ng the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean,
east of Ethiopia

Geographic coordinates:
10 00 N, 49 00 E

Map references:
Africa

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: 2,340 km
border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia 1,600 km, Kenya 682 km

Coastline:
3,025 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 200 nm

Climate:
principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February),
moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south; southwest
monsoon (May to October), 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, natural gas, likely oil reserves

Land use:
arable land: 1.64%
permanent crops: 0.04%
other: 98.32% (2005)

Irrigated land:
2,000 sq km (2003)

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: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone
Layer Protection

Geography - note:
strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to
Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal

People Somalia

Population:
8,863,338
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 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 44.4% (male 1,973,294/female 1,961,083)
15-64 years: 53% (male 2,355,861/female 2,342,988)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 97,307/female 132,805) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 17.6 years
male: 17.5 years
female: 17.7 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.85% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
45.13 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
16.63 deaths/