Djibouti vs. Somalia
Government
| Djibouti | Somalia | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti conventional short form: Djibouti local long form: Republique de Djibouti/Jumhuriyat Jibuti local short form: Djibouti/Jibuti former: French Somaliland, French Territory of the Afars and Issas etymology: the country name derives from the capital city of Djibouti | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Somalia conventional short form: Somalia local long form: Jamhuuriyadda Federaalkaa Soomaaliya local short form: Soomaaliya former: Somali Republic, Somali Democratic Republic etymology: "Land of the Somali" (ethnic group) |
| Government type | presidential republic | federal parliamentary republic |
| Capital | name: Djibouti geographic coordinates: 11 35 N, 43 09 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the origin of the name is disputed; multiple descriptions, possibilities, and theories have been proposed | name: Mogadishu geographic coordinates: 2 04 N, 45 20 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: several theories attempt to explain the city's name; one of the more plausible is that it derives from "maq'ad-i-shah" meaning "the seat of the shah," reflecting the city's links with Persia |
| Administrative divisions | 6 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); Ali Sabieh, Arta, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjourah | 18 regions (plural - NA, singular - gobolka); Awdal, Bakool, Banaadir, Bari, Bay, Galguduud, Gedo, Hiiraan, Jubbada Dhexe (Middle Jubba), Jubbada Hoose (Lower Jubba), Mudug, Nugaal, Sanaag, Shabeellaha Dhexe (Middle Shabeelle), Shabeellaha Hoose (Lower Shabeelle), Sool, Togdheer, Woqooyi Galbeed |
| Independence | 27 June 1977 (from France) | 1 July 1960 (from a merger of British Somaliland, which became independent from the UK on 26 June 1960, and Italian Somaliland, which became independent from the Italian-administered UN trusteeship on 1 July 1960 to form the Somali Republic) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) | Foundation of the Somali Republic, 1 July (1960); note - 26 June (1960) in Somaliland |
| Constitution | history: approved by referendum 4 September 1992 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; Assembly consideration of proposals requires assent at least one third of the membership; passage requires a simple majority vote by the Assembly and approval by simple majority vote in a referendum; the president can opt to bypass a referendum if adopted by at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly; constitutional articles on the sovereignty of Djibouti, its republican form of government, and its pluralist form of democracy cannot by amended; amended 2006, 2008, 2010 | history: previous 1961, 1979; latest drafted 12 June 2012, adopted 1 August 2012 (provisional) amendments: proposed by the federal government, by members of the state governments, the Federal Parliament, or by public petition; proposals require review by a joint committee of Parliament with inclusion of public comments and state legislatures' comments; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote in both houses of Parliament and approval by a majority of votes cast in a referendum; constitutional clauses on Islamic principles, the federal system, human rights and freedoms, powers and authorities of the government branches, and inclusion of women in national institutions cannot be amended; note - in late December 2020, the president signed a decree blocking the approval of amendments (2021) |
| Legal system | mixed legal system based primarily on the French civil code (as it existed in 1997), Islamic religious law (in matters of family law and successions), and customary law | mixed legal system of civil law, Islamic (sharia) law, and customary law (referred to as Xeer) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil MOHAMED (since 1 April 2013) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term; election last held on 9 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2026); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Ismail Omar GUELLEH reelected president for a fifth term; percent of vote - Ismail Omar GUELLEH (RPP) 97.4%, Zakaria Ismael FARAH (MDEND) 2.7% | chief of state: President Mohamed ABDULLAHI Mohamed "Farmaajo" (since 8 February 2017) head of government: Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein ROBLE (since 27 September 2020) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister, approved by the House of the People elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by the Federal Parliament by two-thirds majority vote in 2 rounds if needed for a single 4-year term; election last held on 8 February 2017 (next election delayed until 10 October 2021); prime minister appointed by the president, approved by the House of the People election results: Mohamed ABDULLAHI Mohamed "Farmaajo" elected president in second round; Federal Parliament second round vote - Mohamed ABDULLAHI Mohamed "Farmaajo" (TPP) 184, HASSAN SHEIKH Mohamud (PDP) 97, Sheikh SHARIF Sheikh Ahmed (ARS) 46 |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale, formerly the Chamber of Deputies (65 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 23 February 2018 (next to be held in February 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 57, UDJ-PDD 7, CDU 1; composition - men 47, women 18, percent of women 26.7% | description: bicameral Federal Parliament to consist of: Upper House (54 seats; senators indirectly elected by state assemblies to serve 4-year terms) House of the People (275 seats; members indirectly elected by electoral colleges, each consisting of 51 delegates selected by the 136 Traditional Elders in consultation with sub-clan elders; members serve 4-year terms) elections: Upper House - first held on 10 October 2016 (next to be held in November 2020) House of the People - first held 23 October - 10 November 2016 (next to be held in November 2020) election results: Upper House - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 41, women 13, percent of women 24.1% House of the People - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 208, women 67, percent of women 24.4%; note - total Parliament percent of women 24.3% note: the inaugural House of the People was appointed in September 2012 by clan elders; in 2016 and 2017, the Federal Parliament became bicameral with elections scheduled for 10 October 2016 for the Upper House and 23 October to 10 November 2016 for the House of the People; while the elections were delayed, they were eventually held in most regions despite voting irregularities; on 27 December 2016, 41 Upper House senators and 242 House of the People members were sworn in |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (consists of NA magistrates); Constitutional Council (consists of 6 magistrates) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court magistrates appointed by the president with the advice of the Superior Council of the Magistracy CSM, a 10-member body consisting of 4 judges, 3 members (non parliamentarians and judges) appointed by the president, and 3 appointed by the National Assembly president or speaker; magistrates appointed for life with retirement at age 65; Constitutional Council magistrate appointments - 2 by the president of the republic, 2 by the president of the National Assembly, and 2 by the CSM; magistrates appointed for 8-year, non-renewable terms subordinate courts: High Court of Appeal; 5 Courts of First Instance; customary courts; State Court (replaced sharia courts in 2003) | highest courts: the provisional constitution stipulates the establishment of the Constitutional Court (consists of 5 judges, including the chief judge and deputy chief judge); note - under the terms of the 2004 Transitional National Charter, a Supreme Court based in Mogadishu and the Appeal Court were established; yet most regions have reverted to local forms of conflict resolution, either secular, traditional Somali customary law, or Islamic law judge selection and term of office: judges appointed by the president upon proposal of the Judicial Service Commission, a 9-member judicial and administrative body; judge tenure NA subordinate courts: federal courts; federal member state-level courts; military courts; sharia courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Center for United Democrats or CDU [Ahmed Mohamed YOUSSOUF, chairman] Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH] Djibouti Development Party or PDD [Mohamed Daoud CHEHEM] Front for Restoration of Unity and Democracy (Front pour la Restauration de l'Unite Democratique) or FRUD [Ali Mohamed DAOUD] Movement for Democratic Renewal and Development [Daher Ahmed FARAH] Movement for Development and Liberty or MoDel [Ismail Ahmed WABERI] Movement for the Development and Balance of the Djiboutian Nation (Mouvement pour le Dévelopment et l'Équilibre de la Nation Djiboutienne) or MDEND [Zakaria Ismael FARAH] National Democratic Party or PND [Aden Robleh AWALEH] People's Rally for Progress or RPP [Ismail Omar GUELLEH] (governing party) Peoples Social Democratic Party or PPSD [Hasna Moumin BAHDON] Republican Alliance for Democracy or ARD [Aden Mohamed ABDOU, interim president] Union for a Presidential Majority or UMP (coalition includes RPP, FRUD, PND, PPSD) Union for Democracy and Justice or UDJ [Ilya Ismail GUEDI Hared] | Cosmopolitan Democratic Party [Yarow Sharef ADEN] Daljir Party or DP [Hassan MOALIM] Democratic Green Party of Somalia or DGPS [Abdullahi Y. MAHAMOUD] Democratic Party of Somalia or DPS [Maslah Mohamed SIAD] Green Leaf for Democracy or GLED Hiil Qaran Justice and Communist Party [Mohamed NUR] Justice and Development of Democracy and Self-Respectfulness Party or CAHDI [Abdirahman Abdigani IBRAHIM Bile] Justice Party [SAKARIYE Haji] Liberal Party of Somalia National Democratic Party [Abdirashid ALI] National Unity Party (Xisbiga MIdnimo-Quaran) [Abdurahman BAADIYOW] Peace and Development Party or PDP Somali Green Party (local chapter of Federation of Green Parties of Africa) Somali National Party or SNP [Mohammed Ameen Saeed AHMED] Somali People's Party [Salad JEELE] Somali Society Unity Party [Yasin MAALIM] Tayo or TPP [Mohamed Abdullahi MOHAMED] Tiir Party [Fadhil Sheik MOHAMUD] Union for Peace and Development or UPD [HASSAN SHEIKH Mohamud] United and Democratic Party [FAUZIA Haji] United Somali Parliamentarians United Somali Republican Party [Ali TIMA-JLIC] inactive: Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia; reportedly inactive since 2009 |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU (candidates), COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU (candidate), FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mohamed Siad DOUALEH (28 January 2016) chancery: 1156 15th Street NW, Suite 515, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270 FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302 email address and website: info@djiboutiembassyus.org https://www.djiboutiembassyus.org/ | chief of mission: Ambassador Ali Sharif AHMED (since 16 September 2019) chancery: 1609 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 853-9164 email address and website: info@somaliembassydc.net https://somaliembassydc.net/ |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jonathan Goodale PRATT (since 22 February 2021) embassy: Lot 350-B Haramouss, B.P. 185 mailing address: 2150 Djibouti Place, Washington DC 20521-2150 telephone: [253] 21-45-30-00 FAX: [253] 21-45-31-29 email address and website: DjiboutiACS@state.gov https://dj.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Colleen CRENWELGE (since July 2021) embassy: Mogadishu, (reopened October 2019 on the grounds of the Mogadishu Airport) mailing address: P.O. Box 606 Village Market 00621 Nairobi, Kenya telephone: [254] 20 363-6451 email address and website: Kenya_ACS@state.gov https://so.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and light green with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a red five-pointed star in the center; blue stands for sea and sky and the Issa Somali people; green symbolizes earth and the Afar people; white represents peace; the red star recalls the struggle for independence and stands for unity | light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; the blue field was originally influenced by the flag of the UN but today is said to denote the sky and the neighboring Indian Ocean; the five points of the star represent the five regions in the horn of Africa that are inhabited by Somali people: the former British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland (which together make up Somalia), Djibouti, Ogaden (Ethiopia), and the North East Province (Kenya) |
| National anthem | name: "Jabuuti" (Djibouti) lyrics/music: Aden ELMI/Abdi ROBLEH note: adopted 1977 | name: "Qolobaa Calankeed" (Every Nation Has its own Flag) lyrics/music: lyrics/music: Abdullahi QARSHE note: adopted 2012; written in 1959 |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt |
| National symbol(s) | red star; national colors: light blue, green, white, red | leopard; national colors: blue, white |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the mother must be a citizen of Djibouti dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Somalia dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
