Djibouti (2002) | Turkmenistan (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjoura | 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dashoguz Welayaty, Lebap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
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.) |
0-14 years: 36.8% (male 899,954; female 855,293)
15-64 years: 59.2% (male 1,386,606; female 1,438,333) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 74,958; female 120,400) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels | cotton, grain; livestock |
Airports | 12 (2001) | 76 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 63
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 41 (2002) |
Area | total: 23,000 sq km
land: 22,980 sq km water: 20 sq km |
total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly larger than California |
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. | Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1925. It achieved its independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. President NIYAZOV retains absolute control over the country and opposition is not tolerated. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects can be worked out. |
Birth rate | 40.33 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 28.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $135 million
expenditures: $182 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $588.6 million
expenditures: $658.2 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | Djibouti | Ashgabat |
Climate | desert; torrid, dry | subtropical desert |
Coastline | 314 km | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) |
Constitution | multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992 | adopted 18 May 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti
conventional short form: Djibouti former: French Territory of the Afars and Issas, French Somaliland |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | Djiboutian franc (DJF) | Turkmen manat (TMM) |
Death rate | 14.43 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $366 million (2002 est.) | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Tracey A. JACOBSON
embassy: 9 Pushkin Street, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45 FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mered Bairamovich ORAZOV
chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697 |
Disputes - international | Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with "Somaliland" leadership while politically supporting the Somali Transitional National Government in Mogadishu | prolonged regional drought creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; Turkmenistan has not committed to follow either Iran or the other littoral states in the division of the Caspian Sea seabed and water column; ICJ decision expected to resolve dispute with Azerbaijan over sovereignty over Caspian oilfields; demarcation of land boundary with Kazakhstan is underway - maritime boundary not resolved |
Economic aid - recipient | $36 million (2001) | $16 million from the US (2001) |
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. | Turkmenistan is largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and large gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton, making it the world's tenth-largest producer. With an authoritarian ex-Communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. Privatization goals remain limited. In 1998-2003, Turkmenistan suffered from the continued lack of adequate export routes for natural gas and from obligations on extensive short-term external debt. At the same time, however, total exports rose by 38% in 2003, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, the burden of foreign debt, and the unwillingness of the government to adopt market-oriented reforms. However, Turkmenistan's cooperation with the international community in transporting humanitarian aid to Afghanistan may foreshadow a change in the atmosphere for foreign investment, aid, and technological support. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In any event, GDP increased substantially in 2003 because of a strong recovery in agriculture and rapid industrial growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 167.4 million kWh (2000) | 8.509 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 980 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 20 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 180 million kWh (2000) | 10.18 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 99.9%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lac Assal -155 m
highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m |
lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya -81 m; note - Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya (the lake has dropped as low as -110 m)
highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; endangered species | contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salination, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5% | Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.1% (1995) |
Exchange rates | Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.721 (fixed rate since 1973) | Turkmen manats per US dollar - 5,200 (2002), 5,200 (2001), 5,200 (2000), 5,200 (1999), 4,890.17 (1998); note - the official exchange rate has not varied for the last four years; the unofficial rate has fluctuated slightly, hovering around 21,000 manats to the dollar |
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% |
chief of state: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president note: NIYAZOV's term in office was extended indefinitely on 28 December 1999 by the Assembly (Majlis) during a session of the People's Council (Halk Maslahaty) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992 (next to be held NA); note - President NIYAZOV was unanimously approved as president for life by the Assembly on 28 December 1999); deputy chairmen of the cabinet of ministers are appointed by the president election results: Saparmurat NIYAZOV elected president without opposition; percent of vote - Saparmurat NIYAZOV 99.5% |
Exports | $260 million f.o.b. (1999 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit) | gas 57%, oil 26%, cotton fiber 3%, textiles 2% (2001) |
Exports - partners | Somalia 53%, Yemen 23%, Ethiopia 5% (1998) | Ukraine 49.7%, Italy 18%, Iran 13.1%, Turkey 6.2% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five carpet guls (designs used in producing rugs) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon and five white stars appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $586 million (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $31.34 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 10% services: 87% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 27%
industry: 50% services: 23% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0% (2001 est.) | 21.1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 30 N, 43 00 E | 40 00 N, 60 00 E |
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 | landlocked; the western and central low-lying, desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau |
Highways | total: 2,890 km
paved: 364 km unpaved: 2,526 km (1996) |
total: 24,000 km
paved: 19,488 km unpaved: 4,512 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and, to a lesser extent, Western European markets; limited illicit cultivation of opium poppy for domestic consumption; small-scale government-run eradication of illicit crops; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan |
Imports | $440 million f.o.b. (1999 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products | machinery and equipment 60%, foodstuffs 15% (1999) |
Imports - partners | France 13%, Ethiopia 12%, Italy 9%, Saudi Arabia 6%, UK 6% (1998) | Russia 19.8%, Turkey 12.8%, Ukraine 11.7%, UAE 10%, US 7.5%, China 6%, Germany 5.7%, Iran 4.4% (2002) |
Independence | 27 June 1977 (from France) | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (1996 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
Industries | construction, agricultural processing | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing |
Infant mortality rate | 99.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 73.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 69.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2001 est.) | 5% (2002 est.) |
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 | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 17,500 sq km (2003 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 282,000 | 2.34 million (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA% | agriculture 48%, industry 15%, services 37% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 516 km
border countries: Eritrea 109 km, Ethiopia 349 km, Somalia 58 km |
total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.39% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, traditional practices, and Islamic law | based on civil law system |
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 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 |
under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (more than 100 seats, some of which are elected by popular vote and some of which are appointed; meets at least yearly) and a unicameral Assembly or Majlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: People's Council - NA; Assembly - last held 12 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - all 50 elected officials preapproved by President NIYAZOV; most are from the DPT |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 51.6 years
male: 49.73 years female: 53.52 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 61.19 years
male: 57.72 years female: 64.84 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.2% male: 60.3% female: 32.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea and Somalia | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,873 GRT/8,345 DWT
ships by type: combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Djibouti National Army (including Navy and Air Force) | Ministry of Defense (Army, Air and Air Defense, Navy, Border Troops, and Internal Troops), National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $26.5 million (FY01) | $90 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.4% (FY01) | 3.4% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 110,221 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,239,737 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 64,940 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,005,686 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 53,825 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) |
Nationality | noun: Djiboutian(s)
adjective: Djiboutian |
noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen |
Natural hazards | earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods | NA |
Natural resources | geothermal areas | petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 6,634 km; oil 853 km (2003) |
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] | Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT [Saparmurat NIYAZOV]
note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries; the two most prominent opposition groups-in-exile have been Gundogar and Erkin; Gundogar was led by former Foreign Minister Boris SHIKHUMRADOV until his arrest and imprisonment in the wake of the 25 November 2002 assassination attempt on President NIYAZOV; Erkin is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based out of Moscow |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Movement for Unity and Democracy or MUD | NA |
Population | 472,810 (July 2002 est.) | 4,775,544 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2001 est.) | 34.4% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.59% (2002 est.) | 1.82% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Djibouti | Turkmenbasy |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 52,000 (1997) | - |
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.) |
total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 94%, Christian 6% | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.09 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal |
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 |
general assessment: poorly developed
domestic: NA international: linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and to other countries by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; a new telephone link from Ashgabat to Iran has been established; a new exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic through Turkey via Intelsat; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1 Intelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (2002) | 363,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 5,000 (2002) | 4,300 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 3 (much programming relayed from Russia and Turkey) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains | flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west |
Total fertility rate | 5.64 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 3.5 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) (2000 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | the Amu Darya is an important inland waterway for Turkmenistan, as is the man-made Kara Kum canal |