Reuters AlertNet

Somalia

$Small country map\n© Microsoft Virtual Earth$

Capital:	Mogadishu
Area size:	627340 sq. km Slightly larger than Ukraine
Time zone:	GMT +3
Currency:	Shilling
Area code:	(+) 252
Driving:	Right
Climate description:	Very dry, as much of the country is desert or desert scrubland. Some rain in the north when temperatures are lower. The east coast has lower temperatures than the north coast. Inland temperatures are higher but there is less humidity.

People

Standard of living

Economy & aid

Health

Disasters, conflict & migration

Language
Somali and Arabic are the official languages. English, Italian and Swahili are also spoken.
Source: New Internationalist World Guide

Population

2007	8.4 million	U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Population Division (2006)
2006	8.3 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2005	8.2 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2004	8.0 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2003	7.7 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2002	7.5 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2001	7.3 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2000	7.1 million	U.N. DESA (2006)

Future population estimates
12.7 million (2050)
Source: U.N. DESA (2006)

Ethnic groups
The largest ethnic Somalian groups include Hawiye, Darod, Issaq, Dir and Digil-Mirifle. There are also Arabs, Bantu-speaking Africans (descendants of slaves) and an Italian minority.
Source: NI World Guide

Religion
Islam (Sunni), with a small Christian minority in Mogadishu.
Source: NI World Guide

Percentage urban population

2007	36.1 percent	U.N. DESA - World Urbanisation Prospects 2005
2006	35.6 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2005	35.2 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2004	34.8 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2003	34.4 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2002	34.0 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2001	33.6 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2000	33.3 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)

Year women granted right to vote
1956
Source: U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Report
Where two figures are shown, the first refers to a partial recognition of the right to vote and the second to the year women received the right to vote on a universal and equal basis.

Net percentage of girls enrolled in primary education
No data available

Percentage of population under 15

2005	44.1 percent	U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007
2004	44.1 percent	UNDP 2006
2003	44.1 percent	UNDP 2005
2001	No data available percent
2000	No data available percent

Average life expectancy

2005	No data available years
2004	47.0 years	UNDP 2006
2003	46.5 years	UNDP 2005
2001	No data available years
2000	No data available years

Life expectancy - male

2005	45.9 years	U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007
2004	45.8 years	UNDP 2006
2003	No data available years
2002	No data available years
2001	No data available years
2000	No data available years

Life expectancy - female

2005	48.2 years	U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007
2004	48.2 years	UNDP 2006
2003	No data available years
2002	No data available years
2001	No data available years
2000	No data available years

Infant mortality

2006	90 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2008
2005	133 per 1,000 live births	U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) - State of the World's Children 2007
2004	133 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2006
2003	No data available per 1,000 live births
2002	No data available per 1,000 live births
2001	133 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	No data available per 1,000 live births

Child mortality - deaths before the age of five

2006	145 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2008
2005	225 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2007
2004	225 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2006
2003	225 per 1,000 live births	UNDP 2005
2002	225 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004

Births attended by skilled personnel

1997-2005	25 percent	U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007
1996-2004	25 percent	UNDP 2006
1995-2002	No data available percent
1995-2001	34 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
1995-2000	No data available percent

Maternal mortality

2005	No data available per 100,000 live births
2000	1100 per 100,000 live births	UNDP 2006

Human development index (HDI rank)
No data available (2001)

Percentage of children under weight for age (under age 5)

2000-2006	36 percent	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2008
1996-2005	26 percent	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2007
1996-2004	26 percent	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2006
1995-2003	No data available percent
1995-2002	No data available percent
1995-2000	No data available percent

Percentage of undernourished population

2002-2004 average	No data available percent
2001-2003average	No data available percent
2000-2002average	No data available percent
1999-2001average	No data available percent
1998-2000average	71 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003

Food intake falls below the minimum requirement.

Population with access to improved water

2004	29 percent	UNICEF and World Health Organisation (WHO) 2006
2002	No data available percent
2000	No data available percent

Population with access to improved sanitation

2004	26 percent	UNICEF and WHO 2006
2002	No data available percent

Literacy - average
No data available percent

Literacy - male
No data available percent

Literacy - female
No data available percent

Landlines telephones

2006	12 per 1,000 people	International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2007
2005	12 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	13 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	13 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	5 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	5 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	4 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Cellular telephone subscribers

2006	61 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2005	61 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	63 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	26 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	13 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	12 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	11 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Internet users

2006	11 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2005	11 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	11 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	4 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	1 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	0.8 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	2 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Transparency International corruption ranking (1=least corrupt, 179=most corrupt)

2007	179 (joint)	Transparency International 2007
2006	Not ranked
2005	144 (joint)	Transparency International
2004	Not ranked
2003	Not ranked
2002	Not ranked
2001	Not ranked
2000	Not ranked

Signatory of International Convention on the Prevention and Punishment for the crime of Genocide
No (1948)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

Signatory of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Yes (1984)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

Signatory of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Signed but not yet ratified (1989)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

International humanitarian aid flows
Access the Financial Tracking Service, a global real-time database which records all reported humanitarian aid - including that for NGOs, the Red Cross/Crescent Movement, bilateral aid, in-kind aid and private donations - searchable by country.
Source: Financial Tracking Service, ReliefWeb

Percentage of population living on less than US$1 a day
No data available percent

GNI per capita, Atlas method
No data available current US$

GDP
No data available current US$ billions

Annual GDP growth
No data available percent

Annual inflation
No data available percent

Share of income or consumption (poorest 10 percent)
No data available

Share of income or consumption (richest 10 percent)
No data available

Physicians

2000-2004	4 per 100,000 people	U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007
1990-2004	4 per 100,000 people	UNDP 2006
1990-2003	No data available per 100,000 people
1990-2002	No data available per 100,000 people

Percentage HIV+ (adults aged 15-49)

2005	0.9 percent	U.N. Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) 2006
2003	0.9 percent	UNAIDS 2006

Malaria
Risk from P.falciparum throughout the year in the whole country. Resistance to chloroquine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine reported.
Source: WHO

TB cases

2006	218 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2005	224 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2004	230 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2003	236 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2002	242 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2001	249 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2000	255 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008

Chronology of natural disasters
Access EM-DAT, a database of natural disasters from 1900 to the present - death tolls and numbers of affected people - searchable by country.
Source: Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium

Number of refugees originating here

2006	464253	Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
2005	394760	UNHCR
2004	389272	UNHCR
2003	402336	UNHCR
2002	432316	UNHCR
2001	440134	UNHCR
2000	475655	UNHCR

Number of refugees residing here

2006	669	UNHCR
2005	493	UNHCR
2004	357	UNHCR
2003	368	UNHCR
2002	199	UNHCR
2001	589	UNHCR
2000	558	UNHCR

Number of internally displaced people\Estimate

2007	1000000	Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) 2008
2006	400000	IDMC 2006
2005	370000 - 400000	IDMC 2006

Landmine casualties per year

2004	At least 91	Landmine Monitor Report 2005
2003	75	Landmine Monitor Report 2004

Casualty figures may include both civilians and military personnel injured or killed by landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Signatory to landmine convention?
No
Source: Landmine Monitor Report

Percentage of GDP spent on military
No data available percent

Percentage of GDP spent on education
No data available percent

Percentage of GDP spent on health
1.2 percent (2004)
Source: U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) 2007

AlertNet makes every effort to ensure statistics are updated from the relevant sources as soon as they are available.

Unlike some other content on this website, the written content in this article may be republished or redistributed by any means free of charge. Any use of photographs and graphics on this website is expressly prohibited. You must check whether written content contained in other articles on this website may be republished or redistributed without the express permission of Reuters or the relevant third party provider.

Breaking stories

Africa