Djibouti vs. Ethiopia
Government
| Djibouti | Ethiopia | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti conventional short form: Djibouti local long form: Republique de Djibouti/Jumhuriyat Jibuti local short form: Djibouti/Jibuti former: French Somaliland, French Territory of the Afars and Issas etymology: the country name derives from the capital city of Djibouti | conventional long form: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia conventional short form: Ethiopia local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik local short form: Ityop'iya former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa abbreviation: FDRE etymology: the country name derives from the Greek word "Aethiopia," which in classical times referred to lands south of Egypt in the Upper Nile region |
| Government type | presidential republic | federal parliamentary republic |
| Capital | name: Djibouti geographic coordinates: 11 35 N, 43 09 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the origin of the name is disputed; multiple descriptions, possibilities, and theories have been proposed | name: Addis Ababa geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name in Amharic means "new flower" and was bestowed on the city in 1889, three years after its founding |
| Administrative divisions | 6 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); Ali Sabieh, Arta, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjourah | 10 ethnically based regional states (kililoch, singular - kilil) and 2 self-governing administrations* (astedaderoch, singular - astedader); Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa), Afar, Amara (Amhara), Binshangul Gumuz, Dire Dawa*, Gambela Hizboch (Gambela Peoples), Hareri Hizb (Harari People), Oromiya (Oromia), Sidama, Sumale (Somali), Tigray, Ye Debub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples) |
| Independence | 27 June 1977 (from France) | oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world - at least 2,000 years (may be traced to the Aksumite Kingdom, which coalesced in the first century B.C.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) | Derg Downfall Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991) |
| Constitution | history: approved by referendum 4 September 1992 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; Assembly consideration of proposals requires assent at least one third of the membership; passage requires a simple majority vote by the Assembly and approval by simple majority vote in a referendum; the president can opt to bypass a referendum if adopted by at least two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly; constitutional articles on the sovereignty of Djibouti, its republican form of government, and its pluralist form of democracy cannot by amended; amended 2006, 2008, 2010 | history: several previous; latest drafted June 1994, adopted 8 December 1994, entered into force 21 August 1995 amendments: proposals submitted for discussion require two-thirds majority approval in either house of Parliament or majority approval of one-third of the State Councils; passage of amendments other than constitutional articles on fundamental rights and freedoms and the initiation and amendment of the constitution requires two-thirds majority vote in a joint session of Parliament and majority vote by two thirds of the State Councils; passage of amendments affecting rights and freedoms and amendment procedures requires two-thirds majority vote in each house of Parliament and majority vote by all the State Councils |
| Legal system | mixed legal system based primarily on the French civil code (as it existed in 1997), Islamic religious law (in matters of family law and successions), and customary law | civil law system |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil MOHAMED (since 1 April 2013) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term; election last held on 9 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2026); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Ismail Omar GUELLEH reelected president for a fifth term; percent of vote - Ismail Omar GUELLEH (RPP) 97.4%, Zakaria Ismael FARAH (MDEND) 2.7% | chief of state: President SAHLE-WORK Zewde (since 25 October 2018) head of government: Prime Minister ABIY Ahmed (since 2 April 2018); Deputy Prime Minister DEMEKE Mekonnen Hassen (since 29 November 2012) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People's Representatives elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by both chambers of Parliament for a 6-year term (eligible for a second term); snap election held on 25 October 2018 due to resignation of President MULATA Teshome (next election postponed by Prime Minister ABIY due to the COVID-19 pandemic); prime minister designated by the majority party following legislative elections election results: SAHLE-WORK Zewde elected president; Parliament vote - 659 (unanimous) note: SAHLE-WORK Zewde is the first female elected head of state in Ethiopia; she is currently the only female president in Africa. Former President Dr. Mulatu TESHOME resigned on 25 October 2018, one year ahead of finishing his six-year term. |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale, formerly the Chamber of Deputies (65 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 23 February 2018 (next to be held in February 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 57, UDJ-PDD 7, CDU 1; composition - men 47, women 18, percent of women 26.7% | description: bicameral Parliament consists of: House of Federation or Yefedereshein Mikir Bete (153 seats; members indirectly elected by state assemblies to serve 5-year terms) House of People's Representatives or Yehizb Tewokayoch Mekir Bete (547 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; 22 seats reserved for minorities; all members serve 5-year terms) elections: House of Federation - last held 24 May 2015 (next originally scheduled on 29 August 2020 but postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic) House of People's Representatives - last held on 24 May 2015 (next election to be held June 2021) election results: House of Federation - percent of vote by coalition/party - NA; seats by coalition/party - NA; composition - men 104, women 49, percent of women 32% House of Representatives - percent of vote by coalition/party - NA; seats by coalition/party - EPRDF 501, SPDP 24, BGPDUP 9, ANDP 8, GPUDM 3, APDO 1, HNL 1; composition - men 335, women 212, percent of women 38.8%; note - total Parliament percent of women 37.3% note: House of Federation is responsible for interpreting the constitution and federal-regional issues and the House of People's Representatives is responsible for passing legislation |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (consists of NA magistrates); Constitutional Council (consists of 6 magistrates) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court magistrates appointed by the president with the advice of the Superior Council of the Magistracy CSM, a 10-member body consisting of 4 judges, 3 members (non parliamentarians and judges) appointed by the president, and 3 appointed by the National Assembly president or speaker; magistrates appointed for life with retirement at age 65; Constitutional Council magistrate appointments - 2 by the president of the republic, 2 by the president of the National Assembly, and 2 by the CSM; magistrates appointed for 8-year, non-renewable terms subordinate courts: High Court of Appeal; 5 Courts of First Instance; customary courts; State Court (replaced sharia courts in 2003) | highest courts: Federal Supreme Court (consists of 11 judges); note - the House of Federation has jurisdiction for all constitutional issues judge selection and term of office: president and vice president of Federal Supreme Court recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; other Supreme Court judges nominated by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council (a 10-member body chaired by the president of the Federal Supreme Court) and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; judges serve until retirement at age 60 subordinate courts: federal high courts and federal courts of first instance; state court systems (mirror structure of federal system); sharia courts and customary and traditional courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Center for United Democrats or CDU [Ahmed Mohamed YOUSSOUF, chairman] Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH] Djibouti Development Party or PDD [Mohamed Daoud CHEHEM] Front for Restoration of Unity and Democracy (Front pour la Restauration de l'Unite Democratique) or FRUD [Ali Mohamed DAOUD] Movement for Democratic Renewal and Development [Daher Ahmed FARAH] Movement for Development and Liberty or MoDel [Ismail Ahmed WABERI] Movement for the Development and Balance of the Djiboutian Nation (Mouvement pour le Dévelopment et l'Équilibre de la Nation Djiboutienne) or MDEND [Zakaria Ismael FARAH] National Democratic Party or PND [Aden Robleh AWALEH] People's Rally for Progress or RPP [Ismail Omar GUELLEH] (governing party) Peoples Social Democratic Party or PPSD [Hasna Moumin BAHDON] Republican Alliance for Democracy or ARD [Aden Mohamed ABDOU, interim president] Union for a Presidential Majority or UMP (coalition includes RPP, FRUD, PND, PPSD) Union for Democracy and Justice or UDJ [Ilya Ismail GUEDI Hared] | Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP [Taha AHMED] Argoba People Democratic Organization or APDO Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Party or BGPDUP Ethiopian Federal Democratic Unity Forum or MEDREK or FORUM [Beyene PETROS] (includes ESD-SCUP, OFC, SLM, and UTDS) Ethiopia Citizens for Social Justice or ECSJ Party (formed in May 2019 from 7 other parties, including Patriotic Genbot 7, Ethiopian Democratic Party (EDP), All Ethiopian Democratic Party (AEDP), Semayawi Party, New Generation Party, Gambella Regional Movement (GRM), Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) Party [Berhanu Negu]) Prosperity Party or PP [ABIY Ahmed] (created in November 2019 from member parties of the former Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF, which included the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO), Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement (SEPDM), plus other ERPRF allies Ethiopian Social Democracy-Southern Coalition Unity Party or ESD-SCUP Gambella Peoples Unity Democratic Movement or GPUDM Harari National League or HNL [Murad ABDULHADI] Oromo Fderalist Congress or OFC Sidama Liberaton Movement or SLM Somali People's Democratic Party or SPDP Union of Tigraians for Democracy & Sovergnty or UTDS Tigray People's Liberation Front or TPLF [DEBRETSION Gebremichael] (note: de-registered by Ethiopian electoral board in Jan 2021) Tigray Independence Party [Girmay BERHE] (2020) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU (candidates), COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UN Security Council (temporary), UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mohamed Siad DOUALEH (28 January 2016) chancery: 1156 15th Street NW, Suite 515, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270 FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302 email address and website: info@djiboutiembassyus.org https://www.djiboutiembassyus.org/ | chief of mission: Ambassador FISTUM Arega Gebrekidan (since 9 April 2019) chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200 FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195 email address and website: ethiopia@ethiopianembassy.org https://ethiopianembassy.org/ consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jonathan Goodale PRATT (since 22 February 2021) embassy: Lot 350-B Haramouss, B.P. 185 mailing address: 2150 Djibouti Place, Washington DC 20521-2150 telephone: [253] 21-45-30-00 FAX: [253] 21-45-31-29 email address and website: DjiboutiACS@state.gov https://dj.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador Geeta PASI
embassy: Entoto Street, P.O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa mailing address: 2030 Addis Ababa Place, Washington DC 20521-2030 telephone: [251] 111-30-60-00 FAX: [251] 111-24-24-01 email address and website: AddisACS@state.gov https://et.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and light green with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a red five-pointed star in the center; blue stands for sea and sky and the Issa Somali people; green symbolizes earth and the Afar people; white represents peace; the red star recalls the struggle for independence and stands for unity | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red, with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; green represents hope and the fertility of the land, yellow symbolizes justice and harmony, while red stands for sacrifice and heroism in the defense of the land; the blue of the disk symbolizes peace and the pentagram represents the unity and equality of the nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia note: Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three main colors of her flag (adopted ca. 1895) were so often appropriated by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the Pan-African colors; the emblem in the center of the current flag was added in 1996 |
| National anthem | name: "Jabuuti" (Djibouti) lyrics/music: Aden ELMI/Abdi ROBLEH note: adopted 1977 | name: "Whedefit Gesgeshi Woud Enat Ethiopia" (March Forward, Dear Mother Ethiopia) lyrics/music: DEREJE Melaku Mengesha/SOLOMON Lulu note: adopted 1992 |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| National symbol(s) | red star; national colors: light blue, green, white, red | Abyssinian lion (traditional), yellow pentagram with five rays of light on a blue field (promoted by current government); national colors: green, yellow, red |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the mother must be a citizen of Djibouti dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Ethiopia dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
