← The 2006 CIA World Factbook, Volume 2
Gwp (part 13)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and yellow fever are high risks in
some locations
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: Lassa fever (2005)
Nationality:
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean
Ethnic groups:
20 African ethnic groups 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%),
Creole (Krio) 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were
settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century), refugees
from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans,
Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians
Religions:
Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10%
Languages:
English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende
(principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in
the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of
freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a
lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but
understood by 95%)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende,
Temne, or Arabic
total population: 29.6%
male: 39.8%
female: 20.5% (2000 est.)
Government Sierra Leone
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone
local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
local short form: Sierra Leone
Government type:
constitutional democracy
Capital:
name: Freetown
geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western*
Independence:
27 April 1961 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 27 April (1961)
Constitution:
1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times
Legal system:
based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996,
reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of
state and head of government
head of government: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March
1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the
chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the
approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible
to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 14 May 2002 (next
to be held 28 July 2007)
election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH reelected president; percent of
vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 70.6%, Ernest KOROMA (APC) 22.4%
Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament (124 seats - 112 elected by popular vote, 12
filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members
serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held May 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 70.06%, APC
22.35%, PLP 3%, others 4.59%; seats by party - SLPP 83, APC 27, PLP 2
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court
Political parties and leaders:
All People's Congress or APC [Ben KANU]; Peace and Liberation Party
or PLP [Darlington MORRISON, interim chairman]; Sierra Leone
People's Party or SLPP [Sama BANYA]; numerous others
Political pressure groups and leaders:
trade unions and student unions
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ibrahim M. KAMARA
chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: (202) 939-9261 through 9263
FAX: (202) 483-1793
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas N. HULL embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: (22) 226481 through 226485 FAX: (22) 225471
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light
blue
Economy Sierra Leone
Economy - overview:
Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous
inequality in income distribution. While it possesses substantial
mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources, its economic and
social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social
disorders continue to hamper economic development. About two-thirds
of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture.
Manufacturing consists mainly of the processing of raw materials and
of light manufacturing for the domestic market. Alluvial diamond
mining remains the major source of hard currency earnings,
accounting for nearly half of Sierra Leone's exports. The fate of
the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the
continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad, which is essential
to offset the severe trade imbalance and supplement government
revenues. The IMF has completed a Poverty Reduction and Growth
Facility program that helped stabilize economic growth and reduce
inflation. A recent increase in political stability has led to a
revival of economic activity, such as the rehabilitation of bauxite
mining.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$4.939 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.128 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
7.5% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$800 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 49% industry: 31% services: 21% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 1.369 million (1981 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Population below poverty line:
68% (1989 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 0.5% highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
62.9 (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1% (2002 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2000 est.)
Agriculture - products:
rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry,
cattle, sheep, pigs; fish
Industries:
diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles,
cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship
repair
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
260.6 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
242.4 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
0.8361 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
6,510 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Exports:
$185 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish
Exports - partners:
Belgium 66.2%, Germany 13.5%, US 4.6% (2005)
Imports:
$531 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals
Imports - partners:
Germany 18.9%, Cote d'Ivoire 11.2%, UK 8.5%, US 6.9%, China 5.6%,
Netherlands 5.4%, South Africa 4.1% (2005)
Debt - external:
$1.61 billion (2003 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$297.4 million (2003 est.)
Currency (code):
leone (SLL)
Currency code:
SLL
Exchange rates:
leones per US dollar - 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9
(2003), 2,099 (2002), 1,986.2 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Sierra Leone
Telephones - main lines in use:
24,000 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
113,200 (2003)
Telephone system:
general assessment: marginal telephone and telegraph service
domestic: the national microwave radio relay trunk system connects
Freetown to Bo and Kenema
international: country code - 232; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999)
Radios:
1.12 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
2 (1999)
Televisions:
53,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.sl
Internet hosts:
20 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2001)
Internet users:
10,000 (2005)
Transportation Sierra Leone
Airports: 10 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Heliports:
2 (2006)
Roadways: total: 11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (2002)
Waterways:
800 km (600 km year round) (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 54 ships (1000 GRT or over) 185,037 GRT/249,996 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 36, chemical tanker 3, combination
ore/oil 3, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1,
passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 2
foreign-owned: 14 (China 2, Cyprus 1, Egypt 1, Russia 1, Syria 1,
UAE 3, Ukraine 4, US 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Freetown, Pepel, Sherbro Islands
Military Sierra Leone
Military branches:
Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air
Wing, Maritime Wing)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,086,091 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 539,697 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$14.25 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.7% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues Sierra Leone
Disputes - international:
domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth
gangs in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone perpetuate
insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic
conflicts, and refugees in border areas; UN Mission in Sierra Leone
(UNAMSIL) has maintained over 4,000 peacekeepers in Sierra Leone
since 1999; Sierra Leone pressures Guinea to remove its forces from
the town of Yenga occupied since 1998
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 65,433 (Liberia) (2005)
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Singapore
Introduction Singapore
Background:
Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It
joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years
later and became independent. Singapore subsequently became one of
the world's most prosperous countries with strong international
trading links (its port is one of the world's busiest in terms of
tonnage handled) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the
leading nations of Western Europe.
Geography Singapore
Location:
Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia
Geographic coordinates:
1 22 N, 103 48 E
Map references:
Southeast Asia
Area:
total: 692.7 sq km
land: 682.7 sq km
water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
193 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: within and beyond territorial sea, as
defined in treaties and practice
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons -
Northeastern monsoon (December to March) and Southwestern monsoon
(June to September); inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early
evening thunderstorms
Terrain:
lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water catchment
area and nature preserve
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Singapore Strait 0 m
highest point: Bukit Timah 166 m
Natural resources:
fish, deepwater ports
Land use:
arable land: 1.47%
permanent crops: 1.47%
other: 97.06% (2005)
Irrigated land:
NA
Natural hazards:
NA
Environment - current issues:
industrial pollution; limited natural fresh water resources;
limited land availability presents waste disposal problems; seasonal
smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
focal point for Southeast Asian sea routes
People Singapore
Population:
4,492,150 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 15.6% (male 362,329/female 337,964)
15-64 years: 76.1% (male 1,666,709/female 1,750,736)
65 years and over: 8.3% (male 165,823/female 208,589) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 37.3 years
male: 36.9 years
female: 37.6 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.42% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
9.34 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
4.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
9.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 2.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 2.5 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 2.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 81.71 years
male: 79.13 years
female: 84.49 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.06 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
4,100 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Singaporean(s)
adjective: Singapore
Ethnic groups:
Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4% (2000 census)
Religions:
Buddhist 42.5%, Muslim 14.9%, Taoist 8.5%, Hindu 4%, Catholic 4.8%,
other Christian 9.8%, other 0.7%, none 14.8% (2000 census)
Languages:
Mandarin 35%, English 23%, Malay 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese
5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other
0.9% (2000 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.5%
male: 96.6%
female: 88.6% (2002)
Government Singapore
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Singapore
conventional short form: Singapore
local long form: Republic of Singapore
local short form: Singapore
Government type:
parliamentary republic
Capital:
name: Singapore
geographic coordinates: 1 17 N, 103 51 E
time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
none
Independence:
9 August 1965 (from Malaysian Federation)
National holiday:
National Day, 9 August (1965)
Constitution:
3 June 1959; amended 1965 (based on preindependence State of
Singapore Constitution)
Legal system:
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage:
21 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: President S. R. NATHAN (since 1 September 1999)
note: uses S. R. NATHAN but his full name and the one used in formal
communications is Sellapan RAMANATHAN
head of government: Prime Minister LEE Hsien Loong (since 12 August
2004); Deputy Prime Minister Shunmugan JAYAKUMAR (since 12 August
2004); Deputy Prime Minister WONG Kan Seng (since 1 September 2005);
Senior Minister GOH Chok Tong (since 12 August 2004); Minister
Mentor LEE Kuan Yew (since 12 August 2004)
cabinet: appointed by president, responsible to parliament
elections: president elected by popular vote for six-year term; last
appointed 17 August 2005 - see note (next election to be held by
August 2011); following legislative elections, leader of majority
party or leader of majority coalition is usually appointed prime
minister by president; deputy prime ministers appointed by president
election results: Sellapan Rama (S. R.) NATHAN appointed president
in August 2005 after Presidential Elections Committee disqualified
three other would-be candidates; scheduled election not held
Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament (84 seats; members elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms); note - in addition, there are up to nine
nominated members; the losing opposition candidate who came closest
to winning a seat may be appointed as a "nonconstituency" member
elections: last held 6 May 2006 (next to be held in 2011)
election results: percent of vote by party - PAP 66.6%, WP 16.3%,
SDA 13%, SDP 4.1%; seats by party - PAP 82, WP 1, SDA 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president with the
advice of the prime minister, other judges are appointed by the
president with the advice of the chief justice); Court of Appeals
Political parties and leaders:
People's Action Party or PAP [LEE Hsien Loong]; Singapore
Democratic Alliance or SDA [CHIAM See Tong]; Singapore Democratic
Party or SDP [CHEE Soon Juan]; Workers' Party or WP [Sylvia LIM Swee
Lian]
note: SDA includes National Solidarity Party or NSP, Singapore
Justice Party or SJP, Singapore National Malay Organization or PKMS,
Singapore People's Party or SPP
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, C, CP, EAS, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UPU,
WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador CHAN Heng Chee chancery: 3501 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 537-3100 FAX: (202) 537-0876 consulate(s) general: San Francisco consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia L. HERBOLD embassy: 27 Napier Road, Singapore 258508 mailing address: FPO AP 96507-0001 telephone: 6476-9100 FAX: 6476-9340
Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist
side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed
portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white
five-pointed stars arranged in a circle
Economy Singapore
Economy - overview:
Singapore, a highly-developed and successful free-market economy,
enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable
prices, and a per capita GDP equal to that of the four largest West
European countries. The economy depends heavily on exports,
particularly in electronics and manufacturing. It was hard hit in
2001-03 by the global recession, by the slump in the technology
sector, and by an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
(SARS) in 2003, which curbed tourism and consumer spending. The
government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less
vulnerable to the external business cycle and will continue efforts
to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech
hub. Fiscal stimulus, low interest rates, a surge in exports, and
internal flexibility led to vigorous growth in 2004, with real GDP
rising by 8% - by far the economy's best performance since 2000 -
but growth slowed to 5.7% in 2005.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$126.5 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$110.6 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6.4% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$28,600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 0% industry: 33.9% services: 66.1% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 2.28 million (September 2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: manufacturing 18%, construction 6%, transportation and communication 11%, financial, business, and other services 39%, other 26% (2003)
Unemployment rate:
3.1% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
42.5 (1998)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.4% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
21.8% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $18.67 billion
expenditures: $18.21 billion; including capital expenditures of $5.1
billion (2005 est.)
Public debt:
102.9% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs; fish,
ornamental fish
Industries:
electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment,
petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed
food and beverages, ship repair, offshore platform construction,
life sciences, entrepot trade
Industrial production growth rate:
9.5% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
36.8 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
33.2 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production:
8,290 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
800,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
5.32 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 2.5 billion cu m note: from Indonesia and Malaysia (2001 est.)
Current account balance:
$32.74 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$204.8 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods,
chemicals, mineral fuels
Exports - partners:
Malaysia 14.7%, US 11.5%, Indonesia 10.7%, Hong Kong 10.4%, China
9.5%, Japan 6%, Thailand 4.5%, Australia 4.1% (2005)
Imports:
$188.3 billion (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
Malaysia 14.4%, US 12.4%, China 10.8%, Japan 10.1%, Indonesia 5.5%,
Saudi Arabia 4.7%, South Korea 4.5% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$115.8 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$23.76 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$NA
Currency (code):
Singapore dollar (SGD)
Currency code:
SGD
Exchange rates:
Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.6644 (2005), 1.6902 (2004),
1.7422 (2003), 1.7906 (2002), 1.7917 (2001)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Communications Singapore
Telephones - main lines in use:
1.848 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
4.385 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: excellent service
domestic: excellent domestic facilities; launched 3G wireless
service in February 2005
international: country code - 65; 9 submarine cables provide direct
connection to more than 100 countries; 4 satellite earth stations,
supplemented by VSAT coverage
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 17, shortwave 2 (2003)
Radios:
2.6 million (2000)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (broadcasting on six channels); additional reception of numerous UHF and VHF signals originating in Malaysia and Indonesia; note - digital TV for reception in public spaces and transportation is transmitted from 10 sites (2006)
Televisions:
1.33 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.sg
Internet hosts:
898,762 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
9 (2000)
Internet users:
2,421,800 (2005)
Transportation Singapore
Airports: 9 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 9 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Pipelines: gas 139 km; refined products 8 km (2006)
Roadways: total: 3,234 km paved: 3,234 km (including 150 km of expressways) (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 1,063 ships (1000 GRT or over) 31,033,735 GRT/49,715,650 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 155, cargo 87, chemical tanker 136, container
214, liquefied gas 53, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1,
petroleum tanker 353, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 2,
specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 40
foreign-owned: 592 (Australia 7, Bangladesh 1, Belgium 12, China 23,
Denmark 52, Germany 9, Greece 9, Hong Kong 50, India 5, Indonesia
56, Italy 2, Japan 100, South Korea 17, Malaysia 35, Netherlands 2,
Norway 90, Philippines 5, Slovenia 1, Sweden 12, Taiwan 59, Thailand
22, UAE 7, UK 9, US 7)
registered in other countries: 285 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Bahamas
12, Belize 6, Bolivia 3, Cambodia 4, Cayman Islands 10, Cyprus 1,
Dominica 9, France 2, Honduras 11, Hong Kong 24, Indonesia 17, Isle
of Man 7, North Korea 1, Liberia 28, Malaysia 44, Marshall Islands
6, Mongolia 10, Nigeria 1, Panama 67, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines 5, Thailand 6, Tuvalu 6, US 2, unknown 2) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Singapore
Military Singapore
Military branches:
Singapore Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Republic of Singapore Air Force
(includes Air Defense) (2006)
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory military service; 16 years of age for volunteers; conscript service obligation reduced to 24 months beginning December 2004 (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,215,568 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 982,368 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$4.47 billion (FY01 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
4.9% (FY01)
Transnational Issues Singapore
Disputes - international:
disputes persist with Malaysia over deliveries of fresh water to
Singapore, Singapore's extensive land reclamation works, bridge
construction, maritime boundaries, and Pedra Branca Island/Pulau
Batu Putih - parties agree to ICJ arbitration on island dispute
within three years; Indonesia and Singapore pledged in 2005 to
finalize their 1973 maritime boundary agreement by defining
unresolved areas north of Batam Island; piracy remains a problem in
the Malacca Strait
Illicit drugs:
as a transportation and financial services hub, Singapore is
vulnerable, despite strict laws and enforcement, as a venue for
money laundering
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Slovakia
Introduction Slovakia
Background:
The dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the close of
World War I allowed the Slovaks to join the closely related Czechs
to form Czechoslovakia. Following the chaos of World War II,
Czechoslovakia became a Communist nation within Soviet-ruled Eastern
Europe. Soviet influence collapsed in 1989 and Czechoslovakia once
more became free. The Slovaks and the Czechs agreed to separate
peacefully on 1 January 1993. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU
in the spring of 2004.
Geography Slovakia
Location:
Central Europe, south of Poland
Geographic coordinates:
48 40 N, 19 30 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 48,845 sq km
land: 48,800 sq km
water: 45 sq km
Area - comparative:
about twice the size of New Hampshire
Land boundaries:
total: 1,524 km
border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677
km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Terrain:
rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in
the south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m
highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m
Natural resources:
brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and
manganese ore; salt; arable land
Land use: arable land: 29.23% permanent crops: 2.67% other: 68.1% (2005)
Irrigated land:
1,830 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
NA
Environment - current issues:
air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health
risks; acid rain damaging forests
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85,
Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
landlocked; most of the country is rugged and mountainous; the
Tatra Mountains in the north are interspersed with many scenic lakes
and valleys
People Slovakia
Population:
5,439,448 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.7% (male 465,304/female 443,967)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 1,929,448/female 1,947,735)
65 years and over: 12% (male 244,609/female 408,385) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 35.8 years
male: 34.2 years
female: 37.6 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.15% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
10.65 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
9.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.48 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.73 years
male: 70.76 years
female: 78.89 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.33 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
less than 200 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak
Ethnic groups:
Slovak 85.8%, Hungarian 9.7%, Roma 1.7%, Ruthenian/Ukrainian 1%,
other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 68.9%, Protestant 10.8%, Greek Catholic 4.1%, other
or unspecified 3.2%, none 13% (2001 census)
Languages:
Slovak (official) 83.9%, Hungarian 10.7%, Roma 1.8%, Ukrainian 1%,
other or unspecified 2.6% (2001 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.6% (2001 est.)
Government Slovakia
Country name:
conventional long form: Slovak Republic
conventional short form: Slovakia
local long form: Slovenska Republika
local short form: Slovensko
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name: Bratislava
geographic coordinates: 48 09 N, 17 07 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
Administrative divisions:
8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky,
Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky
Independence:
1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and
Slovakia)
National holiday:
Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)
Constitution:
ratified 1 September 1992, effective 1 January 1993; changed in
September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended
February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership
Legal system:
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; legal code modified
to comply with the obligations of Organization on Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal
theory
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Ivan GASPAROVIC (since 15 June 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Robert FICO (since 4 July 2006);
Deputy Prime Ministers Dusan CAPLOVIC, Robert KALINAK, Stefan
HARABIN, Jan MIKOLAJ (since 4 July 2006)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of
the prime minister
elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for a five-year
term (eligible for a second term); election last held 3 April and 17
April 2004 (next to be held April 2009); following National Council
elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a
majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the
president
election results: Ivan GASPAROVIC elected president in runoff;
percent of vote - Ivan GASPAROVIC 59.9%, Vladimir MECIAR 40.1%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic or Narodna Rada
Slovenskej Republiky (150 seats; members are elected on the basis of
proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 June 2006 (next to be held 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - Smer 29.1%, SDKU 18.4%,
SNS 11.7%, SMK 11.7%, LS-HZDS 8.8%, KDH 8.3%; seats by party - Smer
50, SDKU 31, SNS 20, SMK 20, LS-HZDS 15, KDH 14
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council);
Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of
nominees approved by the National Council); Special Court (judges
elected by a council of judges and appointed by president)
Political parties and leaders:
Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY];
Direction-Social Democracy or Smer-SD [Robert FICO]; Free Forum
[Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA];
People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or LS-HZDS
[Vladimir MECIAR]; New Citizens Alliance or ANO [Pavol RUSKO]; Party
of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; People's Union or LU
[Gustav KRAJCI]; Slovak Communist Party or KSS [Vladimir DADO];
Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA];
Slovak National Party or SNS [Jan SLOTA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Federation of Employers' Associations of the Slovak Republic;
Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade
Unions or KOZ
International organization participation:
ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI,
CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS
(observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UN Security
Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNTSO,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Rastislav KACER
chancery: 3523 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 237-1054
FAX: (202) 237-6438
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Rodolphe "Skip" M. VALLEE
embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava
mailing address: P.O. Box 309, 814 99 Bratislava
telephone: (2) 5443-3338
FAX: (2) 5443-0096
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red
superimposed with the coat of arms of Slovakia (consisting of a red
shield bordered in white and bearing a white Cross of Lorraine
surmounting three blue hills); the coat of arms is centered
vertically and offset slightly to the hoist side
Economy Slovakia
Economy - overview:
Slovakia has mastered much of the difficult transition from a
centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The DZURINDA
government made excellent progress during 2001-04 in macroeconomic
stabilization and structural reform. Major privatizations are nearly
complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign hands,
and the government has helped facilitate a foreign investment boom
with business-friendly policies, such as labor market liberalization
and a 19% flat tax. Foreign investment in the automotive sector has
been strong. Slovakia's economic growth exceeded expectations in
2001-05, despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an
unacceptable 18% in 2003-04, dropped to 16.4% in 2005, but remains
the economy's Achilles heel. Slovakia joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$88.78 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$43.07 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$16,300 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3.5% industry: 29.4% services: 67.2% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 2.24 million (30 September 2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 5.8%, industry 29.3%, construction 9%, services 55.9% (2003)
Unemployment rate:
16.4% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
At-risk-of-poverty rate after social transfers: 21%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 20.9% (1992)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
25.8 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.7% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
26% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $22.7 billion
expenditures: $23.2 billion (2005 est.)
Public debt:
42.5% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry;
forest products
Industries:
metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas,
coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery;
paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles;
textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products
Industrial production growth rate:
3.8% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
30.57 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 30.3% hydro: 16% nuclear: 53.6% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
24.8 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports:
10.59 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports:
8.731 billion kWh (2004)
Oil - production:
11,480 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption:
74,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports:
2,160 bbl/day NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
59,000 bbl/day bbl/day
Oil - proved reserves:
9 million bbl (1 January 2006)
Natural gas - production:
165 million cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
6.8 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
1 million cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
7.3 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
15.01 billion cu m (1 January 2003)
Current account balance:
$-4.066 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$30.7 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
vehicles 25.9%, machinery and electrical equipment 21.3%, base
metals 14.6%, chemicals and minerals 10.1%, plastics 5.4% (2004)
Exports - partners:
Germany 26.2%, Czech Republic 14.1%, Austria 7.1%, Italy 6.7%,
Poland 6.3%, Hungary 5.7% (2005)
Imports:
$32.9 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment 41.1%, intermediate manufactured
goods 19.3%, fuels 12.3%, chemicals 9.8%, miscellaneous manufactured
goods 10.2% (2003)
Imports - partners:
Germany 25.1%, Czech Republic 19.3%, Russia 10.5%, Austria 6.1%,
Poland 4.7%, Hungary 4.6%, Italy 4.5% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$14.97 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$26.94 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$1.9 billion in committed EU structural adjustment and cohesion
funds (2004-06)
Currency (code):
Slovak koruna (SKK)
Currency code:
SKK
Exchange rates:
koruny per US dollar - 31.018 (2005), 32.257 (2004), 36.773 (2003),
45.327 (2002), 48.355 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Slovakia
Telephones - main lines in use:
1.197 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
4.54 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: a modernization and privatization program is
increasing accessibility to telephone service, reducing the waiting
time for new subscribers, and generally improving service quality
domestic: predominantly an analog system that is now receiving
digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable,
especially in the larger cities; mobile cellular capability has been
added
international: country code - 421; three international exchanges
(one in Bratislava and two in Banska Bystrica) are available;
Slovakia is participating in several international
telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of
external services
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios:
3.12 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
6 national broadcasting, 7 regional, 67 local (2004)
Televisions:
2.62 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.sk
Internet hosts:
210,758 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
6 (2000)
Internet users:
2.5 million (2005)
Transportation Slovakia
Airports: 36 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 18 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 8 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 8 (2006)
Heliports:
1 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 6,769 km; oil 416 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 3,662 km
broad gauge: 100 km 1.520-m gauge
standard gauge: 3,512 km 1.435-m gauge (1,588 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 50 km (1.000-m or 0.750-m gauge) (2005)
Roadways:
total: 42,993 km
paved: 37,533 km (including 316 km of expressways)
unpaved: 5,460 km (2003)
Waterways:
172 km (on Danube River) (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 43 ships (1000 GRT or over) 217,819 GRT/309,049 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 36, chemical tanker 1
foreign-owned: 40 (Bulgaria 7, Estonia 1, Greece 4, Israel 7, Poland
2, Syria 2, Turkey 8, UK 1, Ukraine 8)
registered in other countries: 2 (Cyprus 1, Georgia 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Bratislava, Komarno
Military Slovakia
Military branches:
Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic (Ozbrojene Sily Slovenskej
Republiky): Land Forces (Pozemne Sily), Air Forces (Vzdusne Sily),
Training and Support Forces (Vycviku a Podpory Sily) (2005)
Military service age and obligation: complete transition to an all-volunteer professional force went into effect at the beginning of 2006 after 140 years of mandatory army service; volunteers include women, with minimum age of 17 years (2005)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,351,848
females age 18-49: 1,322,647 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,089,645
females age 18-49: 1,093,077 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 41,544
females age 18-49: 40,183 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$406 million (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.87% FY05 (2005)
Transnational Issues Slovakia
Disputes - international:
Hungary amended its status law extending special social and
cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia, to which
Slovakia had protested; consultations continue between Slovakia and
Hungary over Hungary's completion of its portion of the
Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a
member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Slovakia
must implement the strict Schengen border rules
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western
Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Slovenia
Introduction Slovenia
Background:
The Slovene lands were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until
the latter's dissolution at the end of World War I. In 1918, the
Slovenes joined the Serbs and Croats in forming a new multinational
state, which was named Yugoslavia in 1929. After World War II,
Slovenia became a republic of the renewed Yugoslavia, which though
Communist, distanced itself from Moscow's rule. Dissatisfied with
the exercise of power by the majority Serbs, the Slovenes succeeded
in establishing their independence in 1991 after a short 10-day war.
Historical ties to Western Europe, a strong economy, and a stable
democracy have assisted in Slovenia's transformation to a modern
state. Slovenia acceded to both NATO and the EU in the spring of
2004.
Geography Slovenia
Location:
Central Europe, eastern Alps bordering the Adriatic Sea, between
Austria and Croatia
Geographic coordinates:
46 07 N, 14 49 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 20,273 sq km
land: 20,151 sq km
water: 122 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than New Jersey
Land boundaries:
total: 1,382 km
border countries: Austria 330 km, Croatia 670 km, Hungary 102 km,
Italy 280 km
Coastline:
46.6 km
Maritime claims:
NA
Climate:
Mediterranean climate on the coast, continental climate with mild
to hot summers and cold winters in the plateaus and valleys to the
east
Terrain:
a short coastal strip on the Adriatic, an alpine mountain region
adjacent to Italy and Austria, mixed mountains and valleys with
numerous rivers to the east
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Triglav 2,864 m
Natural resources:
lignite coal, lead, zinc, mercury, uranium, silver, hydropower,
forests
Land use: arable land: 8.53% permanent crops: 1.43% other: 90.04% (2005)
Irrigated land:
30 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
flooding and earthquakes
Environment - current issues: Sava River polluted with domestic and industrial waste; pollution of coastal waters with heavy metals and toxic chemicals; forest damage near Koper from air pollution (originating at metallurgical and chemical plants) and resulting acid rain
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note:
despite its small size, this eastern Alpine country controls some
of Europe's major transit routes
People Slovenia
Population:
2,010,347 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 13.8% (male 143,079/female 135,050)
15-64 years: 70.5% (male 714,393/female 702,950)
65 years and over: 15.7% (male 121,280/female 193,595) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 40.6 years
male: 39 years
female: 42.2 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.05% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
8.98 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
10.31 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.99 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.33 years
male: 72.63 years
female: 80.29 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.25 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
280 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Slovene(s)
adjective: Slovenian
Ethnic groups:
Slovene 83.1%, Serb 2%, Croat 1.8%, Bosniak 1.1%, other or
unspecified 12% (2002 census)
Religions:
Catholic 57.8%, Orthodox 2.3%, other Christian 0.9%, Muslim 2.4%,
unaffiliated 3.5%, other or unspecified 23%, none 10.1% (2002 census)
Languages:
Slovenian 91.1%, Serbo-Croatian 4.5%, other or unspecified 4.4%
(2002 census)
Literacy: definition: NA total population: 99.7% male: 99.7% female: 99.6%
Government Slovenia
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Slovenia
conventional short form: Slovenia
local long form: Republika Slovenija
local short form: Slovenija
former: People's Republic of Slovenia, Socialist Republic of Slovenia
Government type:
parliamentary republic
Capital:
name: Ljubljana
geographic coordinates: 46 03 N, 14 31 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
Administrative divisions:
182 municipalities (obcine, singular - obcina) and 11 urban
municipalities* (mestne obcine , singular - mestna obcina )
Ajdovscina, Beltinci, Benedikt, Bistrica ob Sotli, Bled, Bloke,
Bohinj, Borovnica, Bovec, Braslovce, Brda, Brezice, Brezovica,
Cankova, Celje*, Cerklje na Gorenjskem, Cerknica, Cerkno,
Cerkvenjak, Crensovci, Crna na Koroskem, Crnomelj, Destrnik, Divaca,
Dobje, Dobrepolje, Dobrna, Dobrova-Horjul-Polhov Gradec,
Dobrovnik-Dobronak, Dolenjske Toplice, Dol pri Ljubljani, Domzale,
Dornava, Dravograd, Duplek, Gorenja Vas-Poljane, Gorisnica, Gornja
Radgona, Gornji Grad, Gornji Petrovci, Grad, Grosuplje, Hajdina,
Hoce-Slivnica, Hodos-Hodos, Horjul, Hrastnik, Hrpelje-Kozina,
Idrija, Ig, Ilirska Bistrica, Ivancna Gorica, Izola-Isola, Jesenice,
Jezersko, Jursinci, Kamnik, Kanal, Kidricevo, Kobarid, Kobilje,
Kocevje, Komen, Komenda, Koper-Capodistria*, Kostel, Kozje, Kranj*,
Kranjska Gora, Krizevci, Krsko, Kungota, Kuzma, Lasko, Lenart,
Lendava-Lendva, Litija, Ljubljana*, Ljubno, Ljutomer, Logatec, Loska
Dolina, Loski Potok, Lovrenc na Pohorju, Luce, Lukovica, Majsperk,
Maribor*, Markovci, Medvode, Menges, Metlika, Mezica, Miklavz na
Dravskem Polju, Miren-Kostanjevica, Mirna Pec, Mislinja, Moravce,
Moravske Toplice, Mozirje, Murska Sobota*, Muta, Naklo, Nazarje,
Nova Gorica*, Novo Mesto*, Odranci, Oplotnica, Ormoz, Osilnica,
Pesnica, Piran-Pirano, Pivka, Podcetrtek, Podlehnik, Podvelka,
Polzela, Postojna, Prebold, Preddvor, Prevalje, Ptuj*, Puconci,
Race-Fram, Radece, Radenci, Radlje ob Dravi, Radovljica, Ravne na
Koroskem, Razkrizje, Ribnica, Ribnica na Pohorju, Rogasovci, Rogaska
Slatina, Rogatec, Ruse, Salovci, Selnica ob Dravi, Semic,
Sempeter-Vrtojba, Sencur, Sentilj, Sentjernej, Sentjur pri Celju,
Sevnica, Sezana, Skocjan, Skofja Loka, Skofljica, Slovenj Gradec*,
Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenske Konjice, Smarje pri Jelsah, Smartno ob
Paki, Smartno pri Litiji, Sodrazica, Solcava, Sostanj, Starse,
Store, Sveta Ana, Sveti Andraz v Slovenskih Goricah, Sveti Jurij,
Tabor, Tisina, Tolmin, Trbovlje, Trebnje, Trnovska Vas, Trzic,
Trzin, Turnisce, Velenje*, Velika Polana, Velike Lasce, Verzej,
Videm, Vipava, Vitanje, Vodice, Vojnik, Vransko, Vrhnika, Vuzenica,
Zagorje ob Savi, Zalec, Zavrc, Zelezniki, Zetale, Ziri, Zirovnica,
Zuzemberk, Zrece
note: there may be 45 more municipalities
Independence:
25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia)
National holiday:
Independence Day/Statehood Day, 25 June (1991)
Constitution:
adopted 23 December 1991
Legal system:
based on civil law system
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed)
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Janez DRNOVSEK (since 22 December 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Janez JANSA (since 9 November
2004)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and
elected by the National Assembly
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 10 November and 1
December 2002 (next to be held in the fall of 2007); following
National Assembly elections, the leader of the majority party or the
leader of a majority coalition is usually nominated to become prime
minister by the president and elected by the National Assembly;
election last held 9 November 2004 (next National Assembly elections
to be held October 2008)
election results: Janez DRNOVSEK elected president; percent of vote
- Janez DRNOVSEK 56.5%, Barbara BREZIGAR 43.5%; Janez JANSA elected
prime minister; National Assembly vote - 57 to 27
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consisting of a National Assembly or Drzavni
Zbor (90 seats; 40 are directly elected and 50 are selected on a
proportional basis; note - the numbers of directly elected and
proportionally elected seats varies with each election; members are
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the National
Council or Drzavni Svet (40 seats; this is primarily an advisory
body with limited legislative powers; it may propose laws, ask to
review any National Assembly decisions, and call national referenda;
members - representing social, economic, professional, and local
interests - are indirectly elected to five-year terms by an
electoral college)
elections: National Assembly - last held 3 October 2004 (next to be
held October 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - SDS 29.1%, LDS 22.8%,
ZLSD 10.2%, NSi 9%, SLS 6.8%, SNS 6.3%, DeSUS 4.1%, other 11.7%;
seats by party - SDS 29, LDS 23, ZLSD 10, NSi 9, SLS 7, SNS 6, DeSUS
4, Hungarian and Italian minorities 1 each
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly on the
recommendation of the Judicial Council); Constitutional Court
(judges elected for nine-year terms by the National Assembly and
nominated by the president)
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Party of Retired (Persons) of Slovenia or DeSUS [Karl
ERJAVEC]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDS [Jelko KACIN]; New
Slovenia or NSi [Andrej BAJUK]; Slovenian Democratic Party or SDS
[Janez JANSA]; Slovene National Party or SNS [Zmago JELINCIC];
Slovene People's Party or SLS [Janez PODOBNIK]; Slovene Youth Party
or SMS [Darko KRANJC]; Social Democrats or SD [Borut PAHOR]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation: ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Samuel ZBOGAR chancery: 1525 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: (202) 667-5363 FAX: (202) 667-4563 consulate(s) general: Cleveland, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas B. ROBERTSON embassy: Presernova 31, 1000 Ljubljana mailing address: American Embassy Ljubljana, US Department of State, 7140 Ljubljana Place, Washington, DC 20521-7140 telephone: (1) 200-5500 FAX: (1) 200-5555
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red, with
the Slovenian seal (a shield with the image of Triglav, Slovenia's
highest peak, in white against a blue background at the center;
beneath it are two wavy blue lines depicting seas and rivers, and
above it are three six-pointed stars arranged in an inverted
triangle, which are taken from the coat of arms of the Counts of
Celje, the great Slovene dynastic house of the late 14th and early
15th centuries); the seal is located in the upper hoist side of the
flag centered in the white and blue bands
Economy Slovenia
Economy - overview:
With its small transition economy and population of approximately
two million, Slovenia is a model of economic success and stability
for its neighbors in the former Yugoslavia. The country, which
joined the EU in 2004, has excellent infrastructure, a well-educated
work force, and an excellent central location. It enjoys a GDP per
capita substantially higher than any of the other transitioning
economies of Central Europe. In March 2004, Slovenia became the
first transition country to graduate from borrower status to donor
partner at the World Bank. Slovenia plans to adopt the euro by 2007
and has met the EU's Maastricht criteria for inflation. Despite its
economic success, Slovenia faces growing challenges. Much of the
economy remains in state hands and foreign direct investment (FDI)
in Slovenia is one of the lowest in the EU on a per capita basis.
Taxes are relatively high, the labor market is often seen as
inflexible, and legacy industries are losing sales to more
competitive firms in China, India, and elsewhere. The current
center-right government, elected in October 2004, has pledged to
accelerate privatization of a number of large state holdings and is
interested in increasing FDI in Slovenia. In late 2005, the
government's new Committee for Economic Reforms was elevated to
cabinet-level status. The Committee's program includes plans for
lowering the tax burden, privatizing state-controlled firms,
improving the flexibility of the labor market, and increasing the
government's efficiency.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$43.27 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$35.21 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$21,500 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 2.8% industry: 36.9% services: 60.3% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 920,000 (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 4.8% industry: 39.1% services: 56.1% (2004)
Unemployment rate:
6.3% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
At-risk-of-poverty rate after social transfers: 10% (2003)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.6% highest 10%: 21.4% (1998)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
28.4 (1998)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.5% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
24.8% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $16.02 billion
expenditures: $16.73 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)
Public debt:
28.5% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
potatoes, hops, wheat, sugar beets, corn, grapes; cattle, sheep,
poultry
Industries:
ferrous metallurgy and aluminum products, lead and zinc smelting;
electronics (including military electronics), trucks, electric power
equipment, wood products, textiles, chemicals, machine tools
Industrial production growth rate:
3.1% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
14.02 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 35.2% hydro: 27.3% nuclear: 36.8% other: 0.7% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
12.52 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
5.811 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
5.975 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
11.05 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
52,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
1.1 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2003)
Natural gas - imports:
963 million cu m (2002)
Current account balance:
$-303 million (2005 est.)
Exports:
$18.53 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals,
food
Exports - partners:
Germany 19.9%, Italy 12.7%, Croatia 9.4%, Austria 8.1%, France 8.1%
(2005)
Imports:
$19.62 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, chemicals,
fuels and lubricants, food
Imports - partners:
Germany 19.5%, Italy 18.6%, Austria 12%, France 7.2%, Croatia 4.2%
(2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$8.16 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$18.97 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $484 million in committed EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004-06)
Currency (code):
tolar (SIT)
Currency code:
SIT
Exchange rates:
tolars per US dollar - 192.71 (2005), 192.38 (2004), 207.11 (2003),
240.25 (2002), 242.75 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Slovenia
Telephones - main lines in use:
816,400 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.759 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: 100% digital (2000)
international: country code - 386
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 17, FM 160, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios:
805,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
48 (2001)
Televisions:
710,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.si
Internet hosts:
61,735 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
11 (2000)
Internet users:
1.09 million (2005)
Transportation Slovenia
Airports: 14 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 6 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 4 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 2,526 km; oil 11 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 1,229 km
standard gauge: 1,229 km 1.435-m gauge (504 km electrified) (2005)
Roadways:
total: 38,400 km
paved: 38,400 km (including 477 km of expressways) (2003)
Merchant marine:
registered in other countries: 26 (Antigua and Barbuda 6, Bahamas
1, Cyprus 4, Georgia 1, Liberia 2, Malta 3, Marshall Islands 3,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 5, Singapore 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Koper
Military Slovenia
Military branches:
Slovenian Army (includes air and naval forces)
Military service age and obligation:
17 years of age for voluntary military service; conscription
abolished in 2003 (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 17-49: 496,929
females age 17-49: 483,959 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 17-49: 405,593
females age 17-49: 397,167 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 12,816
females age 17-49: 12,178 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$370 million (FY00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.7% (FY00)
Transnational Issues Slovenia
Disputes - international:
the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which
would have ceded most of Piran Bay and maritime access to Slovenia
and several villages to Croatia, remains unratified and in dispute;
as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border,
Slovenia must implement the strict Schengen border rules to curb
illegal migration and commerce through southeastern Europe while
encouraging close cross-border ties with Croatia
Illicit drugs:
minor transit point for cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin bound
for Western Europe, and for precursor chemicals
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Solomon Islands
Introduction Solomon Islands
Background:
The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the
1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on
this archipelago. Self-government was achieved in 1976 and
independence two years later. Ethnic violence, government
malfeasance, and endemic crime have undermined stability and civil
society. In June 2003, Prime Minister Sir Allen KEMAKEZA sought the
assistance of Australia in reestablishing law and order; the
following month, an Australian-led multinational force arrived to
restore peace and disarm ethnic militias. The Regional Assistance
Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) has been very effective in
restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions.
Geography Solomon Islands
Location:
Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua
New Guinea
Geographic coordinates:
8 00 S, 159 00 E
Map references:
Oceania
Area:
total: 28,450 sq km
land: 27,540 sq km
water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
5,313 km
Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm
Climate:
tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Terrain:
mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
Natural resources: fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Land use: arable land: 0.62% permanent crops: 2.04% other: 97.34% (2005)
Irrigated land:
NA
Natural hazards:
typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with
frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity
Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs
are dead or dying
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the
Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean,
the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea
People Solomon Islands
Population:
552,438 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 41.3% (male 116,370/female 111,834)
15-64 years: 55.4% (male 154,793/female 151,308)
65 years and over: 3.3% (male 8,696/female 9,437) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 18.9 years
male: 18.7 years
female: 19 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.61% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
30.01 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 20.63 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.54 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 17.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.91 years
male: 70.4 years
female: 75.55 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Solomon Islander(s)
adjective: Solomon Islander
Ethnic groups:
Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%,
unspecified 0.2% (1999 census)
Religions:
Church of Melanesia 32.8%, Roman Catholic 19%, South Seas
Evangelical 17%, Seventh-Day Adventist 11.2%, United Church 10.3%,
Christian Fellowship Church 2.4%, other Christian 4.4%, other 2.4%,
unspecified 0.3%, none 0.2% (1999 census)
Languages:
Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English
is official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population
note: 120 indigenous languages
Literacy: definition: NA total population: NA male: NA female: NA
Government Solomon Islands
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Solomon Islands
local long form: none
local short form: Solomon Islands
former: British Solomon Islands
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name: Honiara
geographic coordinates: 9 26 S, 159 57 E
time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
9 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul,
Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona,
Temotu, Western
Independence:
7 July 1978 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Constitution:
7 July 1978
Legal system:
English common law, which is widely disregarded
Suffrage:
21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Nathaniel WAENA (since 7 July 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE (since 4 May
2006); note - Prime Minister Snyder RINI, elected on 18 April 2006
and sworn in on 20 April 2006, resigned on 26 April prior to no
confidence vote in parliament; SOGAVARE elected on 4 May
cabinet: Cabinet consists of 20 members appointed by the governor
general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members
of Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general
appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five
years (eligible for a second term); following legislative elections,
the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority
coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy
prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of
the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from
single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year
terms)
elections: last held 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%,
SIPRA 6.3%, Democratic 4.9%, PAP 6.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, Liberal 5%,
SOCRED 4.3%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4,
SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2,
independents 30
Judicial branch:
Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian
Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John
GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or
PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh
Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon
Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party
or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew
ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA
[Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]
note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid
coalitions
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note -
these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a
wave of violence from 1999 to 2003
International organization participation:
ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF,
Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Collin David BECK
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017
telephone: (212) 599-6192, 6193
FAX: (212) 661-8925
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed
July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the
Solomon Islands
Flag description:
divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower
hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five
white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower
triangle is green
Government - note:
June 2003 Prime Minister Sir Allan KEMAKEZA sought the intervention
of Australia to aid in restoring order; parliament approved the
request for intervention in July 2003; troops from Australia, NZ,
Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003; by 2006, the
Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) had been
scaled back to 259 police officers and 20 military, in addition to
civilian technical advisers; in response to rioting that broke out
in mid-April 2006, Australia dispatched an addtional 220 troops and
70 police officers to help restore order
Economy Solomon Islands
Economy - overview:
The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and
forestry for at least part of its livelihood. Most manufactured
goods and petroleum products must be imported. The islands are rich
in undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and
gold. Prior to the arrival of the Regional Assistance Mission to the
Solomon Islands (RAMSI), severe ethnic violence, the closing of key
businesses, and an empty government treasury culminated in economic
collapse. RAMSI has enabled a return to law and order, a new period
of economic stability, and modest growth as the economy rebuilds.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$800 million (2002 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$286 million
GDP - real growth rate:
4.4% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 42% industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 249,200 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 75% industry: 5% services: 20% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
6.6% (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $49.7 million
expenditures: $75.1 million; including capital expenditures of NA
(2003)
Agriculture - products: cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish
Industries:
fish (tuna), mining, timber
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
55 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
51.15 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
1,270 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Exports:
$171 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa
Exports - partners:
China 40.7%, South Korea 13.2%, Thailand 6.9%, Japan 6.3%,
Philippines 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2005)
Imports:
$159 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities:
food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners:
Australia 25.8%, Singapore 25.3%, NZ 4.6%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New
Guinea 4.1% (2005)
Debt - external:
$166 million (2004)
Economic aid - recipient:
$122 million annually, mainly from Australia (2004 est.)
Currency (code):
Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)
Currency code:
SBD
Exchange rates:
Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847
(2004), 7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Solomon Islands
Telephones - main lines in use:
7,400 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
6,000 (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)
Radios:
57,000 (1997)
Televisions:
3,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.sb
Internet hosts:
2,658 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)
Internet users:
8,400 (2005)
Transportation Solomon Islands
Airports:
35 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 23 (2006)
Roadways: total: 1,360 km paved: 34 km unpaved: 1,326 km (1999)
Ports and terminals:
Honiara, Malloco Bay, Shortland Harbor, Viru Harbor, Yandina
Military Solomon Islands
Military branches:
no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 114,253 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 92,796 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 6,033 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
NA
Transnational Issues Solomon Islands
Disputes - international:
Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to
the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) at the invitation of the Solomon
Islands' Government to maintain civil and political order and
reinforce regional security
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Somalia
Introduction Somalia
Background: Britain withdrew from British Somaliland in 1960 in order to allow its protectorate to join with Italian Somaliland and form the new nation of Somalia. In 1969, a coup headed by Mohamed SIAD Barre ushered in an authoritarian socialist rule that managed to impose a degree of stability in the country for a couple of decades. After the regime's overthrow early in 1991, Somalia descended into turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy. In May of 1991, northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland that now includes the administrative regions of Awdal, Woqooyi Galbeed, Togdheer, Sanaag, and Sool. Although not recognized by any government, this entity has maintained a stable existence, aided by the overwhelming dominance of a ruling clan and economic infrastructure left behind by British, Russian, and American military assistance programs. The regions of Bari, Nugaal, and northern Mudug comprise a neighboring self-declared autonomous state of Puntland, which has been self-governing since 1998, but does not aim at independence; it has also made strides toward reconstructing a legitimate, representative government, but has suffered some civil strife. Puntland disputes its border with Somaliland as it also claims portions of eastern Sool and Sanaag. Beginning in 1993, a two-year UN humanitarian effort (primarily in the south) was able to alleviate famine conditions, but when the UN withdrew in 1995, having suffered significant casualties, order still had not been restored. The mandate of the Transitional National Government (TNG), created in August 2000 in Arta, Djibouti, expired in August 2003. A two-year peace process, led by the Government of Kenya under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), concluded in October 2004 with the election of Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed as Transitional Federal President of Somalia and the formation of a transitional government, known as the Somalia Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs). The Somalia TFIs include a 275-member parliamentary body, known as the Transitional Federal Assembly (TFA), a transitional Prime Minister, Ali Mohamed GHEDI, and a 90-member cabinet. The TFIs are currently divided between Mogadishu and Jowhar, but discussions to co-locate the TFIs in one city are ongoing. Suspicion of Somali links with global terrorism further complicates the picture.
Geography Somalia
Location:
Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean,
east of Ethiopia
Geographic coordinates:
10 00 N, 49 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 637,657 sq km
land: 627,337 sq km
water: 10,320 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries: total: 2,340 km border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia 1,600 km, Kenya 682 km
Coastline:
3,025 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 200 nm
Climate:
principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February),
moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south; southwest
monsoon (May to October), torrid in the north and hot in the south,
irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between
monsoons
Terrain:
mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Shimbiris 2,416 m
Natural resources:
uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum,
bauxite, copper, salt, natural gas, likely oil reserves
Land use: arable land: 1.64% permanent crops: 0.04% other: 98.32% (2005)
Irrigated land:
2,000 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in
summer; floods during rainy season
Environment - current issues:
famine; use of contaminated water contributes to human health
problems; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
Geography - note:
strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to
Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal
People Somalia
Population:
8,863,338
note: this estimate was derived from an official census taken in
1975 by the Somali Government; population counting in Somalia is
complicated by the large number of nomads and by refugee movements
in response to famine and clan warfare (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 44.4% (male 1,973,294/female 1,961,083)
15-64 years: 53% (male 2,355,861/female 2,342,988)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 97,307/female 132,805) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 17.6 years
male: 17.5 years
female: 17.7 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.85% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
45.13 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
16.63 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 114.89 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 124.18 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 105.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 48.47 years
male: 46.71 years
female: 50.28 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.76 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
43,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever are high risks in
some locations
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
animal contact disease: rabies (2005)
Nationality:
noun: Somali(s)
adjective: Somali
Ethnic groups:
Somali 85%, Bantu and other non-Somali 15% (including Arabs 30,000)
Religions:
Sunni Muslim
Languages:
Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 37.8%
male: 49.7%
female: 25.8% (2001 est.)
Government Somalia
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Somalia
local long form: Jamhuuriyada Demuqraadiga Soomaaliyeed
local short form: Soomaaliya
former: Somali Republic; Somali Democratic Republic
Government type:
no permanent national government; transitional, parliamentary
federal government
Capital:
name: Mogadishu
geographic coordinates: 2 04 N, 45 22 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
18 regions (plural - NA, singular - gobolka); Awdal, Bakool,
Banaadir, Bari, Bay, Galguduud, Gedo, Hiiraan, Jubbada Dhexe,
Jubbada Hoose, Mudug, Nugaal, Sanaag, Shabeellaha Dhexe, Shabeellaha
Hoose, Sool, Togdheer, Woqooyi Galbeed
Independence:
1 July 1960 (from a merger of British Somaliland, which became
independent from the UK on 26 June 1960, and Italian Somaliland,
which became independent from the Italian-administered UN
trusteeship on 1 July 1960, to form the Somali Republic)
National holiday:
Foundation of the Somali Republic, 1 July (1960); note - 26 June
(1960) in Somaliland
Constitution:
25 August 1979, presidential approval 23 September 1979
note: the formation of transitional governing institutions, known as
the Transitional Federal Government, is currently ongoing
Legal system:
no national system; Shari'a (Islamic) and secular courts based on
Somali customary law (xeer) are present in some localities; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Transitional Federal President Abdullahi YUSUF
Ahmed (since 14 October 2004); note - a transitional governing
entity with a five-year mandate, known as the Transitional Federal
Institutions (TFIs), was established in October 2004; the TFI
relocated to Somalia in June 2004, but its members remain divided
between Mogadishu and Jowhar inside Somalia, and the government
continues to struggle to establish effective governance in the
country
head of government: Prime Minister Ali Mohamed GEDI (since 24
December 2004)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by the
Transitional Federal Assembly
election results: Abdullahi YUSUF Ahmed, the former leader of the
semi-autonomous Puntland region of Somalia, was elected president by
the Transitional Federal Assembly
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly
note: fledgling parliament; a 275-member Transitional Federal
Assembly; the new parliament consists of 61 seats assigned to each
of four large clan groups (Darod, Digil-Mirifle, Dir, and Hawiye)
with the remaining 31 seats divided between minority clans
Judicial branch:
following the breakdown of the central government, most regions
have reverted to local forms of conflict resolution, either secular,
traditional Somali customary law, or Shari'a (Islamic) law with a
provision for appeal of all sentences
Political parties and leaders:
none
Political pressure groups and leaders:
numerous clan and sub-clan factions are currently vying for power
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA,
IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), IPU, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Somalia does not have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8
May 1991); note - the TFG and other factions have representatives in
Washington and at the United Nations
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Somalia; US interests are
represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya at United Nations
Avenue, Nairobi; mailing address: Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831;
telephone: (20) 363-6000; FAX (20) 363-6157
Flag description:
light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; blue
field influenced by the flag of the UN
Government - note:
although an interim government was created in 2004, other regional
and local governing bodies continue to exist and control various
cities and regions of the country, including the self-declared
Republic of Somaliland in northwestern Somalia, the semi-autonomous
State of Puntland in northeastern Somalia, and traditional clan and
faction strongholds
Economy Somalia
Economy - overview:
Somalia's economic fortunes are driven by its deep political
divisions. The northwestern area has declared its independence as
the "Republic of Somaliland"; the northeastern region of Puntland is
a semi-autonomous state; and the remaining southern portion is
riddled with the struggles of rival factions. Economic life
continues, in part because much activity is local and relatively
easily protected. Agriculture is the most important sector, with
livestock normally accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of
export earnings, but Saudi Arabia's ban on Somali livestock, due to
Rift Valley Fever concerns, has severely hampered the sector. Nomads
and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their
livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock,
hides, fish, charcoal, and bananas are Somalia's principal exports,
while sugar, sorghum, corn, qat, and machined goods are the
principal imports. Somalia's small industrial sector, based on the
processing of agricultural products, has largely been looted and
sold as scrap metal. Despite the seeming anarchy, Somalia's service
sector has managed to survive and grow. Telecommunication firms
provide wireless services in most major cities and offer the lowest
international call rates on the continent. In the absence of a
formal banking sector, money exchange services have sprouted
throughout the country, handling between $500 million and $1 billion
in remittances annually. Mogadishu's main market offers a variety of
goods from food to the newest electronic gadgets. Hotels continue to
operate, and militias provide security. The ongoing civil
disturbances and clan rivalries, however, have interfered with any
broad-based economic development and international aid arrangements.
Somalia's arrears to the IMF continued to grow in 2005. Statistics
on Somalia's GDP, growth, per capita income, and inflation should be
viewed skeptically. In late December 2004, a major tsunami caused an
estimated 150 deaths and resulted in destruction of property in
coastal areas.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$4.809 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$2.483 billion
GDP - real growth rate:
2.4% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 65% industry: 10% services: 25% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 3.7 million (very few skilled laborers)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 71% industry and services: 29%
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%; note - businesses print their own money, so inflation rates
cannot be easily determined
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA
Agriculture - products:
bananas, sorghum, corn, coconuts, rice, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame
seeds, beans; cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Industries:
a few light industries, including sugar refining, textiles,
wireless communication
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
235.6 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
219.1 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
5,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
5.663 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
Exports:
$241 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
livestock, bananas, hides, fish, charcoal, scrap metal
Exports - partners:
UAE 52.6%, Yemen 14.6%, Oman 6.3%, India 4.2% (2005)
Imports:
$576 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities:
manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction
materials, qat
Imports - partners:
Djibouti 30.1%, Kenya 13.7%, Brazil 8.4%, India 8%, Oman 5.3%, UAE
5% (2005)
Debt - external:
$3 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$60 million (1999 est.)
Currency (code):
Somali shilling (SOS)
Currency code:
SOS
Exchange rates:
Somali shillings per US dollar - 11,000 (November 2000), 2,620
(January 1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996
est.), 5,000 (1 January 1995)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent
country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own
currency, the Somaliland shilling
Fiscal year:
NA
Communications Somalia
Telephones - main lines in use:
100,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
500,000 (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: the public telecommunications system was almost
completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions;
private wireless companies offer service in most major cities and
charge the lowest international rates on the continent
domestic: local cellular telephone systems have been established in
Mogadishu and in several other population centers
international: country code - 252; international connections are
available from Mogadishu by satellite
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 11, shortwave 1 in Mogadishu; 1 FM in Puntland, 1 FM in
Somaliland (2001)
Radios:
470,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
4; note - two in Mogadishu; two in Hargeisa (2001)
Televisions:
135,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.so
Internet hosts:
3 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
3 (one each in Boosaaso, Hargeisa, and Mogadishu) (2000)
Internet users:
90,000 (2005)
Transportation Somalia
Airports: 65 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 7 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 58 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 6 (2006)
Roadways:
total: 22,100 km
paved: 2,608 km
unpaved: 19,492 km (1999)
Merchant marine:
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,659 GRT/2,540 DWT
by type: cargo 1
foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Boosaaso, Berbera, Chisimayu (Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu
Military Somalia
Military branches:
a Somali National Army was attempted under the interim government;
numerous factions and clans maintain independent militias, and the
Somaliland and Puntland regional governments maintain their own
security and police forces
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age (est.) (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,787,727
females age 18-49: 1,714,792 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,022,360
females age 18-49: 1,038,697 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$22.34 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
0.9% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues Somalia
Disputes - international:
"Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities to landlocked
Ethiopia and establish commercial ties with regional states;
"Puntland" and "Somaliland" "governments" seek support from
neighboring states in their secessionist aspirations and in
conflicts with each other; Ethiopia has only an administrative line
with the Oromo region of southern Somalia and maintains alliances
with local Somali clans opposed to the unrecognized Somali Interim
Government, which plans eventual relocation from Kenya to Mogadishu;
rival militia and clan fighting in southern Somalia periodically
spills over into Kenya
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 400,000 (civil war since 1988, clan-based competition for
resources) 5,000 (26 December 2004 tsunami) (2005)
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@South Africa
Introduction South Africa
Background:
After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many
of the Dutch settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own
republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred
wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native
inhabitants. The Boers resisted British encroachments, but were
defeated in the Boer War (1899-1902). The resulting Union of South
Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate
development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid
politically and ushered in black majority rule.
Geography South Africa
Location:
Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
Geographic coordinates:
29 00 S, 24 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince
Edward Island)
Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 4,862 km
border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491
km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km
Coastline:
2,798 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
Climate:
mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool
nights
Terrain:
vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal
plain
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
Natural resources:
gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel,
phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium,
salt, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 12.1%
permanent crops: 0.79%
other: 87.11% (2005)
Irrigated land:
14,980 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
prolonged droughts
Environment - current issues:
lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water
conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing
supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban
discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion;
desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living
Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine
Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely
surrounds Swaziland
People South Africa
Population:
44,187,637
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.7% (male 6,603,220/female 6,525,810)
15-64 years: 65% (male 13,955,950/female 14,766,843)
65 years and over: 5.3% (male 905,870/female 1,429,944) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 24.1 years
male: 23.3 years
female: 25 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.4% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
18.2 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa
and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 60.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 64.31 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 56.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 42.73 years
male: 43.25 years
female: 42.19 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.2 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
21.5% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
5.3 million (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
370,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: South African(s)
adjective: South African
Ethnic groups:
black African 79%, white 9.6%, colored 8.9%, Indian/Asian 2.5%
(2001 census)
Religions:
Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%,
Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, other Christian
36%, Islam 1.5%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001
census)
Languages:
IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%,
English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2%
(2001 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.4%
male: 87%
female: 85.7% (2003 est.)
Government South Africa
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa
former: Union of South Africa
abbreviation: RSA
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Pretoria (administrative capital)
geographic coordinates: 29 12 S, 28 10 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
note: Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial
capital)
Administrative divisions:
9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal,
Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Western Cape
Independence:
31 May 1910 (from UK); note - South Africa became a republic in
1961 following an October 1960 referendum
National holiday:
Freedom Day, 27 April (1994)
Constitution:
10 December 1996; this new constitution was certified by the
Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then
President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3
February 1997; it is being implemented in phases
Legal system:
based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999);
Executive Deputy President Phumzile MLAMBO-NGCUKA (since 23 June
2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999);
Executive Deputy President Phumzile MLAMBO-NGCUKA (since 23 June
2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a
five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 24
April 2004 (next to be held April 2009)
election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National
Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consisting of the National Assembly (400
seats; members are elected by popular vote under a system of
proportional representation to serve five-year terms) and the
National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members elected by each
of the nine provincial legislatures for five-year terms; has special
powers to protect regional interests, including the safeguarding of
cultural and linguistic traditions among ethnic minorities); note -
following the implementation of the new constitution on 3 February
1997, the former Senate was disbanded and replaced by the National
Council of Provinces with essentially no change in membership and
party affiliations, although the new institution's responsibilities
have been changed somewhat by the new constitution
elections: National Assembly and National Council of Provinces -
last held 14 April 2004 (next to be held NA 2009)
election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC
69.7%, DA 12.4%, IFP 7%, UDM 2.3%, NNP 1.7%, ACDP 1.6%, other 5.3%;
seats by party - ANC 279, DA 50, IFP 28, UDM 9, NNP 7, ACDP 6, other
21; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - NA
Judicial branch:
Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts;
Magistrate Courts
Political parties and leaders:
African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE,
president]; African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI,
president]; Democratic Alliance or DA [Anthony LEON] (formed from
the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the Freedom Alliance or
FA); Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president];
Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; New
National Party or NNP; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu
HOLOMISA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Congress of South African Trade Unions or COSATU [Zwelinzima VAVI,
general secretary]; South African Communist Party or SACP [Blade
NZIMANDE, general secretary]; South African National Civics
Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE, national president]; note
- COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance with the ANC
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, BIS, C, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, NSG, ONUB,
OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Joyce Mosima MASEKELA
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 232-4400
FAX: (202) 265-1607
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jendayi E. FRAZER
embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria
mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001
telephone: (12) 342-1048
FAX: (12) 342-2244
consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg
Flag description:
two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by
a central green band which splits into a horizontal Y, the arms of
which end at the corners of the hoist side; the Y embraces a black
isosceles triangle from which the arms are separated by narrow
yellow bands; the red and blue bands are separated from the green
band and its arms by narrow white stripes
Economy South Africa
Economy - overview:
South Africa is a middle-income, emerging market with an abundant
supply of natural resources; well-developed financial, legal,
communications, energy, and transport sectors; a stock exchange that
ranks among the 10 largest in the world; and a modern infrastructure
supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers
throughout the region. However, growth has not been strong enough to
lower South Africa's high unemployment rate, and daunting economic
problems remain from the apartheid era - especially poverty and lack
of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. South
African economic policy is fiscally conservative, but pragmatic,
focusing on targeting inflation and liberalizing trade as means to
increase job growth and household income.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$540.8 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$187.3 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4.9% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$12,200 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 2.5% industry: 30.3% services: 67.1% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 15.23 million economically active (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 30% industry: 25% services: 45% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate:
26.6% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
50% (2000 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.1% highest 10%: 45.9% (1994)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
59.3 (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
16.8% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $65.91 billion
expenditures: $70.62 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)
Public debt:
35.8% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton,
wool, dairy products
Industries:
mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium),
automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textiles, iron and
steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs, commercial ship repair
Industrial production growth rate:
3.6% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
215.9 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 93.5% hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 5.5% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
197.4 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
10.14 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
6.739 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
216,700 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
484,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - proved reserves:
7.84 million bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production:
2.35 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
2.35 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
28.32 million cu m (1 January 2002)
Current account balance:
$-11.08 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$50.91 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and
equipment
Exports - partners:
UK 11.1%, US 9.1%, Japan 8.3%, Germany 6.3%, China 5.2%, Italy 4.5%
(2005)
Imports:
$52.97 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific
instruments, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
Germany 14.9%, US 7%, China 6.9%, UK 6.8%, Saudi Arabia 6.5%, Japan
5.9%, Iran 5.8%, France 4.3% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$20.63 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$29.97 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$487.5 million (2000)
Currency (code):
rand (ZAR)
Currency code:
ZAR
Exchange rates:
rand per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003),
10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Communications South Africa
Telephones - main lines in use:
4.729 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
33.96 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: the system is the best developed and most
modern in Africa
domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial
cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable,
radiotelephone communication stations, and wireless local loops; key
centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port
Elizabeth, and Pretoria
international: country code - 27; 2 submarine cables; satellite
earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
17 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations:
556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Televisions:
6 million (2000)
Internet country code:
.za
Internet hosts:
645,179 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
150 (2001)
Internet users:
5.1 million (2005)
Transportation South Africa
Airports: 731 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 146 over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 914 to 1,523 m: 67 under 914 m: 13 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 585 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 302 under 914 m: 249 (2006)
Pipelines:
condensate 100 km; gas 1,062 km; oil 966 km; refined products 1,354
km (2006)
Railways:
total: 20,872 km
narrow gauge: 20,436 km 1.065-m gauge (8,868 km electrified); 436 km
0.610-m gauge (2005)
Roadways:
total: 362,099 km
paved: 73,506 km
unpaved: 288,593 km (2002)
Merchant marine:
total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 32,815 GRT/39,295 DWT
by type: container 1, petroleum tanker 2
foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1)
registered in other countries: 8 (Panama 3, UK 5) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Cape Town, Durban, East London, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay,
Saldanha Bay
Military South Africa
Military branches:
South African National Defense Force (SANDF): South African Army,
South African Navy (SAN), South African Air Force (SAAF), Joint
Operations Command, Joint Support Command, Military Intelligence,
Military Health Service (2005)
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; women have a long history of military service in noncombat roles, dating back to World War I (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 10,354,769
females age 18-49: 10,626,550 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 4,927,757
females age 18-49: 4,609,071 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 512,407
females age 18-49: 506,078 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$3.55 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.5% (2005 est.)
Military - note:
with the end of apartheid and the establishment of majority rule,
former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
were integrated into the South African National Defense Force
(SANDF); as of 2003 the integration process was considered complete
Transnational Issues South Africa
Disputes - international:
South Africa has placed military along the border to stem the
thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing to find work and escape political
persecution; managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the
boundary in the Orange River
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 5,774 (Angola) 9,516 (Democratic
Republic of Congo) 7,118 (Somalia) (2005)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: South Africa is a source, transit, and
destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for
forced labor and sexual exploitation; women and girls are trafficked
internally - and occasionally to European and Asian countries - for
sexual exploitation; women from other African countries are
trafficked to South Africa and, less frequently, onward to Europe
for sexual exploitation; men and boys are trafficked from
neighboring countries for forced agricultural labor; Asian and
Eastern European women are trafficked to South Africa for
debt-bonded sexual exploitation
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - South Africa is placed on the Tier
2 Watch List for its failure to show increasing efforts to address
trafficking in 2005
Illicit drugs:
transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and cocaine;
cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit
methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various
east African countries; illicit cultivation of marijuana; attractive
venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized
criminal and narcotics activity in the region
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Southern Ocean
Introduction Southern Ocean
Background:
A large body of recent oceanographic research has shown that the
Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), an ocean current that flows
from west to east around Antarctica, plays a crucial role in global
ocean circulation. The region where the cold waters of the ACC meet
and mingle with the warmer waters of the north defines a distinct
border - the Antarctic Convergence - which fluctuates with the
seasons, but which encompasses a discrete body of water and a unique
ecologic region. The Convergence concentrates nutrients, which
promotes marine plant life, and which in turn allows for a greater
abundance of animal life. In the spring of 2000, the International
Hydrographic Organization decided to delimit the waters within the
Convergence as a fifth world ocean - the Southern Ocean - by
combining the southern portions of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean,
and Pacific Ocean. The Southern Ocean extends from the coast of
Antarctica north to 60 degrees south latitude, which coincides with
the Antarctic Treaty Limit and which approximates the extent of the
Antarctic Convergence. As such, the Southern Ocean is now the fourth
largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean,
Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean, but larger than the Arctic Ocean).
It should be noted that inclusion of the Southern Ocean does not
imply recognition of this feature as one of the world's primary
oceans by the US Government.
Geography Southern Ocean
Location:
body of water between 60 degrees south latitude and Antarctica
Geographic coordinates:
60 00 S, 90 00 E (nominally), but the Southern Ocean has the unique
distinction of being a large circumpolar body of water totally
encircling the continent of Antarctica; this ring of water lies
between 60 degrees south latitude and the coast of Antarctica and
encompasses 360 degrees of longitude
Map references:
Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 20.327 million sq km
note: includes Amundsen Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, part of the Drake
Passage, Ross Sea, a small part of the Scotia Sea, Weddell Sea, and
other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative:
slightly more than twice the size of the US
Coastline:
17,968 km
Climate:
sea temperatures vary from about 10 degrees Celsius to -2 degrees
Celsius; cyclonic storms travel eastward around the continent and
frequently are intense because of the temperature contrast between
ice and open ocean; the ocean area from about latitude 40 south to
the Antarctic Circle has the strongest average winds found anywhere
on Earth; in winter the ocean freezes outward to 65 degrees south
latitude in the Pacific sector and 55 degrees south latitude in the
Atlantic sector, lowering surface temperatures well below 0 degrees
Celsius; at some coastal points intense persistent drainage winds
from the interior keep the shoreline ice-free throughout the winter
Terrain:
the Southern Ocean is deep, 4,000 to 5,000 meters over most of its
extent with only limited areas of shallow water; the Antarctic
continental shelf is generally narrow and unusually deep, its edge
lying at depths of 400 to 800 meters (the global mean is 133
meters); the Antarctic icepack grows from an average minimum of 2.6
million square kilometers in March to about 18.8 million square
kilometers in September, better than a sixfold increase in area; the
Antarctic Circumpolar Current (21,000 km in length) moves
perpetually eastward; it is the world's largest ocean current,
transporting 130 million cubic meters of water per second - 100
times the flow of all the world's rivers
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: -7,235 m at the southern end of the South Sandwich
Trench
highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources:
probable large and possible giant oil and gas fields on the
continental margin, manganese nodules, possible placer deposits,
sand and gravel, fresh water as icebergs; squid, whales, and seals -
none exploited; krill, fishes
Natural hazards:
huge icebergs with drafts up to several hundred meters; smaller
bergs and iceberg fragments; sea ice (generally 0.5 to 1 meter
thick) with sometimes dynamic short-term variations and with large
annual and interannual variations; deep continental shelf floored by
glacial deposits varying widely over short distances; high winds and
large waves much of the year; ship icing, especially May-October;
most of region is remote from sources of search and rescue
Environment - current issues:
increased solar ultraviolet radiation resulting from the Antarctic
ozone hole in recent years, reducing marine primary productivity
(phytoplankton) by as much as 15% and damaging the DNA of some fish;
illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in recent years,
especially the landing of an estimated five to six times more
Patagonian toothfish than the regulated fishery, which is likely to
affect the sustainability of the stock; large amount of incidental
mortality of seabirds resulting from long-line fishing for toothfish
note: the now-protected fur seal population is making a strong
comeback after severe overexploitation in the 18th and 19th centuries
Environment - international agreements:
the Southern Ocean is subject to all international agreements
regarding the world's oceans; in addition, it is subject to these
agreements specific to the Antarctic region: International Whaling
Commission (prohibits commercial whaling south of 40 degrees south
[south of 60 degrees south between 50 degrees and 130 degrees
west]); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (limits
sealing); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living
Resources (regulates fishing)
note: many nations (including the US) prohibit mineral resource
exploration and exploitation south of the fluctuating Polar Front
(Antarctic Convergence) which is in the middle of the Antarctic
Circumpolar Current and serves as the dividing line between the very
cold polar surface waters to the south and the warmer waters to the
north
Geography - note:
the major chokepoint is the Drake Passage between South America and
Antarctica; the Polar Front (Antarctic Convergence) is the best
natural definition of the northern extent of the Southern Ocean; it
is a distinct region at the middle of the Antarctic Circumpolar
Current that separates the very cold polar surface waters to the
south from the warmer waters to the north; the Front and the Current
extend entirely around Antarctica, reaching south of 60 degrees
south near New Zealand and near 48 degrees south in the far South
Atlantic coinciding with the path of the maximum westerly winds
Economy Southern Ocean
Economy - overview:
Fisheries in 2003-04 landed 136,262 metric tons, of which 87%
(118,166 tons) was krill and 8% (11,182 tons) Patagonian toothfish,
compared to 142,555 tons in 2002-03 of which 83% (117,728 tons) was
krill and 12% (16,479 tons) Patagonian toothfish (estimated fishing
from the area covered by the Convention of the Conservation of
Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which extends slightly
beyond the Southern Ocean area). International agreements were
adopted in late 1999 to reduce illegal, unreported, and unregulated
fishing, which in the 2000-01 season landed, by one estimate, 8,376
metric tons of Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish. In the 2004-05
Antarctic summer 28,202 tourists, most of them seaborne
(approximately 97%), visited the Southern Ocean and Antarctica,
compared to 14,762 in 1999-2000.
Transportation Southern Ocean
Ports and terminals:
McMurdo, Palmer, and offshore anchorages in Antarctica
note: few ports or harbors exist on southern side of Southern Ocean;
ice conditions limit use of most to short periods in midsummer; even
then some cannot be entered without icebreaker escort; most
Antarctic ports are operated by government research stations and,
except in an emergency, are not open to commercial or private
vessels; vessels in any port south of 60 degrees south are subject
to inspection by Antarctic Treaty observers (see Article 7); The
Hydrographic Committee on Antarctica (HCA), a special hydrographic
commission of International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), is
responsible for hydrographic surveying and nautical charting matters
in Antarctic Treaty area; it coordinates and facilitates provision
of accurate and appropriate charts and other aids to navigation in
support of safety of navigation in region; membership of HCA is open
to any IHO Member State whose government has acceded to the
Antarctic Treaty and which contributes resources and/or data to IHO
Chart coverage of the area; members of HCA are Argentina, Australia,
Chile, China, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, NZ, Norway,
Russia, South Africa, Spain, and the UK (2005)
Transportation - note:
Drake Passage offers alternative to transit through the Panama Canal
Transnational Issues Southern Ocean
Disputes - international:
Antarctic Treaty defers claims (see Antarctica entry), but
Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and UK assert
claims (some overlapping), including the continental shelf in the
Southern Ocean; several states have expressed an interest in
extending those continental shelf claims under the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to include undersea
ridges; the US and most other states do not recognize the land or
maritime claims of other states and have made no claims themselves
(the US and Russia have reserved the right to do so); no formal
claims exist in the waters in the sector between 90 degrees west and
150 degrees west
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@South Georgia and the South Sandwich
Introduction South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Background:
The islands, which have large bird and seal populations, lie
approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been
under British administration since 1908 - except for a brief period
in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia,
was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer
Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated
attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months
later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a
successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the
Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and
is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from
the British Antarctic Survey. Recognizing the importance of
preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993,
extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each
island.
Geography South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Location:
Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east
of the tip of South America
Geographic coordinates:
54 30 S, 37 00 W
Map references:
Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 3,903 sq km
land: 3,903 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia
Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist
of eleven islands
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Rhode Island
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
NA km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climate:
variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year
interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as
snow
Terrain:
most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and
mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep,
glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of
volcanic origin with some active volcanoes
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m
Natural resources:
fish
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some
sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
Natural hazards:
the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that
generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also
subject to active volcanism
Environment - current issues:
NA
Geography - note:
the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which
provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th
century, live on South Georgia
People South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Population:
no indigenous inhabitants
note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March
2001, to be replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the
British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on
Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited (July 2006
est.)
Government South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Country name:
conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
conventional short form: none
abbreviation: SGSSI
Dependency status:
overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina;
administered from the Falkland Islands by a commissioner, who is
concurrently governor of the Falkland Islands, representing Queen
ELIZABETH II; Grytviken - formerly a whaling station on South
Georgia - is a scientific base
Legal system:
the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply; the senior magistrate
from the Falkland Islands presides over the Magistrates Court
Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Flag description:
blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and
the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands coat of arms
centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a
shield with a golden lion centered; the shield is supported by a fur
seal on the left and a penguin on the right; a reindeer appears
above the shield, and below it on a scroll is the motto LEO TERRAM
PROPRIAM PROTEGAT (Let the Lion Protect its Own Land)
Economy South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Economy - overview:
Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. There is a potential
source of income from harvesting finfish and krill. The islands
receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK, sale of
fishing licenses, and harbor and landing fees from tourist vessels.
Tourism from specialized cruise ships is increasing rapidly.
Communications South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken
Radio broadcast stations:
0 (2003)
Television broadcast stations:
0 (2003)
Internet country code:
.gs
Internet hosts:
271 (2006)
Transportation South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Ports and terminals:
Grytviken
Military South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the UK
Transnational Issues South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Disputes - international:
Argentina, which claims the islands in its constitution and briefly
occupied the islands by force in 1982, agreed in 1995 to no longer
seek settlement by force
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Spain
Introduction Spain
Background:
Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries
ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent
failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused
the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic
and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II,
but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful
transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco
FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the
EU in 1986), have given Spain one of the most dynamic economies in
Europe and made it a global champion of freedom. Continuing
challenges include Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorism and
relatively high unemployment.
Geography Spain
Location:
Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean
Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of
France
Geographic coordinates:
40 00 N, 4 00 W
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 504,782 sq km
land: 499,542 sq km
water: 5,240 sq km
note: there are 2 autonomous cities - Ceuta and Melilla - and 17
autonomous communities including Balearic Islands and Canary
Islands, and three small Spanish possessions off the coast of
Morocco - Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez
de la Gomera
Area - comparative:
slightly more than twice the size of Oregon
Land boundaries:
total: 1,917.8 km
border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km,
Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km
Coastline:
4,964 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean)
Climate:
temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy
along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and
cool along coast
Terrain:
large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills;
Pyrenees in north
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m
Natural resources:
coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten,
mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin,
potash, hydropower, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 27.18%
permanent crops: 9.85%
other: 62.97% (2005)
Irrigated land:
37,800 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents
from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and
quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note:
strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar
People Spain
Population:
40,397,842 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 14.4% (male 3,000,686/female 2,821,325)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 13,751,963/female 13,653,426)
65 years and over: 17.7% (male 2,993,496/female 4,176,946) (2006
est.)
Median age: total: 39.9 years male: 38.6 years female: 41.3 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.13% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
10.06 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
9.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 4.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.65 years
male: 76.32 years
female: 83.2 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.28 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.7% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
140,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 1,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality: noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish
Ethnic groups:
composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types
Religions:
Roman Catholic 94%, other 6%
Languages:
Castilian Spanish 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%; note -
Castilian is the official language nationwide; the other languages
are official regionally
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9%
male: 98.7%
female: 97.2% (2003 est.)
Government Spain
Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain
conventional short form: Spain
local long form: Reino de Espana
local short form: Espana
Government type:
parliamentary monarchy
Capital:
name: Madrid
geographic coordinates: 40 24 N, 3 41 W
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
note: Spain is divided into two time zones, including the Canary
Islands
Administrative divisions:
17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular -
comunidad autonoma)and 2 autonomous cities* (ciudades autonomas,
singular - ciudad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares
(Balearic Islands), Ceuta*, Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria,
Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Comunidad Valenciana,
Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Melilla*, Murcia, Navarra,
Pais Vasco (Basque Country)
note: the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla plus three small
islands of Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez
de la Gomera, administered directly by the Spanish central
government, are all located along the coast of Morocco and are
collectively referred to as Places of Sovereignty (Plazas de
Soberania)
Independence:
the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent
kingdoms prior to the Muslim occupation that began in the early 8th
century AD and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian
redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately,
culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed
the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered
the forging of present-day Spain
National holiday:
National Day, 12 October
Constitution:
6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978
Legal system:
civil law system, with regional applications; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975); Heir
Apparent Prince FELIPE, son of the monarch, born 30 January 1968
head of government: President of the Government and Prime Minister
Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (since 17 April 2004); First Vice
President and Deputy Prime Minister (and Minister of the Presidency)
Maria Teresa FERNANDEZ DE LA VEGA (since 18 April 2004) and Second
Vice President (and Minister of Economy and Finance) Pedro SOLBES
(since 18 April 2004)
cabinet: Council of Ministers designated by the president
note: there is also a Council of State that is the supreme
consultative organ of the government, but its recommendations are
non-binding
elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the
majority coalition is usually proposed president by the monarch and
elected by the National Assembly; election last held 14 March 2004
(next to be held March 2008); vice presidents appointed by the
monarch on the proposal of the president
election results: Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (PSOE) elected
president; percent of National Assembly vote - 52.29%
Legislative branch:
bicameral; General Courts or National Assembly or Las Cortes
Generales consists of the Senate or Senado (259 seats - 208 members
directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the
regional legislatures to serve four-year terms) and the Congress of
Deputies or Congreso de los Diputados (350 seats; members are
elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional
representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March
2008); Congress of Deputies - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be
held March 2008)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PP 49%, PSOE
38.9%, Entesa Catalona de Progress 5.7%, CiU 1.99%, PNV 2.8%, CC
1.4%; seats by party - PP 102, PSOE 81, Entesa Catalona de Progress
12, CiU 4, PNV 6, CC 3; Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by
party - PSOE 43.3%, PP 37.8%, CiU 3.2%, ERC 2.5%, PNV 1.6%, IU 3.2%,
CC 0.9%; seats by party - PSOE 164, PP 148, CiU 10, ERC 8, PNV 7, IU
2, CC 3, other 8
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo
Political parties and leaders:
Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Josu Jon IMAZ]; Canarian Coalition
or CC (a coalition of five parties) [Paulino RIVERO Baute];
Convergence and Union or CiU [Artur MAS i Gavarro] (a coalition of
the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Artur MAS i Gavarro]
and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN y
LLEIDA]); Entesa Catalonia de Progress (a Senate coalition grouping
four Catalan parties - PSC, ERC, ICV, EUA); Galician Nationalist
Bloc or BNG [Anxo Manuel QUINTANA]; Party of Independents from
Lanzarote or PIL [Dimas MARTIN Martin]; Popular Party or PP [Mariano
RAJOY]; Republican Left of Catalonia or ERC [Joan Puigcercos
BOIXASSA]; Spanish Socialist Workers Party or PSOE [Jose Luis
RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO]; United Left or IU (a coalition of parties
including the PCE and other small parties) [Gaspar LLAMAZARES]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
business and landowning interests; Catholic Church; free labor
unions (authorized in April 1977); Socialist General Union of
Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or
USO; university students; Trade Union Confederation of Workers'
Commissions or CC.OO.; Nunca Mas (Galician for "Never Again"; formed
in response to the oil tanker Prestige oil spill)
International organization participation:
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB,
EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA,
NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, SECI
(observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNRWA,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos WESTENDORP
chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone: (202) 452-0100, 728-2340
FAX: (202) 833-5670
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami,
New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AGUIRRE, Jr.
embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid
mailing address: PSC 61, APO AE 09642
telephone: (91) 587-2200
FAX: (91) 587-2303
consulate(s) general: Barcelona
Flag description:
three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red
with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band;
the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of
Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on
either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar
Economy Spain
Economy - overview:
The Spanish economy boomed from 1986 to 1990, averaging five
percent annual growth. After a European-wide recession in the early
1990s, the Spanish economy resumed moderate growth starting in 1994.
Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita
basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. The
center-right government of former President AZNAR successfully
worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching
the European single currency (the euro) on 1 January 1999. The AZNAR
administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization,
and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to
that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the AZNAR administration
but remains high at 10.1%. Growth of 2.5% in 2003, 2.6% in 2004, and
3.4% in 2005 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering
European economy. The socialist president, RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, has
initiated economic and social reforms that are generally popular
among the masses of people, but that are anathema to religious and
other conservative elements. Adjusting to the monetary and other
economic policies of an integrated Europe, reducing unemployment,
and absorbing widespread social changes will pose challenges to
Spain over the next few years.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$1.033 trillion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.019 trillion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
3.5% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$25,600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4% industry: 29.5% services: 66.5% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 20.67 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 5.3% industry: 30.1% services: 64.6% (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate:
9.2% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 25.2% (1990)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
32.5 (1990)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.4% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
29.4% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $440.9 billion
expenditures: $448.4 billion; including capital expenditures of
$12.8 billion (2005 est.)
Public debt:
42.9% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef,
pork, poultry, dairy products; fish
Industries:
textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages,
metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles,
machine tools, tourism, clay and refractory products, footwear,
pharmaceuticals, medical equipment
Industrial production growth rate:
0.7% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
247.3 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 50.4% hydro: 18.2% nuclear: 27.2% other: 4.1% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
231.2 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
7.5 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
8.7 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
24,540 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
1.544 million bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
135,100 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
1.582 million bbl/day (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
10.5 million bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production:
216 million cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
23.27 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
17.26 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
2.662 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
Current account balance:
$-83.14 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$194.3 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, medicines,
other consumer goods
Exports - partners:
France 19.4%, Germany 11.4%, Portugal 9.5%, UK 8.5%, Italy 8.4%
(2005)
Imports:
$271.8 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods,
foodstuffs, consumer goods, measuring and medical control instruments
Imports - partners:
Germany 15%, France 14.5%, Italy 8.5%, UK 5.8%, Netherlands 4.9%,
China 4.3% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$17.23 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$970.7 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.33 billion (1999)
Currency (code):
euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the
euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions
of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole
currency for everyday transactions with the member countries
Currency code:
EUR
Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003),
1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Spain
Telephones - main lines in use:
18.322 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
41.328 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities;
teledensity is 45 main lines for each 100 persons
domestic: NA
international: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables;
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian
Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 208, FM 715, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
13.1 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 224 (plus 2,105 repeaters) note: these figures include 11 television broadcast stations and 88 repeaters in the Canary Islands (1995)
Televisions:
16.2 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.es
Internet hosts:
2,520,711 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
56 (2000)
Internet users:
19,204,771 (2006)
Transportation Spain
Airports: 157 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 96 over 3,047 m: 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 26 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 61 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 44 (2006)
Heliports:
8 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 7,962 km; oil 622 km; refined products 3,447 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 14,873 km
broad gauge: 11,919 km 1.668-m gauge (6,950 km electrified)
standard gauge: 998 km 1.435-m gauge (998 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 1,928 km 1.000-m gauge (815 km electrified); 28 km
0.914-m gauge (28 km electrified) (2005)
Roadways:
total: 666,292 km
paved: 659,629 km (including 12,009 km of expressways)
unpaved: 6,663 km (2003)
Waterways:
1,000 km (2003)
Merchant marine:
total: 169 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,902,839 GRT/1,874,161 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 13, chemical tanker 14, container 27,
liquefied gas 9, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 49, petroleum tanker
15, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2,
vehicle carrier 5
foreign-owned: 36 (Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 12, Italy 2, Mexico 3,
Norway 7, UK 1, Uruguay 2, US 7)
registered in other countries: 112 (Bahamas 12, Belize 3, Brazil 4,
Cambodia 1, Cape Verde 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 7, Italy 1, Malta 6,
Marshall Islands 3, Nigeria 1, Panama 53, Portugal 15, Saint Kitts
and Nevis 2, UK 1, Venezuela 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Algeciras, Barcelona, Cartagena, Gijon, Huelva, La Coruna,
Tarragona, Valencia
Military Spain
Military branches:
Spanish Armed Forces: Army (Ejercito de Tierra), Spanish Navy
(Armada Espanola, AE; includes Marine Corps), Spanish Air Force
(Ejercito del Aire Espanola, EdA) (2006)
Military service age and obligation:
20 years of age (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 20-49: 9,366,588
females age 20-49: 9,155,057 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 20-49: 7,623,356
females age 20-49: 7,434,465 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 233,384
females age 20-49: 221,805 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$9,906.5 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.2% (2003)
Transnational Issues Spain
Disputes - international:
in 2003, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to
remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty"
arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK
and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater
autonomy; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves
of Ceuta, Melilla, and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera,
Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters;
Morocco serves as the primary launching site of illegal migration
into Spain from North Africa; Portugal does not recognize Spanish
sovereignty over the territory of Olivenza based on a difference of
interpretation of the 1815 Congress of Vienna and the 1801 Treaty of
Badajoz
Illicit drugs:
key European gateway country and consumer for Latin American
cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market;
destination and minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian
heroin; money-laundering site for Colombian narcotics trafficking
organizations and organized crime
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Spratly Islands
Introduction Spratly Islands
Background:
The Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or
reefs. They are surrounded by rich fishing grounds and potentially
by gas and oil deposits. They are claimed in their entirety by
China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, while portions are claimed by Malaysia
and the Philippines. About 45 islands are occupied by relatively
small numbers of military forces from China, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Brunei has established a fishing
zone that overlaps a southern reef, but has not made any formal
claim.
Geography Spratly Islands
Location:
Southeastern Asia, group of reefs and islands in the South China
Sea, about two-thirds of the way from southern Vietnam to the
southern Philippines
Geographic coordinates:
8 38 N, 111 55 E
Map references:
Southeast Asia
Area:
total: less than 5 sq km
land: less than 5 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes 100 or so islets, coral reefs, and sea mounts
scattered over an area of nearly 410,000 sq km of the central South
China Sea
Area - comparative:
NA
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
926 km
Maritime claims:
NA
Climate:
tropical
Terrain:
flat
Elevation extremes: lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Southwest Cay 4 m
Natural resources: fish, guano, undetermined oil and natural gas potential
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
Natural hazards:
typhoons; numerous reefs and shoals pose a serious maritime hazard
Environment - current issues:
NA
Geography - note:
strategically located near several primary shipping lanes in the
central South China Sea; includes numerous small islands, atolls,
shoals, and coral reefs
People Spratly Islands
Population:
no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are scattered garrisons occupied by personnel of several
claimant states (2004)
Government Spratly Islands
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Spratly Islands
Economy Spratly Islands
Economy - overview:
Economic activity is limited to commercial fishing. The proximity
to nearby oil- and gas-producing sedimentary basins suggests the
potential for oil and gas deposits, but the region is largely
unexplored. There are no reliable estimates of potential reserves.
Commercial exploitation has yet to be developed.
Transportation Spratly Islands
Airports: 3 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Ports and terminals:
none; offshore anchorage only
Military Spratly Islands
Military - note:
Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or reefs, of
which about 45 are claimed and occupied by China, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam
Transnational Issues Spratly Islands
Disputes - international:
all of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and
Vietnam; parts of them are claimed by Malaysia and the Philippines;
in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone that
encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands but has not
publicly claimed the reef; claimants in November 2002 signed the
"Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea,"
which has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code
of conduct"; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the
Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine
seismic activities in the Spratly Islands
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Sri Lanka
Introduction Sri Lanka
Background:
The Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C.,
probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced beginning in
about the mid-third century B.C., and a great civilization developed
at the cities of Anuradhapura (kingdom from circa 200 B.C. to circa
A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th
century, a south Indian dynasty seized power in the north and
established a Tamil kingdom. Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th
century and by the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded
to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was
united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent
in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Tensions between
the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in
1983. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic conflict that
continues to fester. After two decades of fighting, the government
and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam formalized a cease-fire in
February 2002, with Norway brokering peace negotiations.
Geography Sri Lanka
Location:
Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Geographic coordinates:
7 00 N, 81 00 E
Map references:
Asia
Area:
total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km
water: 870 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
1,340 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate:
tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest
monsoon (June to October)
Terrain:
mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central
interior
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Natural resources:
limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay,
hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 13.96%
permanent crops: 15.24%
other: 70.8% (2005)
Irrigated land:
7,430 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
occasional cyclones and tornadoes
Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by
poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining
activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being
polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air
pollution in Colombo
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note:
strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
People Sri Lanka
Population:
20,222,240
note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and
armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand
Tamil civilians have fled the island and more than 200,000 Tamils
have sought refuge in the West (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 24.1% (male 2,488,689/female 2,379,233)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 6,727,399/female 7,140,751)
65 years and over: 7.3% (male 687,842/female 798,326) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 29.8 years
male: 28.7 years
female: 30.9 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.78% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
15.51 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
6.52 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
-1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 13.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.18 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 12.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.41 years
male: 70.83 years
female: 76.12 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.84 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
3,500 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Sri Lankan(s)
adjective: Sri Lankan
Ethnic groups:
Sinhalese 73.8%, Sri Lankan Moors 7.2%, Indian Tamil 4.6%, Sri
Lankan Tamil 3.9%, other 0.5%, unspecified 10% (2001 census
provisional data)
Religions:
Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%,
unspecified 10% (2001 census provisional data)
Languages:
Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national
language) 18%, other 8%
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken
competently by about 10% of the population
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.3%
male: 94.8%
female: 90% (2003 est.)
Government Sri Lanka
Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
conventional short form: Sri Lanka
local long form: Shri Lamka Prajatantrika Samajaya di
Janarajaya/Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu
local short form: Shri Lamka/Ilankai
former: Serendib, Ceylon
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Colombo
geographic coordinates: 6 56 N, 79 51 E
time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
note: Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Administrative divisions:
8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western,
Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western
note: in 1998 the Government of Sri Lanka proposed a merger of the
former Northern and Eastern provinces; while this merger was never
ratified, the Government treats North Eastern Province as a de facto
singular administrative unit
Independence:
4 February 1948 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 4 February (1948)
Constitution:
adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978
Legal system:
a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch,
Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSE (since 19 November
2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government; Ratnasiri WICKREMANAYAKE (since 21 November 2005) holds
the ceremonial title of prime minister
head of government: President Mahinda RAJAPAKSE (since 19 November
2005)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the
prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 17 November 2005
(next to be held 2011)
election results: Mahinda RAJAPAKSE elected president; percent of
vote - Mahinda RAJAPAKSE 50.3%, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE 48.4%, other
1.3%
Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament (225 seats; members elected by popular vote
on the basis of a modified proportional representation system by
district to serve six-year terms)
elections: last held 2 April 2004 (next to be held by 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance -
SLFP and JVP (no longer in formal UPFA alliance) 45.6%, UNP 37.83%,
TNA 6.84%, JHU 5.97%, SLMC 2.02%, UPF 0.54%, EPDP 0.27%, others
0.93%; seats by party - UNP 68, SLFP 57, JVP 39, UNP dissident 1,
TNA 22, CWC 8, JHU 7, JHU dissidents 2, SLMC 6, SLMC dissidents 4,
Communist Party 2, LSSP 2, MEP 2, NUA 2, UPF 2, EPDP 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are
appointed by the president
Political parties and leaders:
All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [KUMARGURUPARAM]; Ceylon Workers
Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D.
GUNASEKERA]; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF
[Shrimani ATULATHMUDALI]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP
[Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front
or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna or JVP
[Somawansa AMARASINGHE]; Lanka Sama Samaja Party or LSSP; Mahajana
Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front) or MEP [D. GUNAWARDENE];
National Heritage Party or JHU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; National Unity
Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Liberation Organization
of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [D. SIDHARTHAN]; Sihala Urumaya or SU; Sri
Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA];
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Sri Lanka
Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; Tamil Eelam Liberation
Organization or TELO [SABARATNAM]; Tamil National Alliance or TNA
[R. SAMPANTHAN]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [V.
ANANDASANGAREE]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil
WICKREMASINGHE]; Up-country People's Front or UPF [P.
CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties,
represented in either Parliament or provincial councils
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Buddhist clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or
LTTE [Velupillai PRABHAKARAN](insurgent group fighting for a
separate state); radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the
National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups
International organization participation:
AsDB, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS
(observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UNMIS, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Bernard GOONETILLEKE chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert O. BLAKE, Jr.
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3
mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo
telephone: (11) 249-8500
FAX: (11) 243-7345
Flag description:
yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal
vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is
a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and
there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears
as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels
Economy Sri Lanka
Economy - overview:
In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import
substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and
export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food
processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages,
telecommunications, and insurance and banking. In 2003, plantation
crops made up only 15% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while
textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average
annual rate of about 5.5% in the 1990s, but 2001 saw the first
contraction in the country's history, by 1.4%, due to a combination
of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown,
and continuing civil strife. Growth recovered to 5% between 2002 and
2005. About 800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% in the Middle East.
They send home about $1 billion a year. The struggle by the Tamil
Tigers of the north and east for a largely independent homeland
continues to cast a shadow over the economy. In late December 2004,
a major tsunami took about 31,000 lives, left more than 6,300
missing and 443,000 displaced, and destroyed an estimated $1.5
billion worth of property.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$86.07 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$21.62 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$4,300 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 17.8% industry: 27.6% services: 54.5% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 8.08 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 38% industry: 17% services: 45% (1998 est.)
Unemployment rate:
7.7% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
22% (1997 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.5% highest 10%: 28% (1995)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
34.4 (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
11.6% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
26.1% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $3.804 billion
expenditures: $5.469 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)
Public debt:
92.8% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber,
coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef; fish
Industries:
processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural
commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing,
textiles; cement, petroleum refining
Industrial production growth rate:
8.2% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
7.308 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 51.7% hydro: 48.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
6.796 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
79,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Current account balance:
$-776 million (2005 est.)
Exports:
$6.442 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
textiles and apparel, tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies;
coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish
Exports - partners:
US 30.9%, UK 11.6%, India 7.3%, Belgium 4.8%, Germany 4.5% (2005)
Imports:
$8.37 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery
and transportation equipment
Imports - partners:
India 19.7%, China 9.9%, Singapore 7.2%, Iran 5.5%, Malaysia 4.6%,
Hong Kong 4.5% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.737 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$11.05 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$577 million (1998)
Currency (code):
Sri Lankan rupee (LKR)
Currency code:
LKR
Exchange rates:
Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 100.498 (2005), 101.194 (2004),
96.521 (2003), 95.662 (2002), 89.383 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Sri Lanka
Telephones - main lines in use:
1.244 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
3.362 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: very inadequate domestic service, particularly
in rural areas; likely improvement with privatization of national
telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good
international service (1999)
domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital
microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area
and two fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition
is strong in mobile cellular systems; telephone density remains low
(1999)
international: country code - 94; submarine cables to Indonesia and
Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
3.85 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
21 (1997)
Televisions:
1.53 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.lk
Internet hosts:
6,526 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
5 (2000)
Internet users:
280,000 (2005)
Transportation Sri Lanka
Airports: 16 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 14 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Railways:
total: 1,449 km
broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge (2005)
Roadways: total: 97,287 km paved: 78,802 km unpaved: 18,485 km (2003)
Waterways:
160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 144,066 GRT/196,418 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 17, container 2, petroleum tanker 2
foreign-owned: 7 (Germany 5, UAE 2)
registered in other countries: 5 (Panama 5) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Colombo, Galle
Military Sri Lanka
Military branches:
Sri Lankan Army, Sri Lankan Navy, Sri Lankan Air Force (2006)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 4,933,217
females age 18-49: 5,153,597 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 3,789,627
females age 18-49: 4,281,043 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 174,049
females age 18-49: 167,201 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$606.2 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
2.6% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues Sri Lanka
Disputes - international: none
Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs: 353,000 (both Tamils and non-Tamils displaced due to Tamil conflict); 450,000 (resulting from 2004 tsunami) (2005)
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Sudan
Introduction Sudan
Background:
Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have
dominated national politics since independence from the UK in 1956.
Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged civil wars during most of the
remainder of the 20th century. These conflicts were rooted in
northern economic, political, and social domination of largely
non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese. The first civil war ended in
1972, but broke out again in 1983. The second war and famine-related
effects resulted in more than 4 million people displaced and,
according to rebel estimates, more than 2 million deaths over a
period of two decades. Peace talks gained momentum in 2002-04 with
the signing of several accords; a final Naivasha peace treaty of
January 2005 granted the southern rebels autonomy for six years,
after which a referendum for independence is scheduled to be held. A
separate conflict that broke out in the western region of Darfur in
2003 has resulted in at least 200,000 deaths and nearly 2 million
displaced; as of late 2005, peacekeeping troops were struggling to
stabilize the situation. Sudan also has faced large refugee influxes
from neighboring countries, primarily Ethiopia and Chad, and armed
conflict, poor transport infrastructure, and lack of government
support have chronically obstructed the provision of humanitarian
assistance to affected populations.
Geography Sudan
Location:
Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea
Geographic coordinates:
15 00 N, 30 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 2,505,810 sq km
land: 2.376 million sq km
water: 129,810 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US
Land boundaries:
total: 7,687 km
border countries: Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360 km,
Democratic Republic of the Congo 628 km, Egypt 1,273 km, Eritrea 605
km, Ethiopia 1,606 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km, Uganda 435 km
Coastline:
853 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 18 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season varies by
region (April to November)
Terrain:
generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in far south,
northeast and west; desert dominates the north
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Red Sea 0 m
highest point: Kinyeti 3,187 m
Natural resources:
petroleum; small reserves of iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc,
tungsten, mica, silver, gold, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 6.78% permanent crops: 0.17% other: 93.05% (2005)
Irrigated land:
18,630 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
dust storms and periodic persistent droughts
Environment - current issues:
inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations
threatened by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification;
periodic drought
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone
Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
largest country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries
People Sudan
Population:
41,236,378 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.7% (male 8,993,483/female 8,614,022)
15-64 years: 54.9% (male 11,327,679/female 11,297,798)
65 years and over: 2.4% (male 536,754/female 466,642) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 18.3 years
male: 18.1 years
female: 18.5 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.55% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
34.53 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.15 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 61.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 61.88 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 60.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 58.92 years
male: 57.69 years
female: 60.21 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.72 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
2.3% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
400,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
23,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) are high risks in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2005)
Nationality:
noun: Sudanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Sudanese
Ethnic groups:
black 52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1%
Religions:
Sunni Muslim 70% (in north), indigenous beliefs 25%, Christian 5%
(mostly in south and Khartoum)
Languages:
Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic,
Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English
note: program of "Arabization" in process
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 61.1%
male: 71.8%
female: 50.5% (2003 est.)
Government Sudan
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of the Sudan
conventional short form: Sudan
local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan
local short form: As-Sudan
former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Government type:
Government of National Unity (GNU) - the National Congress Party
(NCP) and Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) formed a
power-sharing government under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace
Agreement (CPA); the NCP, which came to power by military coup in
1989, is the majority partner; the agreement stipulates national
elections for the 2008 - 2009 timeframe.
Capital:
name: Khartoum
geographic coordinates: 15 36 N, 32 32 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
25 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); A'ali an Nil (Upper Nile),
Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrat (Lakes), Al Jazirah (El
Gezira), Al Khartum (Khartoum), Al Qadarif (Gedaref), Al Wahdah
(Unity), An Nil al Abyad (White Nile), An Nil al Azraq (Blue Nile),
Ash Shamaliyah (Northern), Bahr al Jabal (Bahr al Jabal), Gharb al
Istiwa'iyah (Western Equatoria), Gharb Bahr al Ghazal (Western Bahr
al Ghazal), Gharb Darfur (Western Darfur), Janub Darfur (Southern
Darfur), Janub Kurdufan (Southern Kordofan), Junqali (Jonglei),
Kassala (Kassala), Nahr an Nil (Nile), Shamal Bahr al Ghazal
(Northern Bahr al Ghazal), Shamal Darfur (Northern Darfur), Shamal
Kurdufan (Northern Kordofan), Sharq al Istiwa'iyah (Eastern
Equatoria), Sinnar (Sinnar), Warab (Warab)
Independence:
1 January 1956 (from Egypt and UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 January (1956)
Constitution:
12 April 1973; suspended following coup of 6 April 1985; interim
constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of 30 June
1989; new constitution implemented on 30 June 1998 partially
suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR; under the CPA,
Interim National Constitution ratified 5 July 2005; Constitution of
Southern Sudan signed December 2005
Legal system:
based on English common law and Shari'a law; as of 20 January 1991,
the now defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Shari'a law in
the northern states; Shari'a law applies to all residents of the
northern states regardless of their religion; some separate
religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with
reservations; the southern legal system is still developing under
the CPA following the civil war; Shari'a law will not apply to the
southern states
Suffrage:
17 years of age; universal, but noncompulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16
October 1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August
2005), Vice President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005); note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16
October 1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August
2005), Vice President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005); note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president; note - the
National Congress Party or NCP (formerly the National Islamic Front
or NIF) dominates al-BASHIR's cabinet
elections: election last held 13-23 December 2000; next to be held
no later than July 2009 under terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace
Agreement
election results: Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected president;
percent of vote - Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR 86.5%, Ja'afar
Muhammed NUMAYRI 9.6%, three other candidates received a combined
vote of 3.9%; election widely viewed as rigged; all popular
opposition parties boycotted elections because of a lack of
guarantees for a free and fair election
note: al-BASHIR assumed power as chairman of Sudan's Revolutionary
Command Council for National Salvation (RCC) in June 1989 and served
concurrently as chief of state, chairman of the RCC, prime minister,
and minister of defense until mid-October 1993 when he was appointed
president by the RCC; he was elected president by popular vote for
the first time in March 1996
Legislative branch:
bi-cameral body comprising the National Assembly and Council of
States (replaced unicameral National Assembly of 360 seats); pending
elections and National Election Law, the Presidency appointed 450
members to the National Assembly according to the provisions of the
2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement: 52% NCP; 28% SPLM; 14% other
Northerners; 6% other Southerners; 2 representatives from every
state constitute the Council of States; terms in each chamber are
five years following the first elections
elections: last held 13-22 December 2000 (next to be held 2008-2009
timeframe)
election results: NCP 355, others 5; note - replaced by appointments
under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement
Judicial branch:
Constitutional Court of nine justices; National Supreme Court;
National Courts of Appeal; other national courts; National Judicial
Service Commission will undertake overall management of the National
Judiciary
Political parties and leaders:
political parties in the Government of National Unity include:
National Congress Party or NCP [Ibrahim Ahmed OMAR]; Sudan People's
Liberation Movement or SPLM [Salva Mayardit KIIR]; and elements of
the National Democratic Alliance or NDA including factions of the
Democratic Union Party [Muhammad Uthman al-MIRGHANI] and Umma Party
[SADIQ Siddiq al-Mahdi]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Umma Party [Sadiq al-MAHDI]; Popular Congress Party or PCP [Hassan
al-TURABI]
International organization participation:
ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA,
NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires, Ad
Interim Khidir HAROUN (since April 2001)
chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 338-8565
FAX: (202) 667-2406
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Cameron
HUME
embassy: Sharia Ali Abdul Latif Avenue, Khartoum
mailing address: P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829
telephone: (183) 774701
FAX: (183) 774137
note: US Consul in Cairo is providing backup service for Khartoum;
consular services are being established in Juba (southern Sudan)
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a
green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
Economy Sudan
Economy - overview:
Sudan has turned around a struggling economy with sound economic
policies and infrastructure investments, but it still faces
formidable economic problems, starting from its low level of per
capita output. From 1997 to date, Sudan has been implementing IMF
macroeconomic reforms. In 1999, Sudan began exporting crude oil and
in the last quarter of 1999 recorded its first trade surplus, which,
along with monetary policy, has stabilized the exchange rate.
Increased oil production, revived light industry, and expanded
export processing zones helped sustain GDP growth at 8.6% in 2004.
Agricultural production remains Sudan's most important sector,
employing 80% of the work force, contributing 39% of GDP, and
accounting for most of GDP growth, but most farms remain rain-fed
and susceptible to drought. Chronic instability - resulting from the
long-standing civil war between the Muslim north and the
Christian/pagan south, adverse weather, and weak world agricultural
prices - ensure that much of the population will remain at or below
the poverty line for years.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$85.89 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$22.75 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
8% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$2,100 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 38.7% industry: 20.3% services: 41% (2003 est.)
Labor force: 7.415 million (1996 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 80% industry: 7% services: 13% (1998 est.)
Unemployment rate:
18.7% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
40% (2004 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
16.3% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $6.182 billion
expenditures: $5.753 billion; including capital expenditures of $304
million (2005 est.)
Public debt:
107% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
cotton, groundnuts (peanuts), sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic,
sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), mangos, papaya, bananas, sweet
potatoes, sesame; sheep, livestock
Industries:
oil, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap
distilling, shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments,
automobile/light truck assembly
Industrial production growth rate:
8.5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production:
3.165 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 52.1% hydro: 47.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
2.943 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
401,300 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption:
70,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports:
275,000 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - imports:
0 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - proved reserves:
1.6 billion bbl (2005 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
84.95 billion cu m (2005)
Current account balance:
$-3.013 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$6.989 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
oil and petroleum products; cotton, sesame, livestock, groundnuts,
gum arabic, sugar
Exports - partners:
China 71.1%, Japan 12%, Saudi Arabia 2.8% (2005)
Imports:
$5.028 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, manufactured goods, refinery and transport equipment,
medicines and chemicals, textiles, wheat
Imports - partners:
China 20.7%, Saudi Arabia 9.4%, UAE 5.9%, Egypt 5.5%, Japan 5.1%,
India 4.8% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.45 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$27.34 billion (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$172 million (2001)
Currency (code):
Sudanese dinar (SDD)
Currency code:
SDD
Exchange rates:
Sudanese dinars per US dollar - 243.61 (2005), 257.91 (2004),
260.98 (2003), 263.31 (2002), 258.7 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Sudan
Telephones - main lines in use:
670,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.828 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: large, well-equipped system by regional
standards and being upgraded; cellular communications started in
1996 and have expanded substantially
domestic: consists of microwave radio relay, cable, radiotelephone
communications, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite
system with 14 earth stations
international: country code - 249; satellite earth stations - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (2000)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
7.55 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
3 (1997)
Televisions:
2.38 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.sd
Internet hosts:
16 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
2 (2002)
Internet users:
2.8 million (2005)
Transportation Sudan
Airports: 88 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 15 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 73 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 17 (2006)
Heliports:
1 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 156 km; oil 3,930 km; refined products 1,613 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 5,978 km
narrow gauge: 4,578 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km 0.600-m gauge for
cotton plantations (2005)
Roadways:
total: 11,900 km
paved: 4,320 km
unpaved: 7,580 km (1999)
Waterways:
4,068 km (1,723 km open year round on White and Blue Nile rivers)
(2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 11,326 GRT/14,068 DWT
by type: cargo 1, livestock carrier 1
registered in other countries: 2 (Panama 1, Saudi Arabia 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Port Sudan
Military Sudan
Military branches:
Sudanese People's Armed Forces (SPAF): Army, Navy, Air Force,
Popular Defense Force
Military service age and obligation:
18-30 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript
service obligation - three years (August 2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 8,291,695
females age 18-49: 8,135,683 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 5,427,474
females age 18-49: 5,649,566 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 442,915
females age 18-49: 426,320 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$587 million (2001 est.) (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3% (1999) (2004)
Transnational Issues Sudan
Disputes - international:
the effects of Sudan's almost constant ethnic and rebel militia
fighting since the mid-twentieth century have penetrated all of its
border states that provide shelter for fleeing refugees and cover to
disparate domestic and foreign conflicting elements; since 2003,
Janjawid armed militia and Sudanese military have driven about
200,000 Darfur region refugees into eastern Chad; large numbers of
Sudanese refugees have also fled to Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, the
Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
southern Sudan provides shelter to Ugandans seeking periodic
protection from soldiers of the Lord's Resistance Army; Sudan
accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; efforts to
demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia have been delayed by
civil and ethnic fighting in Sudan; Kenya's administrative boundary
extends into the southern Sudan, creating the "Ilemi Triangle";
Egypt and Sudan retain claims to administer triangular areas that
extend north and south of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd
Parallel, but have withdrawn their military presence; Egypt is
economically developing the "Hala'ib Triangle" north of the Treaty
Line; periodic violent skirmishes with Sudanese residents over water
and grazing rights persist among related pastoral populations from
the Central African Republic along the border
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 110,927 (Eritrea) 5,023 (Chad) 7,983
(Uganda) 14,812 (Ethiopia)
IDPs: 5,300,000 - 6,200,000 (internal conflict since 1980s; ongoing
genocide) (2005)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Sudan is a source country for men, women, and
children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual
exploitation; Sudan may also be a transit and destination country
for Ethiopian women trafficked for domestic servitude; boys are
trafficked to the Middle East, particularly Qatar and the United
Arab Emirates, for use as camel jockeys; small numbers of girls are
reportedly trafficked within Sudan for domestic servitude, as well
as for commercial sexual exploitation in small brothels in
internally displaced persons (IDP) camps; the terrorist rebel
organization "Lord's Resistance Army" (LRA) continues to abduct and
forcibly conscript small numbers of children in Southern Sudan for
use as cooks, porters, and combatants in its ongoing war against
Uganda; some of these children are then trafficked across borders
into Uganda or possibly the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
children are utilized by rebel groups and the Sudanese Armed Forces
and associated militias in the ongoing conflict in Darfur; during
the decades of civil war, thousands of Dinka women and children were
enslaved by members of Baggara tribes and subjected to various forms
of forced labor without remuneration, as well as physical and sexual
abuse; with the cessation of the North-South conflict and the
ongoing peace process, there were no known new abductions of Dinka
by Baggara tribes during 2005; however, inter-tribal abductions of a
different nature continue in Southern Sudan and warrant further
investigation
tier rating: Tier 3 - Sudan does not fully comply with the minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making
significant efforts to do so
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Suriname
Introduction Suriname
Background:
First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then
settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a
Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of slavery in 1863, workers
were brought in from India and Java. Independence from the
Netherlands was granted in 1975. Five years later the civilian
government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared a
socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a
succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when
international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In
1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a
democratically elected government - a four-party New Front coalition
- returned to power in 1991 and has ruled since.
Geography Suriname
Location:
Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
French Guiana and Guyana
Geographic coordinates:
4 00 N, 56 00 W
Map references:
South America
Area:
total: 163,270 sq km
land: 161,470 sq km
water: 1,800 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Georgia
Land boundaries: total: 1,707 km border countries: Brazil 597 km, French Guiana 510 km, Guyana 600 km
Coastline: 386 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate:
tropical; moderated by trade winds
Terrain:
mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m
highest point: Juliana Top 1,230 m
Natural resources:
timber, hydropower, fish, kaolin, shrimp, bauxite, gold, and small
amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, iron ore
Land use: arable land: 0.36% permanent crops: 0.06% other: 99.58% (2005)
Irrigated land:
510 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
NA
Environment - current issues: deforestation as timber is cut for export; pollution of inland waterways by small-scale mining activities
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
smallest independent country on South American continent; mostly
tropical rain forest; great diversity of flora and fauna that, for
the most part, is increasingly threatened by new development;
relatively small population, mostly along the coast
People Suriname
Population:
439,117 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 29% (male 65,412/female 62,069)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 145,913/female 138,076)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 12,223/female 15,424) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 26.5 years
male: 26 years
female: 26.9 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.2% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
18.02 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
7.27 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
-8.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 23.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.89 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 18.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.01 years
male: 66.66 years
female: 71.47 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.32 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.7% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
5,200 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 500 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Surinamer(s)
adjective: Surinamese
Ethnic groups:
Hindustani (also known locally as "East Indians"; their ancestors
emigrated from northern India in the latter part of the 19th
century) 37%, Creole (mixed white and black) 31%, Javanese 15%,
"Maroons" (their African ancestors were brought to the country in
the 17th and 18th centuries as slaves and escaped to the interior)
10%, Amerindian 2%, Chinese 2%, white 1%, other 2%
Religions:
Hindu 27.4%, Protestant 25.2% (predominantly Moravian), Roman
Catholic 22.8%, Muslim 19.6%, indigenous beliefs 5%
Languages:
Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo
(Surinamese, sometimes called Taki-Taki, is native language of
Creoles and much of the younger population and is lingua franca
among others), Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Javanese
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88%
male: 92.3%
female: 84.1% (2000 est.)
Government Suriname
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Suriname
conventional short form: Suriname
local long form: Republiek Suriname
local short form: Suriname
former: Netherlands Guiana, Dutch Guiana
Government type:
constitutional democracy
Capital:
name: Paramaribo
geographic coordinates: 5 50 N, 55 10 W
time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
10 districts (distrikten, singular - distrikt); Brokopondo,
Commewijne, Coronie, Marowijne, Nickerie, Para, Paramaribo,
Saramacca, Sipaliwini, Wanica
Independence:
25 November 1975 (from Netherlands)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 25 November (1975)
Constitution:
ratified 30 September 1987
Legal system:
based on Dutch legal system incorporating French penal theory;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Runaldo Ronald VENETIAAN (since 12 August
2000); Vice President Ram SARDJOE (since 3 August 2005); note - the
president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Runaldo Ronald VENETIAAN (since 12
August 2000); Vice President Ram SARDJOE (since 3 August 2005); note
- the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected by the National
Assembly or, if no presidential or vice presidential candidate
receives a two-thirds constitutional majority in the National
Assembly after two votes, by a simple majority in the larger United
People's Assembly (893 representatives from the national, local, and
regional councils), for five-year terms (no term limits); election
last held 25 May 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: Runaldo Ronald VENETIAAN reelected president;
percent of vote - Runaldo Ronald VENETIAAN 62.9%, Rabin PARMESSAR
35.4%, other 1.7%; note - after two votes in the parliament failed
to secure a two-thirds majority for a candidate, the vote then went
to a special session of the United People's Assembly on 3 August 2005
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Nationale Assemblee (51 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 25 May 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NF 39.73%, NDP 22.2%,
VVV 13.79%, A-Com 7.21%, A-1 5.86%, other 7.42%; seats by party - NF
23, NDP 15, VVV 5, A-Com 5, A-1 3
Judicial branch:
Cantonal Courts and a Court of Justice as an appellate court
(justices are nominated for life)
Political parties and leaders:
Alternative-1 or A-1 (a coalition of Amazone Party of Suriname or
APS [Kenneth VAN GENDEREN], Democrats of the 21st Century or D-21
[Soewarto MOESTADJA], Nieuw Suriname or NS [Radjen Nanan PANDAY],
Political Wing of the FAL or PVF [Jiwan SITAL], Trefpunt 2000 or
T-2000 [Arti JESSURUN]); General Interior Development Party or ABOP
[Ronnie BRUNSWIJK]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Desire
BOUTERSE]; New Front for Democracy and Development or NF (a
coalition which includes A-Combination or A-Com [leader NA],
Democratic Alternative 1991 or DA-91 which split from the A-1 before
the elections of May 2005 and are an independent, business-oriented
party [Winston JESSURUN], National Party Suriname or NPS [Ronald
VENETIAAN], United Reform Party or VHP [Ram SARDJOE], Pertjaja Luhur
or PL [Salam Paul SOMOHARDJO], Surinamese Labor Party or SPA
[Siegfried GILDS]); Party for Democracy and Development in Unity or
DOE [Marten SCHALKWIJK]; People's Alliance for Progress or VVV (a
coalition of Democratic National Platform 2000 or DNP-2000 [Jules
WIJDENBOSCH], Grassroots Party for Renewal and Democracy or BVD
[Tjan GOBARDHAN], Party for National Unity and Solidarity of the
Highest Order or KTPI [Willy SOEMITA], Party for Progression,
Justice, and Perseverance or PPRS [Renee KAIMAN], Pendawalima or PL
[Raymond SAPOEN]); Progressive Laborers and Farmers Union or PALU
[Jim HOK]; Progressive Political Party or PPP [Surinder MUNGRA];
Seeka [Paul ABENA]; Union of Progressive Surinamers or UPS [Sheoradj
PANDAY]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Association of Indigenous Village Chiefs [Ricardo PANE];
Association of Saramaccan Authorities or Maroon [Head Captain WASE];
Women's Parliament Forum or PVF [Iris GILLIAD]
International organization participation:
ACP, Caricom, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDB,
IFAD, IFRCS, IHO (suspended), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU,
ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Henry Lothar ILLES chancery: Suite 460, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 244-7488 FAX: (202) 244-5878 consulate(s) general: Miami
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Lisa Bobbie SCHREIBER HUGHES embassy: Dr. Sophie Redmondstraat 129, Paramaribo mailing address: US Department of State, 3390 Paramaribo Place, Washington, DC, 20521-3390 telephone: 472-900 FAX: 425-690
Flag description:
five horizontal bands of green (top, double width), white, red
(quadruple width), white, and green (double width); there is a
large, yellow, five-pointed star centered in the red band
Economy Suriname
Economy - overview:
The economy is dominated by the mining industry, which accounts for
more than a third of GDP and subjects government revenues to mineral
price volatility. The short-term economic outlook depends on the
government's ability to control inflation and on the development of
projects in the bauxite and gold mining sectors. Suriname's economic
prospects for the medium term will depend on continued commitment to
responsible monetary and fiscal policies and to the introduction of
structural reforms to liberalize markets and promote competition.
The government of Ronald VENETIAAN, in his first term, implemented
an austerity program, raised taxes, and attempted to control
spending. Economic policies are likely to remain the same during
VENETIAAN's second term. Prospects for local onshore oil production
are good, as a drilling program is underway. Offshore oil drilling
was given a boost in 2004 when the State Oil Company (Staatsolie)
signed exploration agreements with Repsol, Mearsk, and Occidental.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$2.893 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.3 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
5% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$6,600 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 13% industry: 22% services: 65% (2001)
Labor force: 156,700 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 8% industry: 14% services: 78%
Unemployment rate:
9.5% (2004)
Population below poverty line:
70% (2002 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9.5% (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $392.6 million
expenditures: $425.9 million (2004)
Agriculture - products:
paddy rice, bananas, palm kernels, coconuts, plantains, peanuts;
beef, chickens; shrimp; forest products
Industries:
bauxite and gold mining, alumina production; oil, lumbering, food
processing, fishing
Industrial production growth rate:
6.5% (1994 est.)
Electricity - production:
2.014 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 25.2% hydro: 74.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
1.873 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
12,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption:
14,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports:
1,370 bbl/day (2003)
Oil - imports:
1,644 bbl/day (2003)
Oil - proved reserves:
150 million bbl (2005)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (2005)
Exports:
$881 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
alumina, crude oil, lumber, shrimp and fish, rice, bananas
Exports - partners:
Norway 23.5%, US 16.5%, Canada 16.1%, Belgium 9.7%, France 7.9%,
UAE 7.3% (2005)
Imports:
$750 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities:
capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs, cotton, consumer goods
Imports - partners:
US 29.3%, Netherlands 17.5%, Trinidad and Tobago 12.7%, China 6.5%,
Japan 5.2% (2005)
Debt - external:
$504.3 million (2005 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$46 million Netherlands provided $37 million for project and
program assistance, European Development Fund $4 million, Belgium $2
million (2003)
Currency (code):
Surinam dollar (SRD)
Currency code:
SRG
Exchange rates:
Surinamese dollars per US dollar - 2.7317 (2005), Surinamese
guilders per US dollar - 2.7336 (2004), 2.6013 (2003), 2.3468
(2002), 2.1785 (2001)
note: during 1998, the exchange rate splintered into four distinct
rates; in January 1999 the government floated the guilder, but
subsequently fixed it when the black-market rate plunged; in January
2004, the government introduced the Surinamese dollar as replacement
for the guilder, tied to a US dollar-dominated currency basket
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Suriname
Telephones - main lines in use:
81,100 (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
232,800 (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: international facilities are good
domestic: microwave radio relay network
international: country code - 597; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 4, FM 13, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
300,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
3 (plus seven repeaters) (2000)
Televisions:
63,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.sr
Internet hosts:
126 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
2 (2000)
Internet users:
30,000 (2005)
Transportation Suriname
Airports: 47 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 5 over 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 4 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 42 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 36 (2006)
Pipelines: oil 51 km (2006)
Roadways: total: 4,492 km paved: 1,168 km unpaved: 3,324 km (2002)
Waterways:
1,200 km (most navigable by ships with drafts up to 7 m) (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,078 GRT/1,214 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Paramaribo
Military Suriname
Military branches:
National Army, Naval Element, Air Wing (2006)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age (est.); no conscription
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 111,582
females age 18-49: 103,769 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 77,793
females age 18-49: 72,943 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$7.5 million (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
0.7% (2003 est.)
Transnational Issues Suriname
Disputes - international:
area claimed by French Guiana between Riviere Litani and Riviere
Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa); Suriname claims a triangle
of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic
dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) arbitration to
resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the
territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters
Illicit drugs:
growing transshipment point for South American drugs destined for
Europe via the Netherlands and Brazil; transshipment point for
arms-for-drugs dealing
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Svalbard
Introduction Svalbard
Background:
First discovered by the Norwegians in the 12th century, the islands
served as an international whaling base during the 17th and 18th
centuries. Norway's sovereignty was recognized in 1920; five years
later it officially took over the territory.
Geography Svalbard
Location:
Northern Europe, islands between the Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea,
Greenland Sea, and Norwegian Sea, north of Norway
Geographic coordinates:
78 00 N, 20 00 E
Map references:
Arctic Region
Area:
total: 61,020 sq km
land: 61,020 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Spitsbergen and Bjornoya (Bear Island)
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
3,587 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 4 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm unilaterally claimed by Norway but
not recognized by Russia
Climate:
arctic, tempered by warm North Atlantic Current; cool summers, cold
winters; North Atlantic Current flows along west and north coasts of
Spitsbergen, keeping water open and navigable most of the year
Terrain:
wild, rugged mountains; much of high land ice covered; west coast
clear of ice about one-half of the year; fjords along west and north
coasts
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Arctic Ocean 0 m highest point: Newtontoppen 1,717 m
Natural resources:
coal, iron ore, copper, zinc, phosphate, wildlife, fish
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (no trees, and the only bushes are crowberry and
cloudberry) (2005)
Irrigated land:
NA
Natural hazards:
ice floes often block the entrance to Bellsund (a transit point for
coal export) on the west coast and occasionally make parts of the
northeastern coast inaccessible to maritime traffic
Environment - current issues:
NA
Geography - note:
northernmost part of the Kingdom of Norway; consists of nine main
islands; glaciers and snowfields cover 60% of the total area; site
of future seed repository under construction by the Global Crop
Diversity Trust and the Norwegian Government
People Svalbard
Population: 2,701 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.02% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
NA births/1,000 population
Death rate:
NA deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate:
NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
Sex ratio:
NA
Infant mortality rate:
total: NA
male: NA
female: NA
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA
Total fertility rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0% (2001)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
0 (2001)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
0 (2001)
Ethnic groups:
Norwegian 55.4%, Russian and Ukrainian 44.3%, other 0.3% (1998)
Languages:
Norwegian, Russian
Literacy:
NA
Government Svalbard
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Svalbard (sometimes referred to as
Spitzbergen)
Dependency status:
territory of Norway; administered by the Polar Department of the
Ministry of Justice, through a governor (sysselmann) residing in
Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen; by treaty (9 February 1920) sovereignty
was awarded to Norway
Government type:
NA
Capital:
name: Longyearbyen
geographic coordinates: 78 13 N, 15 33 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
Independence:
none (territory of Norway)
Legal system:
NA
Executive branch:
chief of state: King HARALD V of Norway (since 17 January 1991)
head of government: Governor Odd Olsen INGERO (since 8 June 2001)
and Assistant Governor Rune Baard HANSEN (since NA)
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor and assistant
governor responsible to the Polar Department of the Ministry of
Justice
International organization participation:
none
Flag description:
the flag of Norway is used
Economy Svalbard
Economy - overview:
Coal mining is the major economic activity on Svalbard. The treaty
of 9 February 1920 gives the 41 signatories equal rights to exploit
mineral deposits, subject to Norwegian regulation. Although US, UK,
Dutch, and Swedish coal companies have mined in the past, the only
companies still mining are Norwegian and Russian. The settlements on
Svalbard are essentially company towns. The Norwegian state-owned
coal company employs nearly 60% of the Norwegian population on the
island, runs many of the local services, and provides most of the
local infrastructure. There is also some hunting of seal, reindeer,
and fox.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$NA
GDP - real growth rate:
NA%
Labor force:
NA
Budget:
revenues: $11.5 million
expenditures: $11.5 million; including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998 est.)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 57.9984% hydro: 42.0016% nuclear: 0% other: 0%
Exports:
$NA
Imports:
$NA
Economic aid - recipient:
$8.2 million from Norway (1998)
Currency (code):
Norwegian krone (NOK)
Currency code:
NOK
Exchange rates:
Norwegian kroner per US dollar - 6.4425 (2005), 6.7408 (2004),
7.0802 (2003), 7.9838 (2002), 8.9917 (2001)
Communications Svalbard
Telephones - main lines in use:
NA
Telephones - mobile cellular:
NA
Telephone system:
general assessment: probably adequate
domestic: local telephone service
international: country code - 47-790; satellite earth station - 1 of
unknown type (for communication with Norwegian mainland only)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 1 (plus 2 repeaters), shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios:
NA
Television broadcast stations:
NA
Televisions:
NA
Internet country code:
.sj
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
13 (Svalbard and Jan Mayen) (2000)
Internet users:
NA
Transportation Svalbard
Airports:
4 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Barentsburg, Longyearbyen, Ny-Alesund, Pyramiden
Military Svalbard
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$5.501 billion
Military - note:
demilitarized by treaty on 9 February 1920
Transnational Issues Svalbard
Disputes - international: despite recent discussions, Russia and Norway dispute their maritime limits in the Barents Sea and Russia's fishing rights beyond Svalbard's territorial limits within the Svalbard Treaty zone
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Swaziland
Introduction Swaziland
Background:
Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the
British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968.
Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured the monarchy
(one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political
reform and greater democracy. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana
as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS
infection.
Geography Swaziland
Location:
Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa
Geographic coordinates:
26 30 S, 31 30 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km
water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than New Jersey
Land boundaries: total: 535 km border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
varies from tropical to near temperate
Terrain:
mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m
Natural resources:
asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold
and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc
Land use: arable land: 10.25% permanent crops: 0.81% other: 88.94% (2005)
Irrigated land:
500 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
drought
Environment - current issues:
limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being
depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil
degradation; soil erosion
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa
People Swaziland
Population:
1,136,334
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 40.7% (male 233,169/female 229,103)
15-64 years: 55.8% (male 303,260/female 330,460)
65 years and over: 3.6% (male 16,071/female 24,271) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 18.5 years
male: 17.8 years
female: 19.2 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.23% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
27.41 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
29.74 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 71.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 75.25 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 68.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 32.62 years
male: 32.1 years
female: 33.17 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.53 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
38.8% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
220,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
17,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi
Ethnic groups:
African 97%, European 3%
Religions:
Zionist 40% (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral
worship), Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai,
Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30%
Languages:
English (official, government business conducted in English),
siSwati (official)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.6%
male: 82.6%
female: 80.8% (2003 est.)
Government Swaziland
Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland
local long form: Umbuso weSwatini
local short form: eSwatini
Government type:
monarchy
Capital:
name: Mbabane
geographic coordinates: 26 18 S, 31 06 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
note: Lobamba (royal and legislative capital)
Administrative divisions:
4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni
Independence:
6 September 1968 (from UK)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 6 September (1968)
Constitution:
the first constitution was signed into law in July 2005 and is
scheduled to be implemented in January 2006
Legal system:
based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and
Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age
Executive branch:
chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Absolom Themba DLAMINI (since 14
November 2003)
cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by
the monarch
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed
by the monarch
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the
Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20
appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the
House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55
elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be
held October 2008)
election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a
nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local
council of each constituency and for each constituency the three
candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are
narrowed to a single winner by a second round
Judicial branch:
High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed
by the monarch
Political parties and leaders:
political parties are banned by the government under an emergency
decree that will be revoked when the new constitution takes effect
(January 2006)- the following are considered political associations;
Imbokodvo National Movement or INM; Ngwane National Liberatory
Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United
Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU,
MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ephraim Mandla HLOPHE
chancery: 1712 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: (202) 234-5002
FAX: (202) 234-8254
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Lewis LUCKE embassy: Central Bank Building, Mahlokahla Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: 404-5959
Flag description:
three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue;
the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large
black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated
with feather tassels, all placed horizontally
Economy Swaziland
Economy - overview:
In this small, landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies
more than 80% of the population. The manufacturing sector has
diversified since the mid-1980s. Sugar and wood pulp remain
important foreign exchange earners. Mining has declined in
importance in recent years with only coal and quarry stone mines
remaining active. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short
border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South
Africa from which it receives about nine-tenths of its imports and
to which it sends nearly two-thirds of its exports. Customs duties
from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from
South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income.
The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign
investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes
floods persist as problems for the future. More than one-fourth of
the population needed emergency food aid in 2004-05 because of
drought, and nearly two-fifths of the adult population has been
infected by HIV/AIDS.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$5.68 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$2.117 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
1.8% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$5,000 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 11.9% industry: 51.5% services: 36.6% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 155,700 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
Unemployment rate:
40% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
69% (2005)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 50.2% (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
10.6% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $805.6 million
expenditures: $957.1 million; including capital expenditures of $147
million (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples,
sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep
Industries:
mining (coal, raw asbestos), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink
concentrates, textile and apparel
Industrial production growth rate:
3.7% (FY95/96)
Electricity - production:
392 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 58% hydro: 42% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
1.161 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports: 821.4 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2004)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption:
3,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day
Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Current account balance:
$7 million (2005 est.)
Exports:
$1.991 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn,
refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit
Exports - partners:
South Africa 59.7%, EU 8.8%, US 8.8%, Mozambique 6.2% (2004)
Imports:
$2.149 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs,
petroleum products, chemicals
Imports - partners:
South Africa 95.6%, EU 0.9%, Japan 0.9%, Singapore 0.3% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$311 million (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$357 million (2003 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$104 million (2001)
Currency (code):
lilangeni (SZL)
Currency code:
SZL
Exchange rates:
emalangeni per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648
(2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Communications Swaziland
Telephones - main lines in use:
35,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
200,000 (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and
low-capacity, microwave radio relay
international: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 3, FM 2 plus 4 repeaters, shortwave 3 (2004)
Radios:
170,000 (1999)
Television broadcast stations:
12 (includes 7 relay stations) (2004)
Televisions:
23,000 (2000)
Internet country code:
.sz
Internet hosts:
2,472 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
5 (2002)
Internet users:
36,000 (2005)
Transportation Swaziland
Airports: 18 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2006)
Railways: total: 301 km narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2005)
Roadways: total: 3,594 km paved: 1,078 km unpaved: 2,516 km (2002)
Military Swaziland
Military branches:
Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (USDF): Ground Force (includes air
wing), Royal Swaziland Police Force (RSPF) (2005)
Military service age and obligation:
18-30 years of age for voluntary military service; both sexes are
eligible for military service (2005)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 227,617 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 89,609 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$41.6 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.4% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues Swaziland
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Sweden
Introduction Sweden
Background:
A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not
participated in any war in almost two centuries. An armed neutrality
was preserved in both World Wars. Sweden's long-successful economic
formula of a capitalist system interlarded with substantial welfare
elements was challenged in the 1990s by high unemployment and in
2000-02 by the global economic downturn, but fiscal discipline over
the past several years has allowed the country to weather economic
vagaries. Indecision over the country's role in the political and
economic integration of Europe delayed Sweden's entry into the EU
until 1995, and waived the introduction of the euro in 1999.
Geography Sweden
Location:
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia,
Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway
Geographic coordinates:
62 00 N, 15 00 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 449,964 sq km
land: 410,934 sq km
water: 39,030 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than California
Land boundaries: total: 2,233 km border countries: Finland 614 km, Norway 1,619 km
Coastline:
3,218 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm (adjustments made to return a portion of
straits to high seas)
exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly
cloudy summers; subarctic in north
Terrain:
mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: reclaimed bay of Lake Hammarsjon, near Kristianstad
-2.41 m
highest point: Kebnekaise 2,111 m
Natural resources:
iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium,
arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 5.93% permanent crops: 0.01% other: 94.06% (2005)
Irrigated land:
1,150 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of
Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic
Environment - current issues:
acid rain damage to soils and lakes; pollution of the North Sea and
the Baltic Sea
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85,
Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
strategic location along Danish Straits linking Baltic and North
Seas
People Sweden
Population:
9,016,596 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.7% (male 775,433/female 732,773)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 3,001,928/female 2,918,242)
65 years and over: 17.6% (male 689,756/female 898,464) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 40.9 years
male: 39.8 years
female: 42 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.16% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
10.27 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
10.31 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
1.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 2.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 2.92 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 2.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 80.51 years
male: 78.29 years
female: 82.87 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.66 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
3,600 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Swede(s)
adjective: Swedish
Ethnic groups:
indigenous population: Swedes with Finnish and Sami minorities;
foreign-born or first-generation immigrants: Finns, Yugoslavs,
Danes, Norwegians, Greeks, Turks
Religions:
Lutheran 87%, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish,
Buddhist
Languages:
Swedish, small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)
Government Sweden
Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Sweden
conventional short form: Sweden
local long form: Konungariket Sverige
local short form: Sverige
Government type:
constitutional monarchy
Capital:
name: Stockholm
geographic coordinates: 59 20 N, 18 03 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
Administrative divisions:
21 counties (lan, singular and plural); Blekinge, Dalarnas,
Gavleborgs, Gotlands, Hallands, Jamtlands, Jonkopings, Kalmar,
Kronobergs, Norrbottens, Orebro, Ostergotlands, Skane,
Sodermanlands, Stockholms, Uppsala, Varmlands, Vasterbottens,
Vasternorrlands, Vastmanlands, Vastra Gotalands
Independence:
6 June 1523 (Gustav VASA elected king)
National holiday:
Flag Day, 6 June
Constitution:
1 January 1975
Legal system:
civil law system influenced by customary law; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: King CARL XVI GUSTAF (since 19 September 1973);
Heir Apparent Princess VICTORIA Ingrid Alice Desiree, daughter of
the monarch (born 14 July 1977)
head of government: Prime Minister Fredrik REINFELDT (since 5
October 2006)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister
elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative
elections, the prime minister is elected by the parliament; election
last held 17 September 2006 (next to be held in September 2010)
election results: Fredrik REINFELDT elected prime minister with 175
out of 349 votes
Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament or Riksdag (349 seats; members are elected by
popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 September 2006 (next to be held September
2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - Social Democrats 37.2%,
Moderates 27.8%, Center Party 8.3%, People's Party 8.0%, Christian
Democrats 6.9%, Left Party 6.3%, Greens 5.4%; seats by party -
Social Democrats 130, Moderates 97, Center Party 29, People's Party
28, Christian Democrats 24, Left Party 22, Greens 19
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Hogsta Domstolen (judges are appointed by the
prime minister and the cabinet)
Political parties and leaders:
Center Party [Maud OLOFSSON]; Christian Democratic Party [Goran
HAGGLUND]; Environment Party the Greens [no formal leader but party
spokespersons are Maria WETTERSTRAND and Peter ERIKSSON]; Left Party
or V (formerly Communist) [Lars OHLY]; Moderate Party (conservative)
[Fredrik REINFELDT]; People's Party [Lars LEIJONBORG]; Social
Democratic Party [Goran PERSSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
AfDB, Arctic Council, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN,
EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 6, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO,
IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM
(guest), NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris
Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL,
UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer),
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Gunnar LUND chancery: 902 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: (202) 467-2600 FAX: (202) 467-2699 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael M. WOOD embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds VAG 31, SE-11589 Stockholm mailing address: American Embassy Stockholm, US Department of State, 5750 Stockholm Place, Washington, DC 20521-5750 (pouch) telephone: (08) 783 53 00 FAX: (08) 661 19 64
Flag description:
blue with a golden yellow cross extending to the edges of the flag;
the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the
style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)
Economy Sweden
Economy - overview:
Aided by peace and neutrality for the whole of the 20th century,
Sweden has achieved an enviable standard of living under a mixed
system of high-tech capitalism and extensive welfare benefits. It
has a modern distribution system, excellent internal and external
communications, and a skilled labor force. Timber, hydropower, and
iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy heavily oriented
toward foreign trade. Privately owned firms account for about 90% of
industrial output, of which the engineering sector accounts for 50%
of output and exports. Agriculture accounts for only 2% of GDP and
of jobs. The government's commitment to fiscal discipline resulted
in a substantial budgetary surplus in 2001, which was cut by more
than half in 2002, due to the global economic slowdown, declining
revenue, and increased spending. The Swedish central bank (the
Riksbank) focuses on price stability with its inflation target of
2%. Growth remained sluggish in 2003, but picked up in 2004 and
2005. Presumably because of generous sick-leave benefits, Swedish
workers report in sick more often than other Europeans. In September
2003, Swedish voters turned down entry into the euro system,
concerned about the impact on democracy and sovereignty.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$268.3 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$348.1 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
2.7% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$29,800 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.1% industry: 28.2% services: 70.7% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 4.49 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 2% industry: 24% services: 74% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
5.8% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.7% highest 10%: 20.1% (1992)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
25 (2000)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.5% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
17% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $210.5 billion
expenditures: $205.9 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)
Public debt:
50.4% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
barley, wheat, sugar beets; meat, milk
Industries:
iron and steel, precision equipment (bearings, radio and telephone
parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed foods,
motor vehicles
Industrial production growth rate:
1.6% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
127.9 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 4% hydro: 50.8% nuclear: 43% other: 2.3% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
131.8 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
11.5 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
24.3 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
2,441 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
346,100 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
203,700 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
553,100 bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
980 million cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
968 million cu m (2001 est.)
Current account balance:
$25.62 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$126.6 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery 35%, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron
and steel products, chemicals
Exports - partners:
US 10.6%, Germany 10.2%, Norway 8.7%, UK 7.3%, Denmark 6.5%,
Finland 5.7%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.5%, Belgium 4.3% (2005)
Imports:
$104.4 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, motor
vehicles, iron and steel; foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners:
Germany 17.5%, Denmark 8.9%, Norway 7.8%, UK 6.6%, Netherlands
6.2%, Finland 5.8%, France 5% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$22.33 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$516.1 billion (30 June 2005)
Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.7 billion (1997)
Currency (code):
Swedish krona (SEK)
Currency code:
SEK
Exchange rates:
Swedish kronor per US dollar - 7.4731 (2005), 7.3489 (2004), 8.0863
(2003), 9.7371 (2002), 10.3291 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Sweden
Telephones - main lines in use:
6.447 million (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
8.436 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: excellent domestic and international
facilities; automatic system
domestic: coaxial and multiconductor cables carry most of the voice
traffic; parallel microwave radio relay systems carry some
additional telephone channels
international: country code - 46; 5 submarine coaxial cables;
satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat,
and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Sweden
shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries
(Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 265, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
8.25 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
169 (plus 1,299 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions:
4.6 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.se
Internet hosts:
2,958,435 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
29 (2000)
Internet users:
6.8 million (2005)
Transportation Sweden
Airports: 255 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 155 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 80 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 36 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 100 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 91 (2006)
Heliports:
2 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 798 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 11,481 km
standard gauge: 11,481 km 1.435-m gauge (9,400 km electrified) (2005)
Roadways:
total: 424,981 km
paved: 132,339 km (including 1,544 km of expressways)
unpaved: 292,642 km (2003)
Waterways:
2,052 km (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 198 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,703,834 GRT/2,382,754 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 8, cargo 28, chemical tanker 47, container 5,
passenger 3, passenger/cargo 36, petroleum tanker 15, roll on/roll
off 31, specialized tanker 4, vehicle carrier 21
foreign-owned: 37 (Belgium 2, Denmark 4, Finland 11, Germany 3,
Italy 7, Japan 2, Norway 7, US 1)
registered in other countries: 161 (Bahamas 6, Bermuda 14, Cayman
Islands 9, Cook Islands 3, Cyprus 3, Denmark 1, France 2, French
Southern and Antarctic Lands 9, Gibraltar 5, Isle of Man 1, Liberia
8, Malta 3, Netherlands 26, Netherlands Antilles 5, Norway 28,
Panama 5, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Singapore 12, UK 15,
US 5) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Goteborg, Helsingborg, Karlshamn, Lulea, Malmo, Oxelosund,
Stenungsund, Stockholm, Trelleborg
Military Sweden
Military branches:
Swedish Armed Forces (Forsvarsmakten): Army (Armen), Royal Swedish
Navy (Marinen), Swedish Air Force (Svenska Flygvapnet) (2006)
Military service age and obligation: 19 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 7-17 months depending on conscript role; after completing initial service, soldiers have a reserve commitment until age of 47 (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 19-49: 1,838,427
females age 19-49: 1,774,659 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 19-49: 1,493,668
females age 19-49: 1,441,257 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 58,724
females age 19-49: 55,954 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$5.51 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.5% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues Sweden
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Switzerland
Introduction Switzerland
Background:
The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291 as a defensive alliance
among three cantons. In succeeding years, other localities joined
the original three. The Swiss Confederation secured its independence
from the Holy Roman Empire in 1499. Switzerland's sovereignty and
neutrality have long been honored by the major European powers, and
the country was not involved in either of the two World Wars. The
political and economic integration of Europe over the past half
century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN and international
organizations, has strengthened Switzerland's ties with its
neighbors. However, the country did not officially become a UN
member until 2002. Switzerland remains active in many UN and
international organizations, but retains a strong commitment to
neutrality.
Geography Switzerland
Location:
Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy
Geographic coordinates:
47 00 N, 8 00 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 41,290 sq km
land: 39,770 sq km
water: 1,520 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey
Land boundaries:
total: 1,852 km
border countries: Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km,
Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy
winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers
Terrain:
mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with a central
plateau of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lake Maggiore 195 m
highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m
Natural resources:
hydropower potential, timber, salt
Land use: arable land: 9.91% permanent crops: 0.58% other: 89.51% (2005)
Irrigated land:
250 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
avalanches, landslides, flash floods
Environment - current issues:
air pollution from vehicle emissions and open-air burning; acid
rain; water pollution from increased use of agricultural
fertilizers; loss of biodiversity
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85,
Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with
southeastern France, northern Italy, and southwestern Austria, has
the highest elevations in the Alps
People Switzerland
Population:
7,523,934 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.3% (male 637,585/female 591,297)
15-64 years: 68.1% (male 2,585,062/female 2,539,345)
65 years and over: 15.6% (male 480,198/female 690,447) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 40.1 years
male: 39 years
female: 41.1 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.43% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
9.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
8.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
3.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 4.34 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.84 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 80.51 years
male: 77.69 years
female: 83.48 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.43 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.4% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
13,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Swiss (singular and plural)
adjective: Swiss
Ethnic groups:
German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 41.8%, Protestant 35.3%, Orthodox 1.8%, other
Christian 0.4%, Muslim 4.3%, other 1%, unspecified 4.3%, none 11.1%
(2000 census)
Languages:
German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 20.4%, Italian
(official) 6.5%, Serbo-Croatian 1.5%, Albanian 1.3%, Portuguese
1.2%, Spanish 1.1%, English 1%, Romansch 0.5%, other 2.8% (2000
census)
note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national
languages, but only the first three are official languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)
Government Switzerland
Country name:
conventional long form: Swiss Confederation
conventional short form: Switzerland
local long form: Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft (German);
Confederation Suisse (French); Confederazione Svizzera (Italian)
local short form: Schweiz (German); Suisse (French); Svizzera
(Italian)
Government type:
formally a confederation, but similar in structure to a federal
republic
Capital:
name: Bern
geographic coordinates: 46 57 N, 7 26 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
Administrative divisions:
26 cantons (cantons, singular - canton in French; cantoni, singular
- cantone in Italian; kantone, singular - kanton in German); Aargau,
Appenzell Ausser-Rhoden, Appenzell Inner-Rhoden, Basel-Landschaft,
Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneve, Glarus, Graubunden, Jura,
Luzern, Neuchatel, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Sankt Gallen, Schaffhausen,
Schwyz, Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Vaud, Zug, Zurich
Independence:
1 August 1291 (founding of the Swiss Confederation)
National holiday:
Founding of the Swiss Confederation, 1 August (1291)
Constitution:
revision of Constitution of 1874 approved by the Federal Parliament
18 December 1998, adopted by referendum 18 April 1999, officially
entered into force 1 January 2000
Legal system:
civil law system influenced by customary law; judicial review of
legislative acts, except with respect to federal decrees of general
obligatory character; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with
reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 8 January
2006); Vice President Micheline CALMY-REY (since 8 January 2006);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 8 January
2006); Vice President Micheline CALMY-REY (since 8 January 2006)
cabinet: Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal
(in French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) elected by the Federal
Assembly usually from among its own members for a four-year term
elections: president and vice president elected by the Federal
Assembly from among the members of the Federal Council for a
one-year term (they may not serve consecutive terms); election last
held 7 December 2005 (next to be held December 2006)
election results: Moritz LUENBERGER elected president; percent of
Federal Assembly vote - NA; Micheline CALMY-REY elected vice
president; percent of legislative vote - NA
Legislative branch:
bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung (in German),
Assemblee Federale (in French), Assemblea Federale (in Italian)
consists of the Council of States or Standerat (in German), Conseil
des Etats (in French), Consiglio degli Stati (in Italian) (46 seats
- consists of two representatives from each canton and one from each
half canton; members serve four-year terms) and the National Council
or Nationalrat (in German), Conseil National (in French), Consiglio
Nazionale (in Italian) (200 seats - members are elected by popular
vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year
terms)
elections: Council of States - last held in most cantons 19 October
2003 (each canton determines when the next election will be held);
National Council - last held 19 October 2003 (next to be held
October 2007)
election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party -
NA%; seats by party - CVP 15, FDP 14, SVP 8, SPS 6, other 3;
National Council - percent of vote by party - SVP 26.6%, SPS 23.3%,
FDP 17.3%, CVP 14.4%, Greens 7.4%, other small parties all under 5%;
seats by party - SVP 55, SPS 54, FDP 36, CVP 28, Green Party 13,
other small parties 14
Judicial branch:
Federal Supreme Court (judges elected for six-year terms by the
Federal Assembly)
Political parties and leaders:
Green Party (Grune Partei der Schweiz or Grune, Parti Ecologiste
Suisse or Les Verts, Partito Ecologista Svizzero or I Verdi, Partida
Ecologica Svizra or La Verda) [Ruth GENNER]; Christian Democratic
People's Party (Christichdemokratische Volkspartei der Schweiz or
CVP, Parti Democrate-Chretien Suisse or PDC, Partito
Democratico-Cristiano Popolare Svizzero or PDC, Partida
Cristiandemocratica dalla Svizra or PCD) [Doris LEUTHARD,
president]; Radical Free Democratic Party (Freisinnig-Demokratische
Partei der Schweiz or FDP, Parti Radical-Democratique Suisse or PRD,
Partitio Liberal-Radicale Svizzero or PLR) [Marianne
KLEINER-SCHLAEPFER, president]; Social Democratic Party
(Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz or SPS, Parti Socialist
Suisse or PSS, Partito Socialista Svizzero or PSS, Partida
Socialdemocratica de la Svizra or PSS) [Hans-Juerg FEHR, president];
Swiss People's Party (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP, Union
Democratique du Centre or UDC, Unione Democratica de Centro or UDC,
Uniun Democratica dal Center or UDC) [Ueli MAURER, president]; and
other minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA,
ESA, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO,
ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS
(observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCL,
WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Urs ZISWILER
chancery: 2900 Cathedral Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 745-7900
FAX: (202) 387-2564
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New
York, San Francisco
consulate(s): Boston
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Peter R. CONEWAY embassy: Jubilaumsstrasse 93, CH-3005 Bern mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: (031) 357 70 11 FAX: (031) 357 73 44
Flag description:
red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that
does not extend to the edges of the flag
Economy Switzerland
Economy - overview:
Switzerland is a peaceful, prosperous, and stable modern market
economy with low unemployment, a highly skilled labor force, and a
per capita GDP larger than that of the big Western European
economies. The Swiss in recent years have brought their economic
practices largely into conformity with the EU's to enhance their
international competitiveness. Switzerland remains a safehaven for
investors, because it has maintained a degree of bank secrecy and
has kept up the franc's long-term external value. Reflecting the
anemic economic conditions of Europe, GDP growth dropped in 2001 to
about 0.8%, to 0.2% in 2002, and to -0.3% in 2003, with a small rise
to 1.8% in 2004-05. Even so, unemployment has remained at less than
half the EU average.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$240.9 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$367 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
1.9% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$32,200 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.5% industry: 34% services: 64.5% (2003 est.)
Labor force: 3.8 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 4.6% industry: 26.3% services: 69.1% (1998)
Unemployment rate:
3.8% (2005 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 25.2% (1992)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
33.1 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.2% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
21.3% of GDP (2005 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $138.1 billion
expenditures: $143.6 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)
Public debt:
52% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products:
grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs
Industries:
machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments
Industrial production growth rate:
3% (2005 est.)
Electricity - production:
63.4 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 1.3% hydro: 59.5% nuclear: 37.1% other: 2% (2001)
Electricity - consumption:
55.86 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports:
33.2 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports:
30.1 billion kWh (2003)
Oil - production:
1,950 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - consumption:
258,900 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports:
10,420 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
289,500 bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
3.209 billion cu m (2003 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
3.093 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Current account balance:
$58.24 billion (2005 est.)
Exports:
$148.6 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products
Exports - partners:
Germany 19.4%, US 10.9%, Italy 9.1%, France 8.7%, UK 5.4%, Spain
4.1% (2005)
Imports:
$135 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products,
textiles
Imports - partners:
Germany 31.6%, Italy 10.5%, France 10%, US 5.6%, Netherlands 4.8%,
Austria 4.6%, UK 4.4% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$57.64 billion (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$856 billion (30 June 2005)
Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.1 billion (1995)
Currency (code):
Swiss franc (CHF)
Currency code:
CHF
Exchange rates:
Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.2452 (2005), 1.2435 (2004), 1.3467
(2003), 1.5586 (2002), 1.6876 (2001)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Switzerland
Telephones - main lines in use:
5.123 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
6.847 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks
international: country code - 41; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 4, FM 113 (plus many low power stations), shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios:
7.1 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
115 (plus 1,919 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions:
3.31 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.ch
Internet hosts:
2,442,659 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
44 (Switzerland and Liechtenstein) (2000)
Internet users:
5,097,822 (2005)
Transportation Switzerland
Airports: 65 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 42 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 16 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 23 under 914 m: 23 (2006)
Heliports:
2 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 1,831 km; oil 94 km; refined products 7 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 4,583 km
standard gauge: 3,234 km 1.435-m gauge (3,223 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 1,339 km 1.000-m gauge (1,338 km electrified); 10 km
0.800-m gauge (10 km electrified) (2005)
Roadways:
total: 71,297 km
paved: 71,297 km (including 1,726 of expressways) (2004)
Waterways:
65 km (Rhine River between Basel-Rheinfelden and
Schaffhausen-Bodensee) (2003)
Merchant marine:
total: 27 ships (1000 GRT or over) 492,434 GRT/810,559 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 10, chemical tanker 3, container 4,
specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 2 (Monaco 2)
registered in other countries: 320 (Antigua and Barbuda 4, Bahamas
2, Belize 1, Bermuda 2, Cyprus 4, France 2, French Southern and
Antarctic Lands 1, Germany 1, Indonesia 3, Liberia 7, Malta 21,
Marshall Islands 13, Mauritius 2, Morocco 1, Panama 226, Portugal 3,
Russia 7, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 13, Tonga 1, Turkey 1, UK
3, Vanuatu 2) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Basel
Military Switzerland
Military branches:
Swiss Armed Forces: Land Forces, Swiss Air Force (Schweizer
Luftwaffe); Switzerland has no navy, but maintains a fleet of
military patrol boats to patrol Swiss borders (2006)
Military service age and obligation: the Swiss Constitution states that "every Swiss male is obliged to do military service"; every Swiss male has to serve for at least 260 days in the armed forces; 19 years of age for compulsory military service; 17 years of age for voluntary military service; conscripts receive 15 weeks of compulsory training, followed by 10 intermittent recalls for training over the next 22 years; women are accepted on a voluntary basis but are not drafted (2005)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 19-49: 1,707,694
females age 19-49: 1,662,099 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 19-49: 1,375,889
females age 19-49: 1,342,945 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 46,319
females age 19-49: 43,829 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$2.548 billion (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1% (FY01)
Transnational Issues Switzerland
Disputes - international:
none
Illicit drugs:
a major international financial center vulnerable to the layering
and integration stages of money laundering; despite significant
legislation and reporting requirements, secrecy rules persist and
nonresidents are permitted to conduct business through offshore
entities and various intermediaries; transit country for and
consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
@Syria
Introduction Syria
Background:
Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I,
France administered Syria until its independence in 1946. The
country lacked political stability, however, and experienced a
series of military coups during its first decades. Syria united with
Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic, but in
September 1961 the two entities separated and the Syrian Arab
Republic was reestablished. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a
member of the Socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawite sect,
seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to
the country. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan
Heights to Israel, and over the past decade Syria and Israel have
held occasional peace talks over its return. Following the death of
President al-ASAD in July 2000, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was
approved as president by popular referendum. Syrian troops -
stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role -
were withdrawn in April of 2005.
Geography Syria
Location:
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and
Turkey
Geographic coordinates:
35 00 N, 38 00 E
Map references:
Middle East
Area:
total: 185,180 sq km
land: 184,050 sq km
water: 1,130 sq km
note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than North Dakota
Land boundaries:
total: 2,253 km
border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon
375 km, Turkey 822 km
Coastline:
193 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 41 nm
Climate:
mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild,
rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with
snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
Terrain:
primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain;
mountains in west
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m
Natural resources:
petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron
ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 24.8% permanent crops: 4.47% other: 70.73% (2005)
Irrigated land:
13,330 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
dust storms, sandstorms
Environment - current issues:
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water
pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate
potable water
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Geography - note:
there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the
Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.)
People Syria
Population:
18,881,361
note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and
about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2006 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 37% (male 3,592,915/female 3,384,722)
15-64 years: 59.7% (male 5,779,257/female 5,500,887)
65 years and over: 3.3% (male 296,070/female 327,510) (2006 est.)
Median age:
total: 20.7 years
male: 20.6 years
female: 20.9 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.3% (2006 est.)
Birth rate:
27.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate:
4.81 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 28.61 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 28.85 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 28.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 70.32 years
male: 69.01 years
female: 71.7 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.4 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
less than 500 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian
Ethnic groups:
Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%
Religions:
Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%,
Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus,
Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Languages:
Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely
understood; French, English somewhat understood
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.9%
male: 89.7%
female: 64% (2003 est.)
Government Syria
Country name:
conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic
conventional short form: Syria
local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah
local short form: Suriyah
former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
Government type:
republic under an authoritarian, military-dominated regime
Capital:
name: Damascus
geographic coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins 1 April; ends 30 September
Administrative divisions:
14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al
Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az
Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus
Independence:
17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French
administration)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 17 April (1946)
Constitution:
13 March 1973
Legal system:
based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law; religious
law is used in the family court system; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice
President Farouk al-SHARA (since 11 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10
September 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Abdallah al-DARDARI (since 14
June 2005)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president approved by popular referendum for a seven-year
term (no term limits); referendum last held 10 July 2000 - after the
death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next
to be held 2007); vice president appointed by the president; prime
minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president
election results: Bashar al-ASAD approved as president; percent of
vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29%
note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June, the Ba'th
Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name
to the People's Council on 25 June; he was approved by a popular
referendum on 10 July