# Somalia's exclusive economic zone: the sea Somalia controls

> Somalia's exclusive economic zone in facts: its size, the 1972 and 1988 sea laws, UNCLOS, the 2014 proclamation and UN deposit, the border with Kenya, and the fish in its waters.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/economy/somalias-exclusive-economic-zone/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
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## How big is it?

Somalia's exclusive economic zone covers **830,389 square kilometres**. It reaches 200 nautical miles (about 370 km) out from the baselines from which the territorial sea is measured ([Wikipedia, Exclusive economic zone of Somalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exclusive_economic_zone_of_Somalia)). Somalia's coast, about 3,333 km long, is the longest in mainland Africa ([Central Bank of Somalia, Annual Report 2025](https://centralbank.gov.so/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Annual-Report_2025.pdf)).

Inside an EEZ, a country has the right to fish, drill for oil and gas, and use the water, currents and wind for energy. Ships of other countries may still pass through.

## The laws, from 1972 to 2014

| Year | Law or act | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Law No. 37 on the Territorial Sea and Ports, passed 10 September 1972 | Claimed a **territorial sea of 200 nautical miles** |
| 1989 | Law No. 5 of 26 January 1989, approving the Somali Maritime Law of 1988 | Provided for a 200-mile territorial sea and an exclusive economic zone |
| 1989 | Ratification of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) | UNCLOS allows a 12-mile territorial sea and a 200-mile EEZ |
| 2014 | Presidential proclamation of 30 June 2014 | Set out the EEZ under the 1988 law, in line with UNCLOS |

Source for the table: [Wikipedia, Exclusive economic zone of Somalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exclusive_economic_zone_of_Somalia). Wikipedia gives 9 February 1989 as the date parliament ratified UNCLOS.

The difference matters. Under the 1972 law, foreign ships in the 200 miles were in Somali territorial waters. Under UNCLOS and the 2014 proclamation, the first 12 miles are territorial sea and the rest is an economic zone.

## The 2014 proclamation

On 30 June 2014 President [Hassan Sheikh Mohamud](/en/people/hassan-sheikh-mohamud/) proclaimed an EEZ of 200 nautical miles from the normal baselines. The same day Somalia deposited a list of coordinates for its outer limit with the UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea ([ICJ, Application of Somalia, 28 August 2014](https://api.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/161/161-20140828-APP-01-00-EN.pdf)). The UN lists the deposit under a note dated 3 July 2014 ([UN DOALOS, Somalia national legislation](https://www.un.org/Depts/los/LEGISLATIONANDTREATIES/STATEFILES/SOM.htm)).

The proclamation claims sovereign rights to explore, use, conserve and manage the natural resources of the seabed, the subsoil and the water above, and to produce energy from water, currents and winds ([Wikipedia, Exclusive economic zone of Somalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exclusive_economic_zone_of_Somalia)).

## Borders with neighbours

In August 2014 Somalia asked the International Court of Justice to fix its sea border with Kenya. The Court ruled on 12 October 2021. See [Somalia v. Kenya: the sea border case](/en/government/somalia-v-kenya-icj-maritime-case/).

## What lives in it

Cold, nutrient-rich water rises to the surface off the Somali coast, a process called upwelling. It feeds plankton, which in turn supports small fish such as sardines, herring and scad ([Wikipedia, Exclusive economic zone of Somalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exclusive_economic_zone_of_Somalia)). For catches, licences and illegal fishing, see [Fishing and the sea](/en/economy/fishing-and-the-sea/).

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