Djibouti Launches $480M City to House 7,000 Families

Djibouti is building an entire city from scratch to help families afford their first homes.

President Ismail Omar Guelleh launched Salaam City on Monday, a $480 million project that will bring 7,000 new homes to the outskirts of Djibouti City. The development spans an area roughly the size of 450 football fields and represents one of the largest housing initiatives in the small Horn of Africa nation's history.

The project comes at a critical moment for Djibouti. The country has become a booming trade hub along the Red Sea, attracting major investment in ports and railways. But rapid economic growth has created a housing crunch, leaving many urban professionals and middle-class families struggling to find affordable places to live.

Salaam City aims to solve that problem with a mix of housing options for different income levels, all within one integrated neighborhood. Residents won't just get four walls and a roof. The development will include schools for their children, healthcare clinics, mosques, shopping centers, and parks.

"Djibouti is changing in ways people can feel," said Mustafe Liban, general manager of Salaam Real Estate. "Salaam City is designed to meet that moment."

Perhaps most importantly, the project includes a solution to one of the biggest barriers to homeownership: financing. Salaam African Bank will offer Islamic financing options to help families actually afford to buy homes, not just admire them from afar.

"Building houses is one thing," said bank general manager Jama Hirsi. "Making them possible to own is another."

The Ripple Effect

The construction phase alone will create about 2,000 jobs over the next few years, putting money in workers' pockets while building homes for their neighbors. The first families are expected to move into Salaam City by 2028.

The project fits into Djibouti's ambitious "Vision 2035" plan, which leverages the country's strategic location between Africa and the Middle East to fuel long-term growth. But President Guelleh emphasized that development means nothing if ordinary citizens don't benefit.

"Djibouti's development should be measured not only by the scale of its ambitions, but by its ability to improve the daily lives of its citizens," he said at the groundbreaking ceremony.

For thousands of families, that improved daily life will mean something simple but profound: a place to call home, in a community built for their future.