Facts About Landlocked Countries in The World

Photo: KnowInsiders

What is a Landlocked Country?

A landlocked country is defined as entirely surrounded by land. Some of these nations may have coastlines, but these are only on closed seas. Rivers might run through a portion of the region, and there can be bodies of water within the country's borders, but every border is land-based, rather than water like an ocean shore. Of all the countries in the world, forty-nine of them are landlocked. This number is equivalent to one-fifth, or twenty percent, of all countries in the world.

The Landlocked Countries

Before we get into the details of life in a landlocked country, let's get to know these nations a little better. There are over 40 countries in the world that do not border an ocean. Two are in South America (Bolivia and Paraguay), while the rest are dispersed across Europe, Africa, and Asia. There are two continents without any landlocked nations: North America and (obviously) the giant island of Australia.

The largest landlocked country in the world is Kazakhstan, located in Central Asia. The smallest is Vatican City, located entirely within the borders of Rome. Of all the landlocked nations, however, two stand out in terms of their distance from oceans. Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan are double-landlocked--they are the only two nations that are completely surrounded by other landlocked countries. If they want access to an ocean, they have to cross an entire country before they get to a nation with a coast.

Does Being Landlocked Matter?

A landlocked country does not have access to the ocean since the nearest coast is in another administrative unit. Every continent, except North America and Oceania, has landlocked countries. The most significant include Bolivia, Switzerland, Austria, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia. Landlocked countries have transport costs, which are on average 50% higher than countries that are not. If containerized imports are considered, landlocked countries have costs that are 85% higher than the world average. For landlocked countries in the developing world, the following issues are particularly prevalent:

Landlocked developing countries struggle with high trade costs and depend on transit countries. Photo: Dandc

• Difficulties in accessing international markets and a dependency on the stability and openness of neighboring countries to ensure reliable access to international markets.

• Economies that are reliant on the resource sector, such as agriculture and mining. While agriculture tends to be mostly subsistence-oriented, other resources have a strong export component and high transport costs. Their exports are thus likely to be less competitive. The median landlocked country has less than 40% of the trade volume of the median coastal country.

• The internal transport system tends to be deficient with a high concentration level, mostly around the capital.

A landlocked country can mitigate its lack of accessibility to global trade by developing transport corridors towards maritime gateways. While fluvial navigation is possible in specific cases, fluvial systems servicing landlocked countries are mostly present in Europe (e.g. Switzerland and Austria can be serviced by barges). It is through rail corridors that the most effective freight services are established. There are no specific connectivity barriers for landlocked countries to access air transportation (e.g. Zurich is a major air transport hub in Europe). Still, landlocked countries tend to be less connected because of their lower levels of development.

Landlocked by a Single Country

There are three countries that are completely landlocked (i.e. surrounded on all sides) by only one country. Two of these countries are founded within the country of Italy.

These single-country landlocked countries are Lesotho which is surrounded by South Africa, San Marino, a state surrounded by Italy, and Vatican City which is a city-state surrounded by Rome, the capital city of Italy.

Countries that are landlocked by a single country are known as enclave countries.

Landlocked countries: 42 landlocked (green), 2 doubly landlocked (purple). Photo: Wikipedia

Landlocked Countries That Share the Most Borders With Other Countries

Two landlocked countries share borders with eight countries.

Austria shares a border with Czechia (Czech Republic) to the north, Germany to the northwest, Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west, Italy to the southwest, Slovenia and Hungary to the southeast, and Slovenia to the east.

The second landlocked country that shares the most borders with other countries is Serbia.

The eight countries that share a border with Serbia are: Hungary to the north, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, Montenegro and Kosovo to the southwest, Macedonia to the west, and Romania and Bulgaria to the east.

Double-Landlocked Countries

Uzbekistan, one of the two double landlocked countries are surrounded by countries that are themselves landlocked. Photo: World Atlas

Landlocked countries that are separated from the nearest ocean coastline but not one, but two countries, are known as double-landlocked or doubly-landlocked countries.

The first country that is double-landlocked is the microstate of Liechtenstein located in central Europe which is immediately surrounded by the landlocked countries of Austria and Switzerland.

The second country is located in central Asia, Uzbekistan which is surrounded by the landlocked countries of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

There are two de facto states with limited or no international recognition: South Ossetia and Transnistria.

The List of Landlocked Countries Today

Country or Territory	Area(km2)	Surrounding countries	Number of Surrounding Countries
Afghanistan	652,230	Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, China, Pakistan	6
Andorra	468	France, Spain	2
Armenia	29,743	Iran, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan	4
Austria	83,871	Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Liechtenstein, Switzerland	8
Azerbaijan	86,600	Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Turkey	4
Belarus	207,600	Poland, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine, Latvia	5
Bhutan	38,394	India, China	2
Bolivia	1,098,581	Peru, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay	5
Botswana	582,000	Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa	4
Burkina Faso	274,222	Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast	6
Burundi	27,834	Rwanda, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo	3
Central African Republic	622,984	Chad, Cameroon, Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, South Sudan	6
Chad	1,284,000	Libya, Niger, Sudan, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Cameroon	6
Czech Republic	78,867	Austria, Germany, Poland, Slovakia	4
Ethiopia	1,104,300	Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan	6
Hungary	93,028	Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine	7
Kazakhstan	2,724,900	China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan	5
Kosovo	10,908	Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia	4
Kyrgyzstan	199,951	China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan	4
Laos	236,800	Myanmar, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand	5
Lesotho	30,355	South Africa	1
Liechtenstein	160	Switzerland, Austria	2
Luxembourg	2,586	Belgium, Germany, France	3
Macedonia (F.Y.R.O.M.)	25,713	Kosovo, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania	5
Malawi	118,484	Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique	3
Mali	1,240,192	Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania	7
Moldova	33,846	Romania, Ukraine	2
Mongolia	1,566,500	China, Russia	2
Artsakh	11,458	Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran	3
Nepal	147,181	China, India	2
Niger	1,267,000	Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Algeria	7
Paraguay	406,752	Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia	3
Rwanda	26,338	Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo	4
San Marino	61	Italy	1
Serbia	88,361	Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania(via Kosovo and Metohija[c])	8
Slovakia	49,035	Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary	5
South Ossetia	3,900	Georgia, Russia	2
South Sudan	619,745	Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic	6
Swaziland	17,364	Mozambique, South Africa	2
Switzerland	41,284	France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria, Italy	5
Tajikistan	143,100	Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China	4
Transnistria	4,163	Moldova, Ukraine	2
Turkmenistan	488,100	Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran	4
Uganda	241,038	Kenya, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania	5
Uzbekistan	449,100	Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan	5
Vatican City	0.44	Italy	1
West Bank	5,655	Israel, Jordan	2
Zambia	752,612	Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Angola	8
Zimbabwe	390,757	South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique	4
Total	14,776,228

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