Fiji (2005) | Djibouti (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 divisions and 1 dependency*; Central, Eastern, Northern, Rotuma*, Western | 6 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); Ali Sabieh, Arta, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjourah |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.4% (male 143,066/female 137,346)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 288,434/female 287,720) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 16,797/female 19,991) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 43.4% (male 107,957/female 107,233)
15-64 years: 53.2% (male 137,111/female 126,952) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 8,626/female 8,495) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; cattle, pigs, horses, goats; fish | fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels, animal hides |
Airports | 28 (2004 est.) | 13 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 19 (2004 est.) |
total: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
Area | total: 18,270 sq km
land: 18,270 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 23,000 sq km
land: 22,980 sq km water: 20 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than Massachusetts |
Background | Fiji became independent in 1970, after nearly a century as a British colony. Democratic rule was interrupted by two military coups in 1987, caused by concern over a government perceived as dominated by the Indian community (descendants of contract laborers brought to the islands by the British in the 19th century). A 1990 constitution favored native Melanesian control of Fiji, but led to heavy Indian emigration; the population loss resulted in economic difficulties, but ensured that Melanesians became the majority. Amendments enacted in 1997 made the constitution more equitable. Free and peaceful elections in 1999 resulted in a government led by an Indo-Fijian, but a coup in May 2000 ushered in a prolonged period of political turmoil. Parliamentary elections held in August 2001 provided Fiji with a democratically elected government and gave a mandate to the government of Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE. | 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. In 1999, Djibouti's first multi-party presidential elections resulted in the election of Ismail Omar GUELLEH; he was re-elected to a second and final term in 2005. Djibouti occupies a 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 is also developing stronger ties with the US. Djibouti hosts the only US military base in sub-Saharan Africa and is a front-line state in the global war on terrorism. |
Birth rate | 22.73 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 39.07 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $427.9 million
expenditures: $531.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $135 million
expenditures: $182 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Suva (Viti Levu) | name: Djibouti
geographic coordinates: 11 35 N, 43 09 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation | desert; torrid, dry |
Coastline | 1,129 km | 314 km |
Constitution | promulgated on 25 July 1990; amended on 25 July 1997 to allow nonethnic Fijians greater say in government and to make multiparty government mandatory; effective 28 July 1998 | multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Fiji Islands
conventional short form: Fiji |
conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti
conventional short form: Djibouti local long form: Republique de Djibouti/Jumhuriyat Jibuti local short form: Djibouti/Jibuti former: French Territory of the Afars and Issas, French Somaliland |
Death rate | 5.65 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 19.23 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $188.1 million (2001 est.) | $394 million (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David L. LYON
embassy: 31 Loftus Street, Suva mailing address: P. O. Box 218, Suva telephone: [679] 331-4466 FAX: [679] 330-0081 |
chief of mission: Ambassador W. Stuart SYMINGTON
embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal Joffre, Djibouti mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti telephone: [253] 35 39 95 FAX: [253] 35 39 40 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Mr. Paula NAVUNISARAVI (Charge D'Affaires ad Interim)
chancery: 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 240, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337-8320 FAX: [1] (202) 337-1996 |
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 |
Disputes - international | none | Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with "Somaliland" leadership while maintaining some political ties to various factions in Somalia; thousands of Somali refugees await repatriation in UNHCR camps in Djibouti |
Economic aid - recipient | $40.3 million (1995) | $78.6 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Fiji, endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, is one of the most developed of the Pacific island economies, though still with a large subsistence sector. Sugar exports and a growing tourist industry - with 300,000 to 400,000 tourists annually - are the major sources of foreign exchange. Sugar processing makes up one-third of industrial activity, but is inefficient. Long-term problems include low investment, uncertain land ownership rights, and the government's ability to manage its budget. Yet short-run economic prospects are good, provided tensions do not again erupt between indigenous Fijians and Indo-Fijians. Overseas remittances from Fijians working in Kuwait and Iraq have increased significantly. | 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 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 697.5 million kWh (2002) | 186 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 750 million kWh (2002) | 200 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tomanivi 1,324 m |
lowest point: Lac Assal -155 m
highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion | 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, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Fijian 51% (predominantly Melanesian with a Polynesian admixture), Indian 44%, European, other Pacific Islanders, overseas Chinese, and other 5% (1998 est.) | Somali 60%, Afar 35%, other 5% (includes French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian) |
Exchange rates | Fijian dollars per US dollar - 1.7331 (2004), 1.8958 (2003), 2.1869 (2002), 2.2766 (2001), 2.1286 (2000) | Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 174.75 (2006), 177.72 (2005), 177.72 (2004), 177.72 (2003), 177.72 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda (since 18 July 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE (since 10 September 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister from among the members of Parliament and is responsible to Parliament; note - there is also a Presidential Council that advises the president on matters of national importance and a Great Council of Chiefs, which consists of the highest ranking members of the traditional chief system elections: president elected by the Great Council of Chiefs for a five-year term; prime minister appointed by the president election results: Ratu Josefa ILOILOVATU Uluivuda elected president by the Great Council of Chiefs; percent of vote - NA% |
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 (eligible for a second 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% |
Exports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | sugar, garments, gold, timber, fish, molasses, coconut oil | reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit) |
Exports - partners | US 24%, Australia 19%, UK 12.6%, Samoa 6.5%, Japan 4.1% (2004) | Somalia 66.2%, Ethiopia 21.4%, Yemen 3.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield depicts a yellow lion above a white field quartered by the cross of Saint George featuring stalks of sugarcane, a palm tree, bananas, and a white dove | 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 |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 16.6%
industry: 22.4% services: 61% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 17.9%
industry: 22.5% services: 59.6% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,900 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.6% (2004 est.) | 3.2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 00 S, 175 00 E | 11 30 N, 43 00 E |
Geography - note | includes 332 islands of which approximately 110 are inhabited | 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 |
Highways | total: 3,440 km
paved: 1,692 km unpaved: 1,748 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, food, chemicals | foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Australia 25.9%, Singapore 23.1%, New Zealand 21.1% (2004) | Saudi Arabia 21.4%, India 17.9%, China 11%, Ethiopia 4.6% (2006) |
Independence | 10 October 1970 (from UK) | 27 June 1977 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 3% (1996 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, clothing, copra, gold, silver, lumber, small cottage industries | construction, agricultural processing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.97 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 100.77 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 108.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 92.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.6% (2002 est.) | 3% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMISET, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, ITUC, LAS, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeal; High Court; Magistrates' Courts | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | 137,000 (1999) | 282,000 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, including subsistence agriculture 70% (2001 est.) | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 516 km
border countries: Eritrea 109 km, Ethiopia 349 km, Somalia 58 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.95%
permanent crops: 4.65% other: 84.4% (2001) |
arable land: 0.04%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.96% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Fijian, Hindustani | French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar |
Legal system | based on British system | based on French civil law system, traditional practices, and Islamic law; accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (34 seats; 24 appointed by the President on the advice of the Great Council of Chiefs, nine appointed by the president, and one appointed by the council of Rotuma) and the House of Representatives (71 seats; 23 reserved for ethnic Fijians, 19 reserved for ethnic Indians, three reserved for other ethnic groups, one reserved for the council of Rotuma constituency encompassing the whole of Fiji, and 25 open seats; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 25 August through 1 September and 19 September 2001 (next to be held not later than September 2006) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - FLP 26.5%, SDL 27.5%, NFP 1.2%, MV 4.2%, NLUP 1.3%, UGP .3%, independents 1.4%; seats by party - FLP 27, SDL 32, MV 6, NFP 1, NLUP 2, UGP 1, independents 2 |
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 in January 2008) election results: percent of vote - RPP 62.2%, FRUD 36.9%; seats - RPP 65; note - RPP (the ruling party) dominated the election |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.53 years
male: 67.05 years female: 72.14 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 43.25 years
male: 41.88 years female: 44.65 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.7% male: 95.5% female: 91.9% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.9% male: 78% female: 58.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island group in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea and Somalia |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; rectilinear shelf claim added |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,372 GRT/7,453 DWT
by type: passenger 3, passenger/cargo 2, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Australia 1) (2005) |
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2007) |
Military branches | Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF): Land Forces, Naval Division (2005) | Djibouti National Army (includes Navy and Air Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $36 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.2% (FY02) | 3.8% (2006) |
National holiday | Independence Day, second Monday of October (1970) | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) |
Nationality | noun: Fijian(s)
adjective: Fijian |
noun: Djiboutian(s)
adjective: Djiboutian |
Natural hazards | cyclonic storms can occur from November to January | earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods |
Natural resources | timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil potential, hydropower | geothermal areas, gold, clay, granite, limestone, marble, salt, diatomite, gypsum, pumice, petroleum |
Net migration rate | -3.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Bai Kei Viti Party or BKV [Ratu Tevita MOMOEDONU]; Conservative Alliance Party/Matanitu Vanua or MV [Ratu Rakuita VAKALALABURE]; Dodonu Ni Taukei Party or DNT [Fereti S. DEWA]; Fiji Democratic Party or FDP [Felipe BOLE] (a merger of the Christian Democrat Alliance or VLV [Poesci Waqalevu BUNE], Fijian Association Party or FAP [Adi Kuini SPEED], Fijian Political Party or SVT (primarily Fijian) [Felipe BOLE], and New Labor Unity Party or NLUP [Tupeni BABA]); Fiji Labor Party or FLP [Mahendra CHAUDRHRY]; General Voters Party or GVP [leader NA] (became part of United General Party); Girmit Heritage Party or GHP [leader NA]; Justice and Freedom Party or AIM [leader NA]; Lio 'On Famor Rotuma Party or LFR [leader NA]; National Federation Party or NFP (primarily Indian) [Pramond RAE]; Nationalist Vanua Takolavo Party or NVTLP [Saula TELAWA]; Party of National Unity or PANU [Meli BOGILEKA]; Party of the Truth or POTT [leader NA]; United Fiji Party/Sogosogo Duavata ni Lewenivanua or SDL [Laisenia QARASE]; United General Party or UGP [Millis Mick BEDDOES] | 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 [Ismail Omar GUELLEH] (governing party); 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 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | 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] |
Population | 893,354 (July 2005 est.) | 496,374 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25.5% (1990-91) | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.4% (2005 est.) | 1.984% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Lambasa, Lautoka, Suva | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 40, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Railways | total: 597 km
narrow gauge: 597 km 0.600-m gauge note: belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation; used to haul sugarcane during harvest season (May to December) (2003) |
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 (2006) |
Religions | Christian 52% (Methodist 37%, Roman Catholic 9%), Hindu 38%, Muslim 8%, other 2%
note: Fijians are mainly Christian, Indians are Hindu, and there is a Muslim minority (1986) |
Muslim 94%, Christian 6% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.007 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.015 male(s)/female total population: 1.045 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio communications center
domestic: NA international: country code - 679; access to important cable links between US and Canada as well as between NZ and Australia; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
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; mobile cellular coverage is limited to the area in and around Djibouti city international: country code - 253; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable with links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; Medarabtel regional microwave radio relay telephone network |
Telephones - main lines in use | 102,000 (2003) | 10,800 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 109,900 (2003) | 44,100 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly mountains of volcanic origin | coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 5.23 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.6% (1999) | 50% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | 203 km
note: 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2004) |
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