Global InformationSomalia information
Federal Republic of Somalia Jamhuuriyadda Federaalka Soomaaliya (Somali) جمهورية الصومال الفيدرالية (Arabic) Jumhūriyah aṣ-Ṣūmāl al-Fīdirāliyah | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Anthem: Qolobaa Calankeed علم أي امة "Every Nation Has Its Own Flag" | |
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| Capital and largest city | Mogadishu 2°2′N 45°21′E / 2.033°N 45.350°E |
| Official languages | Somali, Arabic[1] |
| Ethnic groups (2021)[1][2] |
|
| Religion | Sunni Islam (official)[1] |
| Demonym(s) | Somali[1] |
| Government | Federal parliamentary constitutional republic |
• President | Hassan Sheikh Mohamud |
• Prime Minister | Hamza Abdi Barre |
• Speaker of the Senate | Abdi Hashi Abdullahi |
• Speaker of the House | Aden Madobe |
| Legislature | Federal Parliament |
• Upper house | Senate |
• Lower house | House of the People |
| Independence from Italy and United Kingdom | |
• Italian Somaliland | 1889 |
• Independence and union with the State of Somaliland | 1 July 1960 |
• Current constitution | 1 August 2012 |
| Area | |
• Total | 637,657[1] km2 (246,201 sq mi) (43rd) |
| Population | |
• 2023 estimate | 17,597,511[3] (78th) |
• Density | 27.2[4]/km2 (70.4/sq mi) (199th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2023 estimate |
• Total |  $32.078 billion[5] (145th) |
• Per capita | $1,998[5] (181st) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2023 estimate |
• Total | $11.515 billion[5] (152nd) |
• Per capita | $717[5] (178th) |
| HDI (2022) |  0.380[6]low (193rd) |
| Currency | Somali shilling (SOS) |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (EAT) |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +252 |
| ISO 3166 code | SO |
| Internet TLD | .so |
Somalia,[a] officially the Federal Republic of Somalia,[b] is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is on the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti[11] to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland.[12] In antiquity, Somalia was an important commercial center.[13][14] During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the Ajuran Sultanate, Adal Sultanate, Imamate of Awsame, and the Sultanate of the Geledi. In the late 19th century, Somali sultanates were colonized by the Italian and British Empires,[15][16][17] who merged all of these tribal territories into two colonies: Italian Somaliland and British Somaliland.[18][19] In 1960, the two territories united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government.[20] Siad Barre of the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC) seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic, brutally attempting to squash the Somaliland War of Independence in the north of the country.[21] The SRC collapsed in 1991 with the onset of the Somali Civil War.[22] The Transitional National Government of Somalia (TNG) was established in 2000, followed by the formation of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) in 2004, which reestablished the Somali Armed Forces.[1][23]
In 2006, with a US-backed Ethiopian intervention, the TFG assumed control of most of the nation's southern conflict zones from the newly formed Islamic Courts Union (ICU). The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups, including the jihadist group al-Shabaab, which battled the TFG and its AMISOM allies for control of the region.[1] By mid-2012, the insurgents had lost most of the territory they had seized, and a search for more permanent democratic institutions began.[24] Despite this, insurgents still control much of central and southern Somalia,[25][26] and wield influence in government-controlled areas,[26] with the town of Jilib acting as the de facto capital for the insurgents.[25][27] A new provisional constitution was passed in August 2012,[28][29] reforming Somalia as a federation.[30] The same month, the Federal Government of Somalia was formed[31] and a period of reconstruction began in Mogadishu, despite al-Shabaab frequently carrying out attacks there.[24][32]
Somalia has an estimated population of around 17.1 million,[33][34] of which over 2 million live in the capital and largest city Mogadishu. It has been described as Africa's most culturally homogeneous country.[35][36] Around 85% of its residents are ethnic Somalis.[1] Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the south.[37] The official languages of Somalia are Somali and Arabic,[1] though the former is the primary language. Most people in Somalia are Muslims,[38] the majority of them being Sunni.[39] Somalia is among the least developed countries in the world, as evidenced by its ranking in metrics such as GDP per capita,[40] Human Development Index,[41] and the Fragile States Index.[42] It has maintained an informal economy mainly based on livestock, remittances from Somalis working abroad, and telecommunications.[43] It is a member of the United Nations,[44] the Arab League,[45] African Union,[46] Non-Aligned Movement,[47] East African Community,[48] and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.[49]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Somalia". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 10 November 2021.
- ^ Lewis, I. M. (1998). Peoples of the Horn of Africa: Somali, Afar, and Saho. Red Sea Press. ISBN 978-1-56902-104-0.
- ^ "World Bank Open Data".
- ^ "United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2022). World Population Prospects 2022, Online Edition". population.un.org. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ a b c d "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (Somalia)". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2023. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
- ^ "Human Development Report 2023/24" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 13 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
- ^ Jones, Daniel (2003) [1917], Peter Roach; James Hartmann; Jane Setter (eds.), English Pronouncing Dictionary, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 3-12-539683-2
- ^ "Somalia". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary.
- ^ "Somalia". Dictionary.com Unabridged (Online). n.d.
- ^ "Federal Republic of Somalia" (PDF). somaliweyn.com. 2 October 2012. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
- ^ "Somalia". Britannica. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ "Coastline". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 16 July 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
- ^ John Kenrick 1855) Phoenicia, B. Fellowes, p. 199.
- ^ Casson, Lionel (1984). Ancient Trade and Society. Mich. p. 235. ISBN 0-8143-1740-5. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
- ^ Truhart, P. (1984). Regents of nations: systematic chronology of states and their political representatives in past and present : a biographical reference book. pp.72
- ^ Suárez, Jorge Alejandro. Geopolítica de lo Desconocido: Una visión diferente de la Política Internacional. p. 227. ISBN 979-8393720292.
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica, inc, Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 1, (Encyclopædia Britannica: 2005), p.163
- ^ Laitin 1977, p. 8
- ^ Abdisalam M. Issa-Salwe (1996). The Collapse of the Somali State: The Impact of the Colonial Legacy. London: Haan Associates. pp. 34–35. ISBN 1-874209-91-X.
- ^ The Illustrated Library of The World and Its Peoples: Africa, North and East, Greystone Press: 1967, p. 338.
- ^ Kapteijns, Lidwien (18 December 2012). Clan Cleansing in Somalia: The Ruinous Legacy of 1991. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-0758-3.
- ^ "Council on Foreign Relations". Archived from the original on 9 May 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ^ Jeffrey Gettleman (23 June 2011). "Harvard-Educated Technocrat Chosen as Somalia Premier". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ a b Muddassar Ahmed (8 August 2012). "Somalia rising after two decades of civil war and unrest". Al Arabiya. Archived from the original on 10 August 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
- ^ a b "Al-Shabab". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Somalia conflict: Al-Shabab 'collects more revenue than government'". BBC News. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
- ^ "Kenyan troops seize al-Shabaab base in Somalia". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
- ^ "Somalia: Somali Leaders Adopt Draft Constitution". ANP/AFP. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
- ^ "Somali leaders back new constitution". BBC News. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ "Somalia's newly-endorsed constitution widely hailed". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on 7 October 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ^ "Somalia: UN Envoy Says Inauguration of New Parliament in Somalia 'Historic Moment'". Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
- ^ Dinfin Mulupi (21 June 2012). "Mogadishu: East Africa's newest business destination?". Retrieved 26 June 2012.
- ^ "World Population Prospects 2022". United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
- ^ "World Population Prospects 2022: Demographic indicators by region, subregion and country, annually for 1950-2100" (XSLX) ("Total Population, as of 1 July (thousands)"). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
- ^ Ismail, AA (2010). Somali state failure: Players, incentives and institutions.
What is more puzzling is how this could happen in a country like Somalia, the most homogeneous country in Africa both ethnically, religiously, culturally, and linguistically
- ^ Woldemichael, B (1993). Decentralisation amidst poverty and disunity: The Sudan, 1969–1983.
Somalia, the only homogeneous country in Africa – all its people being ethnic Somalis speaking the same language and professing the same religion
- ^ Abdullahi 2001, pp. 8–11.
- ^ "Middle East Policy Council – Muslim Populations Worldwide". Mepc.org. 1 December 2005. Archived from the original on 14 December 2006. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
- ^ Abdullahi 2001, p. 1.
- ^ "LDCs at a Glance | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". www.un.org. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- ^ "Overview". World Bank. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- ^ "Fragile States Index 2023". Fund for Peace. 14 June 2023.
- ^ "Central Bank of Somalia – Economy and Finance". Somalbanca.org. Archived from the original on 24 January 2009. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
- ^ "Member States". United Nations. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
- ^ "Member States". League of Arab States (in Arabic). Retrieved 27 August 2021.
- ^ "Member State Profiles". African Union. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
- ^ "Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) | What is the Non-Aligned Movement?". Nuclear Threat Initiative. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
- ^ "Somalia joins East African Community". 24 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
- ^ "Member States". Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
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