FAX: (1) 789-719

Flag description: 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

Economy - overview: Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Governmental control of economic affairs while still heavy has gradually lessened over the past decade with increasing privatization, simplification of the tax structure, and a prudent approach to debt. Real growth averaged 5.5% in the past four years, and inflation is slowing. Growth in tourism and increased trade have been key elements in this steady growth. Tunisia's association agreement with the European Union entered into force on 1 March 1998, the first such accord between the EU and Mediterranean countries to be activated. Under the agreement Tunisia will gradually remove barriers to trade with the EU over the next decade. Broader privatization, further liberalization of the investment code to increase foreign investment, and improvements in government efficiency are among the challenges for the future.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $62.8 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 5% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 14%

industry: 32%

services: 54% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line: 6% (2000 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.3%

highest 10%: 30.7% (1990)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3% (2000 est.)

Labor force: 2.65 million (2000 est.)

note: shortage of skilled labor

Labor force - by occupation: services 55%, industry 23%, agriculture 22% (1995 est.)

Unemployment rate: 15.6% (2000 est.)

Budget: revenues: $7.5 billion

expenditures: $8.1 billion, including capital expenditures to $1.6 billion (2000 est.)

Industries: petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, food, beverages

Industrial production growth rate: 4.1% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 9.173 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 99.2%

hydro: 0.8%

nuclear: 0%

other: 0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption: 8.677 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports: 19 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports: 165 million kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products: olives, olive oil, grain, dairy products, tomatoes, citrus fruit, beef, sugar beets, dates, almonds

Exports: $6.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities: textiles, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, agricultural products, hydrocarbons

Exports - partners: Germany 28%, France 22%, Italy 17%, Belgium 5%,
Libya 4% (1999)

Imports: $8.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, food

Imports - partners: France 23%, Germany 23%, Italy 15%, Belgium 3% (1999)

Debt - external: $13 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $933.2 million (1995); note - ODA, $90 million (1998 est.)

Currency: Tunisian dinar (TND)

Currency code: TND

Exchange rates: Tunisian dinars per US dollar - 1.3753 (January 2001), 1.4667 (November 2000), 1.1862 (1999), 1.1387 (1998), 1.1059 (1997), 0.9734 (1996)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Tunisia Communications

Telephones - main lines in use: 654,000 (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 50,000 (1998)

Telephone system: general assessment: above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; Internet access available

domestic: trunk facilities consist of open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay

international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel; two international gateway digital switches

Radio broadcast stations: AM 7, FM 20, shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios: 2.06 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 26 (plus 76 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions: 920,000 (1997)

Internet country code: .tn

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)

Internet users: 110,000 (2000)

Tunisia Transportation

Railways: total: 2,168 km

standard gauge: 471 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge: 1,687 km 1.000-m gauge

dual gauge: 10 km 1.000-m and 1.435-m gauges (three rails)

Highways: total: 23,100 km

paved: 18,226 km

unpaved: 4,874 km (1996)

Waterways: none

Pipelines: crude oil 797 km; petroleum products 86 km; natural gas 742 km

Ports and harbors: Bizerte, Gabes, La Goulette, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis,
Zarzis

Merchant marine: total: 15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 149,554 GRT/156,861 DWT

ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.)

Airports: 32 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 15

over 3,047 m: 3

2,438 to 3,047 m: 6

1,524 to 2,437 m: 3

914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 17

1,524 to 2,437 m: 2

914 to 1,523 m: 8

under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.)

Tunisia Military

Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces,
National Guard

Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,739,566 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 1,561,484 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 105,146 (2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $356 million (FY99)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.5% (FY99)

Tunisia Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: none

@Turkey

Turkey Introduction

Background: Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN and in 1952 it became a member of NATO. Turkey occupied the northern portion of Cyprus in 1974 to prevent a Greek takeover of the island; relations between the two countries remain strained. Periodic military offensives against Kurdish separatists have dislocated part of the population in southeast Turkey and have drawn international condemnation.

Turkey Geography

Location: southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria

Geographic coordinates: 39 00 N, 35 00 E

Map references: Middle East

Area: total: 780,580 sq km

land: 770,760 sq km

water: 9,820 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly larger than Texas

Land boundaries: total: 2,627 km

border countries: 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 Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea

Climate: temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior

Terrain: mostly mountains; narrow coastal plain; high central plateau (Anatolia)

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m

highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m

Natural resources: antimony, coal, chromium, mercury, copper, borate, sulfur, iron ore, arable land, hydropower

Land use: arable land: 32%

permanent crops: 4%

permanent pastures: 16%

forests and woodland: 26%

other: 22% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 36,740 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: very severe earthquakes, especially in northern
Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van

Environment - current issues: water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic

Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Environmental Modification

Geography - note: strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits
(Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean
Seas

Turkey People

Population: 66,493,970 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 28.42% (male 9,620,291; female 9,276,347)

15-64 years: 65.45% (male 22,116,599; female 21,401,165)

65 years and over: 6.13% (male 1,878,571; female 2,200,997) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.24% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 18.31 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 5.95 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female

total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 47.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.24 years

male: 68.89 years

female: 73.71 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.12 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.01% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA

Nationality: noun: Turk(s)

adjective: Turkish

Ethnic groups: Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20%

Religions: Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (Christian and
Jews)

Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 85%

male: 94%

female: 77% (2000)

Turkey Government

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Turkey

conventional short form: Turkey

local long form: Turkiye Cumhuriyeti

local short form: Turkiye

Government type: republican parliamentary democracy

Capital: Ankara

Administrative divisions: 80 provinces (iller, singular - il);
Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya,
Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik,
Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum,
Denizli, Diyarbakir, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir,
Gaziantep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Icel, Igdir, Isparta,
Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu,
Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya,
Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu,
Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak,
Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat,
Zonguldak; note - there may be another province called Duzce

Independence: 29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)

National holiday: Independence Day, 29 October (1923)

Constitution: 7 November 1982

Legal system: derived from various European continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President Ahmed Necdet SEZER (since 16 May 2000)

head of government: Prime Minister Bulent ECEVIT (since 11 January 1999)

cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister

note: there is also a National Security Council that serves as an advisory body to the president and the cabinet

elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a seven-year term; election last held 5 May 2000 (next scheduled to be held NA May 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president

election results: Ahmed Necdet SEZER elected president on the third ballot; percent of National Assembly vote - 60%

note: president must have a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly on the first two ballots and a simple majority on the third ballot

Legislative branch: unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi (550 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections: last held 18 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)

election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - DSP 136, MHP 130, FP 110, DYP 86, ANAP 88; note - as of 7 March 2000 seating was DSP 136, MHP 127, FP 103, DYP 85, ANAP 88 independents 6, vacancies 5

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeals (judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors)

Political parties and leaders: Democratic Left Party or DSP [Bulent ECEVIT]; Motherland Party or ANAP [Mesut YILMAZ]; Nationalist Action Party or MHP [Devlet BAHCELI]; True Path Party or DYP [Tansu CILLER]; Virtue Party or FP [Recai KUTAN]; note - in June 2001, Turkey's Constitutional Court banned the party; its representatives (except for two) can stay on in the Grand National Assembly as independents

note: Welfare Party or RP [Necmettin ERBAKAN] was officially outlawed on 22 February 1998

Political pressure groups and leaders: Confederation of
Revolutionary Workers Unions or DISK [Ridvan BUDAK]; Independent
Industrialists and Businessmen's Association or MUSIAD [Erol YARAR];
Moral Rights Workers Union or Hak-Is [Salim USLU]; Turkish
Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TUSIAD [Muharrem
KAYHAN]; Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions or TISK [Refik
BAYDUR]; Turkish Confederation of Labor or Turk-Is [Bayram MERAL];
Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity Exchanges or
TOBB [Fuat MIRAS]

International organization participation: AsDB, Australia Group,
BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, EU
(applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD,
OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM,
UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTAET, UPU, WEU (associate), WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Baki ILKIN

chancery: 2525 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone: (202) 612-6700