 km; unpaved: 2,526 km (1999 est.)

 

Ports and harbors: Djibouti

 

Merchant marine: total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT; by type: cargo 1 (2005)

 

Airports: 13 (2004 est.)

 

Airports - with paved runways: total: 3; over 3,047 m: 1; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1

1524 to 2437 m: 1 (2004 est.)

 

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 10; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2; 914 to 1,523 m: 5

under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

 

Transnational Issues

 

Disputes - international: Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with "Somaliland" leadership while maintaining some political ties to various factions in Somalia; although most of the 26,000 Somali refugees in Djibouti who fled civil unrest in the early 1990s have returned, several thousand still await repatriation in UNHCR camps

 

Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): 25,474 (Somalia) (2004)