Djibouti — 2019 Migration Snapshot

During 2019, 215,710 movements were tracked through 5 FMPs in Djibouti. Almost all of these were Ethiopian nationals travelling through Djibouti en route to the Arab Peninsula. Djibouti is a very important transit country for migration in the East and Horn of Africa due to its geographical proximity with the Peninsula. Migrants enter Djibouti via various border crossings, mainly through Galafi and Balho in the west, or through Assamo (Ali Sabieh) in the south. Many migrants may opt to stay in Djibouti city, and/or Obock town, to work and earn enough money for their onward journey. Migrants travel through Djibouti with the aid of facilitators/smugglers. The cost of the journey as well as the congregation points in Obock where migrants wait for further transport vary in cost and location according to migrant’s ethnicity. In 2019, 49,059 migrants were tracked in Obock prior to departure to Yemen and of the 138,213 migrants’ arrivals in Yemen, 38% reported coming from Djibouti.