{ "Introduction": { "Background": { "text": "
Present-day Djibouti was the site of the medieval Ifat and Adal Sultanates. In the late 19th century, the Afar sultans signed treaties with the French that allowed the latter to establish the colony of French Somaliland in 1862. The French signed additional treaties with the ethnic Somali in 1885.
Tension between the ethnic Afar and Somali populations increased over time, as the ethnic Somalis perceived that the French unfairly favored the Afar and gave them disproportionate influence in local governance. In 1958, the French held a referendum that provided residents of French Somaliland the option to either continue their association with France or to join neighboring Somalia as it established its independence. Ethnic Somali protested the vote, because French colonial leaders did not recognize many Somali as residents, which gave the Afar outsized influence in the decision to uphold ties with France. After a second referendum in 1967, the French changed the territory’s name to the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas, in part to underscore their relationship with the ethnic Afar and downplay the significance of the ethnic Somalis. A final referendum in 1977 established Djibouti as an independent nation and granted ethnic Somalis Djiboutian nationality, formally resetting the balance of power between the majority ethnic Somalis and minority ethnic Afar residents. Upon independence, the country was named after its capital city of Djibouti. Hassan Gouled APTIDON, an ethnic Somali leader, installed an authoritarian one-party state and served as president until 1999. Unrest between the Afar minority and Somali majority culminated in a civil war during the 1990s that ended in 2001 with a peace accord between Afar rebels and the Somali Issa-dominated government. In 1999, Djibouti's first multiparty presidential election resulted in the election of Ismail Omar GUELLEH as president; he was reelected to a second term in 2005 and extended his tenure in office via a constitutional amendment, which allowed him to serve his third and fourth terms, and to begin a fifth term in 2021.earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods
volcanism: experiences limited volcanic activity; Ardoukoba (298 m) last erupted in 1978; Manda-Inakir, located along the Ethiopian border, is also historically active
" }, "Geography - note": { "text": "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 and the saltiest lake in the world" } }, "People and Society": { "Population": { "total": { "text": "994,974" }, "male": { "text": "450,796" }, "female": { "text": "544,178 (2024 est.)" } }, "Nationality": { "noun": { "text": "Djiboutian(s)" }, "adjective": { "text": "Djiboutian" } }, "Ethnic groups": { "text": "Somali 60%, Afar 35%, other 5% (mostly Yemeni Arab, also French, Ethiopian, and Italian)" }, "Languages": { "text": "French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar" }, "Religions": { "text": "Sunni Muslim 94% (nearly all Djiboutians), other 6% (mainly foreign-born residents - Shia Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Baha'i, and atheist)" }, "Demographic profile": { "text": "Djibouti is a poor, predominantly urban country, characterized by high rates of illiteracy, unemployment, and childhood malnutrition. Approximately 70% of the population lives in cities and towns (predominantly in the capital, Djibouti). The rural population subsists primarily on nomadic herding. Prone to droughts and floods, the country has few natural resources and must import more than 80% of its food from neighboring countries or Europe. Health care, particularly outside the capital, is limited by poor infrastructure, shortages of equipment and supplies, and a lack of qualified personnel. More than a third of health care recipients are migrants because the services are still better than those available in their neighboring home countries. The nearly universal practice of female genital cutting reflects Djibouti’s lack of gender equality and is a major contributor to obstetrical complications and its high rates of maternal and infant mortality. A 1995 law prohibiting the practice has never been enforced.
Because of its political stability and its strategic location at the confluence of East Africa and the Gulf States along the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, Djibouti is a key transit point for migrants and asylum seekers heading for the Gulf States and beyond. Each year some 100,000 people, mainly Ethiopians and some Somalis, journey through Djibouti, usually to the port of Obock, to attempt a dangerous sea crossing to Yemen. However, with the escalation of the ongoing Yemen conflict, Yemenis began fleeing to Djibouti in March 2015, with almost 20,000 arriving by August 2017. Most Yemenis remain unregistered and head for Djibouti City rather than seeking asylum at one of Djibouti’s three spartan refugee camps. Djibouti has been hosting refugees and asylum seekers, predominantly Somalis and lesser numbers of Ethiopians and Eritreans, at camps for 20 years, despite lacking potable water, food shortages, and unemployment.
" }, "Age structure": { "0-14 years": { "text": "28.4% (male 141,829/female 140,696)" }, "15-64 years": { "text": "67.4% (male 290,654/female 379,778)" }, "65 years and over": { "text": "4.2% (2024 est.) (male 18,313/female 23,704)" } }, "Dependency ratios": { "total dependency ratio": { "text": "50.6" }, "youth dependency ratio": { "text": "47.5" }, "elderly dependency ratio": { "text": "6.9" }, "potential support ratio": { "text": "14.4 (2021 est.)" } }, "Median age": { "total": { "text": "26.3 years (2024 est.)" }, "male": { "text": "24.4 years" }, "female": { "text": "27.9 years" } }, "Population growth rate": { "text": "1.89% (2024 est.)" }, "Birth rate": { "text": "21.8 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)" }, "Death rate": { "text": "7 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)" }, "Net migration rate": { "text": "4.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)" }, "Population distribution": { "text": "most densely populated areas are in the east; the largest city is Djibouti, with a population over 600,000; no other city in the country has a total population over 50,000 as shown in this population distribution map" }, "Urbanization": { "urban population": { "text": "78.6% of total population (2023)" }, "rate of urbanization": { "text": "1.56% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)" } }, "Major urban areas - population": { "text": "600,000 DJIBOUTI (capital) (2023)" }, "Sex ratio": { "at birth": { "text": "1.03 male(s)/female" }, "0-14 years": { "text": "1.01 male(s)/female" }, "15-64 years": { "text": "0.77 male(s)/female" }, "65 years and over": { "text": "0.77 male(s)/female" }, "total population": { "text": "0.83 male(s)/female (2024 est.)" } }, "Maternal mortality ratio": { "text": "234 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)" }, "Infant mortality rate": { "total": { "text": "45.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)" }, "male": { "text": "52.1 deaths/1,000 live births" }, "female": { "text": "38 deaths/1,000 live births" } }, "Life expectancy at birth": { "total population": { "text": "65.9 years (2024 est.)" }, "male": { "text": "63.4 years" }, "female": { "text": "68.5 years" } }, "Total fertility rate": { "text": "2.11 children born/woman (2024 est.)" }, "Gross reproduction rate": { "text": "1.04 (2024 est.)" }, "Contraceptive prevalence rate": { "text": "19% (2012)" }, "Drinking water source": { "improved: urban": { "text": "urban: 99.7% of population" }, "improved: rural": { "text": "rural: 59.3% of population" }, "improved: total": { "text": "total: 90.8% of population" }, "unimproved: urban": { "text": "urban: 0.3% of population" }, "unimproved: rural": { "text": "rural: 40.7% of population" }, "unimproved: total": { "text": "total: 9.2% of population (2020 est.)" } }, "Current health expenditure": { "text": "2% of GDP (2020)" }, "Physician density": { "text": "0.22 physicians/1,000 population (2014)" }, "Hospital bed density": { "text": "1.4 beds/1,000 population (2017)" }, "Sanitation facility access": { "improved: urban": { "text": "urban: 87.7% of population" }, "improved: rural": { "text": "rural: 24.2% of population" }, "improved: total": { "text": "total: 73.8% of population" }, "unimproved: urban": { "text": "urban: 12.3% of population" }, "unimproved: rural": { "text": "rural: 75.8% of population" }, "unimproved: total": { "text": "total: 26.2% of population (2020 est.)" } }, "Obesity - adult prevalence rate": { "text": "13.5% (2016)" }, "Alcohol consumption per capita": { "total": { "text": "0.21 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)" }, "beer": { "text": "0.05 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)" }, "wine": { "text": "0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)" }, "spirits": { "text": "0.14 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)" }, "other alcohols": { "text": "0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)" } }, "Children under the age of 5 years underweight": { "text": "16.2% (2019)" }, "Currently married women (ages 15-49)": { "text": "50.6% (2023 est.)" }, "Child marriage": { "women married by age 15": { "text": "1.4%" }, "women married by age 18": { "text": "6.5% (2019 est.)" } }, "Education expenditures": { "text": "3.6% of GDP (2018 est.)" }, "Literacy": { "total population": { "text": "NA" }, "male": { "text": "NA" }, "female": { "text": "NA" } }, "School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)": { "total": { "text": "7 years" }, "male": { "text": "7 years" }, "female": { "text": "7 years (2011)" } } }, "Environment": { "Environment - current issues": { "text": "inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution; limited arable land; deforestation (forests threatened by agriculture and the use of wood for fuel); desertification; endangered species" }, "Environment - international agreements": { "party to": { "text": "Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands" }, "signed, but not ratified": { "text": "none of the selected agreements" } }, "Climate": { "text": "desert; torrid, dry" }, "Land use": { "agricultural land": { "text": "73.4% (2018 est.)" }, "agricultural land: arable land": { "text": "arable land: 0.1% (2018 est.)" }, "agricultural land: permanent crops": { "text": "permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)" }, "agricultural land: permanent pasture": { "text": "permanent pasture: 73.3% (2018 est.)" }, "forest": { "text": "0.2% (2018 est.)" }, "other": { "text": "26.4% (2018 est.)" } }, "Urbanization": { "urban population": { "text": "78.6% of total population (2023)" }, "rate of urbanization": { "text": "1.56% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)" } }, "Food insecurity": { "widespread lack of access": { "text": "due to unfavorable weather and high food prices - about 250,000 people were estimated to have faced acute food insecurity between March and June 2023, mainly due to the lingering impact of a prolonged and severe drought between late 2020 and early 2023, and high food prices (2023)" } }, "Revenue from forest resources": { "text": "0.26% of GDP (2018 est.)" }, "Revenue from coal": { "text": "0% of GDP (2018 est.)" }, "Air pollutants": { "particulate matter emissions": { "text": "19.98 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)" }, "carbon dioxide emissions": { "text": "0.62 megatons (2016 est.)" }, "methane emissions": { "text": "0.52 megatons (2020 est.)" } }, "Waste and recycling": { "municipal solid waste generated annually": { "text": "114,997 tons (2002 est.)" } }, "Major lakes (area sq km)": { "salt water lake(s)": { "text": "Abhe Bad/Abhe Bid Hayk (shared with Ethiopia) - 780 sq km" } }, "Total water withdrawal": { "municipal": { "text": "20 million cubic meters (2020 est.)" }, "industrial": { "text": "0 cubic meters (2017 est.)" }, "agricultural": { "text": "3 million cubic meters (2017 est.)" } }, "Total renewable water resources": { "text": "300 million cubic meters (2020 est.)" } }, "Government": { "Country name": { "conventional long form": { "text": "Republic of Djibouti" }, "conventional short form": { "text": "Djibouti" }, "local long form": { "text": "République de Djibouti (French)/ Jumhuriyat Jibuti (Arabic)" }, "local short form": { "text": "Djibouti (French)/ Jibuti (Arabic)" }, "former": { "text": "French Somaliland, French Territory of the Afars and Issas" }, "etymology": { "text": "the country name derives from the capital city of Djibouti" } }, "Government type": { "text": "presidential republic" }, "Capital": { "name": { "text": "Djibouti" }, "geographic coordinates": { "text": "11 35 N, 43 09 E" }, "time difference": { "text": "UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)" }, "etymology": { "text": "the origin of the name is disputed; multiple descriptions, possibilities, and theories have been proposed" } }, "Administrative divisions": { "text": "6 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); Ali Sabieh, Arta, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjourah" }, "Independence": { "text": "27 June 1977 (from France)" }, "National holiday": { "text": "Independence Day, 27 June (1977)" }, "Legal system": { "text": "mixed legal system based primarily on the French civil code (as it existed in 1997), Islamic religious law (in matters of family law and successions), and customary law" }, "Constitution": { "history": { "text": "approved by referendum 4 September 1992" }, "amendments": { "text": "proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; Assembly consideration of proposals requires assent of at least one third of the membership; passage requires a simple majority vote by the Assembly and approval by simple majority vote in a referendum; the president can opt to bypass a referendum if adopted by at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly; constitutional articles on the sovereignty of Djibouti, its republican form of government, and its pluralist form of democracy cannot be amended; amended 2006, 2008, 2010" } }, "International law organization participation": { "text": "accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction" }, "Citizenship": { "citizenship by birth": { "text": "no" }, "citizenship by descent only": { "text": "the mother must be a citizen of Djibouti" }, "dual citizenship recognized": { "text": "no" }, "residency requirement for naturalization": { "text": "10 years" } }, "Suffrage": { "text": "18 years of age; universal" }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { "text": "President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999)" }, "head of government": { "text": "Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil MOHAMED (since 1 April 2013)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister" }, "elections/appointments": { "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term; election last held on 9 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2026); prime minister appointed by the president" }, "election results": { "text": "