Libya Geography - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria

Geographic coordinates

25 00 N, 17 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 1,759,540 sq km

land: 1,759,540 sq km

water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative

about 2.5 times the size of Texas; slightly larger than Alaska

Area comparison map

Land boundaries

total: 4,339 km

border countries (6): Algeria 989 km, Chad 1050 km, Egypt 1115 km, Niger 342 km, Sudan 382 km, Tunisia 461 km

Coastline

1,770 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

exclusive fishing zone: 62 nm

note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north

Climate

Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior

Terrain

mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions

Elevation

highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m

lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m

mean elevation: 423 m

Natural resources

petroleum, natural gas, gypsum

Land use

agricultural land: 8.8% (2018 est.)

arable land: 1% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.2% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 7.6% (2018 est.)

forest: 0.1% (2018 est.)

other: 91.1% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

4,700 sq km (2012)

Total renewable water resources

700 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

Population distribution

well over 90% of the population lives along the Mediterranean coast in and between Tripoli to the west and Al Bayda to the east; the interior remains vastly underpopulated due to the Sahara and lack of surface water as shown in this population distribution map

Natural hazards

hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust storms, sandstorms

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Law of the Sea

Geography - note

note 1: more than 90% of the country is desert or semidesert

note 2: the volcano Waw an Namus lies in south central Libya in the middle of the Sahara; the caldera is an oasis - the name means "oasis of mosquitoes" - containing several small lakes surrounded by vegetation and hosting various insects and a large diversity of birds

NOTE: The information regarding Libya on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Libya 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Libya 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.