| 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. |
| Location: |
Eastern Africa,
bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of
Ethiopia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
10 00 N, 49 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
637,657 sq km
land: 627,337 sq km
water: 10,320 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller
than Texas |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
2,366 km
border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia
1,626 km, Kenya 682 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
territorial
sea: 200 NM |
| 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 |
| Terrain: |
mostly flat to
undulating plateau rising to hills in north |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Shimbiris 2,416 m |
| Natural
resources: |
uranium and
largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum,
bauxite, copper, salt |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
2%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 69%
forests and woodland: 26%
other: 3% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
1,800 sq km (1993
est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
recurring
droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in
summer; floods during rainy season |
| Environment
- current issues: |
famine; use of
contaminated water contributes to human health problems;
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping,
Nuclear Test Ban |
| Geography
- note: |
strategic
location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab
el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal |
| 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.) |
| 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.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
3.48% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
47.23
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
18.35
deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
5.96 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| 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.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
123.97
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 46.6 years
male: 44.99 years
female: 48.25 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
7.11 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
NA% |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Somali(s)
adjective: Somali |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Somali 85%,
Bantu, Arabs 30,000 |
| Languages: |
Somali
(official), Arabic, Italian, English |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 24%
male: 36%
female: 14% (1990 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: none
conventional short form: Somalia
former: Somali Republic, Somali Democratic
Republic |
| Government
type: |
parliamentary |
| 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 |
| 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) |
| National
holiday: |
Foundation of the
Somali Republic, 1 July (1960) |
| 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 |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| 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. |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
none |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
numerous clan and
subclan factions are currently vying for power |
| 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) |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
Somalia does not
have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991) |
| 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 |
| 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) |
| Government
- note: |
An interim
Transitional National Government - with a president, prime
minister, and 245-member National Assembly - was formed in
October 2000. However, other governing bodies continue to
exist and control various cities and regions of the country,
including Somaliland, Puntland, and traditional clan and
faction strongholds. |
| 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. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $4.3 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
NA% |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $600 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
60%
industry: 10% (largely shut down in 2000)
services: 30% (2000 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
over 100%
(businesses print their own money) (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
3.7 million (very
few are skilled laborers) (1993 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture
(mostly pastoral nomadism) 71%, industry and services 29% |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital
expenditures of $NA |
| Industries: |
a few small
industries, including sugar refining, textiles, petroleum
refining (mostly shut down), wireless communication |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
NA% |
| Electricity
- production: |
260 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
241.8 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
cattle, sheep,
goats; bananas, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame
seeds, beans; fish |
| Exports: |
$186 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
livestock,
bananas, hides, fish (1999) |
| Exports
- partners: |
Saudi Arabia 53%,
Yemen 19%, UAE 14%, Italy 5%, Pakistan 2% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$314 million
(f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
manufactures,
petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials
(1995) |
| Imports
- partners: |
Djibouti 24%,
Kenya 14%, Brazil 13%, Saudi Arabia 10%, India 9% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$2.6 billion
(1999 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$191.5 million
(1995) |
| Currency: |
Somali shilling
(SOS) |
| 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 |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
NA |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
NA |
| 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 |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 0, FM 0,
shortwave 4 (1988) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
1 (1997) |
| Televisions: |
135,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.so |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
200 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
22,100 km
paved: 2,608 km
unpaved: 19,492 km (1996) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 15 km |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Bender Cassim (Boosaaso),
Berbera, Chisimayu (Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu |
| Merchant
marine: |
none (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
5
over 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 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.) |
| 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 |
| 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.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$NA |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Disputes
- international: |
most of the
southern half of the boundary with Ethiopia is a Provisional
Administrative Line; territorial dispute with Ethiopia over
the Ogaden |
|
