Somalia Economy 2008

Economy - overview:
Somalia's economic fortunes are driven by its deep political divisions. The northwestern area has declared its independence as the "Republic of Somaliland"; the northeastern region of Puntland is a semi-autonomous state; and the remaining southern portion is riddled with the struggles of rival factions. Economic life continues, in part because much activity is local and relatively easily protected. Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock normally accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock, hides, fish, charcoal, and bananas are Somalia's principal exports, while sugar, sorghum, corn, qat, and machined goods are the principal imports. Somalia's small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, has largely been looted and sold as scrap metal. Despite the seeming anarchy, Somalia's service sector has managed to survive and grow. Telecommunication firms provide wireless services in most major cities and offer the lowest international call rates on the continent. In the absence of a formal banking sector, money exchange services have sprouted throughout the country, handling between $500 million and $1 billion in remittances annually. Mogadishu's main market offers a variety of goods from food to the newest electronic gadgets. The CIC reopened most of the main ports and airports in 2006, after they had been closed for 15 years. Hotels continue to operate, and militias provide security. The ongoing civil disturbances and clan rivalries, however, have interfered with any broad-based economic development and international aid arrangements. Somalia's arrears to the IMF continued to grow in 2006-07. Statistics on Somalia's GDP, growth, per capita income, and inflation should be viewed skeptically. In late December 2004, a major tsunami caused an estimated 150 deaths and resulted in destruction of property in coastal areas.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$5.575 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$2.483 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2.6% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$600 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 65%
industry: 10%
services: 25% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
3.7 million (few skilled laborers) (1975)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 71%
industry and services: 29% (1975)

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%; note - businesses print their own money, so inflation rates cannot be easily determined

Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA

Agriculture - products:
bananas, sorghum, corn, coconuts, rice, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; cattle, sheep, goats; fish

Industries:
a few light industries, including sugar refining, textiles, wireless communication

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
270 million kWh (2005)

Electricity - consumption:
251.1 million kWh (2005)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2005)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2005)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption:
5,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports:
4,800 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2005)

natural gas - proved reserves:
5.432 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Exports:
$300 million f.o.b. (2006)

Exports - commodities:
livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, scrap metal

Exports - partners:
UAE 49.9%, Yemen 21.5%, Oman 6% (2006)

Imports:
$798 million f.o.b. (2006)

Imports - partners:
Djibouti 30.8%, Brazil 8.5%, India 8.2%, Kenya 8.1%, Oman 5.5%, UAE 5.2%, Yemen 5% (2006)

Economic aid - recipient:
$236.4 million (2005 est.)

Debt - external:
$3 billion (2001 est.)

Currency (code):
Somali shilling (SOS)

Exchange rates:
Somali shillings per US dollar - NA (2007), 1,438.3 (2006) official rate; the unofficial black market rate was about 23,000 shillings per dollar as of February 2007
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling