Cayman Islands (2001) | Somalia (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 18 regions (plural - NA, singular - gobolka); Awdal, Bakool, Banaadir, Bari, Bay, Galguduud, Gedo, Hiiraan, Jubbada Dhexe, Jubbada Hoose, Mudug, Nugaal, Sanaag, Shabeellaha Dhexe, Shabeellaha Hoose, Sool, Togdheer, Woqooyi Galbeed |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
22.21% (male 3,807; female 4,084) 15-64 years: 69.74% (male 12,102; female 12,676) 65 years and over: 8.05% (male 1,318; female 1,540) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,031,682/female 2,019,629)
15-64 years: 53% (male 2,423,602/female 2,410,126) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 97,932/female 135,802) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | bananas, sorghum, corn, coconuts, rice, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; cattle, sheep, goats; fish |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 67 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 60
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 7 (2007) |
Area | total:
259 sq km land: 259 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 637,657 sq km
land: 627,337 sq km water: 10,320 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Texas |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica from 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | Britain withdrew from British Somaliland in 1960 to allow its protectorate to join with Italian Somaliland and form the new nation of Somalia. In 1969, a coup headed by Mohamed SIAD Barre ushered in an authoritarian socialist rule that managed to impose a degree of stability in the country for a couple of decades. After the regime's collapse early in 1991, Somalia descended into turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy. In May 1991, northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland that now includes the administrative regions of Awdal, Woqooyi Galbeed, Togdheer, Sanaag, and Sool. Although not recognized by any government, this entity has maintained a stable existence and continues efforts to establish a constitutional democracy, including holding municipal, parliamentary, and presidential elections. The regions of Bari, Nugaal, and northern Mudug comprise a neighboring self-declared autonomous state of Puntland, which has been self-governing since 1998 but does not aim at independence; it has also made strides toward reconstructing a legitimate, representative government but has suffered some civil strife. Puntland disputes its border with Somaliland as it also claims portions of eastern Sool and Sanaag. Beginning in 1993, a two-year UN humanitarian effort (primarily in the south) was able to alleviate famine conditions, but when the UN withdrew in 1995, having suffered significant casualties, order still had not been restored. A two-year peace process, led by the Government of Kenya under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), concluded in October 2004 with the election of Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed as President of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and the formation of an interim government, known as the Somalia Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs). The Somalia TFIs include a 275-member parliamentary body, known as the Transitional Federal Assembly (TFA), a transitional Prime Minister, Nur "Adde" Hassan HUSSEIN, and a 90-member cabinet. The TFIs are based on the Transitional Federal Charter, which outlines a five-year mandate leading to the establishment of a new Somali constitution and a transition to a representative government following national elections. While its institutions remain weak, the TFG continues to reach out to Somali stakeholders and work with international donors to help build the governance capacity of the TFIs and work towards national elections in 2009. In June 2006, a loose coalition of clerics, business leaders, and Islamic court militias known as the Council of Islamic Courts (CIC) defeated powerful Mogadishu warlords and took control of the capital. The Courts continued to expand militarily throughout much of southern Somalia and threatened to overthrow the TFG in Baidoa. Ethiopian and TFG forces, concerned over links between some CIC factions and the al-Qaida East Africa network and the al-Qaida operatives responsible for the bombings of the US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya in 1998, intervened in late December 2006, resulting in the collapse of the CIC as an organization. However, the TFG continues to face violent resistance from extremist elements, such as the al-Shabaab militia previously affiliated with the now-defunct CIC. |
Birth rate | 13.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 44.6 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$265.2 million expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | George Town | name: Mogadishu
geographic coordinates: 2 04 N, 45 22 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February), moderate temperatures in north and hot in south; southwest monsoon (May to October), torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons |
Coastline | 160 km | 3,025 km |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | 25 August 1979, presidential approval 23 September 1979
note: the formation of transitional governing institutions, known as the Transitional Federal Government, is currently ongoing |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Somalia local long form: Jamhuuriyada Demuqraadiga Soomaaliyeed local short form: Soomaaliya former: Somali Republic, Somali Democratic Republic |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | - |
Death rate | 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $3 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | the US does not have an embassy in Somalia; US interests are represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya at United Nations Avenue, Nairobi; mailing address: Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831; telephone: [254] (20) 363-6000; FAX [254] (20) 363-6157 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | Somalia does not have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991); note - the TFG is represented in the United States through its Permanent Mission to the United Nations |
Disputes - international | none | Ethiopian forces invaded southern Somalia and routed Islamist Courts from Mogadishu in January 2007; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities in Berbera to landlocked Ethiopia and have established commercial ties with other regional states; "Puntland" and "Somaliland" "governments" seek international support in their secessionist aspirations and overlapping border claims; the undemarcated former British administrative line has little meaning as a political separation to rival clans within Ethiopia's Ogaden and southern Somalia's Oromo region; Kenya works hard to prevent the clan and militia fighting in Somalia from spreading south across the border, which has long been open to nomadic pastoralists |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $236.4 million (2005 est.) |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1997, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million visitors in 1997. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | Despite the lack of effective national governance, Somalia has maintained a healthy informal economy, largely based on livestock, remittance/money transfer companies, and telecommunications. Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock normally accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-pastoralists, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock, hides, fish, charcoal, and bananas are Somalia's principal exports, while sugar, sorghum, corn, qat, and machined goods are the principal imports. Somalia's small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, has largely been looted and sold as scrap metal. Somalia's service sector also has grown. Telecommunication firms provide wireless services in most major cities and offer the lowest international call rates on the continent. In the absence of a formal banking sector, money exchange services have sprouted throughout the country, handling between $500 million and $1 billion in remittances annually. Mogadishu's main market offers a variety of goods from food to the newest electronic gadgets. Hotels continue to operate and are supported with private-security militias. Somalia's arrears to the IMF continued to grow in 2006-07. Statistics on Somalia's GDP, growth, per capita income, and inflation should be viewed skeptically. In late December 2004, a major tsunami caused an estimated 150 deaths and resulted in destruction of property in coastal areas. |
Electricity - consumption | 306.9 million kWh (1999) | 251.1 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 330 million kWh (1999) | 270 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Shimbiris 2,416 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchment | famine; use of contaminated water contributes to human health problems; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | Somali 85%, Bantu and other non-Somali 15% (including Arabs 30,000) |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | Somali shillings per US dollar - NA (2007), 1,438.3 (2006) official rate; the unofficial black market rate was about 23,000 shillings per dollar as of February 2007
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor and President of the Executive Council Peter SMITH (since 5 May 1999) head of government: Kurt TIBBETTS (since November 2000) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: Transitional Federal President Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed (since 14 October 2004); note - a transitional governing entity with a five-year mandate, known as the Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs), was established in October 2004; the TFIs relocated to Somalia in June 2004
head of government: Prime Minister Nur "Adde" Hassan HUSSEIN (since 24 November 2007) State requested addition of "Adde" Feb '08 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by the Transitional Federal Assembly election results: Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed, the former leader of the semi-autonomous Puntland region of Somalia, was elected president by the Transitional Federal Assembly |
Exports | $1.5 million (1998) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, scrap metal |
Exports - partners | mostly US | UAE 49.6%, Yemen 21.4%, Oman 5.9% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | NA |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; blue field influenced by the flag of the UN |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $930 million (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1.4% industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture: 65%
industry: 10% services: 25% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,500 (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (1999 est.) | 2.6% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 10 00 N, 49 00 E |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal |
Government - note | - | although an interim government was created in 2004, other regional and local governing bodies continue to exist and control various regions of the country, including the self-declared Republic of Somaliland in northwestern Somalia and the semi-autonomous State of Puntland in northeastern Somalia |
Highways | total:
406 km paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment to the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $507.6 million (1998) | 4,800 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials, qat |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | Djibouti 30.8%, Brazil 8.5%, India 8.2%, Kenya 8.1%, Oman 5.5%, UAE 5.2%, Yemen 5% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 1 July 1960 (from a merger of British Somaliland, which became independent from the UK on 26 June 1960, and Italian Somaliland, which became independent from the Italian-administered UN trusteeship on 1 July 1960, to form the Somali Republic) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | a few light industries, including sugar refining, textiles, wireless communication |
Infant mortality rate | 10.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 113.08 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 122.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 103.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (1998) | NA%; note - businesses print their own money, so inflation rates cannot be easily determined |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ITSO, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 2,000 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | following the breakdown of the central government, most regions have reverted to local forms of conflict resolution, either secular, traditional Somali customary law, or Shari'a (Islamic) law with a provision for appeal of all sentences |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 3.7 million (few skilled laborers) (1975) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | agriculture: 71%
industry and services: 29% (1975) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,340 km
border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia 1,600 km, Kenya 682 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 23% other: 69% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 1.64%
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 98.32% (2005) |
Languages | English | Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | no national system; a mixture of English common law, Italian law, Islamic Shari'a, and Somali customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
unicameral National Assembly
note: unicameral Transitional Federal Assembly (TFA) (275 seats; 244 members appointed by the four major clans (61 for each clan), 31 seats allocated to smaller clans and subclans) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.03 years male: 76.24 years female: 81.43 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 48.84 years
male: 47.06 years female: 50.69 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 37.8% male: 49.7% female: 25.8% (2001 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
106 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,656,452 GRT/2,643,036 DWT ships by type: bulk 21, cargo 5, chemical tanker 27, container 4, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 2, Denmark 2, Finland 1, Greece 11, Norway 3, UK 3, US 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,659 GRT/2,540 DWT
by type: cargo 1 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | no national-level armed forces (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.9% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | Foundation of the Somali Republic, 1 July (1960); note - 26 June (1960) in Somaliland |
Nationality | noun:
Caymanian(s) adjective: Caymanian |
noun: Somali(s)
adjective: Somali |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in summer; floods during rainy season |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt, natural gas, likely oil reserves |
Net migration rate | 12.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team; Democratic Alliance; Team Cayman | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | numerous clan and sub-clan factions exist both in support and in opposition to the transitional government |
Population | 35,527 (July 2001 est.) | 9,118,773
note: this estimate was derived from an official census taken in 1975 by the Somali Government; population counting in Somalia is complicated by the large number of nomads and by refugee movements in response to famine and clan warfare (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 2.832% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 11 (also 1 station each in Puntland and Somaliland), shortwave 1 (in Mogadishu) (2001) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, other Protestant | Sunni Muslim |
Sex ratio | at birth:
0.86 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.006 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.006 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.721 male(s)/female total population: 0.997 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
ngeneral assessment: the public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled during the civil war; private wireless companies offer service in most major cities and charge the lowest international rates on the continent
domestic: local cellular telephone systems have been established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers international: country code - 252; international connections are available from Mogadishu by satellite (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 100,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 500,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 4 (2 in Mogadishu and 2 in Hargeisa) (2001) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.68 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | NA% |
Waterways | none | - |