***the World Factbook 1994 (part 9)

Overview:
The economy is heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture, which
accounts for about 33% of GDP and provides employment for 78% of the
labor force. Primary agricultural exports are cocoa, coffee, and
cotton, which together generate about 30% of total export earnings.
Togo is self-sufficient in basic foodstuffs when harvests are normal.
In the industrial sector phosphate mining is by far the most important
activity, although it has suffered from the collapse of World
phosphate prices and increased foreign competition. Togo serves as a
regional commercial and trade center. The government's decade-long IMF
and World Bank supported effort to implement economic reform measures
to encourage foreign investment and bring revenues in line with
expenditures has stalled. Political unrest, including private and
public sector strikes throughout 1992 and 1993, has jeopardized the
reform program and has disrupted vital economic activity.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $3.3 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
NA
National product per capita:
$800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.5% (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$284 million
expenditures:
$407 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1991 est.)
Exports:
$558 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
phosphates, cotton, cocoa, coffee
partners:
EC 40%, Africa 16%, US 1% (1990)
Imports:
$636 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
machinery and equipment, consumer goods, food, chemical products
partners:
EC 57%, Africa 17%, US 5%, Japan 4% (1990)
External debt:
$1.3 billion (1991)
Industrial production:
growth rate 9% (1991 est.); accounts for 20% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
179,000 kW
production:
209 million kWh
consumption per capita:
60 kWh (1990)
Industries:
phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement, handicrafts,
textiles, beverages
Agriculture:
accounts for 33% of GDP; cash crops - coffee, cocoa, cotton; food
crops - yams, cassava, corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock
production not significant; annual fish catch of 10,000-14,000 tons
Illicit drugs:
increasingly used as transit hub by heroin traffickers
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $142 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-90), $2
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $35 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $51 million
Currency:
1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1 - 592.05
(January 1994), 283.16 (1993), 264.69 (1992), 282.11 (1991), 272.26
(1990), 319.01 (1989)
note:
the official rate is pegged to the French franc, and beginning 12
January 1994, the CFA franc was devalued to CFAF 100 per French franc
from CFAF 50 at which it had been fixed since 1948
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Togo, Communications

Railroads:
570 km 1.000-meter gauge, single track
Highways:
total:
6,462 km
paved:
1,762 km
unpaved:
unimproved earth 4,700 km
Inland waterways:
50 km Mono River
Ports:
Lome, Kpeme (phosphate port)
Merchant marine:
2 roll-on/roll-off cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 11,118
GRT/20,529 DWT
Airports:
total:
9
usable:
9
with permanent-surface runways:
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
2
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
0
Telecommunications:
fair system based on network of radio relay routes supplemented by
open wire lines; broadcast stations - 2 AM, no FM, 3 (2 relays) TV;
satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 SYMPHONIE

@Togo, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 898,448; fit for military service 471,807
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $43 million, about 3% of GDP (1989)

@Tokelau

Header Affiliation: (territory of New Zealand)

@Tokelau, Geography

Location: Oceania, Polynesia, 3,750 km southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand Map references: Oceania Area: total area: 10 sq km land area: 10 sq km comparative area: about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 101 km Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) Terrain: coral atolls enclosing large lagoons Natural resources: negligible Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 100% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand natural hazards: lies in Pacific typhoon belt international agreements: NA

@Tokelau, People

Population:
1,523 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
-1.35% (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Tokelauan(s)
adjective:
Tokelauan
Ethnic divisions:
Polynesian
Religions:
Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note:
on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu,
all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the
Congregational Christian Church predominant
Languages:
Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English
Literacy:
total population:
NA%
male:
NA%
female:
NA%
Labor force:
NA

@Tokelau, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Tokelau
Digraph:
TL
Type:
territory of New Zealand
Capital:
none; each atoll has its own administrative center
Administrative divisions:
none (territory of New Zealand)
Independence:
none (territory of New Zealand)
National holiday:
Waitangi Day, 6 February (1840) (Treaty of Waitangi established
British sovereignty over New Zealand)
Constitution:
administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970
Legal system:
British and local statutes
Suffrage:
NA
Executive branch:
Chief of State:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
Head of Government:
Administrator Graham ANSELL (since NA 1990; appointed by the Minister
of Foreign Affairs in New Zealand); Official Secretary Casimilo J.
PEREZ (since NA), Office of Tokelau Affairs; Tokelau's governing
Council will elect its first head of government
Legislative branch:
unicameral Council of Elders (Taupulega) on each atoll
Judicial branch:
High Court in Niue, Supreme Court in New Zealand
Political parties and leaders:
NA
Member of:
SPC, WHO (associate)
Diplomatic representation in US:
none (territory of New Zealand)
US diplomatic representation:
none (territory of New Zealand)
Flag:
the flag of New Zealand is used

@Tokelau, Economy

Overview:
Tokelau's small size, isolation, and lack of resources greatly
restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the
subsistence level. The people must rely on aid from New Zealand to
maintain public services, annual aid being substantially greater than
GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra,
postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also
remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $1.4 million (1988 est.)
National product real growth rate:
NA%
National product per capita:
$800 (1988 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$430,830
expenditures:
$2.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.)
Exports:
$98,000 (f.o.b., 1983)
commodities:
stamps, copra, handicrafts
partners:
NZ
Imports:
$323,400 (c.i.f., 1983)
commodities:
foodstuffs, building materials, fuel
partners:
NZ
External debt:
$0
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
200 kW
production:
300,000 kWh
consumption per capita:
180 kWh (1990)
Industries:
small-scale enterprises for copra production, wood work, plaited craft
goods; stamps, coins; fishing
Agriculture:
coconuts, copra; basic subsistence crops - breadfruit, papaya,
bananas; pigs, poultry, goats
Economic aid:
recipient:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $24 million
Currency:
1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
New Zealand dollars (NZ$) per US$1 - 1.7771 (January 1994), 1.8495
(1993), 1.8584 (1992), l.7265 (1991), 1.6750 (1990), 1.6708 (1989)
Fiscal year:
1 April-31 March

@Tokelau, Communications

Highways: total: NA paved: NA unpaved: NA Ports: none; offshore anchorage only Airports: none; lagoon landings by amphibious aircraft from Western Samoa Telecommunications: radiotelephone service between islands and to Western Samoa

@Tokelau, Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of New Zealand

@Tonga, Geography

Location: Oceania, Polynesia, 2,250 km north-northwest of New Zealand, about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and New Zealand Map references: Oceania, Standard Time Zones of the World Area: total area: 748 sq km land area: 718 sq km comparative area: slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 419 km Maritime claims: continental shelf: not specified exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) Terrain: most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base Natural resources: fish, fertile soil Land use: arable land: 25% permanent crops: 55% meadows and pastures: 6% forest and woodland: 12% other: 2% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: deforestation natural hazards: subject to cyclones (October to April) international agreements: party to - Marine Life Conservation Note: archipelago of 170 islands (36 inhabited)

@Tonga, People

Population: 104,778 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 0.79% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 24.76 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 6.75 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -10.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 20.79 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 67.97 years male: 65.64 years female: 70.43 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.62 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Tongan(s) adjective: Tongan Ethnic divisions: Polynesian, Europeans about 300 Religions: Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) Languages: Tongan, English Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write simple message in Tongan or English (1976) total population: 57% male: 60% female: 60% Labor force: NA by occupation: agriculture 70%, mining (600 engaged in mining)

@Tonga, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Kingdom of Tonga
conventional short form:
Tonga
former:
Friendly Islands
Digraph:
TN
Type:
hereditary constitutional monarchy
Capital:
Nuku'alofa
Administrative divisions:
three island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u
Independence:
4 June 1970 (from UK)
National holiday:
Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970)
Constitution:
4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967
Legal system:
based on English law
Suffrage:
all literate, tax-paying males and all literate females over 21
Executive branch:
chief of state:
King Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965)
head of government:
Prime Minister Baron VAEA (since 22 August 1991); Deputy Prime
Minister S. Langi KAVALIKU (since 22 August 1991)
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the king
Privy Council:
consists of the king and the cabinet
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Legislative Assembly (Fale Alea):
elections last held 14-15 February 1990 (next to be held NA February
1993); results - percent of vote NA; seats - (29 total, 9 elected) 6
proreform, 3 traditionalist
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Reform Movement, 'Akilisi POHIVA; Christian Democratic
Party, leader NA
Member of:
ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IMF, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS,
SPARTECA, SPC, SPF, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO
Diplomatic representation in US:
Ambassador Sione KITE, resides in London
consulate(s) general:
San Francisco
US diplomatic representation:
the US has no offices in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited
to Tonga and makes periodic visits
Flag:
red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side
corner

@Tonga, Economy

Overview:
The economy's base is agriculture, which employs about 70% of the
labor force and contributes 40% to GDP. Coconuts, bananas, and vanilla
beans are the main crops and make up two-thirds of exports. The
country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New
Zealand. The manufacturing sector accounts for only 11% of GDP.
Tourism is the primary source of hard currency earnings, but the
island remains dependent on sizable external aid and remittances to
offset its trade deficit. The economy continued to grow in 1993
largely because of a rise in squash exports, increased aid flows, and
several large construction projects. The government is now turning its
attention to further development of the private sector and the
reduction of the budget deficit.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $200 million (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
4% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$2,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9% (FY92)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$36.4 million
expenditures:
$68.1 million, including capital expenditures of $33.2 million (1991
est.)
Exports:
$18.8 million (f.o.b., FY92 est.)
commodities:
vanilla, fish, root crops, coconut oil, squash
partners:
Japan 34%, US 17%, Australia 13%, NZ 13% (FY91)
Imports:
$68.3 million (c.i.f., FY92 est.)
commodities:
food products, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, fuels,
chemicals
partners:
NZ 33%, Australia 22%, US 8%, Japan 8% (FY91)
External debt:
$47.5 million (FY91)
Industrial production:
growth rate 1.5% (FY92); accounts for 11% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
6,000 kW
production:
8 million kWh
consumption per capita:
80 kWh (1990)
Industries:
tourism, fishing
Agriculture:
accounts for 40% of GDP; dominated by coconut, copra, and banana
production; vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $16 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $258
million
Currency:
1 pa'anga (T$) = 100 seniti
Exchange rates:
pa'anga (T$) per US$1 - 1.3934 (November 1993), 1.3471 (1992), 1.2961
(1991), 1.2809 (1990), 1.2637 (1989),
Fiscal year:
1 July-30 June

@Tonga, Communications

Highways:
total:
366 km
paved:
272 km (198 km on Tongatapu; 74 km on Vava'u)
unpaved:
94 km (usable only in dry weather)
Ports:
Nuku'alofa, Neiafu, Pangai
Merchant marine:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,761 GRT/10,597 DWT, cargo 1,
liquefied gas 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1
Airports:
total:
6
usable:
6
with permanent-surface runways:
1
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
1
Telecommunications:
3,529 telephones; 66,000 radios; no TV sets; broadcast stations - 1
AM, no FM, no TV; 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth station

@Tonga, Defense Forces

Branches:
Tonga Defense Services, Maritime Division, Royal Tongan Marines,
Tongan Royal Guards, Police
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Trinidad and Tobago, Geography

Location:
Caribbean, in the extreme southeastern Caribbean Sea, 11 km off the
coast of Venezuela
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean, South America, Standard Time Zones
of the World
Area:
total area:
5,130 sq km
land area:
5,130 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Delaware
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
362 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or the outer edge of continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; rainy season (June to December)
Terrain:
mostly plains with some hills and low mountains
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, asphalt
Land use:
arable land:
14%
permanent crops:
17%
meadows and pastures:
2%
forest and woodland:
44%
other:
23%
Irrigated land:
220 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and
untreated sewage; oil pollution of beaches; land degradation
natural hazards:
outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms
international agreements:
party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Tropical Timber; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate
Change

@Trinidad and Tobago, People

Population:
1,328,282 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.1% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
19.6 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
6.28 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
16.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
70.73 years
male:
68.09 years
female:
73.43 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.32 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective:
Trinidadian, Tobagonian
Ethnic divisions:
black 43%, East Indian 40%, mixed 14%, white 1%, Chinese 1%, other 1%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 32.2%, Hindu 24.3%, Anglican 14.4%, other Protestant
14%, Muslim 6%, none or unknown 9.1%
Languages:
English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1980)
total population:
95%
male:
97%
female:
93%
Labor force:
463,900
by occupation:
construction and utilities 18.1%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying
14.8%, agriculture 10.9%, other 56.2% (1985 est.)

@Trinidad and Tobago, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form:
Trinidad and Tobago
Digraph:
TD
Type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
Port-of-Spain
Administrative divisions:
8 counties, 3 municipalities*, and 1 ward**; Arima*, Caroni, Mayaro,
Nariva, Port-of-Spain*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint
Patrick, San Fernando*, Tobago**, Victoria
Independence:
31 August 1962 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 31 August (1962)
Constitution:
1 August 1976
Legal system:
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in
the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Noor Mohammed HASSANALI (since 18 March 1987)
head of government:
Prime Minister Patrick Augustus Mervyn MANNING (since 17 December
1991)
cabinet:
Cabinet; responsible to parliament
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament
Senate:
consists of a 31-member body appointed by the president
House of Representatives:
elections last held 16 December 1991 (next to be held by December
1996); results - PNM 32%, UNC 13%, NAR 2%; seats - (36 total) PNM 21,
UNC 13, NAR 2
Judicial branch:
Court of Appeal, Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
People's National Movement (PNM), Patrick MANNING; United National
Congress (UNC), Basdeo PANDAY; National Alliance for Reconstruction
(NAR), Selby WILSON; Movement for Social Transformation (MOTION),
David ABDULLAH; National Joint Action Committee (NJAC), Makandal
DAAGA; Republic Party, Nello MITCHELL; National Development Party
(NDP), Carson CHARLES
Member of:
ACP, C, CARICOM, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IBRD,
ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
ISO, ITU, LAES, LORCS, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Corinne Averille McKNIGHT
chancery:
1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone:
(202) 467-6490
FAX:
(202) 785-3130
consulate(s) general:
New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Sally G. COWAL
embassy:
15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain
mailing address:
P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain
telephone:
(809) 622-6372 through 6376, 6176
FAX:
(809) 628-5462
Flag:
red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side

@Trinidad and Tobago, Economy

Overview:
Trinidad and Tobago's petroleum-based economy still enjoys a high per
capita income by Latin American standards, even though output and
living standards are substantially below the boom years of 1973-82.
The country suffers from widespread unemployment, large foreign-debt
payments, and periods of low international oil prices. Seven
successive years of economic contraction were followed by small gains
in output in 1990-91 of 1.2% and 0.9%, in turn followed by small
declines in 1992-93 of roughly 1.0%. The government has begun to make
progress in its efforts to diversify exports.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $10.4 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-1% (1993)
National product per capita:
$8,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9.5% (1993)
Unemployment rate:
18.5% (1991)
Budget:
revenues:
$1.6 billion
expenditures:
$1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $158 million (1993
est.)
Exports:
$1.4 billion (f.o.b., 1993)
commodities:
petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products,
fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers
partners:
US 47%, CARICOM 13%, Latin America 9%, EC 5% (1992)
Imports:
$900 million (f.o.b. , 1993)
commodities:
machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live
animals (1992)
partners:
US 41%, Venezuela 10%, UK 8%, other EC 8%
External debt:
$2 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
growth rate 2.3% (1991); accounts for 37% of GDP, including petroleum
Electricity:
capacity:
1,176,000 kW
production:
3.48 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
2,680 kWh (1992)
Industries:
petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage,
cotton textiles
Agriculture:
accounts for 3% of GDP; highly subsidized sector; major crops - cocoa,
sugarcane; sugarcane acreage is being shifted into rice, citrus,
coffee, vegetables; poultry sector most important source of animal
protein; must import large share of food needs
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and
Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $373 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $518
million
Currency:
1 Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TT$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
Trinidad and Tobago dollars (TT$) per US$1 - 5.8111 (January 1994),
5.3511 (1993), 4.2500 (fixed rate 1989-1992); note - effective 13
April 1993, the exchange rate of the TT dollar is market-determined as
opposed to the prior fixed relationship to the US dollar
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Trinidad and Tobago, Communications

Railroads:
minimal agricultural railroad system near San Fernando
Highways:
total:
8,000 km
paved:
4,000 km
unpaved:
improved earth 1,000 km; unimproved earth 3,000 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 1,032 km; petroleum products 19 km; natural gas 904 km
Ports:
Port-of-Spain, Pointe-a-Pierre, Scarborough
Merchant marine:
2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 12,507 GRT/21,923 DWT
Airports:
total:
6
usable:
5
with permanent-surface runways:
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
2
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
1
Telecommunications:
excellent international service via tropospheric scatter links to
Barbados and Guyana; good local service; 109,000 telephones; broadcast
stations - 2 AM, 4 FM, 5 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

@Trinidad and Tobago, Defense Forces

Branches:
Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast
Guard, and Air Wing), Trinidad and Tobago Police Service
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 357,904; fit for military service 257,667
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $59 million, 1%-2% of GDP (1989 est.)

@Tromelin Island

Header Affiliation: (possession of France)

@Tromelin Island, Geography

Location: Southern Africa, in the western Indian Ocean, 350 km east of Madagascar and 600 km north of Reunion Map references: World Area: total area: 1 sq km land area: 1 sq km comparative area: about 1.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 3.7 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 12 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: claimed by Madagascar, Mauritius, and Seychelles Climate: tropical Terrain: sandy Natural resources: fish Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 100% (scattered bushes) Irrigated land: 0 sq km Environment: current issues: NA natural hazards: NA international agreements: NA Note: climatologically important location for forecasting cyclones; wildlife sanctuary

@Tromelin Island, People

Population: uninhabited

@Tromelin Island, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Tromelin Island
local long form:
none
local short form:
Ile Tromelin
Digraph:
TE
Type:
French possession administered by Commissioner of the Republic,
resident in Reunion
Capital:
none; administered by France from Reunion
Independence:
none (possession of France)

@Tromelin Island, Economy

Overview: no economic activity

@Tromelin Island, Communications

Ports: none; offshore anchorage only Airports: total: 1 usable: 1 with permanent-surface runways: 0 with runways over 3,659 m: 0 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 0 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 0 Telecommunications: important meteorological station

@Tromelin Island, Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of France

@Tunisia, Geography

Location:
Northern Africa, 144 km from Italy across the Strait of Sicily,
between Algeria and Libya
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
163,610 sq km
land area:
155,360 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Georgia
Land boundaries:
total 1,424 km, Algeria 965 km, Libya 459 km
Coastline:
1,148 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
maritime boundary dispute with Libya; land boundary dispute with
Algeria settled in 1993
Climate:
temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers;
desert in south
Terrain:
mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into
the Sahara
Natural resources:
petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt
Land use:
arable land:
20%
permanent crops:
10%
meadows and pastures:
19%
forest and woodland:
4%
other:
47%
Irrigated land:
2,750 sq km (1989)
Environment:
current issues:
toxic and hazardous waste disposal is ineffective and presents human
health risks; water pollution from untreated sewage; water scarcity;
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands; signed,
but not ratified - Marine Life Conservation
Note:
strategic location in central Mediterranean

@Tunisia, People

Population: 8,726,562 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 1.76% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 23.4 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 4.95 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -0.85 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 34.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 72.89 years male: 70.85 years female: 75.03 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 2.88 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Tunisian(s) adjective: Tunisian Ethnic divisions: Arab-Berber 98%, European 1%, Jewish less than 1% Religions: Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Jewish 1% Languages: Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce) Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 65% male: 74% female: 56% Labor force: 2.25 million by occupation: agriculture 32% note: shortage of skilled labor

@Tunisia, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Tunisia
conventional short form:
Tunisia
local long form:
Al Jumhuriyah at Tunisiyah
local short form:
Tunis
Digraph:
TS
Type:
republic
Capital:
Tunis
Administrative divisions:
23 governorates; Beja, Ben Arous, Bizerte, Gabes, Gafsa, Jendouba,
Kairouan, Kasserine, Kebili, L'Ariana, Le Kef, Mahdia, Medenine,
Monastir, Nabeul, Sfax, Sidi Bou Zid, Siliana, Sousse, Tataouine,
Tozeur, Tunis, Zaghouan
Independence:
20 March 1956 (from France)
National holiday:
National Day, 20 March (1956)
Constitution:
1 June 1959; amended 12 July 1988
Legal system:
based on French civil law system and Islamic law; some judicial review
of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session
Suffrage:
20 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Gen. Zine el Abidine BEN ALI (since 7 November 1987);
election last held 20 March 1994 (next to be held NA); results - Gen.
Zine el Abidine BEN ALI was reelected without opposition
head of government:
Prime Minister Hamed KAROUI (since 26 September 1989)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Chamber of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab):
elections last held 2 April 1989 (next to be held NA March 1994);
results - RCD 80.7%, independents/Islamists 13.7%, MDS 3.2%, other
2.4%; seats - (141 total) RCD 141
Judicial branch:
Court of Cassation (Cour de Cassation)
Political parties and leaders:
Constitutional Democratic Rally Party (RCD), President BEN ALI
(official ruling party); Movement of Democratic Socialists (MDS),
Mohammed MOUAADA; five other political parties are legal, including
the Communist Party
Other political or pressure groups:
the Islamic fundamentalist party, An Nahda (Rebirth), is outlawed
Member of:
ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT,
IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO, NAM,
OAPEC (withdrew from active membership in 1986), OAS (observer), OAU,
OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UNPROFOR, UNTAC, UPU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Ismail KHALIL
chancery:
1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005
telephone:
(202) 862-1850
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador John T. McCARTHY
embassy:
144 Avenue de la Liberte, 1002 Tunis-Belvedere
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
(1) 782-566
FAX:
(1) 789-719
Flag:
red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly
encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star are
traditional symbols of Islam

@Tunisia, Economy

Overview:
Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining,
energy, tourism and manufacturing sectors. The economy grew rapidly in
the mid-1980s, GDP growth averaging 5.4% in 1983-85. Following a
foreign exchange crisis caused by a sharp drop in agricultural output
and tourism, combined with the oil price collapse in 1986, Tunisia
inaugurated an IMF-sponsored economic rehabilitation scheme.
Subsequent government structural reforms have helped liberalize and
open the economy, and GDP growth has been positive since the start of
the program. A sharp rebound in tourism from the downturn caused by
the Gulf war and strong agricultural performance boosted real GDP
growth to more than 8% in 1992; growth fell back to 2.6% in 1993.
Further privatization and further improvements in government
administrative efficiency are among the challenges for the future.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $34.3 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
2.6% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$4,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.5% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
16.2% (1993 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$4.3 billion
expenditures:
$5.5 billion, including capital expenditures to $NA (1993 est.)
Exports:
$4.1 billion (f.o.b., 1993)
commodities:
hydrocarbons, agricultural products, phosphates and chemicals
partners:
EC countries 75%, Middle East 10%, Algeria 2%, India 2%, US 1%
Imports:
$6.4 billion (c.i.f., 1993)
commodities:
industrial goods and equipment 57%, hydrocarbons 13%, food 12%,
consumer goods
partners:
EC countries 70%, US 5%, Middle East 2%, Japan 2%, Switzerland 1%,
Algeria 1%
External debt:
$7.7 billion (1993 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 5% (1989); accounts for about 25% of GDP, including
petroleum
Electricity:
capacity:
1,545,000 kW
production:
5,096 kWh
consumption per capita:
600 kWh (1992)
Industries:
petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism,
textiles, footwear, food, beverages
Agriculture:
accounts for 16% of GDP and one-third of labor force; output subject
to severe fluctuations because of frequent droughts; export crops -
olives, dates, oranges, almonds; other products - grain, sugar beets,
wine grapes, poultry, beef, dairy; not self-sufficient in food
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $730 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89) $52
million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $684 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $410 million
Currency:
1 Tunisian dinar (TD) = 1,000 millimes
Exchange rates:
Tunisian dinars (TD) per US$1 - 1.0514 (January 1994), 1.0037 (1993),
0.8844 (1992), 0.9246 (1991), 0.8783 (1990), 0.9493 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Tunisia, Communications

Railroads:
2,115 km total; 465 km 1.435-meter (standard) gauge; 1,650 km
1.000-meter gauge
Highways:
total:
17,700 km
paved:
bituminous 9,100 km
unpaved:
improved, unimproved earth 8,600 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 797 km; petroleum products 86 km; natural gas 742 km
Ports:
Bizerte, Gabes, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis, La Goulette, Zarzis
Merchant marine:
23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 152,683 GRT/199,273 DWT, bulk 6,
cargo 6, chemical tanker 6, liquefied gas 1, oil tanker 1,
roll-on/roll-off cargo 2, short-sea passenger 1
Airports:
total:
31
usable:
27
with permanent-surface runways:
14
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
9
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
5
note:
a new airport opened 6 May 1993, length and type of surface NA
Telecommunications:
the system is above the African average; facilities consist of
open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay; key centers
are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; 233,000 telephones (28
telephones per 1,000 persons); broadcast stations - 7 AM, 8 FM, 19 TV;
5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean
INTELSAT and 1 ARABSAT with back-up control station; coaxial cable and
microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya

@Tunisia, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces, National Guard
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 2,229,362; fit for military service 1,281,015; reach
military age (20) annually 91,941 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $618 million, 3.7% of GDP (1993 est.)

@Turkey, Geography

Location:
Southwestern Asia (that part west of the Bosporus is sometimes
included with Europe), bordering the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea,
between Bulgaria and Iran
Map references:
Africa, Europe, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
780,580 sq km
land area:
770,760 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Texas
Land boundaries:
total 2,627 km, Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km,
Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 331 km, Syria 822 km
Coastline:
7,200 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone:
in Black Sea only - to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the
former USSR
territorial sea:
6 nm in the Aegean Sea,
12 nm in the Black Sea and in the Mediterranean Sea
International disputes:
complex maritime and air (but not territorial) disputes with Greece in
Aegean Sea; Cyprus question; Hatay question with Syria; ongoing
dispute with downstream riparians (Syria and Iraq) over water
development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Climate:
temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in
interior
Terrain:
mostly mountains; narrow coastal plain; high central plateau
(Anatolia)
Natural resources:
antimony, coal, chromium, mercury, copper, borate, sulphur, iron ore
Land use:
arable land:
30%
permanent crops:
4%
meadows and pastures:
12%
forest and woodland:
26%
other:
28%
Irrigated land:
22,200 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air
pollution; deforestation
natural hazards:
subject to very severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey,
along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Note:
strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of
Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas

@Turkey, People

Population: 62,153,898 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.02% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 25.98 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 5.8 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 48.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 70.94 years male: 68.61 years female: 73.38 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.21 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Turk(s) adjective: Turkish Ethnic divisions: Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20% Religions: Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (Christian and Jews) Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 81% male: 90% female: 71% Labor force: 20.8 million by occupation: agriculture 48%, services 32%, industry 20% note: about 1,800,000 Turks work abroad (1993)

@Turkey, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Turkey
conventional short form:
Turkey
local long form:
Turkiye Cumhuriyeti
local short form:
Turkiye
Digraph:
TU
Type:
republican parliamentary democracy
Capital:
Ankara
Administrative divisions:
73 provinces (iller, singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri,
Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Batman,
Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale,
Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan,
Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gazi Antep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay,
Icel, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahraman Maras, Karaman, Kars,
Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya,
Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu,
Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanli Urfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas,
Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yozgat, Zonguldak
Independence:
29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)
National holiday:
Anniversary of the Declaration of the Republic, 29 October (1923)
Constitution:
7 November 1982
Legal system:
derived from various continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Suleyman DEMIREL (since 16 May 1993)
head of government:
Prime Minister Tansu CILLER (since 5 July 1993)
National Security Council:
advisory body to the President and the Cabinet
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on nomination of the
prime minister
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Turkish Grand National Assembly:
(Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi) elections last held 20 October 1991
(next to be held NA October 1996); results - DYP 27.03%, ANAP 24.01%,
SHP 20.75%, RP 16.88%, DSP 10.75%, SBP 0.44%, independent 0.14%; seats
- (450 total) DYP 178, ANAP 115, SHP 86, RP 40, MCP 19, DSP 7, other 5
note:
seats held by various parties are subject to change due to defections,
creation of new parties, and ouster or death of sitting deputies;
present seats by party are as follows: DYP 178, ANAP 101, SHP 55, RP
39, CHP 18, MHP 13, DEP 13, BBP 7, DSP 3, YP 3, MP 2, independents 10,
vacant 8
Judicial branch:
Court of Cassation
Political parties and leaders:
Correct Way Party (DYP), Tansu CILLER; Motherland Party (ANAP), Mesut
YILMAZ; Social Democratic Populist Party (SHP), Murat KARAYALCIN;
Welfare Party (RP), Necmettin ERBAKAN; Democratic Left Party (DSP),
Bulent ECEVIT; Nationalist Action Party (MHP), Alparslan TURKES;
Democracy Party (DEP), Hatip DICLE; Socialist Unity Party (SBP), Sadun
AREN; New Party (YP), Yusuf Bozkurt OZAL; Republican People's Party
(CHP), Deniz BAYKAL; Labor Party (IP), Dogu PERINCEK; National Party
(MP), Aykut EDIBALI; Democrat Party (DP), Aydin MENDERES; Grand Unity
Party (BBP), Muhsin YAZICIOGLU; Rebirth Party (YDP), Hasan Celal
GUZEL; People's Democracy Party (HADEP), Murat BOZLAK; Main Path Party
(ANAYOL), Gurcan BASER; Democratic Target Party, Abdul Kadir Yasar
TURK
Other political or pressure groups:
Turkish Confederation of Labor (TURK-IS), Bayram MERAL
Member of:
AsDB, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), COCOM, CSCE, EBRD, ECE,
ECO, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD,
IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer),
ISO, ITU, LORCS, NACC, NATO, NEA, OECD, OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOSOM, UNRWA, UPU, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Nuzhet KANDEMIR
chancery:
1714 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone:
(202) 659-8200
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard C. BARKLEY
embassy:
110 Ataturk Boulevard, Ankara
mailing address:
PSC 93, Box 5000, Ankara, or APO AE 09823
telephone:
(312) 468-6110 through 6128
FAX:
(312) 467-0019
consulate(s) general:
Istanbul
consulate(s):
Adana
Flag:
red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the
hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the
crescent opening

@Turkey, Economy

Overview: In early 1994, after an impressive economic performance through most of the 1980s, Turkey faces its most damaging economic crisis in the last 15 years. Sparked by the downgrading in mid-January of Turkey's international credit rating by two US credit rating agencies, the crisis stems from two years of loose fiscal and monetary policies that have exacerbated inflation and allowed the public debt, money supply, and current account deficit to explode. Under Prime Minister CILLER, Ankara has followed seriously flawed policies that have destroyed public confidence in the government's ability to manage the economy. Inflation is now running at an annual rate of 107% and the public sector deficit is equivalent to 16% of GDP. Turkish firms have been hurt by high interest rates and a dramatic drop in consumer demand. Three Turkish banks have folded and the stock market has fallen 48% since the beginning of the year. Economic growth may drop to between 0% and 2% in 1994, compared to 7.3% in 1993. Moreover, the government is facing a severe cash crunch. In March 1994, the treasury came close to defaulting on a loan, and official foreign currency reserves are equal to less than two months' worth of imports. The unprecedented effort by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) to raise the economic costs of its insurgency against the Turkish state is adding to Turkey's economic problems. Attacks against the tourism industry have cut tourist revenues, which account for about 3% of GDP, while economic activity in southeastern Turkey, where most of the violence occurs, has dropped considerably. To cope with the economic crisis and instill domestic and international investor confidence in the fragile coalition government, CILLER has asked the IMF to endorse a stabilization package she introduced in early April 1994. Negotiations are underway for a standby agreement, which would give Turkey access to $450 million this year and enable her cash-starved government to return to the foreign capital markets. National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $312.4 billion (1993) National product real growth rate: 7.3% (1993) National product per capita: $5,100 (1993) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 65% (1993) Unemployment rate: 12.2% (1993) Budget: revenues: $36.5 billion expenditures: $47.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $5 billion (1994) Exports: $14.9 billion (f.o.b., 1992) commodities: manufactured products 72%, foodstuffs 23%, mining products 4% partners: EC countries 53%, US 6%, Russia 4%, Saudi Arabia 3% Imports: $22.9 billion (c.i.f., 1992) commodities: manufactured products 68%, fuels 17%, foodstuffs 4% partners: EC countries 44%, US 11%, Saudi Arabia 7%, Russia 5% External debt: $59.4 billion (1993) Industrial production: growth rate 4.3% (1992); accounts for 28% of GDP Electricity: capacity: 14,400,000 kW production: 44 billion kWh consumption per capita: 750 kWh (1991) Industries: textiles, food processing, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron minerals), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper Agriculture: accounts for 16% of GDP and employs about half of working force; products - tobacco, cotton, grain, olives, sugar beets, pulses, citrus fruit, variety of animal products; self-sufficient in food most years Illicit drugs: major transit route for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish to Western Europe and the US via air, land, and sea routes; major Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate Economic aid: recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $2.3 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $10.1 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $665 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $4.5 billion note: aid for Persian Gulf war efforts from coalition allies (1991), $4.1 billion; aid pledged for Turkish Defense Fund, $2.5 billion Currency: 1 Turkish lira (TL) = 100 kurus Exchange rates: Turkish liras (TL) per US$1 - 15,196.1 (January 1994), 10,983.3 (1993), 6,872.4 (1992), 4,171.8 (1991), 2,608.6 (1990), 2,121.7 (1989) Fiscal year: calendar year

@Turkey, Communications

Railroads:
8,429 km 1.435-meter gauge (including 795 km electrified)
Highways:
total:
320,611 km
paved:
27,000 km (including 138 km of expressways)
unpaved:
gravel 18,500 km; earth 275,111 km (1988)
Inland waterways:
about 1,200 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 1,738 km; petroleum products 2,321 km; natural gas 708 km
Ports:
Iskenderun, Istanbul, Mersin, Izmir
Merchant marine:
390 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,664,205 GRT/8,163,379 DWT,
bulk 103, cargo 195, chemical tanker 10, combination bulk 5,
combination ore/oil 12, container 2, liquefied gas 4, livestock
carrier 1, oil tanker 41, passenger-cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2,
roll-on/roll-off cargo 5, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 2
Airports:
total:
113
usable:
105
with permanent-surface runways:
69
with runways over 3,659 m:
3
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
32
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
27
Telecommunications:
fair domestic and international systems; trunk radio relay microwave
network; limited open wire network; 3,400,000 telephones; broadcast
stations - 15 AM; 94 FM; 357 TV; 1 satellite ground station operating
in the INTELSAT (2 Atlantic Ocean antennas) and EUTELSAT systems; 1
submarine cable

@Turkey, Defense Forces

Branches:
Land Forces, Navy (including Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force,
Coast Guard, Gendarmerie
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 16,112,783; fit for military service 9,828,853; reach
military age (20) annually 614,252 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $14 billion, 5.6% of GDP (1994 est.)

@Turkmenistan, Geography

Location:
Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Uzbekistan
Map references:
Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States,
Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
488,100 sq km
land area:
488,100 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than California
Land boundaries:
total 3,736 km, Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km,
Uzbekistan 1,621 km
Coastline:
0 km
note:
Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)
Maritime claims:
landlocked, but boundaries in the Caspian Sea with Azerbaijan,
Kazakhstan, and Iran are under negotiations
International disputes:
Russia may dispute current de facto maritime border to midpoint of
Caspian Sea from shore
Climate:
subtropical desert
Terrain:
flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the
south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in
west
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulphur, salt
Land use:
arable land:
3%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
69%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
28%
Irrigated land:
12,450 sq km (1990)
Environment:
current issues:
contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals,
pesticides; salinization, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation
methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow
of the Amu Darya river into irrigation contributes to that river's
inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Ozone Layer Protection
Note:
landlocked

@Turkmenistan, People

Population: 3,995,122 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.01% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 30.42 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 7.44 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 69.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 65.14 years male: 61.63 years female: 68.82 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.77 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen Ethnic divisions: Turkmen 73.3%, Russian 9.8%, Uzbek 9%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.9% Religions: Muslim 87%, Eastern Orthodox 11%, unknown 2% Languages: Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% Literacy: age 9-49 can read and write (1970) total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% Labor force: 1.573 million by occupation: agriculture and forestry 44%, industry and construction 20%, other 36% (1992)

@Turkmenistan, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Turkmenistan
local long form:
Tiurkmenostan Respublikasy
local short form:
Turkmenistan
former:
Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic
Digraph:
TX
Type:
republic
Capital:
Ashgabat
Administrative divisions:
5 welayatlar (singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan
Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty (formerly Tashauz), Lebap
Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty
note:
names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from
welayat name
Independence:
27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 27 October (1991)
Constitution:
adopted 18 May 1992
Legal system:
based on civil law system
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Saparmurad NIYAZOV (since NA October 1990); election last
held 21 June 1992 (next to be held NA 2002); results - Saparmurad
NIYAZOV 99.5% (ran unopposed); note - a 15 January 1994 referendum
extended NIYAZOV's term an additional five years until 2002 (99.99%
approval)
head of government:
Prime Minister (vacant); Deputy Prime Ministers Batyr SARDJAEV, Valery
G. OCHERTSOV, Orazgeldi AIDOGDIEV, Djourakuli BABAKULIYEV, Rejep
SAPAROV, Boris SHIKHMURADOV, Abad RIZAEVA, Yagmur OVEZOV (since NA)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers
Legislative branch:
under 1992 constitution there are two parliamentary bodies, a
unicameral People's Council (Halk Maslahaty - having more than 100
members and meeting infrequently) and a 50-member unicameral Assembly
(Majlis)
Assembly (Majlis):
elections last held 7 January 1990 (next to be held late 1994 or early
1995); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (175 total)
elections not officially by party, but Communist Party members won
nearly 90% of seats; note - seats to be reduced to 50 at next election
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
ruling party:
Democratic Party (formerly Communist), chairman vacant
opposition:
Party for Democratic Development, Durdymurat HOJA-MUKHAMMED, chairman;
Agzybirlik, Nurberdy NURMAMEDOV, cochairman, Hubayberdi HALLIYEV,
cochairman
note:
formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition
movements exist
Member of:
CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, IDB, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, NACC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UPU, WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Khalil UGUR
chancery:
1511 K Street NW, Suite 412, Washington, DC, 20005
telephone:
NA
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph S. HULINGS III
embassy:
Yubilenaya Hotel, Ashgabat
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
36320 24-49-25 or 24-49-26
Flag:
green field, including a vertical stripe on the hoist side, with a
claret vertical stripe in between containing five white, black, and
orange carpet guls (an assymetrical design used in producing rugs)
associated with five different tribes; a white crescent and five white
stars in the upper left corner to the right of the carpet guls

@Turkmenistan, Economy

Overview:
Turkmenistan is a largely desert country with nomadic cattle raising,
intensive agriculture in irrigated oases, and huge gas and oil
resources. Half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton; it is the
world's tenth largest producer. It also is the world's fourth largest
producer of natural gas and has the fifth largest reserves.
Furthermore, Turkmenistan has substantial oil resources; its two oil
refineries make it an exporter of refined products. Profiting from the
move toward market prices for its oil and gas resources, Turkmenistan
has suffered the least economic decline of the 15 states of the former
USSR. With an authoritarian ex-Communist regime in power and a
tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious
approach to questions of economic reform, using the profits from its
gas and cotton exports to sustain a generally inefficient economy.
Economic restructuring and privatization have just begun, and price
liberalization and price increases have been accompanied by generous
wage hikes and subsidies. At the same time, Turkmenistan faces serious
constraints on its gas and oil earnings because of the inability of
its traditional regional customers to pay for the current level of
purchases and the lack of pipeline access to hard currency markets.
Faced with financial shortfalls, rampant inflation, and the desire to
ensure a stable currency, the regime has become more receptive to
market reforms yet still seeks to offer widespread social benefits to
its population and to retain state domination over the economy.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $13 billion (1993 estimate from
the UN International Comparison Program, as extended to 1991 and
published in the World Bank's World Development Report 1993; and as
extrapolated to 1993 using official Turkmen statistics, which are very
uncertain because of major economic changes since 1990)
National product real growth rate:
7.8% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$3,330 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
45% per month (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
2.9% (1992 est.); includes only officially registered unemployed; also
large number of underemployed
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$1.2 billion to states outside the FSU (1993)
commodities:
natural gas, cotton, petroleum products, textiles, carpets
partners:
Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Eastern Europe,
Turkey, Argentina
Imports:
$490 million from states outside the FSU (1993)
commodities:
machinery and parts, grain and food, plastics and rubber, consumer
durables, textiles
partners:
Russia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey
External debt:
NEGL
Industrial production:
growth rate 5.3% (1993)
Electricity:
capacity:
2,920,000 kW
production:
13.1 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
3,079 kWh (1992)
Industries:
natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing
Agriculture:
cotton, grain, animal husbandry
Illicit drugs:
illicit producer of cannabis and opium; mostly for CIS consumption;
limited government eradication program; used as transshipment points
for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Western Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
Turkmenistan has received about $200 million in bilateral aid credits
Currency:
Turkmenistan introduced its national currency, the manat, on 1
November 1993
Exchange rates:
NA
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Turkmenistan, Communications

Railroads:
2,120 km; does not include industrial lines (1990)
Highways:
total:
23,000 km
paved and gravel:
18,300 km
unpaved:
earth 4,700 km (1990)
Pipelines:
crude oil 250 km; natural gas 4,400 km
Ports:
inland - Krasnowodsk (Caspian Sea)
Airports:
total:
7
usable:
7
with permanent-surface runways:
4
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
4
Telecommunications:
poorly developed; only 7.5 telephone circuits per 100 persons (1991);
linked by cable and microwave to other CIS republics and to other
countries by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway
switch; a new telephone link from Ashgabat to Iran has been
established; a new exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic
through Turkey via INTELSAT; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1
INTELSAT

@Turkmenistan, Defense Forces

Branches:
National Guard, Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops),
Joint Command Turkmenistan/Russia (Ground, Navy or Caspian Sea
Flotilla, Air, and Air Defense)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 962,987; fit for military service 787,991; reach
military age (18) annually 40,079 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Turks and Caicos Islands

Header Affiliation: (dependent territory of the UK)

@Turks and Caicos Islands, Geography

Location: Caribbean, in the western North Atlantic Ocean, 190 km north of the Dominican Republic and southeast of The Bahamas Map references: Central America and the Caribbean Area: total area: 430 sq km land area: 430 sq km comparative area: slightly less than 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 389 km Maritime claims: exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry Terrain: low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps Natural resources: spiny lobster, conch Land use: arable land: 2% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 98% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: freshwater scarcity, private cisterns collect rainwater natural hazards: subject to frequent hurricanes international agreements: NA Note: 30 islands (eight inhabited)

@Turks and Caicos Islands, People

Population:
13,552 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.69% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
14.14 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
5.17 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
17.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
12.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
75.34 years
male:
73.41 years
female:
77.02 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.05 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
none
adjective:
none
Ethnic divisions:
African
Religions:
Baptist 41.2%, Methodist 18.9%, Anglican 18.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist
1.7%, other 19.9% (1980)
Languages:
English (official)
Literacy:
age 15 and over who have ever attended school (1970)
total population:
98%
male:
99%
female:
98%
Labor force:
NA
by occupation:
majority engaged in fishing and tourist industries; some subsistence
agriculture

@Turks and Caicos Islands, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Turks and Caicos Islands
Digraph:
TK
Type:
dependent territory of the UK
Capital:
Grand Turk
Administrative divisions:
none (dependent territory of the UK)
Independence:
none (dependent territory of the UK)
National holiday:
Constitution Day, 30 August (1976)
Constitution:
introduced 30 August 1976, suspended in 1986, restored and revised 5
March 1988
Legal system:
based on laws of England and Wales with a small number adopted from
Jamaica and The Bahamas
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor
Martin BOURKE (since NA February 1993)
head of government:
Chief Minister Washington MISSICK (since NA March 1991)
cabinet:
Executive Council; consists of three ex-officio members and five
appointed by the governor from the Legislative Council
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Legislative Council:
elections last held on 3 April 1991 (next to be held NA); results -
percent of vote by party NA; seats - (20 total, 13 elected) PNP 8, PDM
5
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Progressive National Party (PNP), Washington MISSICK; People's
Democratic Movement (PDM), Oswald SKIPPINGS; National Democratic
Alliance (NDA), Ariel MISSICK
Member of:
CARICOM (associate), CDB, INTERPOL (subbureau)
Diplomatic representation in US:
none (dependent territory of the UK)
US diplomatic representation:
none (dependent territory of the UK)
Flag:
blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the
colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is
yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus

@Turks and Caicos Islands, Economy

Overview:
The economy is based on fishing, tourism, and offshore banking. Only
subsistence farming - corn, cassava, citrus, and beans - exists on the
Caicos Islands, so that most foods, as well as nonfood products, must
be imported.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $80.8 million (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-1.5% (1992)
National product per capita:
$6,000 (1992 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
12% (1992)
Budget:
revenues:
$20.3 million
expenditures:
$44 million, including capital expenditures of $23.9 million (1989
est.)
Exports:
$6.8 million (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities:
lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells
partners:
US, UK
Imports:
$42.8 million (1992)
commodities:
food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction
materials
partners:
US, UK
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
9,050 kW
production:
11.1 million kWh
consumption per capita:
860 kWh (1992)
Industries:
fishing, tourism, offshore financial services
Agriculture:
subsistence farming prevails, based on corn and beans; fishing more
important than farming; not self-sufficient in food
Economic aid:
recipient:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $110 million
Currency:
1 United States dollar (US$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
US currency is used
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Turks and Caicos Islands, Communications

Highways:
total:
121 km (including 24 km tarmac)
paved:
NA
unpaved:
NA
Ports:
Grand Turk, Salt Cay, Providenciales, Cockburn Harbour
Airports:
total:
7
usable:
7
with permanent-surface runways:
4
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
4
Telecommunications:
fair cable and radio services; 1,446 telephones; broadcast stations -
3 AM, no FM, several TV; 2 submarine cables; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT
earth station

@Turks and Caicos Islands, Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of the UK

@Tuvalu, Geography

Location:
Oceania, Polynesia, 3,000 km east of Papua New Guinea in the South
Pacific Ocean
Map references:
Oceania, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
26 sq km
land area:
26 sq km
comparative area:
about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
24 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November);
westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March)
Terrain:
very low-lying and narrow coral atolls
Natural resources:
fish
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
0%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
100%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable,
all water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage
facilities
natural hazards:
severe tropical storms are rare
international agreements:
party to - Climate Change, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution;
signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Law of the Sea

@Tuvalu, People

Population: 9,831 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 1.66% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 25.73 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 9.15 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 27.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 63.03 years male: 61.57 years female: 64.08 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.11 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Tuvaluans(s) adjective: Tuvaluan Ethnic divisions: Polynesian 96% Religions: Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% Languages: Tuvaluan, English Literacy: total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% Labor force: NA by occupation: NA

@Tuvalu, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Tuvalu
former:
Ellice Islands
Digraph:
TV
Type:
democracy; began debating republic status in 1992; referendum expected
in 1993
Capital:
Funafuti
Administrative divisions:
none
Independence:
1 October 1978 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 October (1978)
Constitution:
1 October 1978
Legal system:
NA
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor
General Tomu Malaefono SIONE (since NA 1993)
head of government:
Prime Minister Kamuta LATASI (since 10 December 1993); Deputy Prime
Minister Otinielu TAUSI (since 10 December 1993)
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the governor general on recommendation of the
prime minister
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Parliament (Palamene):
elections last held 25 November 1993 (next to be held by NA 1997);
results - percent of vote NA; seats - (12 total)
Judicial branch:
High Court
Political parties and leaders:
none
Member of:
ACP, AsDB, C (special), ESCAP, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), ITU,
SPARTECA, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, UPU, WHO
Diplomatic representation in US:
Tuvalu has no mission in the US
US diplomatic representation:
none
Flag:
light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant;
the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine
yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands

@Tuvalu, Economy

Overview:
Tuvalu consists of a scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor
soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports.
Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities.
The islands are too small and too remote for development of a tourist
industry. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and
coins and worker remittances. Substantial income is received annually
from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ,
and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea.
National product:
GNP - exchange rate conversion - $6.4 million (1990)
National product real growth rate:
4% (1990 est.)
National product per capita:
$700 (1990)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.9% (1989)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$4.3 million
expenditures:
$4.3 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1989 est.)
Exports:
$165,000 (f.o.b., 1989)
commodities:
copra
partners:
Fiji, Australia, NZ
Imports:
$4.4 million (c.i.f., 1989)
commodities:
food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods
partners:
Fiji, Australia, NZ
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
2,600 kW
production:
3 million kWh
consumption per capita:
330 kWh (1990)
Industries:
fishing, tourism, copra
Agriculture:
coconuts and fish
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-87), $1 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $101
million
Currency:
1 Tuvaluan dollar ($T) or 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
Tuvaluan dollars ($T) or Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.4364
(January 1994), 1.4704 (1993), 1.3600 (1992), 1.2835 (1991), 1.2799
(1990), 1.2618 (1989)
Fiscal year:
NA

@Tuvalu, Communications

Highways:
total:
8 km
unpaved:
gravel 8 km
Ports:
Funafuti, Nukufetau
Merchant marine:
7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 57,067 GRT/102,037 DWT, chemical
tanker 4, oil tanker 2, passenger-cargo 1
Airports:
total:
1
usable:
1
with permanent-surface runways:
0
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
1
Telecommunications:
broadcast stations - 1 AM, no FM, no TV; 300 radiotelephones; 4,000
radios; 108 telephones

@Tuvalu, Defense Forces

Branches:
Police Force
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GNP

@Uganda, Geography

Location:
Eastern Africa, between Kenya and Zaire
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
236,040 sq km
land area:
199,710 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Oregon
Land boundaries:
total 2,698 km, Kenya 933 km, Rwanda 169 km, Sudan 435 km, Tanzania
396 km, Zaire 765 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February,
June to August); semiarid in northeast
Terrain:
mostly plateau with rim of mountains
Natural resources:
copper, cobalt, limestone, salt
Land use:
arable land:
23%
permanent crops:
9%
meadows and pastures:
25%
forest and woodland:
30%
other:
13%
Irrigated land:
90 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing;
soil erosion
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of
the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Environmental
Modification
Note:
landlocked

@Uganda, People

Population:
19,121,934 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.42% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
48.8 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
23.68 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
112.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
37.46 years
male:
37.15 years
female:
37.79 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.77 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Ugandan(s)
adjective:
Ugandan
Ethnic divisions:
Baganda 17%, Karamojong 12%, Basogo 8%, Iteso 8%, Langi 6%, Rwanda 6%,
Bagisu 5%, Acholi 4%, Lugbara 4%, Bunyoro 3%, Batobo 3%, European,
Asian, Arab 1%, other 23%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 33%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 18%
Languages:
English (official), Luganda, Swahili, Bantu languages, Nilotic
languages
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
48%
male:
62%
female:
35%
Labor force:
4.5 million (est.)
by occupation:
agriculture over 80%
note:
50% of population of working age (1983)

@Uganda, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Uganda
conventional short form:
Uganda
Digraph:
UG
Type:
republic
Capital:
Kampala
Administrative divisions:
39 districts; Apac, Arua, Bundibugyo, Bushenyi, Gulu, Hoima, Iganga,
Jinja, Kabale, Kabarole, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamuli, Kapchorwa,
Kasese, Kibale, Kiboga, Kisoro, Kitgum, Kotido, Kumi, Lira, Luwero,
Masaka, Masindi, Mbale, Mbarara, Moroto, Moyo, Mpigi, Mubende, Mukono,
Nebbi, Ntungamo, Pallisa, Rakai, Rukungiri, Sototi, Tororo
Independence:
9 October 1962 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 9 October (1962)
Constitution:
8 September 1967, in process of constitutional revision
Legal system:
government plans to restore system based on English common law and
customary law and reinstitute a normal judicial system; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since 29 January 1986);
Vice President Samson Babi Mululu KISEKKA (since NA January 1991)
head of government:
Prime Minister George Cosmas ADYEBO (since NA January 1991)
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
unicameral
National Resistance Council:
elections last held 11-28 February 1989 (next to be held by January
1995); results - NRM was the only party; seats - (278 total, 210
indirectly elected) 210 members elected without party affiliation
Judicial branch:
Court of Appeal, High Court
Political parties and leaders:
only party - National Resistance Movement (NRM), Yoweri MUSEVENI
note:
Ugandan People's Congress (UPC), Milton OBOTE; Democratic Party (DP),
Paul SSEMOGEERE; and Conservative Party (CP), Joshua S. MAYANJA-NKANGI
continue to exist but are all proscribed from conducting public
political activities
Other political or pressure groups:
Uganda People's Front (UPF); Lord's Resistance Army (LRA); Ruwenzori
Movement
Member of:
ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, EADB, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IGADD, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Stephen Kapimpina KATENTA-APULI
chancery:
5909 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011
telephone:
(202) 726-7100 through 7102 and 726-0416
FAX:
(202) 726-1727
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Johnnie CARSON
embassy:
Parliament Avenue, Kampala
mailing address:
P. O. Box 7007, Kampala
telephone:
(41) 259792, 259793, 259795
Flag:
six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow,
and red; a white disk is superimposed at the center and depicts a
red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing the staff side

@Uganda, Economy

Overview:
Uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils,
regular rainfall, and sizable mineral deposits of copper and cobalt.
The economy has been devastated by widespread political instability,
mismanagement, and civil war since independence in 1962. (GDP remains
below the levels of the early 1970s, as does industrial production.)
Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing
over 80% of the work force. Coffee is the major export crop and
accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986 the government
has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking
currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing
prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages. The
policy changes are especially aimed at dampening inflation, which was
running at over 300% in 1987, and boosting production and export
earnings. In 1990-93, the economy has turned in a solid performance
based on continued investment in the rehabilitation of infrastructure,
improved incentives for production and exports, and gradually
improving domestic security.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $24.1 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
6% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$1,200 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
41.5% (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$365 million
expenditures:
$545 million, including capital expenditures of $165 million (1989
est.)
Exports:
$150 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
coffee 97%, cotton, tea
partners:
US 25%, UK 18%, France 11%, Spain 10%
Imports:
$513 million (c.i.f., 1992 est.)
commodities:
petroleum products, machinery, cotton piece goods, metals,
transportation equipment, food
partners:
Kenya 25%, UK 14%, Italy 13%
External debt:
$1.9 billion (1991 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 8% (1992 est.); accounts for 5% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
200,000 kW
production:
610 million kWh
consumption per capita:
30 kWh (1991)
Industries:
sugar, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles, cement
Agriculture:
mainly subsistence; accounts for 57% of GDP and over 80% of labor
force; cash crops - coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco; food crops -
cassava, potatoes, corn, millet, pulses; livestock products - beef,
goat meat, milk, poultry; self-sufficient in food
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (1970-89), $145 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $1.4
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $60 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $169 million
Currency:
1 Ugandan shilling (USh) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
Ugandan shillings (USh) per US$1 - 1,165.0 (November 1993), 1.133.8
(1992), 734.0 (1991), 428.85 (1990), 223.1 (1989)
Fiscal year:
1 July - 30 June

@Uganda, Communications

Railroads:
1,300 km, 1.000-meter-gauge single track
Highways:
total:
26,200 km
paved:
1,970 km
unpaved:
gravel, crushed stone 5,849 km; earth, tracks 18,381 km
Inland waterways:
Lake Victoria, Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, Lake George, Lake Edward;
Victoria Nile, Albert Nile; principal inland water ports are at Jinja
and Port Bell, both on Lake Victoria
Merchant marine:
3 roll-on/roll-off cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,091
GRT/NA DWT
Airports:
total:
31
usable:
23
with permanent-surface runways:
5
with runways over 3,659 m:
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
3
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
11
Telecommunications:
fair system with microwave and radio communications stations;
broadcast stations - 10 AM, no FM, 9 TV; satellite communications
ground stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT

@Uganda, Defense Forces

Branches:
National Resistance Army (NRA); includes Air Force and Navy, Local
Defense Units (LDU)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 4,138,087; fit for military service 2,248,232
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $NA, 15% of budget (FY89/90)

@Ukraine, Geography

Location:
Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and Russia
Map references:
Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - European States, Europe,
Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
603,700 sq km
land area:
603,700 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries:
total 4,558 km, Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland
428 km, Romania (southwest) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia
1,576 km, Slovakia 90 km
Coastline:
2,782 km
Maritime claims:
NA
International disputes:
potential future border disputes with Moldova and Romania in Northern
Bukovina and southern Odes'ka Oblast'; potential dispute with Moldova
over former southern Bessarabian area; potential dispute with Russia
over Crimea; has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has
reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any
other nation
Climate:
temperate continental; subtropical only on the southern Crimean coast;
precipitation disproportionately distributed, highest in west and
north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary from cool along the
Black Sea to cold farther inland; summers are warm across the greater
part of the country, hot in the south
Terrain:
most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaux,
mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the
Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
Natural resources:
iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulphur, graphite,
titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber
Land use:
arable land:
56%
permanent crops:
2%
meadows and pastures:
12%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
30%
Irrigated land:
26,000 sq km (1990)
Environment:
current issues:
unsafe drinking water; air and water pollution; deforestation;
radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at
Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur, Antarctic Treaty, Environmental Modification,
Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution; signed, but
not ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Law of the Sea
Note:
strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second
largest country in Europe

@Ukraine, People

Population:
51,846,958 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.05% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
12.34 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
12.6 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
20.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
69.99 years
male:
65.45 years
female:
74.76 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.82 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Ukrainian(s)
adjective:
Ukrainian
Ethnic divisions:
Ukrainian 73%, Russian 22%, Jewish 1%, other 4%
Religions:
Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox - Kiev
Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic
(Uniate), Protestant, Jewish
Languages:
Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian
Literacy:
age 9-49 can read and write (1979)
total population:
100%
male:
100%
female:
100%
Labor force:
23.985 million
by occupation:
industry and construction 33%, agriculture and forestry 21%, health,
education, and culture 16%, trade and distribution 7%, transport and
communication 7%, other 16% (1992)

@Ukraine, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Ukraine
local long form:
none
local short form:
Ukrayina
former:
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Digraph:
UP
Type:
republic
Capital:
Kiev (Kyyiv)
Administrative divisions:
24 oblasti (singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtomnaya
respublika), and 2 municipalites (mista, singular - misto) with oblast
status**; Cherkas'ka (Cherkasy), Chernihivs'ka (Chernihiv),
Chernivets'ka (Chernitsi), Dnipropetrovs'ka (Dnipropetrovs'k),
Donets'ka (Donets'k), Ivano-Frankivs'ka (Ivano-Frankivs'k),
Kharkivs'ka (Kharkiv), Khersons'ka (Kherson), Khmel'nyts'ka
(Khmel'nyts'kyy), Kirovohrads'ka (Kirovohrad), Kyyiv**, Kyyivs'ka
(Kiev), Luhans'ka (Luhans'k), L'vivs'ka (L'viv), Mykolayivs'ka
(Mykolayiv), Odes'ka (Odesa), Poltavs'ka (Poltava), Respublika Krym*
(Simferopol'), Rivnens'ka (Rivne), Sevastopol'**,Sums'ka
(Sevastopol'), Ternopil's'ka (Ternopil'), Vinnyts'ka (Vinnytsya),
Volyns'ka (Luts'k), Zakarpats'ka (Uzhhorod), Zaporiz'ka
(Zaporizhzhya), Zhytomyrs'ka (Zhytomyr)
note:
names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from
oblast' name
Independence:
1 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 August (1991)
Constitution:
using 1978 pre-independence constitution; new constitution currently
being drafted
Legal system:
based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President-elect Leonid D. KUCHMA; election last held 26 June and 10
July 1994 (next to be held NA 1999); results - Leonid KUCHMA 52.15%,
Leonid KRAVCHUK 45.06%
head of government:
Prime Minister (vacant); Acting First Deputy Prime Minister (and
Acting Prime Minister since September 1993) Yukhym Leonidovych
ZVYAHIL'SKYY (since 11 June 1993) and five deputy prime ministers
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president and approved by the
Supreme Council
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Supreme Council:
elections last held 27 March 1994 (next to be held NA); results -
percent of vote by party NA; seats - (450 total) number of seats by
party NA; note - 338 deputies were elected; the remaining 112 seats to
be filled on 24 July 1994
Judicial branch:
being organized
Political parties and leaders:
Green Party of Ukraine, Vitaliy KONONOV, leader; Liberal Party of
Ukraine, Ihor MERKULOV, chairman; Liberal Democratic Party of Ukraine,
Volodymyr KLYMCHUK, chairman; Democratic Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr
Oleksandrovych YAVORIVSKIY, chairman; People's Party of Ukraine,
Leopol'd TABURYANSKYY, chairman; Peasants' Party of Ukraine, Serhiy
DOVGRAN', chairman; Party of Democratic Rebirth of Ukraine, Volodymyr
FILENKO, chairman; Social Democratic Party of Ukraine, Yuriy ZBITNEV,
chairman; Socialist Party of Ukraine, Oleksandr MOROZ, chairman;
Ukrainian Christian Democratic Party, Vitaliy ZHURAVSKYY, chairman;
Ukrainian Conservative Republican Party, Stepan KHMARA, chairman;
Ukrainian Labor Party, Valentyn LANDYK, chairman; Ukrainian Party of
Justice, Mykhaylo HRECHKO, chairman; Ukrainian Peasants' Democratic
Party, Serhiy PLACHINDA, chairman; Ukrainian Republican Party,
Mykhaylo HORYN', chairman; Ukrainian National Conservative Party,
Viktor RADIONOV, chairman; Ukrainian People's Movement for
Restructuring (Rukh), Vyacheslav CHORNOUL, chairman; Ukrainian
Communist Party, Petr SYMONENKO
Other political or pressure groups:
New Ukraine (Nova Ukrayina); Congress of National Democratic Forces
Member of:
BSEC, CBSS (observer), CCC, CE (guest), CEI (participating), CIS,
CSCE, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ILO, IMF, INMARSAT, INTELSAT
(nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, NACC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UNPROFOR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Oleh Hryhorovych BILORUS
chancery:
3350 M Street NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20007
telephone:
(202) 333-0606
FAX:
(202) 333-0817
consulate(s) general:
Chicago and New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador William MILLER
embassy:
10 Yuria Kotsyubinskovo, 252053 Kiev 53
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
(044) 244-7349 or 244-7344
FAX:
(044) 244-7350
Flag:
two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow represent
grainfields under a blue sky

@Ukraine, Economy

Overview: After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was far and away the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union producing more than three times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil generated more than one-fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain and vegetables to other republics. Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied equipment and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR. In 1992 the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatizing state enterprises while retaining many central economic controls and continuing subsidies to state production enterprises. In November 1992 the new Prime Minister KUCHMA launched a new economic reform program promising more freedom to the agricultural sector, faster privatization of small and medium enterprises, and stricter control over state subsidies. In 1993, however, severe internal political disputes over the scope and pace of economic reform and payment arrears on energy imports have led to further declines in output, and inflation of 50% or more per month by the last quarter. In first quarter 1994, national income and industrial output were less than two-thirds the first quarter 1993 figures, according to official statistics. At the same time an increasing number of people are developing small private businesses and exploiting opportunities in non-official markets. Even so, the magnitude of the problems and the slow pace in building new market-oriented institutions preclude a near-term recovery of output to the 1990 level. A vital economic concern in 1994 will continue to be Russia's decisions on the prices and quantities of oil and gas to be shipped to the Ukraine. National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $205.4 billion (1993 estimate from the UN International Comparison Program, as extended to 1991 and published in the World Bank's World Development Report 1993; and as extrapolated to 1993 using official Ukrainian statistics, which are very uncertain because of major economic changes since 1990) National product real growth rate: -16% (1993 est.) National product per capita: $3,960 (1993 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 45% per month (1993) Unemployment rate: 0.4% officially registered; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers Budget: revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA Exports: $3 billion to countries outside of the FSU (1993) commodities: coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, grain, meat partners: FSU countries, Germany, China, Austria Imports: $2.2 billion from outside of the FSU countries (1993) commodities: machinery and parts, transportation equipment, chemicals, textiles partners: FSU countries, Germany, China, Austria External debt: $NA Industrial production: growth rate -14% (1993); accounts for 50% of GDP Electricity: capacity: 55,882,000 kW production: 281 billion kWh consumption per capita: 5,410 kWh (1992) Industries: coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food-processing (especially sugar) Agriculture: accounts for about 25% of GDP; grain, vegetables, meat, milk, sugar beets Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment points for illicit drugs to Western Europe Economic aid: $350 million economic aid and $350 million to help disassemble the atomic weapons from the US in 1994 Currency: Ukraine withdrew the Russian ruble from circulation on 12 November 1992 and declared the karbovanets (plural karbovantsi) sole legal tender in Ukrainian markets; Ukrainian officials claim this is an interim move toward introducing a new currency - the hryvnya - possibly in mid-1994 Exchange rates: NA Fiscal year: calendar year

@Ukraine, Communications

Railroads:
23,350 km (1,524-mm gauge); 8,600 km electrified
Highways:
total:
273,700 km
paved and gravel:
236,400 km
unpaved:
earth 37,300 km
Inland waterways:
1,672 km perennially navigable (Pryp''yat' and Dnipro Rivers)
Pipelines:
crude oil 2,010 km; petroleum products 1,920 km; natural gas 7,800 km
(1992)
Ports:
coastal - Berdyans'k, Illichivs'k, Kerch, Kherson, Mariupol',
Mykolayiv, Odesa, Sevastopol', Pivdenne; inland - Kiev (Kyyiv)
Merchant marine:
390 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,932,009 GRT/5,236,134 DWT,
barge carriers 7, bulk cargo 55, cargo 231, chemical tanker 2,
container 18, liquefied gas 1, multi-function-large-load-carrier 1,
oil tanker 10, passenger 12, passenger cargo 5, railcar carrier 2,
refrigerated cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off cargo 33, short-sea passenger 8
Airports:
total:
694
usable:
199
with permanent-surface runways:
111
with runways over 3,659 m:
3
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
81
with runways 1,060-2,439 m:
78
note:
a C-130 can land on a 1,060-m airstrip
Telecommunications:
the telephone system is inadequate both for business and for personal
use; about 7,886,000 telephone circuits serve 52,056,000 people
(1991); telephone density is 151.4 telephone circuits per 1,000
persons (1991); 3.56 million applications for telephones had not been
satisfied as of January 1991; calls to other CIS countries are carried
by land line or microwave; other international calls to 167 countries
are carried by satellite or by the 150 leased lines through the Moscow
gateway switch; an NMT-450 analog cellular telephone network operates
in Kiev (Kyyiv) and allows direct dialing of international calls
through Kiev's EWSD digital exchange; electronic mail services have
been established in Kiev, Odessa, and Lugansk by Sprint; satellite
earth stations employ INTELSAT, INMARSAT, and Intersputnik

@Ukraine, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Republic Security Forces
(internal and border troops), National Guard
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 12,191,984; fit for military service 9,591,276; reach
military age (18) annually 364,676 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
544,256 million karbovantsi, NA% of GDP (forecast for 1993); note -
conversion of the military budget into US dollars using the current
exchange rate could produce misleading results

@United Arab Emirates, Geography

Location:
Middle East, along the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia
Map references:
Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
75,581 sq km
land area:
75,581 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Maine
Land boundaries:
total 867 km, Oman 410 km, Saudi Arabia 457 km
Coastline:
1,318 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
defined by bilateral boundaries or equidistant line
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
3 nm assumed for most of country; 12 nm for Ash Shariqah (Sharjah)
International disputes:
location and status of boundary with Saudi Arabia is not final; no
defined boundary with most of Oman, but Administrative Line in far
north; claims two islands in the Persian Gulf occupied by Iran
(Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg or Greater Tunb, and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e
Kuchek or Lesser Tunb); claims island in the Persian Gulf jointly
administered with Iran (Jazireh-ye Abu Musa or Abu Musa); in 1992, the
dispute over Abu Musa and the Tunb islands became more acute when Iran
unilaterally tried to control the entry of third country nationals
into the UAE portion of Abu Musa island, Tehran subsequently backed
off in the face of significant diplomatic support for the UAE in the
region
Climate:
desert; cooler in eastern mountains
Terrain:
flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast
desert wasteland; mountains in east
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
2%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
98%
Irrigated land:
50 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
lack of natural freshwater resources being overcome by desalination
plants; desertification; beach pollution from oil spills
natural hazards:
frequent dust and sand storms
international agreements:
party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone
Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Law of the
Sea
Note:
strategic location along southern approaches to Strait of Hormuz, a
vital transit point for world crude oil

@United Arab Emirates, People

Population: 2,791,141 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 4.79% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 27.68 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 3.05 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: 23.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 21.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 72.26 years male: 70.16 years female: 74.46 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 4.6 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Emirian(s) adjective: Emirian Ethnic divisions: Emirian 19%, other Arab 23%, South Asian 50%, other expatriates (includes Westerners and East Asians) 8% (1982) note: less than 20% are UAE citizens (1982) Religions: Muslim 96% (Shi'a 16%), Christian, Hindu, and other 4% Languages: Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu Literacy: age 10 and over but definition of literacy not available (1980) total population: 68% male: 70% female: 63% Labor force: 580,000 (1986 est.) by occupation: industry and commerce 85%, agriculture 5%, services 5%, government 5% note: 80% of labor force is foreign (est.)

@United Arab Emirates, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
United Arab Emirates
conventional short form:
none
local long form:
Al Imarata al Arabiyah al Muttahidah
local short form:
none
former:
Trucial States
Abbreviation:
UAE
Digraph:
TC
Type:
federation with specified powers delegated to the UAE central
government and other powers reserved to member emirates
Capital:
Abu Dhabi
Administrative divisions:
7 emirates (imarat, singular - imarah); Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi), 'Ajman,
Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah (Sharjah), Dubayy, Ra's al Khaymah, Umm al
Qaywayn
Independence:
2 December 1971 (from UK)
National holiday:
National Day, 2 December (1971)
Constitution:
2 December 1971 (provisional)
Legal system:
secular codes are being introduced by the UAE Government and in
several member emirates; Islamic law remains influential
Suffrage:
none
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan, (since 2 December 1971), ruler
of Abu Dhabi; Vice President Shaykh Maktum bin Rashid al-MAKTUM (since
8 October 1990), ruler of Dubayy
head of government:
Prime Minister Shaykh MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 8 October
1990), ruler of Dubayy; Deputy Prime Minister Sultan bin Zayid Al
NUHAYYAN (since 20 November 1990)
Supreme Council of Rulers:
composed of the seven emirate rulers, the council is the highest
constitutional authority in the UAE; establishes general policies and
sanctions federal legislation, Abu Dhabi and Dubayy rulers have veto
power; council meets four times a year
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
unicameral Federal National Council (Majlis Watani Itihad); no
elections
Judicial branch:
Union Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
none
Other political or pressure groups:
NA
Member of:
ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GATT, GCC, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT,
INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Muhammad bin Husayn al-SHAALI
chancery:
Suite 600, 3000 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone:
(202) 338-6500
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador William A. RUGH
embassy:
Al-Sudan Street, Abu Dhabi
mailing address:
P. O. Box 4009, Abu Dhabi
telephone:
(2) 336691
FAX:
(2) 318441
consulate(s) general:
Dubayy (Dubai)
Flag:
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and black with a
thicker vertical red band on the hoist side

@United Arab Emirates, Economy

Overview:
The UAE has an open economy with one of the world's highest incomes
per capita and with a sizable annual trade surplus. Its wealth is
based on oil and gas output (about 40% of GDP), and the fortunes of
the economy fluctuate with the prices of those commodities. Since
1973, the UAE has undergone a profound transformation from an
impoverished region of small desert principalities to a modern state
with a high standard of living. At present levels of production, crude
oil reserves should last for over 100 years. Although much stronger
economically than most Gulf states, the UAE faces similar problems
with weak international oil prices and the pressures for cuts in OPEC
oil production quotas. The UAE government is encouraging increased
privatization within the economy.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $63.8 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$24,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.5% (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NEGL% (1988)
Budget:
revenues:
$4.3 billion
expenditures:
$4.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1993 est)
Exports:
$22.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
crude oil 66%, natural gas, re-exports, dried fish, dates
partners:
Japan 39%, Singapore 5%, Korea 4%, Iran 4%, India 4% (1991)
Imports:
$18 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, food
partners:
Japan 14%, UK 9%, US 8%, Germany 6% (1992)
External debt:
$11 billion (1993 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 1.7% (1992 est.); accounts for 50% of GDP, including
petroleum
Electricity:
capacity:
6,090,000 kW
production:
17.85 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
6,718 kWh (1992)
Industries:
petroleum, fishing, petrochemicals, construction materials, some boat
building, handicrafts, pearling
Agriculture:
accounts for 2% of GDP and 5% of labor force; cash crop - dates; food
products - vegetables, watermelons, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish; only
25% self-sufficient in food
Illicit drugs:
growing role as heroin transshipment and money-laundering center
Economic aid:
donor:
pledged in bilateral aid to less developed countries (1979-89) $9.1
billion
Currency:
1 Emirian dirham (Dh) = 100 fils
Exchange rates:
Emirian dirhams (Dh) per US$1 - 3.6710 (fixed rate)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@United Arab Emirates, Communications

Highways:
total:
2,000 km
paved:
1,800 km
unpaved:
gravel, graded earth 200 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 830 km; natural gas, including natural gas liquids, 870 km
Ports:
Al Fujayrah, Khawr Fakkan, Mina' Jabal 'Ali, Mina' Khalid, Mina'
Rashid, Mina' Saqr, Mina' Zayid
Merchant marine:
57 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 909,041 GRT/1,512,741 DWT, bulk
1, cargo 18, chemical tanker 2, container 9, liquified gas 1, oil
tanker 22, refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 3
Airports:
total:
39
usable:
36
with permanent-surface runways:
22
with runways over 3,659 m:
6
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
6
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
6
Telecommunications:
modern system consisting of microwave and coaxial cable; key centers
are Abu Dhabi and Dubayy; 386,600 telephones; satellite ground
stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 1
ARABSAT; submarine cables to Qatar, Bahrain, India, and Pakistan;
tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi
Arabia; broadcast stations - 8 AM, 3 FM, 12 TV

@United Arab Emirates, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, Federal Police Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 1,040,828; fit for military service 567,766; reach
military age (18) annually 17,303 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $1.47 billion, 5.3% of GDP (1989 est.)

@United Kingdom, Geography

Location:
Western Europe, bordering on the North Atlantic Ocean and the North
Sea, between Ireland and France
Map references:
Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
244,820 sq km
land area:
241,590 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Oregon
note:
includes Rockall and Shetland Islands
Land boundaries:
total 360 km, Ireland 360 km
Coastline:
12,429 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
as defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed
upon boundaries
exclusive fishing zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
Northern Ireland question with Ireland; Gibraltar question with Spain;
Argentina claims Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); Argentina claims
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Mauritius claims island
of Diego Garcia in British Indian Ocean Territory; Rockall continental
shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and Ireland (Ireland and the
UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area); territorial
claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory)
Climate:
temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North
Atlantic Current; more than half of the days are overcast
Terrain:
mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east
and southeast
Natural resources:
coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay,
chalk, gypsum, lead, silica
Land use:
arable land:
29%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
48%
forest and woodland:
9%
other:
14%
Irrigated land:
1,570 sq km (1989)
Environment:
current issues:
sulfur dioxide emissions from power plants contribute to air
pollution; some rivers polluted by agricultural wastes and coastal
waters polluted because of large-scale disposal of sewage at sea
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic
Treaty, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not
ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Biodiversity
Note:
lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km from France and
now linked by tunnel under the English Channel; because of heavily
indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km from tidal waters

@United Kingdom, People

Population:
58,135,110 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.28% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
13.39 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
10.76 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
7.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
76.75 years
male:
73.94 years
female:
79.69 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.83 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Briton(s), British (collective pl.)
adjective:
British
Ethnic divisions:
English 81.5%, Scottish 9.6%, Irish 2.4%, Welsh 1.9%, Ulster 1.8%,
West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%
Religions:
Anglican 27 million, Roman Catholic 9 million, Muslim 1 million,
Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 400,000, Hindu 350,000,
Jewish 300,000 (1991 est.)
note:
the UK does not include a question on religion in its census
Languages:
English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form
of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1978 est.)
total population:
99%
male:
NA%
female:
NA%
Labor force:
28.048 million
by occupation:
services 62.8%, manufacturing and construction 25.0%, government 9.1%,
energy 1.9%, agriculture 1.2% (June 1992)

@United Kingdom, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
conventional short form:
United Kingdom
Abbreviation:
UK
Digraph:
UK
Type:
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
London
Administrative divisions:
47 counties, 7 metropolitan counties, 26 districts, 9 regions, and 3
islands areas
England:
39 counties, 7 metropolitan counties*; Avon, Bedford, Berkshire,
Buckingham, Cambridge, Cheshire, Cleveland, Cornwall, Cumbria, Derby,
Devon, Dorset, Durham, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucester, Greater
London*, Greater Manchester*, Hampshire, Hereford and Worcester,
Hertford, Humberside, Isle of Wight, Kent, Lancashire, Leicester,
Lincoln, Merseyside*, Norfolk, Northampton, Northumberland, North
Yorkshire, Nottingham, Oxford, Shropshire, Somerset, South Yorkshire*,
Stafford, Suffolk, Surrey, Tyne and Wear*, Warwick, West Midlands*,
West Sussex, West Yorkshire*, Wiltshire
Northern Ireland:
26 districts; Antrim, Ards, Armagh, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge,
Belfast, Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon,
Down, Dungannon, Fermanagh, Larne, Limavady, Lisburn, Londonderry,
Magherafelt, Moyle, Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh,
Strabane
Scotland:
9 regions, 3 islands areas*; Borders, Central, Dumfries and Galloway,
Fife, Grampian, Highland, Lothian, Orkney*, Shetland*, Strathclyde,
Tayside, Western Isles*
Wales:
8 counties; Clwyd, Dyfed, Gwent, Gwynedd, Mid Glamorgan, Powys, South
Glamorgan, West Glamorgan
Dependent areas:
Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin
Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Hong
Kong (scheduled to become a Special Administrative Region of China on
1 July 1997), Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint
Helena, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos
Islands
Independence:
1 January 1801 (United Kingdom established)
National holiday:
Celebration of the Birthday of the Queen (second Saturday in June)
Constitution:
unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice
Legal system:
common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental
influences; no judicial review of Acts of Parliament; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince
CHARLES (son of the Queen, born 14 November 1948)
head of government:
Prime Minister John MAJOR (since 28 November 1990)
cabinet:
Cabinet of Ministers
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament
House of Lords:
consists of a 1,200-member body, four-fifths are hereditary peers, 2
archbishops, 24 other senior bishops, serving and retired Lords of
Appeal in Ordinary, other life peers, Scottish peers
House of Commons:
elections last held 9 April 1992 (next to be held by NA April 1997);
results - Conservative 41.9%, Labor 34.5%, Liberal Democratic 17.9%,
other 5.7%; seats - (651 total) Conservative 336, Labor 271, Liberal
Democratic 20, other 24
Judicial branch:
House of Lords
Political parties and leaders:
Conservative and Unionist Party, John MAJOR; Labor Party; Liberal
Democrats (LD), Jeremy (Paddy) ASHDOWN; Scottish National Party, Alex
SALMOND; Welsh National Party (Plaid Cymru), Dafydd Iwan WIGLEY;
Ulster Unionist Party (Northern Ireland), James MOLYNEAUX; Democratic
Unionist Party (Northern Ireland), Rev. Ian PAISLEY; Ulster Popular
Unionist Party (Northern Ireland), Sir James KILFEDDER; Social
Democratic and Labor Party (SDLP, Northern Ireland), John HUME; Sinn
Fein (Northern Ireland), Gerry ADAMS
Other political or pressure groups:
Trades Union Congress; Confederation of British Industry; National
Farmers' Union; Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Member of:
AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australian Group, BIS, C, CCC, CDB
(non-regional), CE, CERN, COCOM, CSCE, EBRD, EC, ECA (associate), ECE,
ECLAC, EIB, ESCAP, ESA, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO,
MTRC, NACC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OECD, PCA, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNFICYP,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNPROFOR, UNRWA, UN Security Council, UNTAC, UN
Trusteeship Council, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Sir Robin RENWICK
chancery:
3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
(202) 462-1340
FAX:
(202) 898-4255
consulate(s) general:
Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Los Angeles, New York,
and San Francisco,
consulate(s):
Dallas, Miami, Nuku'alofa, and Seattle
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate Adm. William CROWE
embassy:
24/31 Grosvenor Square, London, W.1A1AE
mailing address:
PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040
telephone:
(71) 499-9000
FAX:
(71) 409-1637
consulate(s) general:
Belfast and Edinburgh
Flag:
blue with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England)
edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of Saint Patrick
(patron saint of Ireland) which is superimposed on the diagonal white
cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); known as the Union
Flag or Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the Blue Ensign)
have been the basis for a number of other flags including
dependencies, Commonwealth countries, and others

@United Kingdom, Economy

Overview:
The UK is one of the world's great trading powers and financial
centers, and its economy ranks among the four largest in Western
Europe. The economy is essentially capitalistic; over the past
thirteen years the ruling Tories have greatly reduced public ownership
and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is
intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards,
producing about 60% of food needs with only 1% of the labor force. The
UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves, and primary energy
production accounts for 12% of GDP, one of the highest shares of any
industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and
business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP
while industry continues to decline in importance, now employing only
25% of the work force and generating only 21% of GDP. The economy is
emerging out of its 3-year recession with only weak recovery in 1993;
even so, the economy fared better in 1993 than the economies of most
other European countries. Unemployment is hovering around 10% of the
labor force. The government in 1992 adopted a pro-growth strategy,
cutting interest rates sharply and removing the pound from the
European exchange rate mechanism. Excess industrial capacity probably
will moderate inflation which for the first time in a decade is below
the EC average. The major economic policy question for Britain in the
1990s is the terms on which it participates in the financial and
economic integration of Europe.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $980.2 billion (1993)
National product real growth rate:
2.1% (1993)
National product per capita:
$16,900 (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.6% (1993)
Unemployment rate:
10.3% (1993)
Budget:
revenues:
$325.5 billion
expenditures:
$400.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $33 billion (1993
est.)
Exports:
$190.1 billion (f.o.b., 1993)
commodities:
manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods,
transport equipment
partners:
EC countries 56.7% (Germany 14.0%, France 11.1%, Netherlands 7.9%), US
10.9%
Imports:
$221.6 billion (c.i.f., 1993)
commodities:
manufactured goods, machinery, semifinished goods, foodstuffs,
consumer goods
partners:
EC countries 51.7% (Germany 14.9%, France 9.3%, Netherlands 8.4%), US
11.6%
External debt:
$16.2 billion (June 1992)
Industrial production:
growth rate 2.2% (1993 est.)
Electricity:
capacity:
99,000,000 kW
production:
317 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
5,480 kWh (1992)
Industries:
production machinery including machine tools, electric power
equipment, equipment for the automation of production, railroad
equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts,
electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal,
petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles,
clothing, and other consumer goods
Agriculture:
accounts for only 1.5% of GDP and 1% of labor force; highly mechanized
and efficient farms; wide variety of crops and livestock products
produced; about 60% self-sufficient in food and feed needs
Illicit drugs:
gateway country for Latin American cocaine entering the European
market; producer of synthetic drugs; money-laundering center
Economic aid:
donor:
ODA and OOF commitments (1992-93), $3.2 billion
Currency:
1 British pound (#) = 100 pence
Exchange rates:
British pounds (#) per US$1 - 0.6699 (January 1994), 0.6033 (1993),
0.5664 (1992), 0.5652 (1991), 0.5603 (1990), 0.6099 (1989)
Fiscal year:
1 April-31 March

@United Kingdom, Communications

Railroads:
UK, 16,914 km total; Great Britain's British Railways (BR) operates
16,584 km 1,435-mm (standard) gauge (including 4,545 km electrified
and 12,591 km double or multiple track), several additional small
standard-gauge and narrow-gauge lines are privately owned and
operated; Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) operates 330 km 1,600-mm
gauge (including 190 km double track)
Highways:
total:
362,982 km (Great Britian 339,483 km; Northern Ireland 23,499 km)
paved:
362,390 km (Great Britian 339,483 km, including 2,573 km limited
access divided highway; Northern Ireland 22,907 km)
unpaved:
gravel 592 km (in Northern Ireland)
Inland waterways:
2,291 total; British Waterways Board, 606 km; Port Authorities, 706
km; other, 979 km
Pipelines:
crude oil (almost all insignificant) 933 km; petroleum products 2,993
km; natural gas 12,800 km
Ports:
London, Liverpool, Felixstowe, Tees and Hartlepool, Dover, Sullom Voe,
Southampton
Merchant marine:
180 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,428,571 GRT/4,297,489 DWT,
bulk 17, cargo 35, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 1, container
24, liquefied gas 5, oil tanker 59, passenger 7, passenger cargo 1,
refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 13, short-sea passenger
14, specialized tanker 1
Airports:
total:
497
usable:
388
with permanent-surface runways:
251
with runways over 3,659 m:
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
37
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
133
Telecommunications:
technologically advanced domestic and international system; 30,200,000
telephones; equal mix of buried cables, microwave and optical-fiber
systems; excellent countrywide broadcast systems; broadcast stations -
225 AM, 525 (mostly repeaters) FM, 207 (3,210 repeaters) TV; 40
coaxial submarine cables; 5 satellite ground stations operating in
INTELSAT (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), INMARSAT, and EUTELSAT
systems; at least 8 large international switching centers

@United Kingdom, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Royal Navy (including Royal Marines), Royal Air Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 14,432,081; fit for military service 12,056,828
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $34.8 billion, 3.7% of GDP (FY93/94)

@United States, Geography

Location:
North America, between Canada and Mexico
Map references:
North America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
9,372,610 sq km
land area:
9,166,600 sq km
comparative area:
about half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa;
about one-half the size of South America (or slightly larger than
Brazil); slightly smaller than China; about two and one-half times the
size of Western Europe
note:
includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia
Land boundaries:
total 12,248 km, Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska),
Cuba 29 km (US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay), Mexico 3,326 km
Coastline:
19,924 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm depth
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
maritime boundary disputes with Canada (Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea,
Strait of Juan de Fuca); US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased
from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can
terminate the lease; Haiti claims Navassa Island; US has made no
territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so)
and does not recognize the claims of any other nation; Republic of
Marshall Islands claims Wake Island
Climate:
mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida and arctic in
Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River and
arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in
the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by
warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
Terrain:
vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in
east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged,
volcanic topography in Hawaii
Natural resources:
coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold,
iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum,
natural gas, timber
Land use:
arable land:
20%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
26%
forest and woodland:
29%
other:
25%
Irrigated land:
181,020 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; the US
is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of
fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and
fertilizers; sparse water resources in much of the western part of the
country requires careful management; desertification
natural hazards:
tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin;
hurricanes along the Atlantic coast; tornadoes in the midwest;
mudslides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding;
permafrost in northern Alaska is a major impediment to development
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic
Treaty, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test
Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber,
Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Volatile
Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Biodiversity,
Hazardous Wastes
Note:
world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and China)

@United States, People

Population:
260,713,585 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.99% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
15.2 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
8.68 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
3.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
8.11 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
75.9 years
male:
72.58 years
female:
79.39 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.06 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
American(s)
adjective:
American
Ethnic divisions:
white 83.4%, black 12.4%, Asian 3.3%, Native American 0.8% (1992)
Religions:
Protestant 56%, Roman Catholic 28%, Jewish 2%, other 4%, none 10%
(1989)
Languages:
English, Spanish (spoken by a sizable minority)
Literacy:
age 15 and over having completed 5 or more years of schooling (1991)
total population:
97%
male:
97%
female:
97%
Labor force:
129.525 million (includes armed forces and unemployed); civilian labor
force 128.040 million) (1993)
by occupation:
managerial and professional 27.1%; technical, sales and administrative
support 30.9%; services 13.8%; manufacturing, mining, transportation,
and crafts 25.5%; farming, forestry, and fishing 2.8%

@United States, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
United States of America
conventional short form:
United States
Abbreviation:
US or USA
Digraph:
US
Type:
federal republic; strong democratic tradition
Capital:
Washington, DC
Administrative divisions:
50 states and 1 district*; Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas,
California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia*,
Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North
Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia,
Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Dependent areas:
American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island,
Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern
Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake
Island
note:
since 18 July 1947, the US has administered the Trust Territory of the
Pacific Islands, but recently entered into a new political
relationship with three of the four political units; the Northern
Mariana Islands is a Commonwealth in political union with the US
(effective 3 November 1986); Palau concluded a Compact of Free
Association with the US that was approved by the US Congress but to
date the Compact process has not been completed in Palau, which
continues to be administered by the US as the Trust Territory of the
Pacific Islands; the Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact
of Free Association with the US (effective 3 November 1986); the
Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association
with the US (effective 21 October 1986)
Independence:
4 July 1776 (from England)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 4 July (1776)
Constitution:
17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Legal system:
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President William Jefferson CLINTON (since 20 January 1993); Vice
President Albert GORE, Jr. (since 20 January 1993); election last held
3 November 1992 (next to be held 5 November 1996); results - William
Jefferson CLINTON (Democratic Party) 43.2%, George BUSH (Republican
Party) 37.7%, Ross PEROT (Independent) 19.0%, other 0.1%
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president with Senate approval
Legislative branch:
bicameral Congress
Senate:
elections last held 3 November 1992 (next to be held 8 November 1994);
results - Democratic Party 53%, Republican Party 47%, other NEGL%;
seats - (100 total) Democratic Party 57, Republican Party 43
House of Representatives:
elections last held 3 November 1992 (next to be held 8 November 1994);
results - Democratic Party 52%, Republican Party 46%, other 2%; seats
- (435 total) Democratic Party 258, Republican Party 176, Independent
1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Republican Party, Haley BARBOUR, national committee chairman; Jeanie
AUSTIN, co-chairman; Democratic Party, David C. WILHELM, national
committee chairman; several other groups or parties of minor political
significance
Member of:
AfDB, AG (observer), ANZUS, APEC, AsDB, Australian Group, BIS, CCC,
COCOM, CP, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, FAO, ESCAP, G-2, G-5, G-7, G-8,
G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC,
ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
LORCS, MINURSO, MTCR, NACC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, PCA, SPC, UN,
UNCTAD, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOSOM, UNRWA, UN Security Council,
UNTAC, UN Trusteeship Council, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO,
ZC
Flag:
thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating
with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
bearing 50 small white five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset
horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of
five stars; the 50 stars represent the 50 states, the 13 stripes
represent the 13 original colonies; known as Old Glory; the design and
colors have been the basis for a number of other flags including
Chile, Liberia, Malaysia, and Puerto Rico

@United States, Economy

Overview: The US has the most powerful, diverse, and technologically advanced economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $24,700, the largest among major industrial nations. The economy is market oriented with most decisions made by private individuals and business firms and with government purchases of goods and services made predominantly in the marketplace. In 1989 the economy enjoyed its seventh successive year of substantial growth, the longest in peacetime history. The expansion featured moderation in wage and consumer price increases and a steady reduction in unemployment to 5.2% of the labor force. In 1990, however, growth slowed to 1% because of a combination of factors, such as the worldwide increase in interest rates, Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August, the subsequent spurt in oil prices, and a general decline in business and consumer confidence. In 1991 output fell by 1%, unemployment grew, and signs of recovery proved premature. Growth picked up to 2.6% in 1992 and to 3.0% in 1993. Unemployment, however, declined only gradually, the increase in GDP being mainly attributable to gains in output per worker. Ongoing economic problems for the remainder of the 1990s include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical costs, and sizable budget and trade deficits. National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $6.379 trillion (1993) National product real growth rate: 3% (1993) National product per capita: $24,700 (1993) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3% (1993) Unemployment rate: 6% (May 1994) Budget: revenues: $1.1535 trillion expenditures: $1.4082 trillion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1993 est.) Exports: $449 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.) commodities: capital goods, automobiles, industrial supplies and raw materials, consumer goods, agricultural products partners: Western Europe 24.3%, Canada 22.1%, Japan 10.5% (1993 est.) Imports: $582 billion (c.i.f., 1993 est.) commodities: crude oil and refined petroleum products, machinery, automobiles, consumer goods, industrial raw materials, food and beverages partners: Canada, 19.3%, Western Europe 18.1%, Japan 18.1% (1993 est.) External debt: $NA Industrial production: growth rate 4.6% (1993); accounts for 23% of GDP (1991) Electricity: capacity: 780,000,000 kW production: 3.23 trillion kWh consumption per capita: 12,690 kWh (1992) Industries: leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining Agriculture: accounts for 2% of GDP and 2.8% of labor force; favorable climate and soils support a wide variety of crops and livestock production; world's second largest producer and number one exporter of grain; surplus food producer; fish catch of 4.4 million metric tons (1990) Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for domestic consumption with 1987 production estimated at 3,500 metric tons or about 25% of the available marijuana; ongoing eradication program aimed at small plots and greenhouses has not reduced production Economic aid: donor: commitments, including ODA and OOF, (FY80-89), $115.7 billion Currency: 1 United States dollar (US$) = 100 cents Exchange rates: British pounds: (#) per US$ - 0.6699 (January 1994), 0.6033 (1993), 0.5664 (1992), 0.5652 (1991), 0.5603 (1990), 0.6099 (1989) Canadian dollars: (Can$) per US$ - 1.3174 (January 1994), 1.2901 (1993), 1.2087 (1992), 1.1457 (1991), 1.1668 (1990), 1.1840 (1989) French francs: (F) per US$ - 5.9205 (January 1994), 5.6632 (1993), 5.2938 (1992), 5.6421 (1991), 5.4453 (1990), 6.3801 (1989) Italian lire: (Lit) per US$ - 1,700.2 (January 1994), 1,573.7 (1993), 1,232.4 (1992), 1,240.6 (1991), 1,198.1 (1990), 1.372.1 (1989) Japanese yen: (Y) per US$ - 111.51 (January 1994), 111.20 (1993), 126.65 (1992), 134.71 (1991), 144.79 (1990), 137.96 (1989) German deutsche marks: (DM) per US$ - 1.7431 (January 1994), 1.6533 (1993), 1.5617 (1992), 1.6595 (1991), 1.6157 (1990), 1.8800 (1989) Fiscal year: 1 October - 30 September

@United States, Communications

Railroads:
240,000 km of mainline routes, all standard 1.435 meter track, no
government ownership (1989)
Highways:
total:
6,243,163 km
paved:
3,633,520 km (including 84,865 km of expressways)
unpaved:
2,609,643 km (1990)
Inland waterways:
41,009 km of navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes
(est.)
Pipelines:
petroleum 276,000 km; natural gas 331,000 km (1991)
Ports:
Anchorage, Baltimore, Beaumont, Boston, Charleston, Chicago,
Cleveland, Duluth, Freeport, Galveston, Hampton Roads, Honolulu,
Houston, Jacksonville, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Mobile, New
Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), Richmond
(California), San Francisco, Savannah, Seattle, Tampa, Wilmington
Merchant marine:
385 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 12,567,000 GRT/19,511,000 DWT,
bulk 23, cargo 36, intermodal 128, liquefied gas 13, passenger-cargo
3, tanker 169, tanker tug-barge 13
note:
in addition, there are 219 government-owned vessels
Airports:
total:
14,177
usable:
12,417
with permanent-surface runways:
4,820
with runways over 3,659 m:
63
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
325
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
2,524
Telecommunications:
126,000,000 telephone access lines; 7,557,000 cellular phone
subscribers; broadcast stations - 4,987 AM, 4,932 FM, 1,092 TV; about
9,000 TV cable systems; 530,000,000 radio sets and 193,000,000 TV sets
in use; 16 satellites and 24 ocean cable systems in use; satellite
ground stations - 45 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 16 Pacific Ocean
INTELSAT (1990)

@United States, Defense Forces

Branches:
Department of the Army, Department of the Navy (including Marine
Corps), Department of the Air Force
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $315.5 billion, 5.3% of GDP (1992)

@Uruguay, Geography

Location:
Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between
Argentina and Brazil
Map references:
South America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
176,220 sq km
land area:
173,620 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Washington State
Land boundaries:
total 1,564 km, Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km
Coastline:
660 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
territorial sea:
200 nm; overflight and navigation permitted beyond 12 nm
International disputes:
short section of boundary with Argentina is in dispute; two short
sections of the boundary with Brazil are in dispute - Arroyo de la
Invernada (Arroio Invernada) area of the Rio Quarai and the islands at
the confluence of the Rio Cuareim (Rio Quarai) and the Uruguay River
Climate:
warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown
Terrain:
mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland
Natural resources:
soil, hydropower potential, minor minerals
Land use:
arable land:
8%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
78%
forest and woodland:
4%
other:
10%
Irrigated land:
1,100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
NA
natural hazards:
subject to seasonally high winds, droughts, floods
international agreements:
party to - Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified -
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change, Law of the Sea,
Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation

@Uruguay, People

Population:
3,198,910 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.75% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
17.7 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
9.39 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
17.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
74.09 years
male:
70.88 years
female:
77.47 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.44 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Uruguayan(s)
adjective:
Uruguayan
Ethnic divisions:
white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 66% (less than half adult population attends church
regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, nonprofessing or other 30%
Languages:
Spanish, Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
96%
male:
97%
female:
96%
Labor force:
1.355 million (1991 est.)
by occupation:
government 25%, manufacturing 19%, agriculture 11%, commerce 12%,
utilities, construction, transport, and communications 12%, other
services 21% (1988 est.)

@Uruguay, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Oriental Republic of Uruguay
conventional short form:
Uruguay
local long form:
Republica Oriental del Uruguay
local short form:
Uruguay
Digraph:
UY
Type:
republic
Capital:
Montevideo
Administrative divisions:
19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas,
Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja,
Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San
Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres
Independence:
25 August 1828 (from Brazil)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 25 August (1828)
Constitution:
27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new
constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980
Legal system:
based on Spanish civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Luis Alberto LACALLE (since 1 March 1990); Vice President
Gonzalo AGUIRRE Ramirez (since 1 March 1990); election last held 26
November 1989 (next to be held NA November 1994); results - Luis
Alberto LACALLE Herrera (Blanco) 37%, Jorge BATLLE Ibanez (Colorado)
29%, Liber SEREGNI Mosquera (Broad Front) 20%
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
bicameral General Assembly (Asamblea General)
Chamber of Senators (Camara de Senadores):
elections last held 26 November 1989 (next to be held NA November
1994); results - Blanco 40%, Colorado 30%, Broad Front 23% New Space
7%; seats - (30 total) Blanco 12, Colorado 9, Broad Front 7, New Space
2
Chamber of Representatives (Camera de Representantes):
elections last held NA November 1989 (next to be held NA November
1994); results - Blanco 39%, Colorado 30%, Broad Front 22%, New Space
8%, other 1%; seats - (99 total) number of seats by party NA
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
National (Blanco) Party; Colorado Party, Jorge BATLLE; Broad Front
Coalition, Gen. Liber SEREGNI Mosquera; New Space Coalition, Hugo
BATALLA
Member of:
AG (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, MERCOSUR, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL,
PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMOGIP, UNOMOZ, UNTAC,
UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Eduardo MACGILLYCUDDY
chancery:
1918 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20006
telephone:
telephone (202) 331-1313 through 1316
consulate(s) general:
Los Angeles, Miami, and New York
consulate(s):
New Orleans
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Thomas DODD
embassy:
Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo
mailing address:
APO AA 34035
telephone:
(2) 23-60-61 or 48-77-77
FAX:
(2) 48-86-11
Flag:
nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating
with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with
a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays
alternately triangular and wavy

@Uruguay, Economy

Overview:
Uruguay is a small economy with favorable climate, good soils, and
solid hydropower potential. Economic development has been held back by
excessive government regulation of economic detail and 50% to 130%
inflation. After several years of sluggish growth, real GDP jumped by
about 7.5% in 1992. The rise is attributable mainly to an increase in
Argentine demand for Uruguayan exports, particularly agricultural
products and electricity. In a major step toward greater regional
economic cooperation, Uruguay in 1991 had joined Brazil, Argentina,
and Paraguay in forming the Southern Cone Common Market (Mercosur). A
referendum in December 1992 overturned key portions of landmark
privatization legislation, dealing a serious blow to President
LACALLE's broad economic reform plan. Hampered by a slowdown in the
agricultural sector, the economy grew at only 2% in 1993 compared with
7.5% in 1992. Although inflation declined for the second consecutive
year, a surge in the money supply, rising food prices, a record trade
deficit, and an increase in the government deficit toward the end of
the year foreshadowed troubles ahead in 1994.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $19 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
2% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$6,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
50% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
8.8% (1993 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$2.9 billion
expenditures:
$3 billion, including capital expenditures of $388 million (1991 est.)
Exports:
$1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
wool and textile manufactures, beef and other animal products,
leather, rice
partners:
Brazil, Argentina, US, China, Italy
Imports:
$2 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
machinery and equipment, vehicles, chemicals, minerals, plastics
partners:
Brazil, Argentina, US, Nigeria
External debt:
$4.2 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
growth rate 4.2% (1992 est.), accounts for almost 25% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
2,168,000 kW
production:
5.96 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
1,900 kWh (1992)
Industries:
meat processing, wool and hides, sugar, textiles, footwear, leather
apparel, tires, cement, fishing, petroleum refining, wine
Agriculture:
accounts for 12% of GDP; large areas devoted to livestock grazing;
wheat, rice, corn, sorghum; self-sufficient in most basic foodstuffs
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $105 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $420
million; Communist countries (1970-89), $69 million
Currency:
1 Uruguayan peso ($Ur) = 100 centesimos
Exchange rates:
Uruguayan pesos ($Ur) per US$1 - 4.4710 (January 1994), 3.9484 (1993);
new Uruguayan pesos (N$Ur) per US$1 - 3,457.5 (December 1992), 3,026.9
(1992), 2,489 (1991), 1,594 (1990), 805 (1989)
note:
on 1 March 1993 the former New Peso (N$Ur) was replaced as Uruguay's
unit of currency by the Peso which is equal to 1,000 of the New Pesos;
consequently there is a major change in the peso/dollar exchange rate
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Uruguay, Communications

Railroads:
3,000 km, all 1.435-meter (standard) gauge and government owned
Highways:
total:
49,900 km
paved:
6,700 km
unpaved:
gravel 3,000 km; earth 40,200 km
Inland waterways:
1,600 km; used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft
Ports:
Montevideo, Punta del Este, Colonia
Merchant marine:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 84,797 GRT/132,296 DWT, cargo 1,
container 2, oil tanker 1
Airports:
total:
87
usable:
80
with permanent-surface runways:
16
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
2
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
14
Telecommunications:
most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide
microwave network; 337,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 99 AM, no
FM, 26 TV, 9 shortwave; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations

@Uruguay, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy (including Naval Air Arm, Coast Guard, Marines), Air Force,
Grenadier Guards, Police
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 765,490; fit for military service 621,629
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $216 million, 2.3% of GDP (1991 est.)

@Uzbekistan, Geography

Location:
Central Asia, bordering the Aral Sea, between Kazakhstan and
Turkmenistan
Map references:
Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States,
Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
447,400 sq km
land area:
425,400 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than California
Land boundaries:
total 6,221 km, Afghanistan 137 km, Kazakhstan 2,203 km, Kyrgyzstan
1,099 km, Tajikistan 1,161 km, Turkmenistan 1,621 km
Coastline:
0 km
note:
Uzbekistan borders the Aral Sea (420 km)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
Russia may dispute current de facto maritime border to midpoint of
Caspian Sea from shore
Climate:
mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid
grassland in east
Terrain:
mostly flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad, flat intensely
irrigated river valleys along course of Amu Darya and Sirdaryo Rivers;
Fergana Valley in east surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and
Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral Sea in west
Natural resources:
natural gas, petroleum, coal, gold, uranium, silver, copper, lead and
zinc, tungsten, molybdenum
Land use:
arable land:
10%
permanent crops:
1%
meadows and pastures:
47%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
42%
Irrigated land:
41,550 sq km (1990)
Environment:
current issues:
drying up of the Aral Sea is resulting in growing concentrations of
chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown
from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to
desertification; water pollution from industrial wastes is the cause
of many human health disorders; increasing soil salinization; soil
contamination from agricultural chemicals, including DDT
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer
Protection
Note:
landlocked

@Uzbekistan, People

Population:
22,608,866 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.13% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
30.01 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
6.51 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
53.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
68.58 years
male:
65.28 years
female:
72.04 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.73 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Uzbek(s)
adjective:
Uzbek
Ethnic divisions:
Uzbek 71.4%, Russian 8.3%, Tajik 4.7%, Kazakh 4.1%, Tatar 2.4%,
Karakalpak 2.1%, other 7%
Religions:
Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%
Languages:
Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%
Literacy:
age 9-49 can read and write (1970)
total population:
100%
male:
100%
female:
100%
Labor force:
8.234 million
by occupation:
agriculture and forestry 43%, industry and construction 22%, other 35%
(1992)

@Uzbekistan, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Uzbekistan
conventional short form:
Uzbekistan
local long form:
Uzbekiston Respublikasi
local short form:
none
former:
Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic
Digraph:
UZ
Type:
republic
Capital:
Tashkent (Toshkent)
Administrative divisions:
12 wiloyatlar (singular - wiloyat), 1 autonomous republic*
(respublikasi, singular - respublika), and 1 city** (shahri); Andijon
Wiloyati, Bukhoro Wiloyati, Jizzakh Wiloyati, Farghona Wiloyati,
Karakalpakstan* (Nukus), Qashqadaryo Wiloyati (Qarshi), Khorazm
Wiloyati (Urganch), Namangan Wiloyati, Nawoiy Wiloyati, Samarqand
Wiloyati, Sirdaryo Wiloyati (Guliston), Surkhondaryo Wiloyati
(Termiz), Toshkent Shahri**, Toshkent Wiloyati
note:
an administrative division has the same name as its administrative
center (exceptions have the administrative center name following in
parentheses)
Independence:
31 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 September (1991)
Constitution:
new constitution adopted 8 December 1992
Legal system:
evolution of Soviet civil law; still lacks independent judicial system
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Islam KARIMOV (since NA March 1990); election last held 29
December 1991 (next to be held NA December 1996); results - Islam
KARIMOV 86%, Mukhammad SOLIKH 12%, other 2%
head of government:
Prime Minister Abdulkhashim MUTALOV (since 13 January 1992), First
Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Hakimovitch DJURABEKOV (since NA)
cabinet:
Cabinet of Ministers; appointed by the president with approval of the
Supreme Assembly
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Supreme Soviet:
elections last held 18 February 1990 (next to be held winter 1994);
results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (500 total) Communist
450, ERK 10, other 40; note - total number of seats will be reduced to
250 in next election
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
People's Democratic Party (PDP; formerly Communist Party), Islam A.
KARIMOV, chairman; Erk (Freedom) Democratic Party (EDP), Muhammad
SOLIKH, chairman (in exile); note - ERK was banned 9 December 1992
Other political or pressure groups:
Birlik (Unity) People's Movement (BPM), Abdul Rakhim PULATOV, chairman
(in exile); Islamic Rebirth Party (IRP), Abdullah UTAYEV, chairman
note:
PULATOV (BPM) and SOLIKH (EDP) are both in exile in the West; UTAYEV
(IRP) is either in prison or in exile
Member of:
CCC, CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF,
IOC, ITU, NACC, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Fatikh TESHABAYEV
chancery:
Suites 619 and 623, 1511 K Street NW, Washington DC, 20005
telephone:
(202) 638-4266/4267
FAX:
(202) 638-4268
consulate(s) general:
New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Henry L. CLARKE
embassy:
82 Chelanzanskaya, Tashkent
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
(3712) 77-14-07, 77-11-32
FAX:
(3712) 77-69-53
Flag:
three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and green separated
by red fimbriations with a crescent moon and 12 stars in the upper
hoist-side quadrant

@Uzbekistan, Economy

Overview:
Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country of which 20% is intensely
cultivated, irrigated river valleys. It is one of the poorest states
of the former USSR with 60% of its population living in overpopulated
rural communities. Nevertheless, Uzbekistan is the world's third
largest cotton exporter, a major producer of gold and natural gas, and
a regionally significant producer of chemicals and machinery. Since
independence, the government has sought to prop up the Soviet-style
command economy with subsidies and tight controls on prices and
production. Such policies have buffered the economy from the sharp
declines in output and high inflation experienced by many other former
Soviet republics. By late 1993, however, they had become increasingly
unsustainable as inflation soared and Russia forced the Uzbek
Government to introduce its own currency. Faced with mounting economic
problems, the government has increased its cooperation with
international financial institutions, announced an acceleration of
privatization, and stepped up efforts to attract foreign investors.
Nevertheless, the regime is likely to resist full-fledged market
reforms.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $53.7 billion (1993 estimate from
the UN International Comparison Program, as extended to 1991 and
published in the World Bank's World Development Report 1993; and as
extrapolated to 1993 using official Uzbek statistics, which are very
uncertain because of major economic changes since 1990)
National product real growth rate:
-3.5% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$2,430 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
18% per month (1993)
Unemployment rate:
0.2% includes only officially registered unemployed; large numbers of
underemployed workers
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$706.5 million to outside the FSU countries (1993)
commodities:
cotton, gold, natural gas, mineral fertilizers, ferrous metals,
textiles, food products
partners:
Russia, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, US
Imports:
$947.3 million from outside the FSU countries (1993)
commodities:
grain, machinery and parts, consumer durables, other foods
partners:
principally other FSU countries, Czech Republic
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate -7% (1993)
Electricity:
capacity:
11,950,000 kW
production:
50.9 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
2,300 kWh (1992)
Industries:
textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, natural gas
Agriculture:
livestock, cotton, vegetables, fruits, grain
Illicit drugs:
illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS
consumption; limited government eradication programs; used as
transshipment points for illicit drugs to Western Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
$125 million by yearend 1993; future commitments for about $500
million
Currency:
introduced provisional som-coupons 10 November 1993 which circulated
parallel to the Russian rubles; became the sole legal currency 31
January 1994; will be replaced in July 1994 by the som currency
Exchange rates:
NA
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Uzbekistan, Communications

Railroads:
3,460 km; does not include industrial lines (1990)
Highways:
total:
78,400 km
paved and gravel:
67,000 km
unpaved:
earth 11,400 km (1990)
Pipelines:
crude oil 250 km; petroleum products 40 km; natural gas 810 km (1992)
Ports:
none; landlocked
Airports:
total:
265
usable:
74
with permanent-surface runways:
30
with runways over 3,659 m:
2
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
20
with runways 1,060-2,439 m:
19
note:
a C-130 can land on a 1,060-m airstrip
Telecommunications:
poorly developed; 1,458,000 telephone circuits with 68.75 circuits per
1,000 persons (1991); linked by landline or microwave with CIS member
states and by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway
switch to other countries; new INTELSAT links to Tokyo and Ankara give
Uzbekistan international access independent of Russian facilities;
satellite earth stations - Orbita and INTELSAT; NMT-450 analog
cellular network established in Tashkent

@Uzbekistan, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, National Guard, Republic Security Forces (internal and border
troops)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 5,388,456; fit for military service 4,403,497; reach
military age (18) annually 222,405 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Vanuatu, Geography

Location:
Oceania, Melanesia, 5,750 km southwest of Honolulu in the South
Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way between Hawaii and
Australia
Map references:
Oceania, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
14,760 sq km
land area:
14,760 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Connecticut
note:
includes more than 80 islands
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
2,528 km
Maritime claims:
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or the edge of continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds
Terrain:
mostly mountains of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains
Natural resources:
manganese, hardwood forests, fish
Land use:
arable land:
1%
permanent crops:
5%
meadows and pastures:
2%
forest and woodland:
1%
other:
91%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
NA
natural hazards:
subject to tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanism
causes minor earthquakes
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Marine Dumping, Ship
Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea

@Vanuatu, People

Population:
169,776 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.29% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
32.21 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
9.31 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
68.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
59.25 years
male:
57.51 years
female:
61.09 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.31 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural)
adjective:
Ni-Vanuatu
Ethnic divisions:
indigenous Melanesian 94%, French 4%, Vietnamese, Chinese, Pacific
Islanders
Religions:
Presbyterian 36.7%, Anglican 15%, Catholic 15%, indigenous beliefs
7.6%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6.2%, Church of Christ 3.8%, other 15.7%
Languages:
English (official), French (official), pidgin (known as Bislama or
Bichelama)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1979)
total population:
53%
male:
57%
female:
48%
Labor force:
NA
by occupation:
NA

@Vanuatu, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Vanuatu
conventional short form:
Vanuatu
former:
New Hebrides
Digraph:
NH
Type:
republic
Capital:
Port-Vila
Administrative divisions:
11 island councils; Ambrym, Aoba/Maewo, Banks/Torres, Efate, Epi,
Malakula, Paama, Pentecote, Santo/Malo, Shepherd, Tafea
Independence:
30 July 1980 (from France and UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 30 July (1980)
Constitution:
30 July 1980
Legal system:
unified system being created from former dual French and British
systems
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Jean Marie LEYE (since 2 March 1994)
head of government:
Prime Minister Maxime CARLOT Korman (since 16 December 1991); Deputy
Prime Minister Sethy REGENVANU (since 17 December 1991)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the prime minister, responsible to
parliament
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Parliament:
elections last held 2 December 1991 (next to be held by November
1995); note - after election, a coalition was formed by the Union of
Moderate Parties and the National United Party to form a new
government on 16 December 1991, but political party associations are
fluid; seats - (46 total) UMP 19; NUP 10; VP 10; MPP 4; TUP 1;
Nagriamel 1; Friend 1
note:
the National Council of Chiefs advises on matters of custom and land
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Vanuatu Party (VP), Donald KALPOKAS; Union of Moderate Parties (UMP),
Serge VOHOR; Melanesian Progressive Party (MPP), Barak SOPE; National
United Party (NUP), Walter LINI; Tan Union Party (TUP), Vincent
BOULEKONE; Nagriamel Party, Jimmy STEVENS; Friend Melanesian Party,
leader NA
Member of:
ACCT, ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, NAM, SPARTECA, SPC, SPF, UN,
UNCTAD, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
Vanuatu does not have a mission in the US
US diplomatic representation:
the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to Vanuatu
Flag:
two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a black
isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) all separated by a
black-edged yellow stripe in the shape of a horizontal Y (the two
points of the Y face the hoist side and enclose the triangle);
centered in the triangle is a boar's tusk encircling two crossed
namele leaves, all in yellow

@Vanuatu, Economy

Overview:
The economy is based primarily on subsistence farming which provides a
living for about 80% of the population. Fishing and tourism are the
other mainstays of the economy. Mineral deposits are negligible; the
country has no known petroleum deposits. A small light industry sector
caters to the local market. Tax revenues come mainly from import
duties.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $142 million (1988 est.)
National product real growth rate:
6% (1991)
National product per capita:
$1,050 (1990)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.3% (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$90 million
expenditures:
$103 million, including capital expenditures of $45 million (1989
est.)
Exports:
$14.9 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
copra, beef, cocoa, timber, coffee
partners:
Netherlands, Japan, France, New Caledonia, Belgium
Imports:
$74 million (f.o.b., 1991)
commodities:
machines and vehicles, food and beverages, basic manufactures, raw
materials and fuels, chemicals
partners:
Australia 36%, Japan 13%, NZ 10%, France 8%, Fiji 8%
External debt:
$38 million (1991)
Industrial production:
growth rate 8.1% (1990); accounts for about 10% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
17,000 kW
production:
30 million kWh
consumption per capita:
180 kWh (1990)
Industries:
food and fish freezing, wood processing, meat canning
Agriculture:
accounts for 40% of GDP; export crops - coconuts, cocoa, coffee, fish;
subsistence crops - taro, yams, coconuts, fruits, vegetables
Economic aid:
recipient:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $606 million
Currency:
1 vatu (VT) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
vatu (VT) per US$1 - 123.48 (September 1993), 113.39 (1992), 111.68
(1991), 116.57 (1990), 116.04 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Vanuatu, Communications

Railroads:
none
Highways:
total:
1,027 km
paved:
240 km
unpaved:
787 km
Ports:
Port-Vila, Luganville, Palikoulo
Merchant marine:
131 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,992,201 GRT/2,909,381 DWT,
bulk 57, cargo 23, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 1, container 5,
liquefied gas 3, livestock carrier 1, oil tanker 8, passenger 1,
refrigerated cargo 19, vehicle carrier 11
note:
a flag of convenience registry
Airports:
total:
31
usable:
31
with permanent-surface runways:
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
2
Telecommunications:
broadcast stations - 2 AM, no FM, no TV; 3,000 telephones; 1 Pacific
Ocean INTELSAT ground station

@Vanuatu, Defense Forces

Branches:
Vanuatu Police Force (VPF), paramilitary Vanuatu Mobile Force (VMF)
note:
no military forces
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Venezuela, Geography

Location:
Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea between Colombia
and Guyana
Map references:
South America, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
912,050 sq km
land area:
882,050 sq km
comparative area:
slightly more than twice the size of California
Land boundaries:
total 4,993 km, Brazil 2,200 km, Colombia 2,050 km, Guyana 743 km
Coastline:
2,800 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
15 nm
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
claims all of Guyana west of the Essequibo River; maritime boundary
dispute with Colombia in the Gulf of Venezuela
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Terrain:
Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains
(llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals,
hydropower, diamonds
Land use:
arable land:
3%
permanent crops:
1%
meadows and pastures:
20%
forest and woodland:
39%
other:
37%
Irrigated land:
2,640 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban pollution of Lago
de Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban and industrial
pollution, especially along the Caribbean coast
natural hazards:
subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic droughts
international agreements:
party to - Endangered Species, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test
Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified -
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping
Note:
on major sea and air routes linking North and South America

@Venezuela, People

Population: 20,562,405 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.16% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 25.74 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 4.63 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: 0.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 27.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 73 years male: 70.12 years female: 76.03 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.05 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Venezuelan(s) adjective: Venezuelan Ethnic divisions: mestizo 67%, white 21%, black 10%, Indian 2% Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2% Languages: Spanish (official), Indian dialects spoken by about 200,000 Amerindians in the remote interior Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 88% male: 87% female: 90% Labor force: 5.8 million by occupation: services 56%, industry 28%, agriculture 16% (1985)

@Venezuela, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Venezuela
conventional short form:
Venezuela
local long form:
Republica de Venezuela
local short form:
Venezuela
Digraph:
VE
Type:
republic
Capital:
Caracas
Administrative divisions:
21 states (estados, singular - estado), 1 territory* (territorio), 1
federal district** (distrito federal), and 1 federal dependence***
(dependencia federal); Amazonas*, Anzoategui, Apure, Aragua, Barinas,
Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Dependencias Federales***,
Distrito Federal**, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas,
Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Yaracuy, Zulia
note:
the federal dependence consists of 11 federally controlled island
groups with a total of 72 individual islands
Independence:
5 July 1811 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 5 July (1811)
Constitution:
23 January 1961
Legal system:
based on Napoleonic code; judicial review of legislative acts in
Cassation Court only; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Rafael CALDERA Rodriquez (since 2 February 1994); election
last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held December 1998); results -
Rafael CALDERA (National Convergence) 30.45%, Claudio FERMIN (AD)
23.59%, Oswaldo ALVAREZ PAZ (COPEI) 22.72%, Andres VELASQUEZ (Causa R)
21.94%, other 1.3%
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Legislative branch:
bicameral Congress of the Republic (Congreso de la Republica)
Senate (Senado):
elections last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held December 1998);
results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (52 total) AD 18, COPEI
15, Causa R 9, MAS 5, National Convergence 5; note - 3 former
presidents (2 from AD, 1 from COPEI) hold lifetime senate seats
Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados):
elections last held 5 December 1993 (next to be held December 1998);
results - AD 27.9%, COPEI 26.9%, MAS 12.4%, National Convergence
12.9%, Causa R 19.9%; seats - (201 total) AD 55, COPEI 53, MAS 24,
National Convergence 26, Causa R 40, other 3
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia) Gonzalo RODRIGUEZ
Corro, President
Political parties and leaders:
National Convergence (Convergencia), Jose Miguel UZCATEGUI, director;
Social Christian Party (COPEI), Hilarion CARDOZO, president, and Jose
CURIEL, secretary general; Democratic Action (AD), Pedro PARIS
Montesinos, president, and Luis ALFARO Ucero, secretary general;
Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), Argelia LAYA, president, and Freddy
MUNOZ, secretary general; Radical Cause (La Causa R), Pablo MEDINA,
secretary general
Other political or pressure groups:
FEDECAMARAS, a conservative business group; Venezuelan Confederation
of Workers (CTV, labor organization dominated by the Democratic
Action); VECINOS groups
Member of:
AG, BCIE, CARICOM (observer), CDB, CG, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-11, G-15,
G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IFAD, IFC,
ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA,
LORCS, MINURSO, NAM, OAS, ONUSAL, OPANAL, OPEC, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNPROFOR, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Pedro Luis ECHEVERRIA
chancery:
1099 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone:
(202) 342-2214
consulate(s) general:
Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia,
San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jeffrey DAVIDOW
embassy:
Avenida Francisco de Miranda and Avenida Principal de la Floresta,
Caracas
mailing address:
P. O. Box 62291, Caracas 1060-A, or APO AA 34037
telephone:
(2) 285-2222
FAX:
(2) 285-0336
consulate(s):
Maracaibo (closed March 1994)
Flag:
three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red with the
coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band and an arc of seven
white five-pointed stars centered in the blue band

@Venezuela, Economy

Overview:
Petroleum is the backbone of the economy, accounting for 23% of GDP,
61% of central government ordinary revenues, and 77% of export
earnings in 1993. Former President PEREZ introduced an economic
readjustment program when he assumed office in February 1989. Lower
tariffs and the removal of price controls, a free market exchange
rate, and market-linked interest rates threw the economy into
confusion, causing an 8% decline in GDP in 1989. The economy recovered
part way in 1990 and grew by 9.7% in 1991 and 6.8% in 1992; economic
activity fell by 1% in 1993, primarily because of business concerns
over political instability.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $161 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$8,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
46% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
8.2% (1993 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$9.8 billion
expenditures:
$11.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $103 million (1993
est.)
Exports:
$14.2 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
petroleum 77%, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural
products, basic manufactures
partners:
US and Puerto Rico 42%, Japan, Netherlands, Italy
Imports:
$11 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment,
construction materials
partners:
US 50%, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Canada
External debt:
$28.5 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
growth rate 6.1% (1992 est.); accounts for 40% of GDP, including
petroleum
Electricity:
capacity:
21,130,000 kW
production:
58.541 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
2,830 kWh (1992)
Industries:
petroleum, iron-ore mining, construction materials, food processing,
textiles, steel, aluminum, motor vehicle assembly
Agriculture:
accounts for 6% of GDP and 16% of labor force; products - corn,
sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee, beef, pork,
milk, eggs, fish; not self-sufficient in food other than meat
Illicit drugs:
illicit producer of cannabis and coca leaf for the international drug
trade on a small scale; however, large quantities of cocaine transit
the country from Colombia; important money-laundering hub
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-86), $488 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $10 million
Currency:
1 bolivar (Bs) = 100 centimos
Exchange rates:
bolivares (Bs) per US$1 - 107.260 (January 1994), 90.826 (1993), 68.38
(1992), 56.82 (1991), 46.90 (1990), 34.68 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Venezuela, Communications

Railroads:
542 km total; 363 km 1.435-meter standard gauge all single track,
government owned; 179 km 1.435-meter gauge, privately owned
Highways:
total:
81,000 km
paved:
31,200 km
unpaved:
gravel 24,800 km; earth and unimproved earth 25,000 km
Inland waterways:
7,100 km; Rio Orinoco and Lago de Maracaibo accept oceangoing vessels
Pipelines:
crude oil 6,370 km; petroleum products 480 km; natural gas 4,010 km
Ports:
Amuay Bay, Bajo Grande, El Tablazo, La Guaira, Puerto Cabello, Puerto
Ordaz
Merchant marine:
47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 741,688 GRT/1,204,233 DWT, bulk
4, cargo 16, combination bulk 1, container 1, liquefied gas 2, oil
tanker 17, passenger cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 4, short-sea
passenger 1
Airports:
total:
425
usable:
392
with permanent-surface runways:
139
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
15
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
92
Telecommunications:
modern and expanding; 1,440,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 181
AM, no FM, 59 TV, 26 shortwave; 3 submarine coaxial cables; satellite
ground stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 3 domestic

@Venezuela, Defense Forces

Branches:
National Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas Nacionales, FAN) includes -
Ground Forces or Army (Fuerzas Terrestres or Ejercito), Naval Forces
(Fuerzas Navales or Armada), Air Forces (Fuerzas Aereas or Aviacion),
Armed Forces of Cooperation or National Guard (Fuerzas Armadas de
Cooperation or Guardia Nacional)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 5,341,855; fit for military service 3,875,523; reach
military age (18) annually 224,550 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $1.95 billion, 4% of GDP (1991)

@Vietnam, Geography

Location:
Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea, between Laos and the
Philippines
Map references:
Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
329,560 sq km
land area:
325,360 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than New Mexico
Land boundaries:
total 3,818 km, Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km
Coastline:
3,444 km (excludes islands)
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or the edge of continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
maritime boundary with Cambodia not defined; involved in a complex
dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines,
Taiwan, and possibly Brunei; unresolved maritime boundary with
Thailand; maritime boundary dispute with China in the Gulf of Tonkin;
Paracel Islands occupied by China but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan
Climate:
tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May
to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Terrain:
low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly,
mountainous in far north and northwest
Natural resources:
phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil deposits,
forests
Land use:
arable land:
22%
permanent crops:
2%
meadows and pastures:
1%
forest and woodland:
40%
other:
35%
Irrigated land:
18,300 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
deforestation; soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing
threatening marine life populations
natural hazards:
occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding
international agreements:
party to - Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban

@Vietnam, People

Population:
73,103,898 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.78% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
27.13 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
7.76 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-1.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
45.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
65.41 years
male:
63.37 years
female:
67.58 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.33 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective:
Vietnamese
Ethnic divisions:
Vietnamese 85-90%, Chinese 3%, Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer, Man, Cham
Religions:
Buddhist, Taoist, Roman Catholic, indigenous beliefs, Islamic,
Protestant
Languages:
Vietnamese (official), French, Chinese, English, Khmer, tribal
languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
total population:
88%
male:
93%
female:
83%
Labor force:
32.7 million
by occupation:
agricultural 65%, industrial and service 35% (1990 est.)

@Vietnam, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form:
Vietnam
local long form:
Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam
local short form:
Viet Nam
Abbreviation:
SRV
Digraph:
VM
Type:
Communist state
Capital:
Hanoi
Administrative divisions:
50 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), 3 municipalities* (thanh
pho, singular and plural); An Giang, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Bac Thai, Ben
Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Thuan, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lac, Dong Nai, Dong
Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Bac, Ha Giang, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hai Hung,
Hai Phong*, Ho Chi Minh*, Hoa Binh, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum,
Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Minh Hai, Nam Ha, Nghe
An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam-Da Nang,
Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Song Be, Tay
Ninh, Thai Binh, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen
Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phu, Yen Bai
Independence:
2 September 1945 (from France)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Constitution:
15 April 1992
Legal system:
based on Communist legal theory and French civil law system
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Le Duc ANH (since 23 September 1992)
head of government:
Prime Minister Vo Van KIET (since 9 August 1991); First Deputy Prime
Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 10 August 1991); Deputy Prime Minister
Nguyen KHANH (since NA February 1987); Deputy Prime Minister Tran Duc
LUONG (since NA February 1987)
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president on proposal of the prime minister
and ratification of the Assembly
Legislative branch:
unicameral
National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi):
elections last held 19 July 1992 (next to be held NA July 1997);
results - VCP is the only party; seats - (395 total) VCP or
VCP-approved 395
Judicial branch:
Supreme People's Court
Political parties and leaders:
only party - Vietnam Communist Party (VCP), DO MUOI, general secretary
Member of:
ACCT, AsDB, ASEAN (observer), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer),
ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
none; Ambassador Le Van BANG is the Permanent Representative to the UN
US diplomatic representation:
none
Flag:
red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center

@Vietnam, Economy

Overview:
Vietnam has made significant progress in recent years moving away from
the planned economic model toward a more effective market-based
economic system. Most prices are now fully decontrolled, and the
Vietnamese currency has been effectively devalued and floated at world
market rates. In addition, the scope for private sector activity has
been expanded, primarily through decollectivization of the
agricultural sector and introduction of laws giving legal recognition
to private business. Nearly three-quarters of export earnings are
generated by only two commodities, rice and crude oil. Led by industry
and construction, the economy did well in 1993 with output rising
perhaps 7%. However, the industrial sector remains burdened by
uncompetitive state-owned enterprises the government is unwilling or
unable to privatize. Unemployment looms as a serious problem with
roughly 25% of the workforce without jobs and with population growth
swelling the ranks of the unemployed yearly.
National product:
GNP - purchasing power equivalent - $72 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
7% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$1,000 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
5.2% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
25% (1993 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$1.9 billion
expenditures:
$2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992)
Exports:
$2.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
petroleum, rice, agricultural products, marine products, coffee
partners:
Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Germany, Indonesia
Imports:
$3.1 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
petroleum products, steel products, railroad equipment, chemicals,
medicines, raw cotton, fertilizer, grain
partners:
Hong Kong, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, Taiwan
External debt:
$3.4 billion Western countries; $4.5 billion CEMA debts primarily to
Russia; $700 million commercial debts (1993 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 15% (1992); accounts for 20% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
3,300,000 kW
production:
9 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
130 kWh (1992)
Industries:
food processing, textiles, machine building, mining, cement, chemical
fertilizer, glass, tires, oil
Agriculture:
accounts for almost 40% of GDP; paddy rice, corn, potatoes make up 50%
of farm output; commercial crops (rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea,
bananas) and animal products 50%; since 1989 self-sufficient in food
staple rice; fish catch of 943,100 metric tons (1989 est.)
Illicit drugs:
minor opium producer and secondary transit point for Southeast Asian
heroin destined for the US and Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
$1.9 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for
1994, Japan largest contributor with $550 million
Currency:
1 new dong (D) = 100 xu
Exchange rates:
new dong (D) per US$1 - 10,800 (November 1993), 8,100 (July 1991),
7,280 (December 1990), 3,996 (March 1990); note - 1985-89 figures are
end of year
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Vietnam, Communications

Railroads:
3,059 km total; 2,454 1.000-meter gauge, 151 km 1.435-meter (standard)
gauge, 230 km dual gauge (three rails), and 224 km not restored to
service after war damage
Highways:
total:
85,000 km
paved:
9,400 km
unpaved:
gravel, improved earth 48,700 km; unimproved earth 26,900 km
Inland waterways:
17,702 km navigable; more than 5,149 km navigable at all times by
vessels up to 1.8 meter draft
Pipelines:
petroleum products 150 km
Ports:
Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City
Merchant marine:
101 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 460,225 GRT/741,231 DWT, bulk
3, cargo 86, oil tanker 8, refrigerated cargo 3, roll-on/roll-off
cargo 1
Airports:
total:
100
usable:
100
with permanent-surface runways:
50
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
10
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
20
Telecommunications:
the inadequacies of the obsolete switching equipment and cable system
is a serious constraint on the business sector and on economic growth,
and restricts access to the international links that Vietnam has
established with most major countries; the telephone system is not
generally available for private use (25 telephones for each 10,000
persons); 3 satellite earth stations; broadcast stations - NA AM, 288
FM; 36 (77 repeaters) TV; about 2,500,000 TV receivers and 7,000,000
radio receivers in use (1991)

@Vietnam, Defense Forces

Branches:
People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) including:
Ground, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 18,281,483; fit for military service 11,602,318; reach
military age (17) annually 762,943 (1994 est.)

Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GNP

@Virgin Islands

Header Affiliation: (territory of the US)

@Virgin Islands, Geography

Location:
Caribbean, in the eastern Caribbean Sea, about 110 km east and
southeast of Puerto Rico
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total area:
352 sq km
land area:
349 sq km
comparative area:
slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
188 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
subtropical, tempered by easterly tradewinds, relatively low humidity,
little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November
Terrain:
mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land
Natural resources:
sun, sand, sea, surf
Land use:
arable land:
15%
permanent crops:
6%
meadows and pastures:
26%
forest and woodland:
6%
other:
47%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
lack of natural freshwater resources
natural hazards:
rarely affected by hurricanes; subject to frequent severe droughts,
floods, earthquakes
international agreements:
NA
Note:
important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for
the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural, deepwater
harbors in the Caribbean

@Virgin Islands, People

Population: 97,564 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: -0.52% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 19.41 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 5.2 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -19.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 12.54 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.29 years male: 73.6 years female: 77.2 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 2.53 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Virgin Islander(s) adjective: Virgin Islander Ethnic divisions: West Indian (45% born in the Virgin Islands and 29% born elsewhere in the West Indies) 74%, US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 5%, other 8%; black 80%, white 15%, other 5%; Hispanic origin 14% Religions: Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7% Languages: English (official), Spanish, Creole Literacy: total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% Labor force: 45,500 (1988) by occupation: tourism 70%

@Virgin Islands, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Virgin Islands of the United States
conventional short form:
Virgin Islands
Digraph:
VQ
Type:
organized, unincorporated territory of the US administered by the
Office of Territorial and International Affairs, US Department of the
Interior
Capital:
Charlotte Amalie
Administrative divisions:
none (territory of the US)
National holiday:
Transfer Day, 31 March (1917) (from Denmark to US)
Constitution:
Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954
Legal system:
based on US
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal; note - indigenous inhabitants are US
citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President William Jefferson CLINTON (since 20 January 1993); Vice
President Albert GORE, Jr. (since 20 January 1993)
head of government:
Governor Alexander A. FARRELLY (since 5 January 1987); Lieutenant
Governor Derek M. HODGE (since 5 January 1987); election last held 6
November 1990 (next to be held November 1994); results - Governor
Alexander FARRELLY (Democratic Party) 56.5% defeated Juan LUIS
(independent) 38.5%
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Senate:
elections last held 3 November 1992 (next to be held 2 November 1994);
results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (15 total) number of
seats by party NA
US House of Representatives:
elections last held 3 November 1992 (next to be held 2 November 1994);
results - Ron DE LUGO reelected as delegate; seats - (1 total); seat
by party NA; note - the Virgin Islands elect one representative to the
US House of Representatives
Judicial branch:
US District Court:
handles civil matters over $50,000, felonies (persons 15 years of age
and over), and federal cases
Territorial Court:
handles civil matters up to $50,000, small claims, juvenile, domestic,
misdemeanors, and traffic cases
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Party, Marilyn STAPLETON; Independent Citizens' Movement
(ICM), Virdin C. BROWN; Republican Party, Charlotte-Poole DAVIS
Member of:
ECLAC (associate), IOC
Diplomatic representation in US:
none (territory of the US)
US diplomatic representation:
none (territory of the US)
Flag:
white with a modified US coat of arms in the center between the large
blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows an eagle holding an
olive branch in one talon and three arrows in the other with a
superimposed shield of vertical red and white stripes below a blue
panel

@Virgin Islands, Economy

Overview:
Tourism is the primary economic activity, accounting for more than 70%
of GDP and 70% of employment. The manufacturing sector consists of
textile, electronics, pharmaceutical, and watch assembly plants. The
agricultural sector is small, most food being imported. International
business and financial services are a small but growing component of
the economy. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at
Saint Croix.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $1.2 billion (1987)
National product real growth rate:
NA%
National product per capita:
$11,000 (1987)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
3.7% (1992)
Budget:
revenues:
$364.4 million
expenditures:
$364.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.)
Exports:
$2.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990)
commodities:
refined petroleum products
partners:
US, Puerto Rico
Imports:
$3.3 billion (c.i.f., 1990)
commodities:
crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials
partners:
US, Puerto Rico
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate 12% (year NA); accounts for NA% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
380,000 kW
production:
565 million kWh
consumption per capita:
5,710 kWh (1992)
Industries:
tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum distilling,
construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics
Agriculture:
truck gardens, food crops (small scale), fruit, sorghum, Senepol
cattle
Economic aid:
recipient:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $42 million
Currency:
1 United States dollar (US$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
US currency is used
Fiscal year:
1 October - 30 September

@Virgin Islands, Communications

Highways:
total:
856 km
paved:
NA
unpaved:
NA
Ports:
Saint Croix - Christiansted, Frederiksted; Saint Thomas - Long Bay,
Crown Bay, Red Hook; Saint John - Cruz Bay
Airports:
total:
2
usable:
2
with permanent-surface runways :
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
2
note:
international airports on Saint Thomas and Saint Croix
Telecommunications:
modern telephone system using fiber-optic cable, submarine cable,
microwave radio, and satellite facilities; 58,931 telephones; 98,000
radios; 63,000 TV sets in use; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 8 FM, 4 TV
(1988)

@Virgin Islands, Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of the US

@Wake Island

Header Affiliation: (territory of the US)

@Wake Island, Geography

Location:
Oceania, Micronesia, in the North Pacific Ocean, 3,700 km west of
Honolulu, about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and the Northern
Mariana Islands
Map references:
Oceania
Area:
total area:
6.5 sq km
land area:
6.5 sq km
comparative area:
about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
19.3 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
claimed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands
Climate:
tropical
Terrain:
atoll of three coral islands built up on an underwater volcano;
central lagoon is former crater, islands are part of the rim; average
elevation less than 4 meters
Natural resources:
none
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
0%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
100%
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
Environment:
current issues:
NA
natural hazards:
subject to occasional typhoons
international agreements:
NA
Note:
strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean; emergency landing
location for transpacific flights

@Wake Island, People

Population: 302 (July 1994 est.)

@Wake Island, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Wake Island
Digraph:
WQ
Type:
unincorporated territory of the US administered by the US Air Force
(under an agreement with the US Department of Interior) since 24 June
1972; presently administered by Base Commander, Major James ANDEL
until August 1994, when Willis ALLEY will take over until July 1995
Capital:
none; administered from Washington, DC
Independence:
none (territory of the US)
Flag:
the US flag is used

@Wake Island, Economy

Overview:
Economic activity is limited to providing services to US military
personnel and contractors located on the island. All food and
manufactured goods must be imported.
Electricity:
supplied by US military

@Wake Island, Communications

Ports:
none; because of the reefs, there are only two offshore anchorages for
large ships
Airports:
total:
1
usable:
1
with permanent-surface runways:
1
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
0
Telecommunications:
satellite communications; 1 Autovon circuit off the Overseas Telephone
System (OTS); Armed Forces Radio/Television Service (AFRTS) radio and
television service provided by satellite; broadcast station - closed
early 1992.
Note:
formerly an important commercial aviation base, now used by US
military, some commercial cargo planes, as well as the US Army Space
and Strategic Defense Command for missile launches

@Wake Island, Defense Forces

defense is the responsibility of the US

@Wallis and Futuna

Header Affiliation: (overseas territory of France)

@Wallis and Futuna, Geography

Location: Oceania, Polynesia in the South Pacific Ocean, 4,600 km southwest of Honolulu, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand Map references: Oceania Area: total area: 274 sq km land area: 274 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than Washington, DC note: includes Ile Uvea (Wallis Island), Ile Futuna (Futuna Island), Ile Alofi, and 20 islets Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 129 km Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October) Terrain: volcanic origin; low hills Natural resources: negligible Land use: arable land: 5% permanent crops: 20% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 75% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: NA natural hazards: NA international agreements: NA Note: both island groups have fringing reefs

@Wallis and Futuna, People

Population: 14,338 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 1.13% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 25.74 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 5.26 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -9.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 26.26 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.72 years male: 71.08 years female: 72.4 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.23 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Wallisian(s), Futunan(s), or Wallis and Futuna Islanders adjective: Wallisian, Futunan, or Wallis and Futuna Islander Ethnic divisions: Polynesian Religions: Roman Catholic Languages: French, Wallisian (indigenous Polynesian language) Literacy: all ages can read and write (1969) total population: 50% male: 50% female: 51% Labor force: NA by occupation: agriculture, livestock, and fishing 80%, government 4% (est.)

@Wallis and Futuna, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands
conventional short form:
Wallis and Futuna
local long form:
Territoire des Iles Wallis et Futuna
local short form:
Wallis et Futuna
Digraph:
WF
Type:
overseas territory of France
Capital:
Mata-Utu (on Ile Uvea)
Administrative divisions:
none (overseas territory of France)
Independence:
none (overseas territory of France)
Constitution:
28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system:
French legal system
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Francois MITTERRAND (since 21 May 1981)
head of government:
High Administrator Philippe LEGRIX (since NA); President of the
Territorial Assembly Soane Noni UHILA (since NA March 1992)
cabinet:
Council of the Territory consists of 3 kings and 3 members appointed
by the high administrator on advice of the Territorial Assembly
note:
there are three traditional kings with limited powers
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Territorial Assembly (Assemblee Territoriale):
elections last held 15 March 1987 (next to be held NA March 1992);
results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (20 total) RPR 7, UPL
5, UDF 4, UNF 4
French Senate:
elections last held 24 September 1989 (next to be held by NA September
1998); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (1 total) RPR 1
French National Assembly:
elections last held 21 and 28 March 1992 (next to be held by NA
September 1996); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (1
total) MRG 1
Judicial branch:
none; justice generally administered under French law by the chief
administrator, but the three traditional kings administer customary
law and there is a magistrate in Mata-Utu
Political parties and leaders:
Rally for the Republic (RPR); Union Populaire Locale (UPL); Union Pour
la Democratie Francaise (UDF); Lua kae tahi (Giscardians); Mouvement
des Radicaux de Gauche (MRG)
Member of:
FZ, SPC
Diplomatic representation in US:
none (overseas territory of France)
US diplomatic representation:
none (overseas territory of France)
Flag:
the flag of France is used

@Wallis and Futuna, Economy

Overview:
The economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with
about 80% of the labor force earning its livelihood from agriculture
(coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About
4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from
French Government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and
South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in
New Caledonia. Wallis and Futuna imports food, fuel, clothing,
machinery, and transport equipment, but its exports are negligible,
consisting of copra and handicrafts.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $25 million (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
NA%
National product per capita:
$1,500 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$2.7 million
expenditures:
$2.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1983 est.)
Exports:
negligible
commodities:
copra, handicrafts
partners:
NA
Imports:
$13.3 million (c.i.f., 1984)
commodities:
foodstuffs, manufactured goods, transportation equipment, fuel
partners:
France, Australia, New Zealand
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
1,200 kW
production:
1 million kWh
consumption per capita:
70 kWh (1990)
Industries:
copra, handicrafts, fishing, lumber
Agriculture:
dominated by coconut production, with subsistence crops of yams, taro,
bananas, and herds of pigs and goats
Economic aid:
recipient:
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $118 million
Currency:
1 CFP franc (CFPF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (CFPF) per US$1 - 107.63
(January 1994), 102.96 (1993), 96.24 (1992), 102.57 (1991), 99.0
(1990), 115.99 (1989); note - linked at the rate of 18.18 to the
French franc
Fiscal year:
NA

@Wallis and Futuna, Communications

Highways: total: 120 km (Ile Uvea 100 km, Ile Futuna 20km) paved: 16 km (on Il Uvea) unpaved: 104 km (Ile Uvea 84 km, Ile Futuna 20 km) Inland waterways: none Ports: Mata-Utu, Leava Airports: total: 2 usable: 2 with permanent-surface runways: 1 with runways over 3,659 m: 0 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 0 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 1 Telecommunications: 225 telephones; broadcast stations - 1 AM, no FM, no TV

@Wallis and Futuna, Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of France

@West Bank

Header
The war between Israel and Egypt, Syria, and Jordan in June 1967 ended
with Israel in control of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Gaza
Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Golan Heights. Israel withdrew
from the Sinai Peninsula pursuant to a 1979 peace treaty with Egypt.
The Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government
Arrangements ("the DOP"), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993,
provides for a transitional period not exceeding five years of
Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West
Bank. Under the DOP, final status negotiations are to begin no later
than the beginning of the third year of the transitional period.

@West Bank, Geography

Location:
Middle East, between Jordan and Israel
Map references:
Middle East
Area:
total area:
5,860 sq km
land area:
5,640 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Delaware
note:
includes West Bank, East Jerusalem, Latrun Salient, Jerusalem No Man's
Land, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt.
Scopus
Land boundaries:
total 404 km, Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli occupied with interim status
subject to Israeli/Palestinian negotiations - final status to be
determined
Climate:
temperate, temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to
hot summers, cool to mild winters
Terrain:
mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in
east
Natural resources:
negligible
Land use:
arable land:
27%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
32%
forest and woodland:
1%
other:
40%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
NA
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
NA
Note:
landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal
aquifers; there are 200 Jewish settlements and civilian land use sites
in the West Bank and 25 in East Jerusalem (April 1994)

@West Bank, People

Population: 1,443,790 (July 1994 est.) note: in addition, there are 110,500 Jewish settlers in the West Bank and 144,100 in East Jerusalem (1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.68% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 32.48 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 5.11 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 33.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 70.39 years male: 68.88 years female: 71.98 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 4.2 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: NA adjective: NA Ethnic divisions: Palestinian Arab and other 88%, Jewish 12% Religions: Muslim 80% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 12%, Christian and other 8% Languages: Arabic, Hebrew spoken by Israeli settlers, English widely understood Literacy: total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% Labor force: NA by occupation: construction 28.2%, agriculture 21.8%, industry 14.5%, commerce, restaurants, and hotels 12.6%, other services 22.9% (1991) note: excluding Jewish settlers

@West Bank, Government

Note:
Under the Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government Arragements ("the DOP"), Israel agreed to transfer
certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, and
subsequently to an elected Palestinian Council, as part of interim
self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A
transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho
has taken place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement
on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area. The DOP provides that Israel
will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external
security and for internal security and public order of settlements and
Israelis. Final status is to be determined through direct negotiations
within five years.
Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
West Bank
Digraph:
WE

@West Bank, Economy

Overview:
Economic progress in the West Bank has been hampered by Israeli
military administration and the effects of the Palestinian uprising
(intifadah). Industries using advanced technology or requiring sizable
investment have been discouraged by a lack of local capital and
restrictive Israeli policies. Capital investment consists largely of
residential housing, not productive assets that would enable local
Palestinian firms to compete with Israeli industry. A major share of
GNP has traditionally been derived from remittances of workers
employed in Israel and Persian Gulf states. Such transfers from the
Gulf dropped after Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. In the wake of
the Persian Gulf crisis, many Palestinians have returned to the West
Bank, increasing unemployment, and export revenues have dropped
because of the decline of markets in Jordan and the Gulf states.
Israeli measures to curtail the intifadah also have added to
unemployment and lowered living standards. The area's economic
situation has worsened since Israel's partial closure of the
territories in 1993.
National product:
GNP - exchange rate conversion - $2 billion (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-7% (1991 est.)
National product per capita:
$2,050 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
12% (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate:
15% (1991 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
$43.4 million
expenditures:
$43.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY90)
Exports:
$175 million (f.o.b., 1991 est.)
commodities:
olives, fruit, vegetables
partners:
Jordan, Israel
Imports:
$775 million (c.i.f., 1991 est.)
commodities:
food, consumer goods, construction materials
partners:
Jordan, Israel
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate -1% (1991); accounts for about 6% of GNP
Electricity:
power supplied by Israel
Industries:
generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap,
olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have
established some small-scale modern industries in the settlements and
industrial centers
Agriculture:
accounts for about 23% of GNP; olives, citrus and other fruits,
vegetables, beef, and dairy products
Economic aid:
$NA
Currency:
1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot; 1 Jordanian dinar (JD) =
1,000 fils
Exchange rates:
new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1 - 2.9760 (February 1994), 2.8301
(1993), 2.4591 (1992), 2.2791 (1991), 2.0162 (1990), 1.9164 (1989);
Jordanian dinars (JD) per US$1 - 0.7019 (February 1994), 0.6928
(1993), 0.6797 (1992), 0.6808 (1991), 0.6636 (1990), 0.5704 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year (since 1 January 1992)

@West Bank, Communications

Highways:
total:
NA
paved:
NA
unpaved:
NA
note:
small road network, Israelis developing east-west axial highways to
service new settlements
Airports:
total:
2
usable:
2
with permanent-surface runways:
2
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
1
Telecommunications:
open-wire telephone system currently being upgraded; broadcast
stations - no AM, no FM, no TV

@West Bank, Defense Forces

Branches:
NA
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Western Sahara, Geography

Location:
Northern Africa, along the Atlantic Ocean, between Morocco and
Mauritania
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
266,000 sq km
land area:
266,000 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than Colorado
Land boundaries:
total 2,046 km, Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km
Coastline:
1,110 km
Maritime claims:
contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue
International disputes:
claimed and administered by Morocco, but sovereignty is unresolved and
the UN is attempting to hold a referendum on the issue; the
UN-administered cease-fire has been currently in effect since
September 1991
Climate:
hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog
and heavy dew
Terrain:
mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces
rising to small mountains in south and northeast
Natural resources:
phosphates, iron ore
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
19%
forest and woodland:
0%
other:
81%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
sparse water and arable land
natural hazards:
hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and
spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely
restricting visibility
international agreements:
NA

@Western Sahara, People

Population: 211,877 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.5% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 47.22 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 19.04 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -3.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 152.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 45.59 years male: 44.66 years female: 46.83 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 6.96 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s) adjective: Sahrawian, Sahraouian Ethnic divisions: Arab, Berber Religions: Muslim Languages: Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic Literacy: total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% Labor force: 12,000 by occupation: animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50%

@Western Sahara, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Western Sahara
Digraph:
WI
Type:
legal status of territory and question of sovereignty unresolved;
territory contested by Morocco and Polisario Front (Popular Front for
the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro), which in
February 1976 formally proclaimed a government in exile of the Sahrawi
Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); territory partitioned between Morocco
and Mauritania in April 1976, with Morocco acquiring northern
two-thirds; Mauritania, under pressure from Polisario guerrillas,
abandoned all claims to its portion in August 1979; Morocco moved to
occupy that sector shortly thereafter and has since asserted
administrative control; the Polisario's government in exile was seated
as an OAU member in 1984; guerrilla activities continued sporadically,
until a UN-monitored cease-fire was implemented 6 September 1991
Capital:
none
Administrative divisions:
none (under de facto control of Morocco)
Executive branch:
none
Member of:
none
Diplomatic representation in US:
none
US diplomatic representation:
none

@Western Sahara, Economy

Overview:
Western Sahara, a territory poor in natural resources and having
little rainfall, has a per capita GDP of roughly $300. Pastoral
nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining are the principal sources of
income for the population. Most of the food for the urban population
must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are
controlled by the Moroccan Government.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $60 million (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
NA%
National product per capita:
$300 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$8 million (f.o.b., 1982 est.)
commodities:
phosphates 62%
partners:
Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are
included in overall Moroccan accounts
Imports:
$30 million (c.i.f., 1982 est.)
commodities:
fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs
partners:
Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are
included in overall Moroccan accounts
External debt:
$NA
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
60,000 kW
production:
79 million kWh
consumption per capita:
425 kWh (1989)
Industries:
phosphate mining, fishing, handicrafts
Agriculture:
limited largely to subsistence agriculture; some barley is grown in
nondrought years; fruit and vegetables are grown in the few oases;
food imports are essential; camels, sheep, and goats are kept by the
nomadic natives; cash economy exists largely for the garrison forces
Economic aid:
$NA
Currency:
1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
Moroccan dirhams (DH) per US$1 - 9.669 (January 1994), 9.299 (1993),
8.538 (1992), 8.707 (1991), 8.242 (1990), 8.488 (1989)
Fiscal year:
NA

@Western Sahara, Communications

Highways:
total:
6,200 km
unpaved:
gravel 1,450 km; improved, unimproved earth, tracks 4,750 km
Ports:
El Aaiun, Ad Dakhla
Airports:
total:
14
usable:
14
with permanent-surface runways:
3
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
3
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
5
Telecommunications:
sparse and limited system; tied into Morocco's system by microwave
radio relay, troposcatter, and 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth
stations linked to Rabat, Morocco; 2,000 telephones; broadcast
stations - 2 AM, no FM, 2 TV

@Western Sahara, Defense Forces

Branches:
NA
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@Western Samoa, Geography

Location: Oceania, Polynesia, 4,300 km southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand Map references: Oceania, Standard Time Zones of the World Area: total area: 2,860 sq km land area: 2,850 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Rhode Island Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 403 km Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical; rainy season (October to March), dry season (May to October) Terrain: narrow coastal plain with volcanic, rocky, rugged mountains in interior Natural resources: hardwood forests, fish Land use: arable land: 19% permanent crops: 24% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 47% other: 10% Irrigated land: NA sq km Environment: current issues: soil erosion natural hazards: subject to occasional typhoons; active volcanism international agreements: party to - Biodiversity; signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Law of the Sea

@Western Samoa, People

Population:
204,447 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.38% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
32.41 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
6.02 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
37 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
67.97 years
male:
65.59 years
female:
70.48 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.16 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Western Samoan(s)
adjective:
Western Samoan
Ethnic divisions:
Samoan 92.6%, Euronesians 7% (persons of European and Polynesian
blood), Europeans 0.4%
Religions:
Christian 99.7% (about half of population associated with the London
Missionary Society; includes Congregational, Roman Catholic,
Methodist, Latter Day Saints, Seventh-Day Adventist)
Languages:
Samoan (Polynesian), English
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1971)
total population:
97%
male:
97%
female:
97%
Labor force:
38,000
by occupation:
agriculture 22,000 (1987 est.)

@Western Samoa, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Independent State of Western Samoa
conventional short form:
Western Samoa
Digraph:
WS
Type:
constitutional monarchy under native chief
Capital:
Apia
Administrative divisions:
11 districts; A'ana, Aiga-i-le-Tai, Atua, Fa'asaleleaga, Gaga'emauga,
Gagaifomauga, Palauli, Satupa'itea, Tuamasaga, Va'a-o-Fonoti,
Vaisigano
Independence:
1 January 1962 (from UN trusteeship administered by New Zealand)
National holiday:
National Day, 1 June (1962)
Constitution:
1 January 1962
Legal system:
based on English common law and local customs; judicial review of
legislative acts with respect to fundamental rights of the citizen;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
21 years of age; universal, but only matai (head of family) are able
to run for the Legislative Assembly
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Chief Susuga Malietoa TANUMAFILI II (Co-Chief of State from 1 January
1962 until becoming sole Chief of State on 5 April 1963)
head of government:
Prime Minister TOFILAU Eti Alesana (since 7 April 1988)
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the head of state with the prime minister's
advice
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Legislative Assembly (Fono):
elections last held 5 April 1991 (next to be held by NA 1996); results
- percent of vote by party NA; seats - (47 total) HRPP 28, SNDP 18,
independents 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court, Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP), TOFILAU Eti Alesana, chairman;
Samoan National Development Party (SNDP), TAPUA Tamasese Efi, chairman
Member of:
ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IMF,
INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, LORCS, SPARTECA, SPC, SPF, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Neroni SLADE
chancery:
820 Second Avenue, Suite 800, New York, NY 10017
telephone:
(212) 599-6196 or 6197
FAX:
(212) 972-3970
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
the ambassador to New Zealand is accredited to Western Samoa
embassy:
5th floor, Beach Road, Apia
mailing address:
P.O. Box 3430, Apia
telephone:
(685) 21-631
FAX:
(685) 22-030
Flag:
red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side quadrant bearing
five white five-pointed stars representing the Southern Cross
constellation

@Western Samoa, Economy

Overview:
Agriculture employs more than half of the labor force, contributes 50%
to GDP, and furnishes 90% of exports. The bulk of export earnings
comes from the sale of coconut oil and copra. The economy depends on
emigrant remittances and foreign aid to support a level of imports
much greater than export earnings. Tourism has become the most
important growth industry, and construction of the first international
hotel is under way. The economy continued to falter in 1993, as
remittances and tourist earnings fell off. A fungal plant disease
severely damaged the taro crop, the primary food and export crop.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $400 million (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-4.3% (1992 est.)
National product per capita:
$2,000 (1992 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
7% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$95.3 million
expenditures:
$95.4 million, including capital expenditures of $41 million (1992
est.)
Exports:
$5.7 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
coconut oil and cream, taro, copra, cocoa
partners:
New Zealand 34%, American Samoa 21%, Germany 18%, Australia 11%
Imports:
$11.5 million (c.i.f., 1992 est.)
commodities:
intermediate goods 58%, food 17%, capital goods 12%
partners:
New Zealand 37%, Australia 25%, Japan 11%, Fiji 9%
External debt:
$83 million (December 1990 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate -0.3% (1992 est.); accounts for 16% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
29,000 kW
production:
45 million kWh
consumption per capita:
240 kWh (1990)
Industries:
timber, tourism, food processing, fishing
Agriculture:
accounts for about 50% of GDP; coconuts, fruit (including bananas,
taro, yams)
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $18 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $306
million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $4 million
Currency:
1 tala (WS$) = 100 sene
Exchange rates:
tala (WS$) per US$1 - 2.5920 (January 1994), 2.5681 (1993), 2.4655
(1992), 2.3975 (1991), 2.3095 (1990), 2.2686 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Western Samoa, Communications

Highways:
total:
2,042 km
paved:
375 km
unpaved:
gravel, crushed stone, earth 1,667 km
Ports:
Apia
Merchant marine:
1 roll on/roll off cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,838
GRT/5,536 DWT
Airports:
total:
3
usable:
3
with permanent-surface runways:
1
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
0
Telecommunications:
7,500 telephones; 70,000 radios; broadcast stations - 1 AM, no FM, no
TV; 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT ground station

@Western Samoa, Defense Forces

Branches:
Department of Police and Prisons
Defense expenditures:
$NA, NA% of GDP

@World, Geography

Map references:
Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
510.072 million sq km
land area:
148.94 million sq km
water area:
361.132 million sq km
comparative area:
land area about 16 times the size of the US
note:
70.8% of the world is water, 29.2% is land
Land boundaries:
the land boundaries in the world total 250,883.64 km (not counting
shared boundaries twice)
Coastline:
356,000 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm claimed by most but can vary
continental shelf:
200-m depth claimed by most or to depth of exploitation, others claim
200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive fishing zone:
200 nm claimed by most but can vary
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm claimed by most but can vary
territorial sea:
12 nm claimed by most but can vary
note:
boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries
from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm; 42
nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan,
Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia,
Botswana, Burkina, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech
Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali,
Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino,
Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank,
Zambia, Zimbabwe
Climate:
two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow
temperate zones from a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical
climates
Terrain:
highest elevation is Mt. Everest at 8,848 meters and lowest depression
is the Dead Sea at 392 meters below sea level; greatest ocean depth is
the Marianas Trench at 10,924 meters
Natural resources:
the rapid using up of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of
forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species,
and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern
Europe and the former USSR) pose serious long-term problems that
governments and peoples are only beginning to address
Land use:
arable land:
10%
permanent crops:
1%
meadows and pastures:
24%
forest and woodland:
31%
other:
34%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution
(air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation
(overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil
degradation, soil depletion, erosion
natural hazards:
large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural
disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions)
international agreements:
20 selected international environmental agreements included under the
Environment entry for each country and in Appendix E: Selected
International Environmental Agreements

@World, People

Population: 5,643,289,771 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 1.5% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 25 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 65 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 62 years male: 61 years female: 64 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.1 children born/woman (1994 est.) Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.); total population: 82% male: 68% female: 75% Labor force: 2.24 billion (1992) by occupation: NA

@World, Government

Digraph:
XX
Administrative divisions:
265 sovereign nations, dependent areas, other, and miscellaneous
entries
Legal system:
varies by individual country; 182 are parties to the United Nations
International Court of Justice (ICJ or World Court)

@World, Economy

Overview: Real global output - gross world product (GWP) - rose roughly 2% in 1993, with results varying widely among regions and countries. Average growth of 1% in the GDP of industrialized countries (57% of GWP in 1993) and average growth of 6% in the GDP of less developed countries (37% of GWP) were partly offset by a further 10% drop in the GDP of the former USSR/Eastern Europe area (now only 6% of GWP). Within the industrialized world the US posted a 3% growth rate whereas both Japan and the 12-member European Union (formerly the European Community) had zero growth. With the notable exception of Japan at 2.5%, unemployment was typically 6-11% in the industrial world. The US accounted for 22% of GWP in 1993; Western Europe accounted for 22.5%; and Japan accounted for 9%. These are the three "economic superpowers" which are presumably destined to compete for mastery in international markets on into the 21st century. As for the less developed countries, China, India, and the Four Dragons—South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore—once again posted good records; however, many other countries, especially in Africa, continued to suffer from drought, rapid population growth, inflation, and civil strife. Central Europe, especially Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic, made considerable progress in moving toward "market-friendly" economies, whereas the 15 ex-Soviet countries typically experienced further declines in output of 10-15%. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government in a number of cases is losing control over resources as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in former Yugoslavia, and in India. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of nearly 100 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems, the industrialized countries have inadequate resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. (For the specific economic problems of each country, see the individual country entries in this volume.) National product: GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power equivalent - $29 trillion (1993 est.) National product real growth rate: 2% (1993 est.) National product per capita: $5,200 (1993 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): developed countries: 5% (1993 est.) developing countries: 50% (1993 est.) note: these figures vary widely in individual cases Unemployment rate: developed countries typically 6%-11%; developing countries, extensive unemployment and underemployment (1993) Exports: $3.64 trillion (f.o.b., 1992 est.) commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services partners: in value, about 75% of exports from the developed countries Imports: $3.82 trillion (c.i.f., 1992 est.) commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services partners: in value, about 75% of imports by the developed countries External debt: $1 trillion for less developed countries (1993 est.) Industrial production: growth rate -1% (1992 est.) Electricity: capacity: 2,864,000,000 kW production: 11.45 trillion kWh consumption per capita: 2,150 kWh (1990) Industries: industry worldwide is dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces, and the technological gap between the industrial nations and the less-developed countries continues to widen; the rapid development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems Agriculture: the production of major food crops has increased substantially in the last 20 years; the annual production of cereals, for instance, has risen by 50%, from about 1.2 billion metric tons to about 1.8 billion metric tons; production increases have resulted mainly from increased yields rather than increases in planted areas; while global production is sufficient for aggregate demand, about one-fifth of the world's population remains malnourished, primarily because local production cannot adequately provide for large and rapidly growing populations, which are too poor to pay for food imports; conditions are especially bad in Africa where drought in recent years has intensified the consequences of overpopulation Economic aid: $NA

@World, Communications

Railroads:
239,430 km of narrow gauge track; 710,754 km of standard gauge track;
251,153 km of broad gauge track; includes about 190,000 to 195,000 km
of electrified routes of which 147,760 km are in Europe, 24,509 km in
the Far East, 11,050 km in Africa, 4,223 km in South America, and only
4,160 km in North America; fastest speed in daily service is 300 km/hr
attained by France's SNCF TGV-Atlantique line
Highways:
total:
NA
paved:
NA
unpaved:
NA
Ports:
Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille,
New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama
Merchant marine:
23,943 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 397,225,000 GRT/652,025,000
DWT, bulk carrier 5,473, freighter 12,581, passenger-cargo 347, tanker
5,542 (all data as of January 1992)

@World, Defense Forces

Branches:
ground, maritime, and air forces at all levels of technology
Defense expenditures:
somewhat less than $1.0 trillion, 3% of total world output; decline of
5%-10% (1993 est.)

@Yemen, Geography

Location:
Middle East, along the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, south of Saudi
Arabia
Map references:
Africa, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
527,970 sq km
land area:
527,970 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
note:
includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North
Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or
South Yemen)
Land boundaries:
total 1,746 km, Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km
Coastline:
1,906 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
18 nm in the North; 24 nm in the South
continental shelf:
200-m depth in the North; 200 nm in the South or to the edge of the
continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
undefined section of boundary with Saudi Arabia; a treaty with Oman
defining the Yemeni-Omani boundary was ratified in December 1992
Climate:
mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western
mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry,
harsh desert in east
Terrain:
narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains;
dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert
interior of the Arabian Peninsula
Natural resources:
petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble, small deposits of coal, gold,
lead, nickel, and copper, fertile soil in west
Land use:
arable land:
6%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
30%
forest and woodland:
7%
other:
57%
Irrigated land:
3,100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
scarcity of natural freshwater resources (shortages of potable water);
overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
natural hazards:
subject to sandstorms and dust storms in summer
international agreements:
party to - Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea; signed, but not
ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change
Note:
controls Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of
Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes

@Yemen, People

Population:
11,105,202 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.34% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
50.72 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
14.94 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-2.44 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
112.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
51.47 years
male:
50.34 years
female:
52.65 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
7.2 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Yemeni(s)
adjective:
Yemeni
Ethnic divisions:
predominantly Arab; Afro-Arab concentrations in coastal locations;
South Asians in southern regions; small European communities in major
metropolitan areas; 60,000 (est.) Somali refugees encamped near Aden
Religions:
Muslim including Sha'fi (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shi'a), Jewish, Christian,
Hindu
Languages:
Arabic
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
38%
male:
53%
female:
26%
Labor force:
no reliable estimates exist, most people are employed in agriculture
and herding or as expatriate laborers; services, construction,
industry, and commerce account for less than half of the labor force

@Yemen, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Yemen
conventional short form:
Yemen
local long form:
Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah
local short form:
Al Yaman
Digraph:
YM
Type:
republic
Capital:
Sanaa
Administrative divisions:
17 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, Adan, Al
Bayda, Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Dhamar, Hadramaut,
Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Marib, Sadah, Sana, Shabwah, Taizz
note:
there may be a new capital district of Sana
Independence:
22 May 1990 Republic of Yemen was established on 22 May 1990 with the
merger of the Yemen Arab Republic {Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen} and
the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen {Yemen
(Aden) or South Yemen}; previously North Yemen had become independent
on NA November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had
become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)
National holiday:
Proclamation of the Republic, 22 May (1990)
Constitution:
16 May 1991
Legal system:
based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common law, and local
customary law; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president
of North Yemen); note - Sanaa dismissed Vice President Ali Salim
al-BIDH, Prime Minister Haydar Abu Bakr al-ATTAS (the former
president of South Yemen), and 14 other southern officials following
the outbreak of civil war on 4 May 1994
five-member Presidential Council:
president, vice president, two members from General People's Congress
party, two members from Yemeni Socialist Party, and one member from
Yemeni Grouping for Reform, or Islaah party
cabinet:
Council of Ministers
Legislative branch:
unicameral
House of Representatives:
elections last held 27 April 1993 (next to be held NA); results -
percent of vote NA; seats - (301 total) GPC 124, YSP 55, Islaah 61,
Ba'thist parties 7, Nasserist parties 4, Hizb al-Haqq 2, Independents
47, election nullified 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Ba'thist parties; General People's Congress (GPC), Ali Abdallah SALIH;
Hizb al Haqq, Ibrahim al-WAZIR, Sheikh Ahmad ibn Ali SHAMI (Secretary
General); Nasserist parties; Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP), Ali Salim
al-BIDH; Yemeni Grouping for Reform or Islaah, Shaykh Abdallah bin
Husayn al-AHMAR
Other political or pressure groups:
NA
Member of:
ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB,
IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM,
OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Muhsin Ahmad AL-AYNI
chancery:
Suite 705, 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone:
(202) 965-4760 or 4761
FAX:
(202) 337-2017
consulate general(s):
Detroit
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Arthur H. HUGHES
embassy:
Dhahr Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa
mailing address:
P. O. Box 22347 Sanaa or Sanaa, Department of State, Washington, DC
20521-6330
telephone:
(1) 238-842 through 238-852
FAX:
(1) 251-563
Flag:
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; similar
to the flag of Syria which has two green stars and of Iraq which has
three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line
centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which
has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band

@Yemen, Economy

Overview:
Whereas the northern city Sanaa is the political capital of a united
Yemen, the southern city Aden, with its refinery and port facilities,
is the economic and commercial capital. Future economic development
depends heavily on Western-assisted development of its moderate oil
resources. Former South Yemen's willingness to merge stemmed partly
from the steady decline in Soviet economic support. The low level of
domestic industry and agriculture have made northern Yemen dependent
on imports for practically all of its essential needs. Large trade
deficits have been compensated for by remittances from Yemenis working
abroad and by foreign aid. Because of the Gulf crisis, remittances
have dropped substantially. Once self-sufficient in food production,
northern Yemen has become a major importer. Land once used for export
crops - cotton, fruit, and vegetables - has been turned over to
growing a shrub called qat, whose leaves are chewed for their
stimulant effect by Yemenis and which has no significant export
market. Economic growth in former South Yemen has been constrained by
a lack of incentives, partly stemming from centralized control over
production decisions, investment allocation, and import choices.
Nominal growth in 1994-95 is apt to be under 3% annually because of
low oil prices and political deadlock that is causing a lack of
economic cooperation and leadership.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $9 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
3.1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
55% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
30% (December 1992)
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$695 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
crude oil, cotton, coffee, hides, vegetables, dried and salted fish
partners:
Italy 55%, US 32%, Jordan 5% (1991)
Imports:
$1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
textiles and other manufactured consumer goods, petroleum products,
sugar, grain, flour, other foodstuffs, cement, machinery, chemicals
partners:
UAE 6%, Japan 6%, Saudi Arabia 6%, Kuwait 6%, US 6% (1991)
External debt:
$7 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%, accounts for 18% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
714,000 kW
production:
1.224 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
120 kWh (1992)
Industries:
crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of
cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small
aluminum products factory; cement
Agriculture:
accounted for 26% of GDP; products - grain, fruits, vegetables, qat
(mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton, dairy, poultry, meat, fish;
not self-sufficient in grain
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $389 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.2 billion; Communist
countries (1970-89), $2.4 billion
Currency:
Yemeni rial (new currency); 1 North Yemeni riyal (YR) = 100 fils; 1
South Yemeni dinar (YD) = 1,000 fils
note:
following the establishment of the Republic of Yemen on 22 May 1990,
the North Yemeni riyal and the South Yemeni dinar are to be replaced
with a new Yemeni rial
Exchange rates:
Yemeni rials per US$1 - 12.0 (official); 70 (market rate, April 1994)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Yemen, Communications

Highways:
total:
15,500 km
paved:
4,000 km
unpaved:
natural surface 11,500 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 644 km; petroleum products 32 km
Ports:
Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Khalf, Al Mukalla, Mocha, Nishtun, Ra's Kathib,
Salif
Merchant marine:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,309 GRT/6,568 DWT, cargo 2, oil
tanker 1
Airports:
total:
46
usable:
40
with permanent-surface runways:
10
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
18
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
11
Telecommunications:
since unification in 1990, efforts are still being made to create a
national domestic civil telecommunications network; the network
consists of microwave radio relay, cable and troposcatter; 65,000
telephones (est.); broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 10 TV; satellite
earth stations - 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1
Intersputnik, 2 ARABSAT; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia, and
Djibouti

@Yemen, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, Police
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 2,142,519; fit for military service 1,219,985; reach
military age (14) annually 137,497 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $762 million, 14% of GDP (1992)

@Zaire, Geography

Location:
Central Africa, between Congo and Zambia
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
2,345,410 sq km
land area:
2,267,600 sq km
comparative area:
slightly more than one-quarter the size of US
Land boundaries:
total 10,271 km, Angola 2,511 km, Burundi 233 km, Central African
Republic 1,577 km, Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Uganda
765 km, Zambia 1,930 km
Coastline:
37 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
Tanzania-Zaire-Zambia tripoint in Lake Tanganyika may no longer be
indefinite since it is reported that the indefinite section of the
Zaire-Zambia boundary has been settled; long section with Congo along
the Congo River is indefinite (no division of the river or its islands
has been made)
Climate:
tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in
southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of
Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to
February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season
April to October
Terrain:
vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east
Natural resources:
cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold,
silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite,
iron ore, coal, hydropower potential
Land use:
arable land:
3%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
4%
forest and woodland:
78%
other:
15%
Irrigated land:
100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution;
deforestation
natural hazards:
periodic droughts in south
international agreements:
party to - Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Tropical Timber; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Environmental Modification
Note:
straddles Equator; very narrow strip of land that controls the lower
Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical
rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands

@Zaire, People

Population:
42,684,091 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.17% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
48.39 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
16.74 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
110.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
47.4 years
male:
45.57 years
female:
49.29 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.7 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Zairian(s)
adjective:
Zairian
Ethnic divisions:
over 200 African ethnic groups, the majority are Bantu; four largest
tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande
(Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population
Religions:
Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other
syncretic sects and traditional beliefs 10%
Languages:
French, Lingala, Swahili, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
72%
male:
84%
female:
61%
Labor force:
15 million (13% of the labor force is wage earners; 51% of the
population is of working age)
by occupation:
agriculture 75%, industry 13%, services 12% (1985)

@Zaire, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Zaire
conventional short form:
Zaire
local long form:
Republique du Zaire
local short form:
Zaire
former:
Belgian Congo Congo/Leopoldville Congo/Kinshasa
Digraph:
CG
Type:
republic with a strong presidential system
Capital:
Kinshasa
Administrative divisions:
10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 town* (ville); Bandundu,
Bas-Zaire, Equateur, Haut-Zaire, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental,
Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Shaba, Sud-Kivu
Independence:
30 June 1960 (from Belgium)
National holiday:
Anniversary of the Regime (Second Republic), 24 November (1965)
Constitution:
24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978; amended
April 1990; new transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994
Legal system:
based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga (since 24
November 1965) election last held 29 July 1984 (next to be scheduled
by High Council, the opposition-controlled transition legislature);
results - President MOBUTU was reelected without opposition
head of government:
Prime Minister Etienne TSHISEKEDI (since NA 1993); note - de facto
executive authority is exercised by President MOBUTU
cabinet:
National Executive Council; appointed by the president on
recommendation of the prime minister
Legislative branch:
unicameral
parliament:
a single body consisting of the High Council of the Republic and the
Parliament of the Transition with membership equally divided between
presidential supporters and opponents
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Political parties and leaders:
sole legal party until January 1991 - Popular Movement of the
Revolution (MPR); other parties include Union for Democracy and Social
Progress (UDPS), Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba; Democratic Social
Christian Party (PDSC), Joseph ILEO; Union of Federalists and
Independent Republicans (UFERI), NGUZ a Karl-I-Bond; Unified Lumumbast
Party (PALU), Antoine GIZENGA
Member of:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT,
IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT,
INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador TATANENE Manata
chancery:
1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone:
(202) 234-7690 or 7691
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
(vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission John YATES
embassy:
310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa
mailing address:
Unit 31550, Kinshasha; APO AE 09828
telephone:
(12) 21532, 21628
FAX:
(12) 21232 or 21534/5, ext. 2308
consulate(s) general:
Lubumbashi (closed and evacuated in October 1991 because of the poor
security situation)
Flag:
light green with a yellow disk in the center bearing a black arm
holding a red flaming torch; the flames of the torch are blowing away
from the hoist side; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

@Zaire, Economy

Overview:
Zaire's economy has continued to disintegrate. While meaningful
economic figures are difficult to come by, Zaire's hyperinflation, the
largest government deficit ever, and plunging mineral production have
made the country one of the world's poorest. Most formal transactions
are conducted in hard currency as indigenous banknotes have lost
almost all value, and a barter economy now flourishes in all but the
largest cities. Most individuals and families hang on grimly through
subsistence farming and petty trade. The government has not been able
to meet its financial obligations to the International Momentary Fund
or put in place the financial measures advocated by the IMF. Although
short-term prospects for improvement are dim, improved political
stability would boost Zaire's long-term potential to effectively
exploit its vast wealth of mineral and agricultural resources.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $21 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-6% (1992 est.)
National product per capita:
$500 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
35%-40% per month (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$1.5 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
copper, coffee, diamonds, cobalt, crude oil
partners:
US, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, UK, Japan, South Africa
Imports:
$1.2 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
consumer goods, foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport
equipment, fuels
partners:
South Africa, US, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK
External debt:
$9.2 billion (May 1992 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%
Electricity:
capacity:
2,580,000 kW
production:
6 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
160 kWh (1991)
Industries:
mining, mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles,
footwear, and cigarettes), processed foods and beverages, cement,
diamonds
Agriculture:
cash crops - coffee, palm oil, rubber, quinine; food crops - cassava,
bananas, root crops, corn
Illicit drugs:
illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.1 billion; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $6.9
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $35 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $263 million
note:
except for humanitarian aid to private organizations, no US assistance
was given to Zaire in 1992
Currency:
1 zaire (Z) = 100 makuta
Exchange rates:
zaire (Z) per US$1 - 7,915,000 (September 1993), 1,990,000 (1992),
15,587 (1991), 719 (1990), 381 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Zaire, Communications

Railroads:
5,254 km total; 3,968 km 1.067-meter gauge (851 km electrified); 125
km 1.000-meter gauge; 136 km 0.615-meter gauge; 1,025 km 0.600-meter
gauge; limited trackage in use because of civil strife
Highways:
total:
146,500 km
paved:
2,800 km
unpaved:
gravel, improved earth 46,200 km; unimproved earth 97,500 km
Inland waterways:
15,000 km including the Congo, its tributaries, and unconnected lakes
Pipelines:
petroleum products 390 km
Ports:
Matadi, Boma, Banana
Merchant marine:
1 passenger cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 15,489 GRT/13,481
DWT
Airports:
total:
278
usable:
233
with permanent-surface runways:
25
with runways over 3,659 m:
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
6
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
72
Telecommunications:
barely adequate wire and microwave service; broadcast stations - 10
AM, 4 FM, 18 TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT,
14 domestic

@Zaire, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary National Gendarmerie, Civil Guard,
Special Presidential Division
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 9,178,659; fit for military service 4,674,819
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $49 million, 0.8% of GDP (1988)

@Zambia, Geography

Location:
Southern Africa, between Zaire and Zimbabwe
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
752,610 sq km
land area:
740,720 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Texas
Land boundaries:
total 5,664 km, Angola 1,110 km, Malawi 837 km, Mozambique 419 km,
Namibia 233 km, Tanzania 338 km, Zaire 1,930 km, Zimbabwe 797 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
quadripoint with Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe is in disagreement;
Tanzania-Zaire-Zambia tripoint in Lake Tanganyika may no longer be
indefinite since it is reported that the indefinite section of the
Zaire-Zambia boundary has been settled
Climate:
tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April)
Terrain:
mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains
Natural resources:
copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium,
hydropower potential
Land use:
arable land:
7%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
47%
forest and woodland:
27%
other:
19%
Irrigated land:
320 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
poaching seriously threatens rhinoceros and elephant populations;
deforestation; soil erosion; desertification
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of
the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
Note:
landlocked

@Zambia, People

Population: 9,188,190 (July 1994 est.) Population growth rate: 2.83% (1994 est.) Birth rate: 45.99 births/1,000 population (1994 est.) Death rate: 17.65 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.) Net migration rate: -0.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.) Infant mortality rate: 85 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 44.18 years male: 43.82 years female: 44.54 years (1994 est.) Total fertility rate: 6.68 children born/woman (1994 est.) Nationality: noun: Zambian(s) adjective: Zambian Ethnic divisions: African 98.7%, European 1.1%, other 0.2% Religions: Christian 50-75%, Muslim and Hindu 24-49%, indigenous beliefs 1% Languages: English (official) note: about 70 indigenous languages Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 73% male: 81% female: 65% Labor force: 2.455 million by occupation: agriculture 85%, mining, manufacturing, and construction 6%, transport and services 9%

@Zambia, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Zambia
conventional short form:
Zambia
former:
Northern Rhodesia
Digraph:
ZA
Type:
republic
Capital:
Lusaka
Administrative divisions:
9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern,
North-Western, Southern, Western
Independence:
24 October 1964 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 October (1964)
Constitution:
2 August 1991
Legal system:
based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of
legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Frederick CHILUBA (since 31 October 1991); Vice President
Levy MWANAWASA (since 31 October 1991); election last held 31 October
1991 (next to be held in 1996); results - Frederick CHILUBA 84%,
Kenneth KAUNDA 16%
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president from members of the National
Assembly
Legislative branch:
unicameral
National Assembly:
elections last held 31 October 1991 (next to be held in 1996); results
- percent of vote by party NA; seats - (150 total) MMD 125, UNIP 25;
note - the MMD's majority was weakened by the defection of 13 of its
parliamentary members during 1993 and the defeat of its candidates in
4 of the resulting by-elections
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD), Frederick CHILUBA; United
National Independence Party (UNIP), Kebby MUSOKATWANE; National Party
(NP), Inonge MBIKUSITA-LEWANIKA;
Member of:
ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, FLS, G-19, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFTU, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU,
LORCS, NAM, OAU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMOZ, UNOSOM, UPU,
WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Dunstan Weston KAMANA
chancery:
2419 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
(202) 265-9717 through 9721
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Roland KUCHEL
embassy:
corner of Independence Avenue and United Nations Avenue, Lusaka
mailing address:
P. O. Box 31617, Lusaka
telephone:
[260-1] 228-595, 228-601, 228-602, 228-603
FAX:
[260-1] 261-538
Flag:
green with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoist side), black,
and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outer edge of the flag

@Zambia, Economy

Overview:
The economy has been in decline for more than a decade with falling
imports and growing foreign debt. Economic difficulties stem from a
chronically depressed level of copper production and ineffective
economic policies. In 1991 real GDP fell by 2% and in 1992 by 3% more.
An annual population growth of 3% has brought a decline in per capita
GDP of 50% over the past decade. A high inflation rate has also added
to Zambia's economic woes in recent years.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $7.3 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
-2.8% (1992)
National product per capita:
$800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
191% (1992)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues:
$665 million
expenditures:
$767 million, including capital expenditures of $300 million (1991
est.)
Exports:
$1 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
copper, zinc, cobalt, lead, tobacco
partners:
EC countries, Japan, South Africa, US, India
Imports:
$1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1992 est.)
commodities:
machinery, transportation equipment, foodstuffs, fuels, manufactures
partners:
EC countries, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, US
External debt:
$7.6 billion (1991)
Industrial production:
growth rate -2% (1991); accounts for 40% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
2,775,000 kW
production:
12 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
1,400 kWh (1991)
Industries:
copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages,
chemicals, textiles, and fertilizer
Agriculture:
accounts for 12% of GDP and 85% of labor force; crops - corn (food
staple), sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower, tobacco, cotton,
sugarcane, cassava; cattle, goats, beef, eggs
Illicit drugs:
role as regional transshipment center for mandrax and heroin
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (1970-89), $4.8 billion; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $4.8
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $60 million; Communist
countries (1970-89), $533 million
Currency:
1 Zambian kwacha (ZK) = 100 ngwee
Exchange rates:
Zambian kwacha (ZK) per US$1 - 344.8276 (October 1993), 156.25 (1992),
61.7284 (1991), 28.9855 (1990), 12.9032 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

@Zambia, Communications

Railroads:
1,266 km, all 1.067-meter gauge; 13 km double track
Highways:
total:
36,370 km
paved:
6,500 km
unpaved:
crushed stone, gravel, stabilized earth 7,000 km; improved, unimproved
earth 22,870 km
Inland waterways:
2,250 km, including Zambezi and Luapula Rivers, Lake Tanganyika
Pipelines:
crude oil 1,724 km
Ports:
Mpulungu (lake port)
Airports:
total:
113
usable:
103
with permanent-surface runways:
13
with runways over 3,659 m:
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
4
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
22
Telecommunications:
facilities are among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa; high-capacity
microwave connects most larger towns and cities; broadcast stations -
11 AM, 5 FM, 9 TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT
and 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT

@Zambia, Defense Forces

Branches:
Army, Air Force, Police
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 1,882,053; fit for military service 988,913
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $45 million, 1% of GDP (1992 est.)

@Zimbabwe, Geography

Location:
Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
390,580 sq km
land area:
386,670 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than Montana
Land boundaries:
total 3,066 km, Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225
km, Zambia 797 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
quadripoint with Botswana, Namibia, and Zambia is in disagreement
Climate:
tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)
Terrain:
mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains
in east
Natural resources:
coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore,
vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals
Land use:
arable land:
7%
permanent crops:
NA% (coffee is a permanent crop)
meadows and pastures:
12%
forest and woodland:
62%
other:
NA%
Irrigated land:
2,200 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution
natural hazards:
recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare
international agreements:
party to - Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea; signed,
but not ratified - Biodiversity
Note:
landlocked

@Zimbabwe, People

Population:
10,975,078 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.2% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
37.24 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
18.1 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-7.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
7.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
tatal population:
42.06 years
male:
40.44 years
female:
43.74 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
5.1 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Zimbabwean(s)
adjective:
Zimbabwean
Ethnic divisions:
African 98% (Shona 71%, Ndebele 16%, other 11%), white 1%, mixed and
Asian 1%
Religions:
syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian
25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1%
Languages:
English (official), Shona, Sindebele
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.);
total population:
67%
male:
74%
female:
60%
Labor force:
3.1 million
by occupation:
agriculture 74%, transport and services 16%, mining, manufacturing,
construction 10% (1987)

@Zimbabwe, Government

Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Zimbabwe
conventional short form:
Zimbabwe
former:
Southern Rhodesia
Digraph:
ZI
Type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
Harare
Administrative divisions:
8 provinces; Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East,
Mashonaland West, Masvingo (Victoria), Matabeleland North,
Matabeleland South, Midlands
Independence:
18 April 1980 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 18 April (1980)
Constitution:
21 December 1979
Legal system:
mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987);
Co-Vice President Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987);
Co-Vice President Joshua M. NKOMO (since 6 August 1990); election last
held 28-30 March 1990 (next to be held NA March 1996); results -
Robert MUGABE 78.3%, Edgar TEKERE 21.7%
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president; responsible to Parliament
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Parliament:
elections last held 28-30 March 1990 (next to be held NA March 1995);
results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (150 total, 120
elected) ZANU-PF 117, ZUM 2, ZANU-S 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), Robert
MUGABE; Zimbabwe African National Union-Sithole (ZANU-S), Ndabaningi
SITHOLE; Zimbabwe Unity Movement (ZUM), Edgar TEKERE and Abel
MUYOREWA; Democratic Party (DP), Emmanuel MAGOCHE; Forum Party, Enock
DUMBUTSHENA
Member of:
ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, FLS, G-15, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAVEM II,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMUR, UNOSOM, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Amos Bernard Muvengwa MIDZI
chancery:
1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone:
(202) 332-7100
FAX:
(202) 483-9326
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Edward Gibson LANPHER
embassy:
172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare
mailing address:
P. O. Box 3340, Harare
telephone:
(4) 794-521
FAX:
(4) 796-488
Flag:
seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red,
yellow, and green with a white equilateral triangle edged in black
based on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a
red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle