DJIBOUTI

officially Republic of Djibouti, French Rpublique de Djibouti, Arabic Jumhuriyah Jibuti, formerly (until 1977) French Territory of the Afars and Issas, small country of eastern Africa, situated on the northeast coast of the Horn of Africa. Facing the Strait of Mandeb (between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden) on the east, Djibouti is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Ethiopia to the west and south, and Somalia to the southeast. The capital is the city of Djibouti. Area 8,950 square miles (23,200 square km). Pop. (1996 est.) 603,600.. Arabic Jibuti, port city and capital of the Republic of Djibouti. It lies on the southern shore of the Gulf of Tadjoura, which is an inlet of the Gulf of Aden. Built on three level areas (Djibouti, Serpent, Marabout) linked by jetties, the city has a mixture of old and modern architecture. Menilek Square contains the government palace. The native quarter of the city has a well-known camel market. The climate is dry and hot. Water is supplied by the underground Houmbouli River. Djibouti owes its creation as a port (c. 1888) to Lonce Lagarde, first governor of French Somaliland, as the area was then called. Shortly after it became the capital (1892), work began on the railway that linked Addis Ababa, Eth., to the port in 1917. The harbour is landlocked, covers 160 acres (65 hectares), and has been modernized and dredged to depths of 4065 feet (1220 m). Djibouti became a free port in 1949, and the economic life of both the city and the nation depends on the city's use as an entrept especially between Ethiopia and the Red Sea trade and as a refueling and supply station. Trade declined during the closure (196775) of the Suez Canal. Guerrilla attacks on parts of the DjiboutiAddis Ababa Railway during the Ethiopian civil war in the late 1970s led to further disruption of Djibouti's economy. Drought and war during the 1980s and early '90s sent many refugees to Djibouti from Somalia and Ethiopia, swelling its population and creating an additional strain on the city's resources. Major population groups in the city are the Afars (Danakil), Issa Somalis, Arabs, Europeans (mostly French), and Asians. Pop. (1991 est.) 317,000. officially Republic of Djibouti, French Rpublique de Djibouti, Arabic Jumhuriyah Jibuti, formerly (until 1977) French Territory of the Afars and Issas, strategically located nation on the northeast coast of the Horn of Africa. It is situated on the Strait of Mandeb, which lies to the east and separates the Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden. Small in size (8,950 square miles [23,200 square kilometres]), Djibouti is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Ethiopia to the west and southwest, and Somalia to the south. The Gulf of Tadjoura, which opens into the Gulf of Aden, bifurcates the eastern half of the country and supplies much of its 230 miles (370 kilometres) of coastline. The capital, Djibouti city, is built on coral reefs jutting into the southern entrance of the gulf; other major towns are Obock, Tadjoura, Ali Sabieh, and Dikhil. The nation's Lilliputian aspect belies its regional and geopolitical importance. The capital is the site of a modern deepwater port that serves Indian Ocean and Red Sea traffic and hosts a French naval base. Djibouti city is also the railhead for the only line serving Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. Djibouti is one of Africa's newest states; it gained independence from France on June 27, 1977. The republic seeks a role as moderator in regional strife and continued development of its commercial activity. Additional reading Because most scholarship has been published in French, English-language sources for the geography and history of Djibouti are few and scattered. Among the fairly accessible articles and monographs in English on politics and economics are Said Yusuf Abdi, Independence for the Afars and Issas: Complex Background, Uncertain Future, Africa Today, 24(1):6167 (January/March 1977), a succinct discussion of regional and internal politics at the time of independence; Peter D. Coats, Factors of Intermediacy in Nineteenth-Century Africa: The Case of the Issa of the Horn, in Thomas Labahn (ed.), Proceedings of the Second International Congress of Somali Studies, vol. 2 (1984), pp. 175199, an excellent analysis of the impact of the Franco-Ethiopian railway on the traditional trading networks and economy of the Issa Somali; and Norman N. Miller, The Other Somalia, Horn of Africa, 5(3):319 (1982), focusing on unrecorded trade between Somalia and Djibouti. Catherine C. Cutbill Administration and social conditions Government Nine constitutional articles were adopted in February 1981. These provide for the election of a president by universal suffrage for a six-year term (renewable once), a 65-member National Assembly elected for a five-year term, and a Council of Ministers headed by the prime minister. A single-party system, consisting of the Popular Assembly for Progress (Rassemblement Populaire pour le Progrs; RPP), was instituted by constitutional amendment in October 1981. Deputies to the National Assembly must be elected from a list supplied by the RPP; abstention from voting is the only legal form of opposition. The judicial system recognizes several codes: French-based civil law, Islamic law, and customary means of arbitration employed by the local populations. The Djiboutian armed forces are supported by the presence of several thousand French troops, including a unit of the French Foreign Legion. Djibouti belongs to the United Nations, the Organization of African Unity, the Arab League, and the nonaligned movement. In 1986 Djibouti city became the headquarters of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Drought and Development (IGADD), which comprises six eastern African nations. Education The educational system, although free, is burdened by the needs of Djibouti's young population. For many, formal education ends with early childhood training at local Qur'an schools. Primary schools are run by the state and by Roman Catholic clergy; advancement to the secondary level in the public system is limited by the size of state facilities. A small vocational training program is offered, but no postsecondary educational institutions exist. Less than one-fifth of the adult population is literate. Cultural life Djibouti's only television and radio station, which broadcasts in French, Arabic, Afar, and Somali, is state-run, as is the weekly French-language newspaper, La Nation. The government sponsors several organizations dedicated to the preservation of traditional culture and dance. In 1984 Djibouti entered the Olympics for the first time; since then its marathon runners have commanded international attention. Major holidays are Independence Day, June 27, and the festivals of the Muslim calendar.