Djibouti is a unitary presidential republic that hosts several foreign military bases. President Ismail Omar Guelleh, in office since 1999, won a sixth term in April 2026 after an age limit was lifted; the economy depends on its port, which handles most of Ethiopia's trade.
In the 12 Axes register, Djibouti leans hardest on Democratic – Autocratic: Autocratic 95%; the register median is balanced 50%.
Take the test and this line shows how close your twelve scores are to Djibouti, and the axis where you differ most.
Where Djibouti sits on each of the twelve axes, in four categories. The label is our estimate; the line under it says why.
Centralized
Unitary state with six regions
Autocracy
Guelleh won a sixth term in April 2026
Statist
Opposition limited, media state-controlled
Non-Interventionist
Hosts US, French, Japanese and Chinese military bases
Neutral
Neutral, no active war
Centrist
Somali and Afar communities share power
Mixed Economic
State-run port and utilities
Balanced
State-owned port dominates economy
Globalist
Port hub for Ethiopian trade
Religious
Islam is the state religion
Traditionalist
Same-sex acts not criminalised, Islam shapes law
Neutral
No distinct state stance
Set against the median of all 195 countries in the register.
Democratic – Autocratic
On Democratic – Autocratic, Djibouti is at Autocratic 95%. The register median is balanced 50%.
Internationalism – Nationalism
On Internationalism – Nationalism, Djibouti is at balanced 50%, almost the register median of balanced 50%.
Closeness is 100 minus the root-mean-square distance on all twelve axes.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · freedomhouse.org
Map: Ninrouter, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped and resized.
Last updated: 2026-10-15
The tiers on this page are our estimates from public positions and policies. They are not an official statement by the person or the government concerned. Two independent passes scored every axis and a third settled the differences. How the register works. Found a mistake? Write to [email protected].
