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.
Government
type: republic
Capital: Djibouti
Currency: 1 Djiboutian franc (DF) = 100 centimes
Geography of Djibouti
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
Land boundaries:
total: 508 km
border countries: Eritrea 113 km, Ethiopia 337 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
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; Lac Assal (Lake Assal) is the lowest point in
Africa.
People of Djibouti
About two-thirds of the Republic of Djibouti's 652,000 inhabitants live
in the capital city. The indigenous population is divided between the
majority Somalis (predominantly of the Issa tribe, with minority Issak and
Gadaboursi representation) and the Afars (Danakils). All are
Cushitic-speaking peoples, and nearly all are Muslim. Among the 15,000
foreigners residing in Djibouti, the French are the most numerous. Among the
French are 3,000 troops.
Population: 476,703 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.58%
15-64 years: 54.58%
65 years and over: 2.84%
Population growth rate: 2.6%
Birth rate: 40.66births/1,000 population
Death rate: 14.66deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 101.51 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 51.21 years
male: 49.37 years
female: 53.1 years
Total fertility rate: 5.72 children born/woman
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.)
SOURCES: The World Factbook, U.S. Department of State |