djibouti

• republic of djibouti, republic in eastern africa; capital of this republic
the republic of djibouti is a country in north-eastern africa. djibouti was a french colony, originally called french somaliland and later the french territory of the afars and issas, from the 19th century until it became independent in 1977. ethnic violence, between the issas (50%) and afars (40%), has been a cause of civil disorder. the popular assembly for progress (rpp) was the sole party from 1981 to 1993, when multi-party elections were held. hassan gouled aptidon, an issa, became president in 1977. barkad gourad hamadou, an afar, became prime minister in 1978. djibouti is a member of the arab league and the organization of african unity. there are many refugees in djibouti from ethiopia and somalia. since 1991 there has been armed insurrection in parts of the country. djibouti produces agricultural products. large foreign debts are a major economic problem. the capital, which had a population of 290,000 in 1988, is also called djibouti.