Somalia - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Somalia. Strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 621 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Geographical data of Somalia
| Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 10 00 N, 49 00 E |
| Map references | Africa |
| Tarrain | mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north |
| Natural Resources | uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt, natural gas, likely oil reserves |
| Natural Hazards | recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in summer; floods during rainy season |
| Irrigated Land | 2,000 sq km (2012) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | Ogaden-Juba Basin |
| Land Boundaries | 2,385 km |
| Border Countries | Djibouti 61 km; Ethiopia 1,640 km; Kenya 684 km |
| Coastline | 3,025 km |
| Climate | principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February), moderate temperatures in north and 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 |
| Area | |
| Total Area | |
| Land Area | 627,337 sq km |
| Water Area | 10,320 sq km |
| comparative Area | almost five times the size of Alabama; slightly smaller than Texas |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 200 nm; note: the US does not recognize this claim |
| Exclusive economic zone | 200 nm |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Mount Shimbiris 2,460 m |
| Lowest point | Indian Ocean 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 410 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 70.3% (2022 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 1.8% (2022 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 0% (2022 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 68.5% (2022 est.) |
| Forest | 9.3% (2022 est.) |
| Other | 20.4% (2022 est.) |
Population Distribution
Distribution varies greatly throughout the country; least densely populated areas are in the northeast and central regions, as well as areas along the Kenyan border; most populated areas are in and around the cities of Mogadishu, Marka, Boorama, Hargeysa, and Baidoa as shown on this population distribution map
People and Society
In Somalia, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Predominantly Somali with lesser numbers of Arabs, Bantus, and others
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 2.55% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 37.4 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 11.2 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | |
| Physicians Density | |
| Hospital bed Density | 0.9 beds/1,000 population (2017) |
| Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 2.52 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 6.9% (2018/19) |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 62.9% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | |
| Education expenditures | 0.3% of GDP (2019) NA |
| Net Migration rate | -0.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Somali | Somali(s) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Muslim 99.9% (Sunni Muslim 98.1%, Shia Muslim 1.2%, Islamic schismatic 0.6%), ethnic religionist 0.1% (2020 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 41.4% (male 2,689,086/female 2,694,372) |
| 15-64 years | 55.8% (male 3,699,721/female 3,568,163) |
| 65 years and over | 2.8% (2024 est.) (male 157,505/female 208,426) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 99.4 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 94.2 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 5.2 |
| Potential support ratio | 19.3 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 19.1 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 19.3 years |
| Female | 18.9 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 47.9% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | 4.2% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 2.610 million MOGADISHU (capital), 1.127 million Hargeysa (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.03 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.04 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.76 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 83.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 93.2 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 73.7 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 56.5 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 54.1 years |
| Female | 59 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 96.4% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 73.7% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 84.2% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 3.6% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 26.3% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 15.8% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 82.4% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 33.8% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 56.2% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 17.6% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 66.2% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 43.8% of population (2020 est.) |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Child marriage | |
| Women married by age 15 | 16.8% |
| Women married by age 18 | 35.5% |
| Men married by age 18 | 5.6% (2020 est.) |
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Somalia
Want to know more about Somalia? Check all different factbooks for Somalia below.
