Djibouti (
Jībūtī, ), officially the
Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the
Horn of Africa. It is bordered by
Eritrea in the north,
Ethiopia in the west and south, and
Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the
Red Sea and the
Gulf of Aden.
History
The history of Djibouti is recorded in poetry, songs, and folklore of its nomadic people and goes back thousands of years to a time when Djiboutians traded hides and skins for the perfumes and spices of ancient
Egypt,
India, and
China. Through close contacts with the Arabian peninsula for more than 1,000 years, the
Somali and
Afar ethnic groups in this region became among the first on the African continent to adopt
Islam.
French interest developed in the nineteenth century when the area was ruled by the
sultan of
Raheita,
Tadjoura and
Gobaad. The French bought the anchorage of Obock in 1862 and expanded it eventually to a colony called
French Somaliland with essentially the current boundaries. In 1967, the area became the
French Territory of the Afars and the Issas.
The Republic of Djibouti gained its independence from
France on June 27, 1977. Djibouti is a Somali, Afar and Muslim country, which regularly takes part in Islamic affairs as well as Arab meetings.
Politics
Djibouti is a
semi-presidential republic, with
executive power in the central government, and
legislative power in both the government and parliament. The parliamentary party system is dominated by the
People's Rally for Progress and the President who currently is
Ismail Omar Guelleh. The country's current constitution was approved in September 1992. Djibouti is a
one party dominant state with the People's Rally for Progress in power. Other parties are allowed, but the main opposition,
Union for a Presidential Majority, boycotted the 2005 and 2008 elections leaving all of the legislative seats to the PRP. (
See Elections in Djibouti.)
The government is seen as being controlled by the Somali Issa Dir clan who enjoy the support of the
Somali clans, especially the
Gadabuursi Dir who are the second most prominent Somali clan in Djibouti politics. The country has recently come out of a decade long
civil war, with the government and the
Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy (FRUD) signing a peace treaty in 2000. Two FRUD members are part of the current cabinet.
Djibouti's second president, Guelleh was first elected to office in 1999, taking over from
Hassan Gouled Aptidon, who had ruled the country since its independence from France in 1977. Despite elections of the 1990s being described as "generally fair", Guelleh was sworn in for his second and final six-year term as president after a
one-man election on 8 April 2005. He took 100% of the votes in a 78.9% turnout.
The prime minister, who follows the council of ministers ('cabinet'), is appointed by the President. The parliament - the
Chambre des Députés - consists of 52 members who are selected every five to nine years.
In 2001, the Djiboutian government leased the former
French Foreign Legion base
Camp Lemonnier to the
United States. It transitioned from
United States Central Command to
United States Africa Command in 2008 as part of
Operation Enduring Freedom.
France's
13th Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade shares
Camp Lemonier with the
Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) of the
United States Central Command, which arrived in 2002. It is from Djibouti that
Abu Ali al-Harithi, suspected mastermind of the 2000
USS Cole bombing, and the American citizen
Ahmed Hijazi, along with four others persons, lost their lives in 2002 while riding a car in
Yemen, by a
Hellfire missile launched by an
RQ-1 Predator drone provided by the American
Central Intelligence Agency (
CIA). It is also from there that the American Army launched a few attacks in 2007 against
enemy forces in Somalia.
The country of Djibouti is a member of the
Arab League, as well as the
African Union, and also the
Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).
Geography
left|300px|thumb|Lac Assal area
Djibouti lies in Northeast Africa on the Gulf of Aden at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. It has of coastline and shares a border with Eritrea, with Ethiopia and with Somalia (total ). The country is mainly a stony
semidesert, with scattered plateaus and highlands. It has an area of .
Regions and districts
right|190px|Map of the regions of DjiboutiDjibouti is sectioned into 5
regions and one
city. It is further subdivided into 11
districts.
The regions and city are:
Economy
The economy of Djibouti is based on service activities connected with the country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in northeast Africa. Two-thirds of the inhabitants live in the capital city, the remainder being mostly nomadic herders. Scant rainfall limits crop production to
fruits and
vegetables, and most food must be imported.
thumb|left|Fishing boats docked at the Port of Djibouti.
In April 2005, the United Nations
World Food Programme warned that 30,000 people in Djibouti face serious food shortages following three years of poor rains.
Djibouti provides services as both a transit port for the region and an international transshipment and refueling center. It has few natural resources and little
industry. The nation is, therefore, heavily dependent on foreign assistance to help support its balance of payments and to finance development projects. Daniel R. Sutton, an American salt miner, is also overseeing some $70 million operation to industrialize the collection of Djibouti’s plentiful salt in the Region Lake Asal.
There are gold miners from India, geothermal experts from Iceland, Turkish hotel managers, Saudi oil engineers, French bankers and American military contractors. Investors from Dubai have leased the country's port, in an effort to develop the area as a gateway to the region. Saudi investors are reportedly exploring the possibility of linking the
Horn of Africa with the
Arabian Peninsula via an 18-mile long oversea bridge referred to as the
Bridge of the Horns.
Tarek bin Laden, half brother of Osama bin Laden, has been linked to the project.
An
unemployment rate of 40% to 50% continues to be a major problem.
Inflation is not a concern, however, because of the fixed tie of the
franc to the
U.S. dollar. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35% over the last seven years because of
recession,
civil war, and a high
population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Renewed fighting between
Ethiopia and
Eritrea has been beneficial to Djibouti, the
Port of Djibouti now serving as landlocked Ethiopia's primary link to the sea. Faced with a multitude of economic difficulties, the government has fallen into arrears on long-term external debt and has been struggling to meet the stipulations of foreign aid donors.
Demographics
thumb|right|160px|[[Afar people|Afar man in nomad attire.]]
thumb|left|200px|[[Somali people|Somali man in traditional
koofiyad fez.]]
The population consists of two major ethnic groups: the
Somali and the
Afar.
The remainder is formed by
Europeans (mostly
French and
Italians),
Arabs and
Ethiopians. Tensions between the Afar and
Issa was the cause of the
civil war in the early 1990s.
The Somali ethnic component in Djibouti is mainly composed of the Issas, who form the majority and the
Gadabuursi both of whom are subclans of the
Dir. The Issas form part of the Madoobe
Dir while the Gadabuursi are part of Madaluug
Dir.
Although
French and
Arabic are the official languages,
Somali and
Afar are widely spoken.
The bulk of Djibouti's people are urban residents; the remainder are
pastoralists.
Health
The life expectancy at birth is about 60 for both females and males.
[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/dj.html] Fertility is at about 3 children per woman.
In the country there are about 18 doctors per 100,000 persons.
Religion
thumb|left|Mosque in Djibouti city
Djibouti's population is predominantly
Muslim. Islam is observed by 94% of Djibouti's population (about 444,440), while the remaining six percent, primarily consisting of foreign nationals, follow various
Christian traditions.
Every town and village in Djibouti has a
mosque where people go to worship. Tombs of their former religious leaders and those considered holy are known as sacred spaces. The most famous sacred space for Islam in Djibouti is the tomb of Sheikh Abu Yazid, which is found in the
Goda Mountains.
In addition to the Islamic calendar, Muslims in Djibouti also recognize New Year's Day (January 1) and Labor Day (May 1) as holidays.
Estimates on the Christian minority vary from less than one percent to six percent of the population. There live between 7,000 and 8,000 Catholics, of which some 300 are local Djiboutians, the rest being foreigners. The Christian population largely consists of foreign-born or expatriate residents. Djibouti has a Catholic bishop, 4 Catholic priests all of whom are foreigners – as well as about 40 Catholic missionaries.
While the Republic of Djibouti names the Islam as the sole
state religion, the Constitution of 1992 provides for the equality of citizens of all faiths (Art. 1) as well as the freedom to practise any religion (Art. 11). Djibouti's Family Code (Code de la Famille) of 2002 prohibits muslim women from marrying non-muslim men, unless the men convert to Islam. Marriage, divorce and inheritance are handled by the Family Court which applies the Family Code and has jurisdiction over muslims, while non-muslims must instead turn to civil courts. According to the
International Religious Freedom Report 2008, while muslim Djiboutians have the legal right to convert to another faith or marry outside of Islam,
"converts may face negative societal, tribal, and familial attitudes towards their decision" and often face pressure to revert to Islam .
Culture
thumb|250px|Beach in Djibouti City.
Djiboutian attire reflects the region's hot and arid climate. When not dressed in Westernized clothing such as jeans and t-shirts, men typically wear the
macawiis, which is a
sarong-like garment worn around the waist. Among
nomads, many wear a loosely wrapped white cotton robe called a
tobe that goes down to about the knee, with the end thrown over the shoulder (much like a Roman
toga).
Women typically wear the
dirac, which is a long, light, diaphanous
voile dress made of cotton or
polyester that is worn over a full-length
half-slip and a brassiere. Married women tend to sport head-scarves referred to as
shash, and also often cover their upper body with a
shawl known as
garbasaar. Unmarried or young women, however, do not always cover their heads. Traditional Arabian garb such as the male
jellabiya (
jellabiyaad in Somali) and the female
niqab is also commonly worn. For some occasions such as festivals, women may adorn themselves with specialized jewelry and head-dresses similar to those worn by the
Berber tribes of the
Maghreb.
A lot of Djibouti's original art is passed on and preserved orally, mainly through song. Many examples of Islamic, Ottoman, and French influences can also be noted in the local buildings, which contain
plasterwork, carefully constructed
motifs and
calligraphy.
Education
Education in Djibouti is strongly influenced by
France.
(Hare 2007) Although the government effort resulted in an increase in enrollment during the 1990s, the education system is still below people’s expectations and the needs of a developing nation.
There are 81 public primary schools, 24 registered private primary schools, 12 secondary schools and two vocational schools in Djibouti.
Female gross enrollment rate was at only 21.9 % and male gross enrollment rate at 29.0 % in 2007.
See also
- Nikos Kavadias, a Greek writer and poet who regularly mentions Djibouti in his works.
