Landlocked Countries 2022

A nation is said to be landlocked if it is completely encircled by land. Closed oceans are the only option for several of these countries to have coasts.

In certain parts of the nation, there may be rivers and bodies of water, but every boundary is land-based rather than water-based, like a beach on the ocean. Forty-nine of the world’s nations are landlocked. This equates to one-fifth of the world’s nations or around 20% of the total.

These countries are really at a disadvantage since they are landlocked. Landlocked nations are cut off from seaports and other commercial hubs, which may not seem like a bad thing.

Landlocked nations cannot engage in as many trading possibilities as countries that have access to large rivers and oceans because of this.

Another characteristic of a doubly landlocked country is that other landlocked nations also border it. Double landlocked nations’ citizens must go across two countries’ borders to access a shoreline. Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan are the only two nations with a land border on both sides.

Landlocked nations lose out on rich resources like fishing, which is important to the economies of many countries with water access since they lack access to seaborne commerce.

Landlocked nations must rely on other kinds of income if they don’t have access to fishing as a main source of revenue. In many landlocked nations, agriculture and intercontinental trade are major sources of wealth.

Despite the difficulties that landlocked borders provide, some countries have risen to the occasion and even grown rather prosperous. Austria and Switzerland are two landlocked nations that have remained successful despite their lack of water boundaries.

The economies of Austria and Switzerland, on the other hand, benefit from some advantages. Its location is the most obvious benefit.

Europe is one of the world’s most prosperous and developed continents, and Austria and Switzerland are part of it. The vast majority of landlocked countries are developing countries. Landlocked countries often have lower incomes and lower populations than coastal countries.

Kazakhstan is the biggest landlocked nation in terms of area. Pope Francis’s Vatican City is the smallest by area.

There are approximately 101 million people in Ethiopia, the biggest landlocked nation in terms of population. There are less than 1,000 persons in Vatican City, making it the lowest by population.

Approximately 7% of the world’s population lives in these landlocked countries, which account for nearly 11% of the global land area. The following table lists the 44 nations that are completely enclosed by land.

The Borders That Keep These Countries Landlocked

There is a boundary between every landlocked nation and another one. Each landlocked country’s position on a map may be better understood by examining its boundaries. Check out the neighboring nations of each landlocked nation before moving on.

Afghanistan

• China
• India
• Iran
• Pakistan
• Tajikistan
• Turkmenistan
• Uzbekistan

Andorra

• France
• Spain

Armenia

• Azerbaijan
• Georgia
• Iran
• Nagorno-Karabagh
• Turkey

Austria

• The Czech Republic
• Germany
• Hungary
• Italy
• Liechtenstein
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Switzerland

Azerbaijan

• Armenia
• Georgia
• Iran
• Russia
• Turkey

Belarus

• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Poland
• Russia
• Ukraine

Bhutan

• China
• India

Bolivia

• Argentina
• Brazil
• Chile
• Paraguay
• Peru

Botswana

• Namibia
• South Africa
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

Burkina Faso

• Benin
• Cote d’Ivoire
• Ghana
• Mali
• Niger
• Togo

Burundi

• The Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Rwanda
• Tanzania

The Central African Republic

• Cameroon
• Chad
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo
• The Republic of the Congo
• South Sudan
• Sudan

Chad

• Cameroon
• The Central African Republic
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Sudan

The Czech Republic

• Austria
• Germany
• Poland
• Slovakia

Ethiopia

• Djibouti
• Eritrea
• Kenya
• Somalia
• South Sudan
• Sudan

Hungary

• Austria
• Croatia
• Romania
• Serbia
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Ukraine

Kazakhstan

• Kyrgyzstan
• Turkmenistan
• Uzbekistan

Kyrgyzstan

• China
• Kazakhstan
• Tajikistan
• Uzbekistan

Laos

• Burma
• Cambodia
• China
• Thailand
• Vietnam

Lesotho

• South Africa

Liechtenstein

• Austria
• Switzerland

Luxembourg

• Belgium
• France
• Germany

Macedonia

• Albania
• Bulgaria
• Greece
• Kosovo
• Serbia

Malawi

• Mozambique
• Tanzania
• Zambia

Mali

• Burkina Faso
• Côte d’Ivoire
• Guinea
• Mauritania
• Senegal

Moldova

• Romania
• Ukraine

Mongolia

• China
• Kazakhstan
• Russia

Nepal

• China
• India

Niger

• Algeria
• Burkina Faso
• Chad
• Libya
• West Africa

Paraguay

• Argentina
• Bolivia
• Brazil

Rwanda

• Burundi
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Tanzania
• Uganda

San Marino

• Italy

Serbia

• Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Hungary
• Kosovo
• Montenegro
• North Macedonia
• Romania

Slovakia

• Austria
• The Czech Republic
• Hungary
• Poland
• Ukraine

South Sudan

• The Central African Republic
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Ethiopia
• Kenya
• Sudan
• Uganda

Swaziland

• Mozambique
• South Africa

Switzerland

• Austria
• France
• Germany
• Italy
• Liechtenstein

Tajikistan

• Afghanistan
• China
• Kyrgyzstan
• Uzbekistan

Turkmenistan

• Afghanistan
• Iran
• Kazakhstan
• Uzbekistan

Uganda

• The Congo
• Kenya
• Sudan
• Tanzania

Uzbekistan

• Afghanistan
• Kazakhstan
• Kyrgyzstan
• Tajikistan
• Turkmenistan

Vatican City

• Italy

Zambia

• Republic of the Congo
• Malawi
• Mozambique
• Tanzania
• Zimbabwe

Also See: Island Countries 2022

Zimbabwe

• Botswana
• Mozambique
• Namibia
• South Africa
• Zambia