Geography
Location:
Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea and Somalia
Geographic coordinates:
11 30 N, 43 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total area:
22,000 sq km
land area:
21,980 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Massachusetts
Land boundaries:
total:
508 km
border countries:
Eritrea 113 km, Ethiopia 337 km, Somalia 58 km
Coastline:
314 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
desert; torrid, dry
Terrain:
coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains
lowest point:
Asal -155 m
highest point:
Mousa Alli 2,028 m
Natural resources:
geothermal areas
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
9%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
91%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification
natural hazards:
earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Desertification
Geographic note:
strategic location near world's busiest shipping lanes and close to Arabian oilfields; terminus of rail traffic into Ethiopia; a vast wasteland
