Somalia (2001) | Lesotho (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.54% (male 1,670,320; female 1,665,329) 15-64 years: 52.69% (male 1,993,750; female 1,952,437) 65 years and over: 2.77% (male 91,511; female 115,426) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 36.9% (male 346,930/female 342,459)
15-64 years: 57.6% (male 526,642/female 548,096) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 42,003/female 60,905) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cattle, sheep, goats; bananas, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; fish | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
Airports | 62 (2000 est.) | 28 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 over 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
57 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
637,657 sq km land: 627,337 sq km water: 10,320 sq km |
total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Texas | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | A SIAD BARRE regime was ousted in January 1991; turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy followed for nine years. In May of 1991, northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland which 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, aided by the overwhelming dominance of the ruling clan and economic infrastructure left behind by British, Russian, and American military assistance programs. The regions of Bari and Nugaal comprise a neighboring self-declared Republic of Puntland, which has also made strides towards reconstructing legitimate, representative government. 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 Transitional National Government (TNG) was created in October 2000 in Arta, Djibouti which was attended by a broad representation of Somali clans. The TNG has a three-year mandate to create a permanent national Somali government. The TNG does not recognize Somaliland or Puntland as independent republics but so far has been unable to reunite them with the unstable regions in the south; numerous warlords and factions are still fighting for control of Mogadishu and the other southern regions. | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and reinstated in 1995. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Botswanan military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002. |
Birth rate | 47.23 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 26.53 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $698.5 million
expenditures: $697.6 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | Mogadishu | Maseru |
Climate | principally desert; December to February - northeast monsoon, moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south; May to October - southwest monsoon, torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 3,025 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 25 August 1979, presidential approval 23 September 1979
note: the Transitional National Government formed in October 2000 has a mandate to create a new constitution and hold elections within three years |
2 April 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Somalia former: Somali Republic, Somali Democratic Republic |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
Currency | Somali shilling (SOS) | - |
Death rate | 18.35 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 25.03 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.6 billion (1999 est.) | $735 million (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Somalia; US interests are represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi at Moi Avenue and Haile Selassie Avenue; mail address: P. O. Box 30137, Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831; telephone: [254] (2) 334141; FAX [254] (2) 340838 | chief of mission: Ambassador June Carter PERRY
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 22 312666 FAX: [266] 22 310116 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Somalia does not have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991) | chief of mission: Ambassador Molelekeng E. RAPOLAKI
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
Disputes - international | most of the southern half of the boundary with Ethiopia is a Provisional Administrative Line; territorial dispute with Ethiopia over the Ogaden | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA $4.4 million |
Economic aid - recipient | $191.5 million (1995) | $41.5 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | One of the world's poorest and least developed countries, Somalia has few resources. Moreover, much of the economy has been devastated by the civil war. Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock and bananas are the principal exports; sugar, sorghum, corn, fish, and qat are products for the domestic market. The small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, accounts for 10% of GDP; most facilities have been shut down because of the civil strife. Moreover, ongoing civil disturbances in Mogadishu and outlying areas have interfered with any substantial economic advance and with international aid arrangements. Due to the civil strife, economic data is susceptible to an exceptionally wide margin of error. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue, but the government has strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, also generating royalties for Lesotho. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The garment industry has grown significantly, mainly due to Lesotho qualifying for the trade benefits contained in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. |
Electricity - consumption | 241.8 million kWh (1999) | 308 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 16 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2002) |
Electricity - production | 260 million kWh (1999) | 314 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Shimbiris 2,416 m |
lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
Environment - current issues | famine; use of contaminated water contributes to human health problems; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Somali 85%, Bantu, Arabs 30,000 | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
Exchange rates | Somali shillings per US dollar - 11,000 (November 2000), 2,620 (January 1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996 est.), 5,000 (1 January 1995), 2,616 (1 July 1993)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling |
maloti per US dollar - 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
ABDIKASSIM Salad Hassan (since 26 August 2000); note - Interim President ABDIKASSIM was chosen for a three-year term by a 245-member National Assembly serving as a transitional government; the present political situation is still unstable, particularly in the south, with interclan fighting and random banditry head of government: ALI Khalifa Galaydh, appointed by the president 8 October 2000 cabinet: appointed by the prime minister and sworn in on 20 October 2000 election results: ABDIKASSIM Salad Hassan was elected president of an interim government at the Djibouti-sponsored Arta Peace Conference on 26 August 2000 by a broad representation of Somali clans that comprised a transitional National Assembly. |
chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution, which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch |
Exports | $186 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | livestock, bananas, hides, fish (1999) | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) |
Exports - partners | Saudi Arabia 53%, Yemen 19%, UAE 14%, Italy 5%, Pakistan 2% (1999) | US 97%, Canada 2.1%, UK 0.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | NA | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; design based on the flag of the UN (Italian Somaliland was a UN trust territory) | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.3 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
60% industry: 10% (largely shut down in 2000) services: 30% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 15.2%
industry: 43.9% services: 40.9% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,200 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 3.3% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 10 00 N, 49 00 E | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level |
Highways | total:
22,100 km paved: 2,608 km unpaved: 19,492 km (1996) |
total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% |
Imports | $314 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials (1995) | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) |
Imports - partners | Djibouti 24%, Kenya 14%, Brazil 13%, Saudi Arabia 10%, India 9% (1999) | Hong Kong 46.8%, China 25.5%, South Korea 5.6%, Germany 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | 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) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 15.5% (1999) |
Industries | a few small industries, including sugar refining, textiles, petroleum refining (mostly shut down), wireless communication | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 123.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 84.23 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 89.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | over 100% (businesses print their own money) (2000 est.) | 5.3% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, The Commonwealth, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,800 sq km (1993 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | following the breakdown of national government, most regions have reverted to Islamic (Shari'a) law with a provision for appeal of all sentences | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting on the advice of the Prime Minister); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court |
Labor force | 3.7 million (very few are skilled laborers) (1993 est.) | 838,000 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture (mostly pastoral nomadism) 71%, industry and services 29% | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa |
Land boundaries | total:
2,366 km border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia 1,626 km, Kenya 682 km |
total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 69% forests and woodland: 26% other: 3% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2001) |
Languages | Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
Legal system | NA | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's Assembly or Golaha Shacbiga
note: fledgling parliament; a transitional 245-member National Assembly began to meet on 13 August 2000 in the town of Arta, Djibouti and is now based in Mogadishu |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election
elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
46.6 years male: 44.99 years female: 48.25 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 34.47 years
male: 35.49 years female: 33.42 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 24% male: 36% female: 14% (1990 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | - |
Military - note | - | the Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs |
Military branches | A Somali National Army is being reformed under the interim government; numerous factions and clans maintain independent militias, and the Somaliland and Puntland regional governments maintain their own security and police forces | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF): Army and Air Wing |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $32.3 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.3% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,825,302 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,011,400 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Foundation of the Somali Republic, 1 July (1960) | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
Nationality | noun:
Somali(s) adjective: Somali |
noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in summer; floods during rainy season | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt | water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone |
Net migration rate | 5.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 15 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | none | Basotholand African Congress or BAC [Khauhelo RALITAPOLE]; Basotholand Congress Party or BCP [Ntsukunyane MPHANYA]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Pakalitha MOSISILI] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; Lesotho Workers Party of LWP [Macaefa BILLY]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP [Vincent MALEBO]; National Independent Party or NIP [Anthony MANYELI]; National Progressive Party or NPP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Popular Front for Democracy or PFD [Lekhetho RAKUOANE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | numerous clan and subclan factions are currently vying for power | NA |
Population | 7,488,773
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 2001 est.) |
1,867,035
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 49% (1999) |
Population growth rate | 3.48% (2001 est.) | 0.08% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bender Cassim (Boosaaso), Berbera, Chisimayu (Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 4 (1988) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 470,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Sunni Muslim | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
the public telecommunications system was completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; all relief organizations depend on their own private systems domestic: recently, local cellular telephone systems have been established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers international: international connections are available from Mogadishu by satellite |
general assessment: rudimentary system
domestic: consists of a modest but growing number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | NA | 28,600 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 92,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 7.11 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.35 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 45% (2002) |
Waterways | none | - |