Djibouti (2004) | Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjoura | none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 43.2% (male 101,168; female 100,545)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 131,320; female 119,387) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 7,327; female 7,153) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels | fodder and vegetable crops; sheep, dairy products |
Airports | 13 (2003 est.) | 5 (2000 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.) |
total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 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 (2004 est.) |
total:
3 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 23,000 sq km
land: 22,980 sq km water: 20 sq km |
total:
12,173 sq km land: 12,173 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the two main islands of East and West Falkland and about 200 small islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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 three consecutive six-year terms as president. Unrest among the Afars minority during the 1990s led to multi-party elections resulting in President Ismail Omar GUELLEH attaining office in May 1999. A peace accord in 2001 ended the final phases of a ten-year uprising by Afar rebels. 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. GUELLEH favors close ties to France, which maintains a significant military presence in the country. | Although first sighted by an English navigator in 1592, the first landing (English) did not occur until almost a century later in 1690, and the first settlement (French) was not established until 1764. The colony was turned over to Spain two years later and the islands have since been the subject of a territorial dispute, first between Britain and Spain, then between Britain and Argentina. The UK asserted its claim to the islands by establishing a naval garrison there in 1833. Argentina invaded the islands on 2 April 1982. The British responded with an expeditionary force that landed seven weeks later and after fierce fighting forced Argentine surrender on 14 June 1982. |
Birth rate | 40.39 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $135 million
expenditures: $182 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1999 est.) |
revenues:
$66.2 million expenditures: $67.9 million, including capital expenditures of $23.2 million (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | Djibouti | Stanley |
Climate | desert; torrid, dry | cold marine; strong westerly winds, cloudy, humid; rain occurs on more than half of days in year; occasional snow all year, except in January and February, but does not accumulate |
Coastline | 314 km | 1,288 km |
Constitution | multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992 | 3 October 1985; amended 1997 and 1998 |
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: Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) |
Currency | Djiboutian franc (DJF) | Falkland pound (FKP) |
Death rate | 19.42 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $366 million (2002 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Marguerita RAGSDALE
embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal Joffre, Djibouti mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti telephone: [253] 35 39 95 FAX: [253] 35 39 40 |
none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador ROBLE Olhaye
chancery: Suite 515, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270 FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302 |
none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina) |
Disputes - international | Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with "Somaliland" leadership while maintaining some political ties to various factions in Somalia including the Somali Transitional National Government in Mogadishu | claimed by Argentina |
Economic aid - recipient | $36 million (2001) | $1.7 million (1995) |
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. | The economy was formerly based on agriculture, mainly sheep farming, but today fishing contributes the bulk of economic activity. In 1987 the government began selling fishing licenses to foreign trawlers operating within the Falklands exclusive fishing zone. These license fees total more than $40 million per year, which goes to support the island's health, education, and welfare system. Squid accounts for 75% of the fish taken. Dairy farming supports domestic consumption; crops furnish winter fodder. Exports feature shipments of high-grade wool to the UK and the sale of postage stamps and coins. To encourage tourism, the Falkland Islands Development Corporation has built three lodges for visitors attracted by the abundant wildlife and trout fishing. The islands are now self-financing except for defense. The British Geological Survey announced a 200-mile oil exploration zone around the islands in 1993, and early seismic surveys suggest substantial reserves capable of producing 500,000 barrels per day; to date no exploitable site has been identified. An agreement between Argentina and the UK in 1995 seeks to defuse licensing and sovereignty conflicts that would dampen foreign interest in exploiting potential oil reserves. |
Electricity - consumption | 167.4 million kWh (2001) | 11.2 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 180 million kWh (2001) | 12 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lac Assal -155 m
highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Usborne 705 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; limited arable land; desertification; endangered species | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5% | British |
Exchange rates | Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.721 (2003), 177.721 (2002), 177.721 (2001), 177.721 (2000), 177.721 (1999) | Falkland pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Falkland pound is at par with the British pound |
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:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Governor Donald LAMONT (since NA May 1999); Chief Executive A. M. GURR (since NA); Financial Secretary D. F. HOWATT (since NA) cabinet: Executive Council; three members elected by the Legislative Council, two ex officio members (chief executive and the financial secretary), and the governor elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA (2001) | $7.6 million (1995) |
Exports - commodities | reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit) | wool, hides, meat |
Exports - partners | Somalia 63.9%, Yemen 22.5%, Ethiopia 4.7% (2003) | UK, Japan, Chile, NZ |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Falkland Island coat of arms in a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms contains a white ram (sheep raising is the major economic activity) above the sailing ship Desire (whose crew discovered the islands) with a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto DESIRE THE RIGHT |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $619 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $52 million (FY95/96 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 15.8% services: 80.7% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $19,000 (FY95/96 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2002 est.) | 1% (FY95/96 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 30 N, 43 00 E | 51 45 S, 59 00 W |
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 | deeply indented coast provides good natural harbors; short growing season |
Highways | total: 2,890 km
paved: 364 km unpaved: 2,526 km (1999 est.) |
total:
440 km paved: 50 km unpaved: 390 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $24.7 million (1995) |
Imports - commodities | foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products | fuel, food and drink, building materials, clothing |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 19.7%, Ethiopia 10.9%, China 9.2%, France 6.5%, UK 5.1%, US 4.9% (2003) | UK, Japan, Chile, NZ |
Independence | 27 June 1977 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (1996 est.) | NA% |
Industries | construction, agricultural processing | wool and fish processing; sale of stamps and coins |
Infant mortality rate | total: 105.54 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 113.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 97.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
NA deaths/1,000 live births |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2002 est.) | 3.6% (1998) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (chief justice is a nonresident); Magistrates Court (senior magistrate presides over civil and criminal divisions) |
Labor force | 282,000 (2000) | 1,100 (est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 95% (mostly sheepherding and fishing) |
Land boundaries | total: 516 km
border countries: Eritrea 109 km, Ethiopia 349 km, Somalia 58 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.04%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.96% (2001) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 99% forests and woodland: 0% other: 1% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar | English |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, traditional practices, and Islamic law | English common law |
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 |
unicameral Legislative Council (10 seats - 2 ex officio, 8 elected by popular vote, members serve four-year terms) presided over by the governor
elections: last held 9 October 1997 (next to be held NA October 2001) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 8 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 43.12 years
male: 41.83 years female: 44.44 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
NA years male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.9% male: 78% female: 58.4% (2003 est.) |
- |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea and Somalia | Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of southern Argentina |
Map references | Africa | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf:
200 NM exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2004 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Djibouti National Army (including Navy and Air Force) | British Forces Falkland Islands (includes Army, Royal Air Force, Royal Navy, and Royal Marines), Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $26.5 million (2003) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.4% (2003) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 108,771 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 64,540 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) | Liberation Day, 14 June (1982) |
Nationality | noun: Djiboutian(s)
adjective: Djiboutian |
noun:
Falkland Islander(s) adjective: Falkland Island |
Natural hazards | earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods | strong winds persist throughout the year |
Natural resources | geothermal areas | fish, wildlife |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic National Party or PND [ADEN Robleh Awaleh]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH]; Djibouti Development Party or PDD [Mohamed Daoud CHEHEM]; Front pour la Restauration de l'Unite Democratique or FRUD [Ali Mohamed DAOUD]; People's Progress Assembly or RPP (governing party) [Ismail Omar GUELLEH]; Peoples Social Democratic Party or PPSD [Moumin Bahdon FARAH]; Republican Alliance for Democracy or ARD [Ahmed Dini AHMED]; Union for Democracy and Justice or UDJ [leader NA] | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Union for Presidential Majority UMP (coalition includes RPP, FRUD, PPSD and PND); Union for Democratic Changeover or UAD (opposition coalition includes ARD, MRDD, UDJ, and PDD) [Ahmed Dini AHMED] | none |
Population | 466,900 (July 2004 est.) | 2,895 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.1% (2004 est.) | 2.43% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Djibouti | Stanley |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 1, FM 7, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1,000 (1997) |
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 (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 94%, Christian 6% | primarily Anglican, Roman Catholic, United Free Church, Evangelist Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, Lutheran, Seventh-Day Adventist |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 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: 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 |
general assessment:
NA domestic: government-operated radiotelephone and private VHF/CB radiotelephone networks provide effective service to almost all points on both islands international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) with links through London to other countries |
Telephones - main lines in use | 9,500 (2003) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 23,000 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 2 (operated by the British Forces Broadcasting Service) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains | rocky, hilly, mountainous with some boggy, undulating plains |
Total fertility rate | 5.48 children born/woman (2004 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | full employment; labor shortage |
Waterways | - | none |