Gateway for Red Sea shipping, Djibouti lies in northeast Africa. A French territory until 1977, France’s naval base and garrison generate about half of the country’s income. The capital of this resource-poor nation profits as a regional banking center with a free port and modern air facilities. Terminus of the railway from Addis Ababa, it handles much of Ethiopia’s trade. A civil war in the early 1990s ended with a power-sharing agreement between the two main ethnic groups, the Issa of Somali origin and the Afar of Ethiopian origin.
Fast Facts
Population: 793,000
Capital: Djibouti; 502,000
Area: 23,200 square kilometers (8,958 square miles)
Language: French, Arabic, Somali, Afar
Religion: Muslim, Christian
Currency: Djiboutian franc
Life Expectancy: 43
GDP per Capita: U.S. $1,300
Literacy Percent: 68
ECONOMY
Industry: Construction, agricultural processing
Agriculture: Fruits, vegetables; goats
Exports: Re-exports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit)
Source: The National Geographic
CIA- The World Factbook
