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Economy overview
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Somalia's economic fortunes are being driven by its deep political divisions. The northern area has declared its independence as "Somaliland"; the central area, Puntland, is a self-declared 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, but Saudi Arabia's recent ban on Somali livestock, because of Rift Valley Fever concerns, has severely hampered the sector. 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 $200 million and $500 million in remittances annually. Mogadishu's main market offers a variety of goods from food to the newest electronic gadgets. 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. In 2002 Somalia's overdue financial obligations to the IMF continued to grow. Statistics on Somalia's GDP, growth, per capita income, and inflation should be viewed skeptically.
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GDP
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purchasing power parity - $4.361 billion (2004 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate
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2.1% (2004 est.)
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GDP - per capita
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purchasing power parity - $500 (2004 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector
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agriculture: 65%
industry: 10%
services: 25% (2000 est.)
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Investment gross fixed
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Population below poverty line
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NA
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Household income or consumption by percentage share
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lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
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Distribution of family income - Gini index
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Inflation rate consumer prices
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note - businesses print their own money, so inflation rates cannot be sensibly determined (2003 est.)
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Labor force
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3.7 million (very few are skilled laborers)
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Labor force by occupation
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agriculture (mostly pastoral nomadism) 71%, industry and services 29%
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Unemployment rate
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NA
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Budget
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revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
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Public debt
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Agriculture products
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cattle, sheep, goats; bananas, sorghum, corn, coconuts, rice, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; fish
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Industries
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a few light industries, including sugar refining, textiles, petroleum refining (mostly shut down), wireless communication
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Industrial production growth rate
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NA
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Electricity production
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245.1 million kWh (2001)
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Electricity production by source
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fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
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Electricity consumption
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227.9 million kWh (2001)
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Electricity exports
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0 kWh (2001)
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Electricity imports
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0 kWh (2001)
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Oil production
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0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil consumption
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4,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil exports
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NA (2001)
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Oil imports
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NA (2001)
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Oil proved reserves
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0 bbl (1 January 2002)
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Natural gas production
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Natural gas consumption
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Natural gas exports
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Natural gas imports
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Natural gas proved reserves
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2.832 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
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Current account balance
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Exports
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$79 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
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Exports commodities
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livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, scrap metal
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Exports partners
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UAE 37.2%, Yemen 22.3%, Oman 10.1%, China 6%, Kuwait 4.4%, Nigeria 4% (2003)
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Imports
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$344 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
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Imports commodities
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manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials, qat
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Imports partners
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Djibouti 33.9%, Kenya 15.5%, Brazil 6.6%, UAE 5.1%, Thailand 4.2% (2003)
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Reserves of foreign exchange gold
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Debt external
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$2.6 billion (2000 est.)
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Economic aid recipient
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$60 million (1999 est.)
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Currency
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Somali shilling (SOS)
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Currency code
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SOS
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Exchange rates
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Somali shillings per US dollar - 11,000 (November 2000), 2,620 (January 1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996 est.), 5,000 (1 January 1995)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling
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Fiscal year
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NA
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This information was reproduced in part from the CIA World Fact book.
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