Coastline of Somalia

Somalia's coastline consists of the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Guardafui Channel to the northeast, and the Somali Sea to the east. The total length of the coastline is about 3333 km,[1] giving the country the longest coastline on mainland Africa. The country has second longest coastline in all of Africa, just behind the island nation of Madagascar (4828 km).

Coast of Somalia is on country's eastern and northern side

The coastline is generally divided into two parts, northern and eastern coasts, separated by the tip of the Horn of Africa known as Cape Guardafui. The city of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia is situated in the south of the country along the eastern coast of Somalia. The northern coast is shared with the Gulf of Aden, the northeastern with Guardafui Channel and the eastern with the Somali Sea. The coastline plays a major role in maintaining economy of country by fishing and trade, as all other fields of economy are not very productive.[2] The coastline is divided between northern and eastern sides. The northern tip meets Djibouti in west and eastern tip meets Kenya in its south. There is a number of Islands in the coastal areas. Ras Caseyr (Cape Guardafui) is easternmost point of Somalia, this point joins the Guardafui Channel to Gulf of Aden.[3]

Geographical features

Coast of Somalia has different conditions throughout its length. Being second longest in Africa, this coast is easternmost coast of continental Africa, north-western coast of Indian Ocean and nearest coast to Socotra Islands (Yemen). Its continental shelf is spread over 32500 km2. Northern coast extends from Djibouti to east, and eastern coast extends from north-east to south-west, reaching to Kenya.[4]

References
  1. "Africa :: Somalia - The World Factbook". Central Intelligence Agency. 7 Feb 2020.
  2. Metz, Helen Chapin (1992). Somalia - Geography. Somalia: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress.
  3. "Somalia". www.nationsencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  4. Carbone, Federico; Accordi, Giovanni (2000). "The Indian Ocean Coast of Somalia". Marine Pollution Bulletin. 41 (1–6): 141–59. doi:10.1016/S0025-326X(00)00107-7.

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