Not rated — no significant reservoirs
Djibouti is set aside from the ranking rather than graded. Having no significant reservoir storage is a geographic fact, not a transparency failure — so assigning an “F” would be misleading.
H1 2026 Evaluation
Djibouti Reservoir Transparency
N/AWhy it's not rated
Arid, with no perennial rivers or surface reservoirs.
Where its water comes from
Groundwater boreholes plus the Doraleh desalination plant (since 2021).
Reference source
ONEAD — Office National de l'Eau et de l'Assainissement de Djibouti
https://www.engineering-consulting.veolia.com/en/media/latest-news/kick-strategic-performance-program-onead-djibouti-national-water-and-sanitationEvaluator notes
Djibouti receives a structural zero across all RTI dimensions — not because of opacity or governance failure, but because the country has no surface reservoirs. This is a physically determined outcome: Djibouti is one of the most arid countries on Earth, situated in the Horn of Africa, with no perennial rivers and no terrain or hydrology that permits significant surface impoundment. Water security relies on groundwater aquifers (under severe pressure from overextraction and saltwater intrusion) and the Doraleh desalination plant inaugurated in 2021, expanded with €79 million EIB funding announced in 2023. ONEAD, the national water and sanitation utility, is undergoing a strategic modernization under a 5-year co-management agreement with Veolia (2024–2029) that includes digital service delivery, but this does not produce reservoir-level data. Djibouti should be treated as a 'no-reservoir' country in the RTI index, analogous to island microstates dependent on rainwater or desalination, and its zero score should not be interpreted as a transparency failure.
Evaluated by Jaime Delgado · 2026-09-15 · Methodology v1.3.0