Country Information - Djibouti

ECONOMIC BACKGROUND The economy of Djibouti is based on service activities connected with the country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in northeast Africa. Two-thirds of the inhabitants live in the capital city, the remainder being mostly nomadic herders. Scanty rainfall limits crop production to fruits and vegetables, and most food must be imported. Djibouti provides services as both a transit port for the region and an international transhipment and refueling center. It has few natural resources and little industry. The nation is, therefore, heavily dependent on foreign assistance to help support its balance of payments and to finance development projects. An unemployment rate of 50% continues to be a major problem. Inflation is not a concern, however, because of the fixed tie of the franc to the US dollar. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35% over the last seven years because of recession, civil war, and a high population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Faced with a multitude of economic difficulties, the government has fallen in arrears on long-term external debt and has been struggling to meet the stipulations of foreign aid donors. Another factor limiting growth is the negative impact on port activity now that Ethiopia has more trade route options. Click here for Country Map [23kB]

BI-LATERAL TRADE OVERVIEW Djibouti ranks among the smaller of United States' bi-lateral trade partners in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It is a net importer of U.S. goods, and recorded a trade deficit with the U.S. of $ 54 million in 2002. This value represents a very large increase from the previous years ($ 18 million imports from the US in 2001) To date, Djibouti has exported virtually no goods to the U.S. under AGOA (besides a very small quantity of agricultural products), and would seem unlikely to start doing so in the short term. Current trade data indicates that the country's trade deficit with the U.S. is likely to continue growing, since imports from the U.S. are growing steadily, while exports to the US continue to remain negligible. Detailed bilateral trade data for this country, disaggregated by industry sector, can be accessed by following the link below. Aggregate data featuring all AGOA-eligible countries is updated on this website as soon as new data is published, including ranked AGOA / non-AGOA trade, aggregate trade by industry sector as well as the latest apparel trade data. Click here for Detailed Trade Profile