Environment:
current issues: famine; use of contaminated water contributes to human
health problems; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion;
desertification
natural hazards: recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern
plains in summer
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Law of the
Sea; signed, but not ratified - Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban
Note: strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches
to Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal
@Somalia:People
Population: 7,347,554 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (female 1,653,175; male 1,650,377)
15-64 years: 51% (female 1,845,886; male 1,932,012)
65 years and over: 4% (female 138,264; male 127,840) (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate: 15.58% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 45.53 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 13.3 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 123.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 119.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)