Djibouti
Name
| Official name | Republic of Djibouti — République de Djibouti; Jumhūriyyat Jībūtī (جمهورية جيبوتي); Jamhuuriyadda Jabuuti (Somali); Gabuutih Ummuuno (Afar) |
|---|---|
| Former names | French Somaliland — Côte française des Somalis (1896–1967); French Territory of the Afars and the Issas (1967–1977) |
| Demonym | Djiboutian |
| Meaning of the name | From the port city — perhaps the Afar gabouti, a palm-fiber doormat, or the Somali jab buti; uncertain |
| Motto | "Unité, Égalité, Paix" — unity, equality, peace |
Quick facts
| Capital | Djibouti — the city; founded 1888, the capital since 1892; about 600,000, more than half the country |
|---|---|
| Other towns | Ali Sabieh; Tadjoura, the old sultanate; Dikhil; Obock, the first French post; Arta |
| Official languages | French and Arabic; Somali and Afar the national languages, spoken by nearly all |
| Currency | Djiboutian franc — ISO code DJF, Fdj; fixed at 177.721 to the U.S. dollar since 1973 |
| Time zone | East Africa Time, UTC+3, all year |
| Calling code | +253 |
| Internet domain | .dj |
| ISO 3166 codes | DJ · DJI · 262 |
| Vehicle registration code | DJI |
| Driving side | Right |
| Electricity | 220 V, 50 Hz; plug types C and E |
| Independence | 27 June 1977, from France — the national day; Hassan Gouled Aptidon the first president |
| National days | 27 June, Independence Day; the Islamic festivals — Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, the Mawlid; 1 May |
| Constitution | 4 September 1992 — approved by referendum; amended 2010 to remove term limits and set the age limit of 75, and in October–November 2025 to remove that limit |
| Population | 1,066,809 at the census of 2024; about 1.2 million (UN and CIA World Factbook, 2025 est.) |
| Area | 23,200 km² (8,958 sq mi) — land 23,180 km², water 20 km²; a little smaller than New Jersey |
Flag & national symbols
| National flag | Two horizontal bands of light blue and green — the Issa and the Afar, the sea and the sky, the land — with a white triangle at the hoist for peace bearing a red star for unity and the blood of independence; the flag of the independence movement, hoisted on 27 June 1977.Flag of Djibouti |
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| Coat of arms | A shield and a spear between two hands holding daggers, under a red star, within a wreath of laurel — the Issa and the Afar in arms together; adopted 1977 |
| National anthem | "Djibouti" — words by Aden Elmi, music by Abdi Robleh; adopted 1977; sung in Somali |
| National motto | "Unité, Égalité, Paix" |
| National colors | Light blue, green, white and red |
| National animal | None designated — the whale sharks of the Gulf of Tadjoura and the Beira antelope widely cited |
| National dish | Skoudehkaris — rice with lamb; laxoox flatbread; fah-fah stew; widely cited |
| Symbol status | The flag, arms, anthem and motto are fixed by the Constitution; the animal and dish are widely cited, none designated |
Geography
| Location | The Horn of Africa — on the Bab-el-Mandeb between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, 30 km from Yemen across the strait; between Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia |
|---|---|
| Land borders | 528 km (328 mi) with three countries |
| Border with Ethiopia | 342 km (213 mi) |
| Border with Eritrea | 125 km (78 mi) — the Ras Doumeira dispute, fought over in June 2008 |
| Border with Somalia | 61 km (38 mi) — with Somaliland |
| Coastline | 314 km (195 mi) on the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Tadjoura and the Bab-el-Mandeb |
| Highest point | Moussa Ali, 2,028 m (6,654 ft) — a volcano at the triple border with Eritrea and Ethiopia |
| Lowest point | Lake Assal, 155 m (509 ft) below sea level — the lowest point in Africa and the third-lowest on earth |
| Mean elevation | 430 m (1,411 ft) |
| Lakes | Assal, the salt lake, about 54 km², ten times saltier than the sea, its shore mined for salt; Abbe on the Ethiopian border, with its limestone chimneys; no permanent rivers |
| Terrain | Volcanic plateaus and desert plains — the Afar Depression, where the Arabian, Nubian and Somali plates part; the Grand Bara and Petit Bara salt flats; the Goda mountains with the Day Forest, the country's one forest; the Ghoubbet, the "devil's cauldron," at the head of the Gulf of Tadjoura |
| Climate | Desert — among the hottest countries on earth, above 45°C in summer; about 150 mm of rain a year; the khamsin wind |
| Natural hazards | Earthquakes and volcanoes — the Ardoukoba eruption of 1978; drought; flash floods, as in November 2019 and 2023; cyclone Sagar 2018 |
| Natural resources | Salt; geothermal energy at Lake Assal; limestone, gypsum, pumice; fish; the position on the strait |
| Land use | Agricultural land about 73%, nearly all pasture; arable under 0.1%; forest about 0.2% |
| National parks | The Day Forest National Park — the juniper forest of the Goda mountains; the Moucha and Maskali islands; the whale-shark waters of the Gulf of Tadjoura |
| UNESCO World Heritage | None inscribed — Lake Assal and the Bab-el-Mandeb islands on the tentative list |
| Administrative divisions | 5 regions — Ali Sabieh, Arta, Dikhil, Obock and Tadjourah — and the city of Djibouti; 11 districts |
People
| Population | 1,066,809 (census of 2024); about 1.2 million (2025 est.) |
|---|---|
| Population density | About 50 per km² (130 per sq mi) — nearly all of it in the capital |
| Population growth | About 1.5% a year |
| Median age | About 26 years |
| Life expectancy | About 65 years |
| Fertility rate | About 2.5 births per woman |
| Urban population | About 79% — among the highest in Africa |
| Adult literacy | About 60% |
| Ethnic groups | Somali about 60% — the Issa above all, with the Gadabuursi and Isaaq; Afar about 35%; Arabs, Ethiopians, French and Yemenis |
| Languages | Somali and Afar at home; Arabic in the mosques; French in government and school |
| Religion | Sunni Islam about 94% — the state religion; Christian about 6%, mostly foreigners |
| Refugees | Some 30,000 refugees from Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Yemen; a transit country for migrants crossing to the Gulf — more than 100,000 a year through Obock |
| Human Development Index | 0.513 (2023 data, 2025 report) — low; about 164th of 193 |
| Sport | Football — the Riverains de la Mer Rouge; athletics — Ahmed Salah's marathon bronze of 1988, the country's only Olympic medal; Ayanleh Souleiman |
| Diaspora | In Ethiopia, France, Canada, the Gulf states and the United States |
Government
| Form of government | Presidential republic under the Constitution of 1992 — the president elected for five years, without term limits since 2010 and without an age limit since 2025; a prime minister appointed by the president |
|---|---|
| President | Ismaïl Omar Guelleh (People's Rally for Progress, RPP), since 8 May 1999 — the second president; the head of the security service under his uncle, the founding president Hassan Gouled Aptidon; born 27 November 1947 at Dire Dawa in Ethiopia; "IOG" |
| The 2026 election | Held 10 April 2026: Guelleh re-elected to a sixth term with about 97% — 204,874 votes by the final count — against about 3% for Mohamed Farah Samatar of the Unified Democratic Centre, a party without a seat; an electorate of about 256,000; turnout above 80%; observers from the African Union, the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation; two of the main opposition parties boycotting, as at every election since 2016; no woman among the candidates |
| The amendment of 2025 | On 26 October 2025 all 65 members of the National Assembly voted to remove the age limit of 75 on presidential candidates, which Guelleh himself had set in 2010 when term limits were abolished; the second vote of 2 November avoided a referendum; a five-year residency rule for candidates added; Alexis Mohamed, a senior adviser, had resigned on 22 September citing democratic backsliding and nepotism; reports name the president's stepson, Naguib Abdallah Kamil, as a likely successor |
| Prime Minister | Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed (RPP), since 1 April 2013 — a former defense minister |
| Parliament | The National Assembly — 65 members elected for five years; the Union for the Presidential Majority, the RPP with the FRUD and its allies, holds nearly all seats; the next election due in 2028 |
| The next election | The presidential election due in 2031 |
| Legal system | Civil law on the French model, with Islamic and customary law; the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Council |
| Regions | 5 and the capital, each under a prefect |
| Foreign bases | Camp Lemonnier, the only permanent U.S. base in Africa, since 2001 — about 4,000 personnel; the French base, the largest French force abroad; the Chinese support base at Doraleh since 1 August 2017, China's first overseas; Japan's first overseas base since 2011; Italian, Spanish and German contingents; the rents about US$300 million a year |
| The FRUD | The Afar Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy — the insurgency of 1991–94, ended by the accords of 1994 and 2001; a faction still in arms in the north, which killed seven soldiers in 2022 |
| United Nations | Member since 20 September 1977 |
| Regional memberships | The African Union; the Arab League (1977); IGAD, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, headquartered in Djibouti; COMESA; the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation; the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie |
Economy
| GDP (nominal) | About US$4.5 billion (2025, IMF) |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita | About US$3,900 (2025) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | About US$8,000 (2025) |
| GDP growth | About 6% a year (2023–25), driven by the ports and the railway |
| Economy by sector | Services about 80% — the ports, transport, the bases; industry about 17%; agriculture about 3% |
| Currency | Djiboutian franc (DJF), fixed to the dollar |
| The ports | The Port of Djibouti and the Doraleh container and multipurpose terminals — the outlet for about 95% of Ethiopia's trade; the Doraleh Container Terminal seized from DP World in 2018, a dispute in the courts since; the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone since 2018 |
| The strait | The Bab-el-Mandeb — some 12 percent of world trade and 30 percent of container traffic; the Houthi attacks on shipping since November 2023 cut Red Sea traffic and the port's transshipment |
| The bases | Rent and spending from the foreign forces — the second income after the ports; the U.S. lease about US$63 million a year |
| Salt | From Lake Assal — the one traditional export |
| Public debt | About 70% of GDP, much of it to China for the railway, the port and the water pipeline |
| Unemployment | About 25%, higher among the young |
| Income classification | Lower-middle income (World Bank); a least developed country |
Transport & infrastructure
| Main airport | Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport, shared with Camp Lemonnier and the French base |
|---|---|
| Airline | Air Djibouti, the national carrier, refounded 2015 |
| Main ports | The Port of Djibouti; Doraleh; the Tadjoura port for Ethiopian potash, 2017; Goubet; Damerjog |
| Railways | The Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway, 753 km, standard gauge and electric, opened 2016 and in commercial service 2018 — the first electric transnational railway in Africa, replacing the meter-gauge line of 1917 |
| Roads | About 3,000 km (1,900 mi), a third paved; Route Nationale 1 to the Ethiopian border at Galafi, the truck road of the Horn |
| Water | The pipeline from Ethiopia since 2017; desalination |
History in dates
| c. 1st century | The port of Adulis and the Land of Punt trade on the coast |
|---|---|
| 13th–16th century | The Ifat and Adal sultanates; Tadjoura |
| 1862 | France buys Obock from the Afar sultans, 11 March |
| 1888 | Djibouti founded; the capital moves there in 1892 |
| 1896 | French Somaliland |
| 1917 | The railway to Addis Ababa completed |
| 1958 · 1967 | Referendums keep the territory French; renamed for the Afars and the Issas, 1967 |
| 1977 | Independence, 27 June — Hassan Gouled Aptidon president |
| 1991–1994 | The FRUD insurgency; the peace of 26 December 1994 |
| 1992 | The Constitution, 4 September |
| 1999 | Ismaïl Omar Guelleh president, 8 May |
| 2001 | The United States leases Camp Lemonnier |
| 2008 | Clashes with Eritrea at Ras Doumeira, June |
| 2010 | Term limits removed |
| 2017 | China's base opens, 1 August; the Doraleh free zone |
| 2018 | The electric railway in service; DP World ousted from Doraleh |
| 2025 | The age limit removed, 26 October and 2 November |
| 2026 | Guelleh's sixth term, 10 April |
Records & firsts
| The lowest point in Africa | Lake Assal, 155 m below the sea |
|---|---|
| Among the saltiest waters on earth | Lake Assal, about 35% salt |
| The most foreign bases | The only country with both an American and a Chinese base |
| A new ocean being born | The Afar Triple Junction |
| The first electric transnational railway in Africa | Addis Ababa–Djibouti, 2018 |
| Among the hottest countries | Summers above 45°C |
| The chokepoint | The Bab-el-Mandeb — an eighth of world trade |
| The oldest dollar peg | The franc at 177.721, since 1973 |
| One Olympic medal | Ahmed Salah, marathon bronze, Seoul 1988 |
| The whale sharks | The Gulf of Tadjoura, the young sharks' nursery |
Frequently asked questions
What is the official name of Djibouti?
The Republic of Djibouti — République de Djibouti in French, Jumhūriyyat Jībūtī in Arabic — since independence from France on 27 June 1977. Before that it was French Somaliland from 1896 and, from 1967, the French Territory of the Afars and the Issas, named for its two peoples. The name is that of the port city, of uncertain origin — perhaps from the Afar gabouti, a doormat woven of palm, or the Somali jab buti.
What is the capital of Djibouti?
Djibouti — Djibouti City, Ville de Djibouti — on the Gulf of Tadjoura at the mouth of the Red Sea, founded by the French in 1888 and the capital since 1892, with about 600,000 people, more than half the country. Ali Sabieh, Tadjoura, Dikhil, Obock and Arta, the regional capitals, have a few tens of thousands each.
How big is Djibouti, and how many people live there?
About 23,200 km² (8,958 sq mi) — a little smaller than New Jersey — on the Bab-el-Mandeb, the strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden through which some 12 percent of world trade passes. The census of 2024 counted 1,066,809 people; the UN and the CIA World Factbook estimate about 1.2 million for 2025, with about 80 percent living in the capital and the towns — among the most urban countries in Africa.
What are the highest and lowest points of Djibouti?
Moussa Ali, 2,028 m (6,654 ft), a volcano where the borders of Djibouti, Eritrea and Ethiopia meet; and Lake Assal, 155 m (509 ft) below sea level — the lowest point in Africa and the third-lowest on earth, a crater lake ten times saltier than the sea, ringed by a salt crust from which the Afar have cut salt for a thousand years. The country sits on the Afar Triple Junction, where three plates pull apart and a new ocean is being born.
What currency does Djibouti use?
The Djiboutian franc (ISO code DJF, Fdj), fixed to the U.S. dollar at 177.721 since 1973 under a currency board — one of the oldest fixed rates in the world — and issued by the Central Bank of Djibouti. Clocks keep East Africa Time, UTC+3, all year.
Who governs Djibouti?
President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, known as IOG, in office since 8 May 1999, when he succeeded his uncle Hassan Gouled Aptidon, the founding president — the third-longest-serving leader in East Africa. He was re-elected on 10 April 2026 to a sixth five-year term with about 97 percent of the vote against a single challenger, after the National Assembly removed the presidential age limit of 75 in October and November 2025; term limits had gone in 2010. Two of the main opposition parties have boycotted every election since 2016, and observers report no realistic path to power through the ballot. Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed has been prime minister since 2013.
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