The 2000 CIA World Factbook
by United States. Central Intelligence Agency · English · Gutenberg #3672 · 3,397,423 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: The 2000 CIA World Factbook
Author: United States. Central Intelligence Agency
Release date: January 1, 2003 [eBook #3672]
Most recently updated: October 3, 2025
Language: English
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The CIA World Factbook 2000
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Countries are listed in alphabetical order.
Notes and appendixes follow the country listings.
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antarctica
Antigua and Barbuda
Arctic Ocean
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Atlantic Ocean
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Baker Island
Bangladesh
Barbados
Bassas da India
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Bouvet Island
Brazil
British Indian Ocean Territory
British Virgin Islands
Brunei
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burma
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Christmas Island
Clipperton Island
Cocos
Colombia
Comoros
Congo
Congo
Cook Islands
Coral Sea Islands
Costa Rica
Cote d
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Europa Island
Falkland Islands
Faroe Islands
Fiji
Finland
France
French Guiana
French Polynesia
French Southern and
Gabon
Gambia
Gaza Strip
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Glorioso Islands
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea
Guinea
Guyana
Haiti
Heard Island and McDonald Islands
Holy See
Honduras
Hong Kong
Howland Island
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indian Ocean
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Jan Mayen
Japan
Jarvis Island
Jersey
Johnston Atoll
Jordan
Juan de Nova Island
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kingman Reef
Kiribati
Korea
Korea
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Man
Marshall Islands
Martinique
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mayotte
Mexico
Micronesia
Midway Islands
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Nauru
Navassa Island
Nepal Country Flag of Nepal
Netherlands Antilles
Netherlands
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Nigeria
Niger
Niue
Norfolk Island
Northern Mariana Islands
Norway
Oman
Pacific Ocean
Pakistan
Palau
Palmyra Atoll
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paracel Islands
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn Islands
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Reunion
Romania
Russia Country Flag of Russia
Rwanda
Saint Helena
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa Country Flag of Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia and Montenegro
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia Country Flag of Slovenia
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa
Southern Ocean
South Georgia
Spain
Spratly Islands
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Svalbard
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Tokelau
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Tromelin Island
Tunisia
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Turks and Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Venezuela
Vietnam
Virgin Islands
Wake Island
Wallis and Futuna
West Bank
Western Sahara
World
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Notes and Definitions
Appendixes
Appendix A: Abbreviations
Appendix B: United Nations System
Appendix C: International Organizations and Groups
Appendix D: Selected International Environmental Agreements
Appendix E: Weights and Measures
Appendix F: Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes
Appendix G: Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Codes
Appendix H: Cross-Reference List of Geographic Names
History
Contributors and Copyright Information
Purchase Information
AFGHANISTAN
@Afghanistan:Introduction
Background: Afghanistan was invaded and occupied by the Soviet Union
in 1979. The USSR was forced to withdraw 10 years later by
anti-communist mujahidin forces supplied and trained by the US, Saudi
Arabia, Pakistan, and others. Fighting subsequently continued among
the various mujahidin factions, but the fundamentalist Islamic Taliban
movement has been able to seize most of the country. In addition to
the continuing civil strife, the country suffers from enormous
poverty, a crumbling infrastructure, and widespread live mines.
@Afghanistan:Geography
Location: Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran
Geographic coordinates: 33 00 N, 65 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total: 652,000 sq km
land: 652,000 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 5,529 km
border countries: China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2,430 km,
Tajikistan 1,206 km, Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers
Terrain: mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Amu Darya 258 m
highest point: Nowshak 7,485 m
Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite,
talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and
semiprecious stones
Land use:
arable land: 12%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 46%
forests and woodland: 3%
other: 39% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 30,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains;
flooding
Environment - current issues: soil degradation; overgrazing;
deforestation (much of the remaining forests are being cut down for
fuel and building materials); desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note: landlocked
@Afghanistan:People
Population: 25,838,797 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.37% (male 5,598,403; female 5,371,054)
15-64 years: 54.86% (male 7,362,961; female 6,839,914)
65 years and over: 2.77% (male 378,741; female 337,724) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 3.54% (2000 est.)
note: this rate reflects the continued return of refugees from Iran
Birth rate: 41.82 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 18.01 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 11.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 149.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 45.88 years
male: 46.62 years
female: 45.1 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 5.87 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Afghan(s)
adjective: Afghan
Ethnic groups: Pashtun 38%, Tajik 25%, Uzbek 6%, Hazara 19%, minor
ethnic groups (Aimaks, Turkmen, Baloch, and others)
Religions: Sunni Muslim 84%, Shi'a Muslim 15%, other 1%
Languages: Pashtu 35%, Afghan Persian (Dari) 50%, Turkic languages
(primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily
Balochi and Pashai) 4%, much bilingualism
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 31.5%
male: 47.2%
female: 15% (1999 est.)
@Afghanistan:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Islamic State of Afghanistan; note - the
self-proclaimed Taliban government refers to the country as Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan
conventional short form: Afghanistan
local long form: Dowlat-e Eslami-ye Afghanestan
local short form: Afghanestan
former: Republic of Afghanistan
Data code: AF
Government type: no functioning central government, administered by
factions
Capital: Kabul
Administrative divisions: 30 provinces (velayat, singular - velayat);
Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamian, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni,
Ghowr, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabol, Kandahar, Kapisa, Konar,
Kondoz, Laghman, Lowgar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika,
Parvan, Samangan, Sar-e Pol, Takhar, Vardak, Zabol
note: there may be two new provinces of Nurestan (Nuristan) and Khowst
Independence: 19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign
affairs)
National holiday: Victory of the Muslim Nation, 28 April; Remembrance
Day for Martyrs and Disabled, 4 May; Independence Day, 19 August
Constitution: none
Legal system: a new legal system has not been adopted but all factions
tacitly agree they will follow Shari'a (Islamic law)
Suffrage: NA; previously males 15-50 years of age
Executive branch: on 27 September 1996, the ruling members of the
Afghan Government were displaced by members of the Islamic Taliban
movement; the Islamic State of Afghanistan has no functioning
government at this time, and the country remains divided among
fighting factions
note: the Taliban have declared themselves the legitimate government
of Afghanistan; however, the UN still recognizes the government of
Burhanuddin RABBANI; the Organization of the Islamic Conference has
left the Afghan seat vacant until the question of legitimacy can be
resolved through negotiations among the warring factions; the country
is essentially divided along ethnic lines; the Taliban controls the
capital of Kabul and approximately two-thirds of the country including
the predominately ethnic Pashtun areas in southern Afghanistan;
opposing factions have their stronghold in the ethnically diverse
north
Legislative branch: non-functioning as of June 1993
Judicial branch: non-functioning as of March 1995, although there are
local Shari'a (Islamic law) courts throughout the country
Political parties and leaders: Harakat-i-Islami (Islamic Movement)
; Harakat-Inqilab-i-Islami (Islamic
Revolutionary Movement) ; Hizbi
Islami-Gulbuddin (Islamic Party) ; Hizbi
Islami-Khalis (Islamic Party) ; Hizbi
Wahdat-Akbari faction (Islamic Unity Party) ;
Ittihad-i-Islami Barai Azadi Afghanistan (Islamic Union for the
Liberation of Afghanistan) ; Jabha-i-Najat-i-Milli
Afghanistan (Afghanistan National Liberation Front) [Sibghatullah
MOJADDEDI]; Mahaz-i-Milli-Islami (National Islamic Front) [Sayed
Ahamad GAILANI]; Taliban (Religious Students Movement) [Mohammad
OMAR]; United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan comprised
of Jumbesh-i-Melli Islami (National Islamic Movement) [Abdul Rashid
DOSTAM]; Jamiat-i-Islami (Islamic Society) [Burhanuddin RABBANI and
Ahmad Shah MASOOD]; and Hizbi Wahdat-Khalili faction (Islamic Unity
Party)
Political pressure groups and leaders: Afghan refugees in Pakistan,
Australia, US, and elsewhere have organized politically; Mellat
(Social Democratic Party) ; Peshawar, Pakistan-based groups
such as the Coordination Council for National Unity and Understanding
in Afghanistan or CUNUA ; tribal elders represent
traditional Pashtun leadership; Writers Union of Free Afghanistan or
WUFA
International organization participation: AsDB, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO,
G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF,
Intelsat, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
note: embassy operations suspended 21 August 1997
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 2341 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 234-3770
FAX: (202) 328-3516
consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US embassy in Kabul has
been closed since January 1989 due to security concerns
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white,
and black with a gold emblem centered on the three bands; the emblem
features a temple-like structure with Islamic inscriptions above and
below, encircled by a wreath on the left and right and by a bolder
Islamic inscription above, all of which are encircled by two crossed
scimitars
note: the Taliban uses a plain white flag
@Afghanistan:Economy
Economy - overview: Afghanistan is an extremely poor, landlocked
country, highly dependent on farming and livestock raising (sheep and
goats). Economic considerations have played second fiddle to political
and military upheavals during two decades of war, including the nearly
10-year Soviet military occupation (which ended 15 February 1989).
During that conflict one-third of the population fled the country,
with Pakistan and Iran sheltering a combined peak of more than 6
million refugees. In early 1999, 1.2 million Afghan refugees remained
in Pakistan and about 1.4 million in Iran. Gross domestic product has
fallen substantially over the past 20 years because of the loss of
labor and capital and the disruption of trade and transport. The
majority of the population continues to suffer from insufficient food,
clothing, housing, and medical care. Inflation remains a serious
problem throughout the country. International aid can deal with only a
fraction of the humanitarian problem, let alone promote economic
development. The economic situation did not improve in 1998-99, as
internal civil strife continued, hampering both domestic economic
policies and international aid efforts. Numerical data are likely to
be either unavailable or unreliable. Afghanistan was by far the
largest producer of opium poppies in 1999, and narcotics trafficking
is a major source of revenue.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $21 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $800 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 53%
industry: 28.5%
services: 18.5% (1990)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Labor force: 8 million (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 68%, industry 16%, services
16% (1980 est.)
Unemployment rate: 8% (1995 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Industries: small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture,
shoes, fertilizer, and cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, oil,
coal, copper
Electricity - production: 430 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 41.86%
hydro: 58.14%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 510 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 110 million kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: opium poppies, wheat, fruits, nuts, karakul
pelts; wool, mutton
Exports: $80 million (does not include opium) (1996 est.)
Exports - commodities: opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets,
wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semi-precious gems
Exports - partners: FSU, Pakistan, Iran, Germany, India, UK, Belgium,
Luxembourg, Czech Republic
Imports: $150 million (1996 est.)
Imports - commodities: capital goods, food and petroleum products;
most consumer goods
Imports - partners: FSU, Pakistan, Iran, Japan, Singapore, India,
South Korea, Germany
Debt - external: $5.5 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: US provided about $70 million in
humanitarian assistance in 1997; US continues to contribute to
multilateral assistance through the UN programs of food aid,
immunization, land mine removal, and a wide range of aid to refugees
and displaced persons
Currency: 1 afghani (AF) = 100 puls
Exchange rates: afghanis (Af) per US$1 - 4,700 (January 2000), 4,750
(February 1999), 17,000 (December 1996), 7,000 (January 1995), 1,900
(January 1994), 1,019 (March 1993), 850 (1991); note - these rates
reflect the free market exchange rates rather than the official
exchange rate, which was fixed at 50.600 afghanis to the dollar until
1996, when it rose to 2,262.65 per dollar, and finally became fixed
again at 3,000.00 per dollar in April 1996
Fiscal year: 21 March - 20 March
@Afghanistan:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 31,200 (1983); note - there were
21,000 main lines in use in Kabul in 1998
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system:
domestic: very limited telephone and telegraph service; in 1997,
telecommunications links were established between Mazar-e Sharif,
Herat, Kandahar, Jalalabad, and Kabul through satellite and microwave
systems
international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
linked only to Iran and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region);
commercial satellite telephone center in Ghazni
Radio broadcast stations: AM 7 (6 are inactive; the active station is
in Kabul), FM 1, shortwave 1 (broadcasts in Pushtu, Dari, Urdu, and
English) (1999)
Radios: 167,000 (1999)
Television broadcast stations: at least 10 (one government run central
television station in Kabul and regional stations in nine of the 30
provinces; the regional stations operate on a reduced schedule; also,
in 1997, there was a station in Mazar-e Sharif reaching four northern
Afghanistan provinces) (1998)
Televisions: 100,000 (1999)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Afghanistan:Transportation
Railways:
total: 24.6 km
broad gauge: 9.6 km 1.524-m gauge from Gushgy (Turkmenistan) to
Towraghondi; 15 km 1.524-m gauge from Termiz (Uzbekistan) to Kheyrabad
transshipment point on south bank of Amu Darya
Highways:
total: 21,000 km
paved: 2,793 km
unpaved: 18,207 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: 1,200 km; chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to
about 500 DWT
Pipelines: petroleum products - Uzbekistan to Bagram and Turkmenistan
to Shindand; natural gas 180 km
Ports and harbors: Kheyrabad, Shir Khan
Airports: 46 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 32
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 11 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 3 (1999 est.)
@Afghanistan:Military
Military branches: NA; note - the military does not exist on a
national basis; some elements of the former Army, Air and Air Defense
Forces, National Guard, Border Guard Forces, National Police Force
(Sarandoi), and tribal militias still exist but are factionalized
among the various groups
Military manpower - military age: 22 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 6,401,980 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 3,432,236 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 244,958 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
@Afghanistan:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: support to Islamic militants worldwide by
some factions; question over which group should hold Afghanistan's
seat at the UN
Illicit drugs: world's largest illicit opium producer, surpassing
Burma (potential production in 1999 - 1,670 metric tons; cultivation
in 1999 - 51,500 hectares, a 23% increase over 1998); a major source
of hashish; increasing number of heroin-processing laboratories being
set up in the country; major political factions in the country profit
from drug trade
______________________________________________________________________
ALBANIA
@Albania:Introduction
Background: In 1990 Albania ended 44 years of xenophobic communist
rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven
difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with severe
unemployment, the collapse of a fraudulent nationwide investment
scheme, widespread gangsterism, and massive refugee influxes from
neighboring Kosovo.
@Albania:Geography
Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian
Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro
Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N, 20 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km (114 km with Serbia,
173 km with Montenegro)
Coastline: 362 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry
summers; interior is cooler and wetter
Terrain: mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper,
timber, nickel, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 21%
permanent crops: 5%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 38%
other: 21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 3,410 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along
southwestern coast
Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; water
pollution from industrial and domestic effluents
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer
Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links
Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea)
@Albania:People
Population: 3,490,435 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 30% (male 545,329; female 507,589)
15-64 years: 63% (male 1,056,583; female 1,141,664)
65 years and over: 7% (male 104,086; female 135,184) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.26% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 19.47 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 6.5 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -10.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 41.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.57 years
male: 68.75 years
female: 74.59 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.37 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian
Ethnic groups: Albanian 95%, Greeks 3%, other 2% (Vlachs, Gypsies,
Serbs, and Bulgarians) (1989 est.)
note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1%
(official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization)
Religions: Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10%
note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious
observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing
private religious practice
Languages: Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek
Literacy:
definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 93% (1997 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Albania:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Albania
conventional short form: Albania
local long form: Republika e Shqiperise
local short form: Shqiperia
former: People's Socialist Republic of Albania
Data code: AL
Government type: emerging democracy
Capital: Tirana
Administrative divisions: 36 districts (rrethe, singular - rreth) and
1 municipality* (bashki); Berat, Bulqize, Delvine, Devoll (Bilisht),
Diber (Peshkopi), Durres, Elbasan, Fier, Gjirokaster, Gramsh, Has
(Krume), Kavaje, Kolonje (Erseke), Korce, Kruje, Kucove, Kukes,
Kurbin, Lezhe, Librazhd, Lushnje, Malesi e Madhe (Koplik), Mallakaster
(Ballsh), Mat (Burrel), Mirdite (Rreshen), Peqin, Permet, Pogradec,
Puke, Sarande, Shkoder, Skrapar (Corovode), Tepelene, Tirane (Tirana),
Tirane* (Tirana), Tropoje (Bajram Curri), Vlore
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their
administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name
following in parentheses)
Independence: 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire)
National holiday: Independence Day, 28 November (1912)
Constitution: a new constitution was adopted by popular referendum on
28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the
vote
Legal system: has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: President of the Republic Rexhep MEIDANI (since 24
July 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Ilir META (since 29 October 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and
approved by the president
elections: president elected by the People's Assembly for a five-year
term; election last held 24 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); prime
minister appointed by the president
election results: Rexhep MEIDANI elected president; People's Assembly
vote by number - total votes 122, for 110, against 3, abstained 2,
invalid 7
Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor
(155 seats; most members are elected by direct popular vote and some
by proportional vote for four-year terms)
elections: last held 29 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2001)
election results: percent of vote by party - PS 53.36%, PD 25.33%, PSD
2.5%, PBDNJ 2.78%, PBK 2.36%, PAD 2.85%, PR 2.25%, PLL 3.09%, PDK
1.00%, PBSD 0.84%; seats by party - PS 101, PD 27, PSD 8, PBDNJ 4, PBK
3, PAD 2, PR 2, PLL 2, PDK 1, PBSD 1, PUK 1, independents 3
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, chairman of the Supreme Court is
elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term
Political parties and leaders: Albanian Republican Party or PR [Fatmir
MEHDIU]; Albanian Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albania Workers
Party) ; Albanian United Right or DBSH (includes
PBK, Albanian Republican Party or PRS, AND PDD) ;
Christian Democratic Party or PDK ; Democratic Alliance
or PAD ; Democratic Party or PD ;
Democratic Party of the Right or PDD ; Liberal Union
Party ; Movement of Legality Party or PLL ;
National Front (Balli Kombetar) or PBK ; Party of
National Unity or PUK ; Right National Front [Hysni
SELFO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD ; Unity for
Human Rights Party or PBDNJ ; note - Teodar LACO
of the Liberal Union Party was leader of the Social Democratic Union
of Albania or PBSD
International organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC,
EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO,
ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Petrit BUSHATI
chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 223-4942
FAX: (202) 628-7342
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph LIMPRECHT
embassy: Rruga Elbasanit 103, Tirana
mailing address: American Embassy, Tirana, Department of State,
Washington, DC 20521-9510
telephone: (42) 47285 through 47289
FAX: (42) 32222
Flag description: red with a black two-headed eagle in the center
@Albania:Economy
Economy - overview: An extremely poor country by European standards,
Albania is making the difficult transition to a more open-market
economy. The economy rebounded in 1993-95 after a severe depression
accompanying the collapse of the previous centrally planned system in
1990 and 1991. However, a weakening of government resolve to maintain
stabilization policies in the election year of 1996 contributed to
renewal of inflationary pressures, spurred by the budget deficit which
exceeded 12%. The collapse of financial pyramid schemes in early 1997
- which had attracted deposits from a substantial portion of Albania's
population - triggered severe social unrest which led to more than
1,500 deaths, widespread destruction of property, and an 8% drop in
GDP. The new government, installed in July 1997, has taken strong
measures to restore public order and to revive economic activity and
trade. The economy continues to be bolstered by remittances of some
20% of the labor force that works abroad, mostly in Greece and Italy.
These remittances supplement GDP and help offset the large foreign
trade deficit. Most agricultural land was privatized in 1992,
substantially improving peasant incomes. In 1998, Albania recovered
the 8% drop in GDP of 1997 and pushed ahead by 7% in 1999.
International aid has helped defray the high costs of receiving and
returning refugees from the Kosovo conflict.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $5.6 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 8% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,650 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 54%
industry: 25%
services: 21% (1998)
Population below poverty line: 19.6% (1996 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.5% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 1.692 million (including 352,000 emigrant workers and
261,000 domestically unemployed) (1994 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 49.5%, industry and services
50.5%
Unemployment rate: 14% (October 1997) officially, but may be as high
as 28%
Budget:
revenues: $393 million
expenditures: $676 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1997 est.)
Industries: food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil,
cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower
Industrial production growth rate: 7% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 5.15 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 2.91%
hydro: 97.09%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 5.29 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 500 million kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits,
sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products
Exports: $242 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and
metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco
Exports - partners: Italy 63%, Greece 12%, Germany 6%, Netherlands,
Belgium, US (1998)
Imports: $925 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles,
chemicals
Imports - partners: Italy 43%, Greece 29%, Turkey 4%, Germany 4%,
Bulgaria, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1998)
Debt - external: $820 million (1998)
Economic aid - recipient: EU pledged $100 million to share with The
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1999)
Currency: 1 lek (L) = 100 qintars
Exchange rates: leke (L) per US$1 - 135.31 (December 1999), 137.69
(1999), 150.63 (1998), 148.93 (1997), 104.50 (1996), 92.70 (1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Albania:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 42,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 3,100 (1999)
Telephone system:
domestic: obsolete wire system; no longer provides a telephone for
every village; in 1992, following the fall of the communist
government, peasants cut the wire to about 1,000 villages and used it
to build fences
international: inadequate; international traffic carried by microwave
radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece
Radio broadcast stations: AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 2 (1999)
Radios: 810,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 13 (1999)
Televisions: 405,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (1999)
@Albania:Transportation
Railways:
total: 670 km
standard gauge: 670 km 1.435-m gauge (1996)
Highways:
total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km
unpaved: 12,600 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: 43 km plus Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid,
and Lake Prespa (1990)
Pipelines: crude oil 145 km; petroleum products 55 km; natural gas 64
km (1991)
Ports and harbors: Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore
Merchant marine:
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 10,907 GRT/16,101 DWT
ships by type: cargo 6 (1999 est.)
Airports: 10 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 3 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
@Albania:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior
Ministry Troops, Border Guards
Military manpower - military age: 19 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 856,820 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 701,194 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 35,508 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $42 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.5% (FY99)
@Albania:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: the Albanian Government supports protection
of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders but has
downplayed them to further its primary foreign policy goal of regional
cooperation; Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from
Serbian Republic; Albanians in The Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia claim discrimination in education, access to public-sector
jobs, and representation in government
Illicit drugs: increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest
Asian opiates, hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and -
to a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for
Western Europe; limited opium and cannabis production; ethnic Albanian
narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe
______________________________________________________________________
ALGERIA
@Algeria:Introduction
Background: After a century of rule by France, Algeria became
independent in 1962. The surprising first round success of the
fundamentalist FIS (Islamic Salvation Front) party in December 1991
balloting caused the army to intervene, crack down on the FIS, and
postpone the subsequent elections. The FIS response has resulted in a
continuous low-grade civil conflict with the secular state apparatus,
which nonetheless has allowed elections featuring pro-government and
moderate religious-based parties. FIS's armed wing, the Islamic
Salvation Army, dissolved itself in January 2000 and many armed
insurgents surrendered under an amnesty program designed to promote
national reconciliation. Nevertheless, some residual fighting
continues. Other concerns include large-scale unemployment and the
need to diversify the petroleum-based economy.
@Algeria:Geography
Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between
Morocco and Tunisia
Geographic coordinates: 28 00 N, 3 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 2,381,740 sq km
land: 2,381,740 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 6,343 km
border countries: Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km,
Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km, Western Sahara 42 km
Coastline: 998 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: arid to semiarid; mild, wet winters with hot, dry summers
along coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on high plateau;
sirocco is a hot, dust/sand-laden wind especially common in summer
Terrain: mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow,
discontinuous coastal plain
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates,
uranium, lead, zinc
Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 13%
forests and woodland: 2%
other: 82% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 5,550 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mud
slides
Environment - current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing and other
poor farming practices; desertification; dumping of raw sewage,
petroleum refining wastes, and other industrial effluents is leading
to the pollution of rivers and coastal waters; Mediterranean Sea, in
particular, becoming polluted from oil wastes, soil erosion, and
fertilizer runoff; inadequate supplies of potable water
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban
Geography - note: second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan)
@Algeria:People
Population: 31,193,917 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 35% (male 5,591,044; female 5,389,046)
15-64 years: 61% (male 9,582,864; female 9,381,088)
65 years and over: 4% (male 577,875; female 672,000) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.74% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 23.14 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.3 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 41.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.65 years
male: 68.34 years
female: 71.02 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.8 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian
Ethnic groups: Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1%
Religions: Sunni Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1%
Languages: Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 61.6%
male: 73.9%
female: 49% (1995 est.)
@Algeria:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria
conventional short form: Algeria
local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Jaza'iriyah ad Dimuqratiyah ash
Shabiyah
local short form: Al Jaza'ir
Data code: AG
Government type: republic
Capital: Algiers
Administrative divisions: 48 provinces (wilayas, singular - wilaya);
Adrar, Ain Defla, Ain Temouchent, Alger, Annaba, Batna, Bechar,
Bejaia, Biskra, Blida, Bordj Bou Arreridj, Bouira, Boumerdes, Chlef,
Constantine, Djelfa, El Bayadh, El Oued, El Tarf, Ghardaia, Guelma,
Illizi, Jijel, Khenchela, Laghouat, Mascara, Medea, Mila, Mostaganem,
M'Sila, Naama, Oran, Ouargla, Oum el Bouaghi, Relizane, Saida, Setif,
Sidi Bel Abbes, Skikda, Souk Ahras, Tamanghasset, Tebessa, Tiaret,
Tindouf, Tipaza, Tissemsilt, Tizi Ouzou, Tlemcen
Independence: 5 July 1962 (from France)
National holiday: Anniversary of the Revolution, 1 November (1954)
Constitution: 19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976; revised 3
November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996; note -
referendum approving the revisions of 28 November 1996 was signed into
law 7 December 1996
Legal system: socialist, based on French and Islamic law; judicial
review of legislative acts in ad hoc Constitutional Council composed
of various public officials, including several Supreme Court justices;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA (since 28 April 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Ahmed BENBITOUR (since 2 December
1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
election last held 15 April 1999 (next to be held NA April 2004);
prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA elected president; percent of
vote - Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA 70%; note - six of the seven candidates
withdrew sighting persistent electoral fraud
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the National
People's Assembly or Al-Majlis Ech-Chaabi Al-Watani (380 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the
Council of Nations (144 seats; one-third of the members appointed by
the president, two-thirds elected by indirect vote; members serve
six-year terms; created as a result of the constitutional revision of
November 1996)
elections: National People's Assembly - last held 5 June 1997 (next to
be held NA 2001); elections for two-thirds of the Council of Nations -
last held 25 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2003)
election results: National People's Assembly - percent of vote by
party - RND 40.8%, MSP 18.2%, FLN 16.8%, Nahda Movement 8.9%, FFS 5%,
RCD 5%, PT 1.1%, Republican Progressive Party 0.8%, Union for
Democracy and Freedoms 0.3%, Liberal Social Party 0.3%, independents
2.8%; seats by party - RND 156, MSP 69, FLN 62, Nahda Movement 34, FFS
20, RCD 19, PT 4, Republican Progressive Party 3, Union for Democracy
and Freedoms 1, Liberal Social Party 1, independents 11; Council of
Nations - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RND 80, FLN
10, FFS 4, MSP 2 (remaining 48 seats appointed by the president, party
breakdown NA)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Political parties and leaders: Algerian Democratic Front or FAD
; Algerian National Front or ANF ;
Algerian Renewal Party or PRA ;
Democratic National Rally or RND ; Islamic
Salvation Front or FIS (outlawed April 1992) [Ali BELHADJ, Dr. Abassi
MADANI, Rabeh KEBIR (self-exile in Germany)]; Liberal Social Party
; Movement for Democracy in Algeria or MDA [Ahmed Ben
BELLA]; Movement for Loyalty and Justice [Ahmed Taleb IBRAHIMI,
president; Movement of a Peaceful Society or MSP [Mahfoud NAHNAH,
chairman]; Nahda Movement or Al Nahda ;
National Liberation Front or FLN [Boualem BENHAMOUDA, secretary
general]; National Party for Solidarity and Development or PNSD [Rabah
BENCHERIF]; National Republican Alliance or ANR ; Rally
for Culture and Democracy or RCD ;
Republican Progressive Party ; Social Democratic
Movement or MDS ; Socialist Forces Front or FFS
;
Union for Democracy and Freedoms ; Workers Party or
PT
note: the government established a multiparty system in September 1989
and, as of 31 December 1990, over 50 legal parties existed; a new
party law was enacted in March 1997
International organization participation: ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF,
AMU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat,
Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC,
OAS (observer), OAU, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Idriss JAZAIRY
chancery: 2118 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 265-2800
FAX: (202) 667-2174
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Cameron R. HUME
embassy: 4 Chemin Cheikh Bachir El-Ibrahimi, Algiers
mailing address: B. P. Box 549, Alger-Gare, 16000 Algiers
telephone: (2) 69-11-86, 69-12-55, 69-18-54, 69-38-75
FAX: (2) 69-39-79
Flag description: two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and
white with a red, five-pointed star within a red crescent; the
crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam (the
state religion)
@Algeria:Economy
Economy - overview: The hydrocarbons sector is the backbone of the
economy, accounting for roughly 52% of budget revenues, 25% of GDP,
and over 95% of export earnings. Algeria has the fifth-largest
reserves of natural gas in the world and is the second largest gas
exporter; it ranks fourteenth for oil reserves. Algiers' efforts to
reform one of the most centrally planned economies in the Arab world
stalled in 1992 as the country became embroiled in political turmoil.
Burdened with a heavy foreign debt, Algiers concluded a one-year
standby arrangement with the IMF in April 1994 and the following year
signed onto a three-year extended fund facility which ended 30 April
1998. Some progress on economic reform, Paris Club debt reschedulings
in 1995 and 1996, and oil and gas sector expansion contributed to a
recovery in growth since 1995. Still, the economy remains heavily
dependent on volatile oil and gas revenues. The government has
continued efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and
domestic investment outside the energy sector, but has had little
success in reducing high unemployment and improving living standards.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $147.6 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3.9% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $4,700 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 12%
industry: 51%
services: 37% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: 23% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 26.8% (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.2% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 9.1 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: government 29.5%, agriculture 22%,
construction and public works 16.2%, industry 13.6%, commerce and
services 13.5%, transportation and communication 5.2% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 30% (1999 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $15.5 billion
expenditures: $15.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1999 est.)
Industries: petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining,
electrical, petrochemical, food processing
Industrial production growth rate: 7% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 21.38 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 99.77%
hydro: 0.23%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 19.882 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 313 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 312 million kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus,
fruits; sheep, cattle
Exports: $13.7 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products
97%
Exports - partners: Italy 21.2%, US 15.0%, France 12.9%, Spain 10.3%,
Brazil 5.9%, Netherlands 5.5% (1998)
Imports: $9.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: capital goods, food and beverages, consumer
goods
Imports - partners: France 29.5%, Italy 9.8%, US 7.2%, Spain 6.8%,
Germany 6.2%, Canada 4.1% (1998)
Debt - external: $30 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $897.5 million (1994)
Currency: 1 Algerian dinar (DA) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Algerian dinars (DA) per US$1 - 69.046 (January 2000),
66.574 (1999), 58.739 (1998), 57.707 (1997), 54.749 (1996), 47.663
(1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Algeria:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 1.176 million (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 33,500 (1999)
Telephone system:
domestic: good service in north but sparse in south; domestic
satellite system with 12 earth stations (20 additional domestic earth
stations are planned)
international: 5 submarine cables; microwave radio relay to Italy,
France, Spain, Morocco, and Tunisia; coaxial cable to Morocco and
Tunisia; participant in Medarabtel; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik, and 1
Arabsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 25, FM 1, shortwave 8 (1999)
Radios: 7.1 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 18 (not including low-power stations)
(1999)
Televisions: 3.1 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (1999)
@Algeria:Transportation
Railways:
total: 4,820 km (301 km electrified; 215 km double track)
standard gauge: 3,664 km 1.435-m gauge (301 km electrified; 215 km
double track)
narrow gauge: 1,156 km 1.055-m gauge (1996)
Highways:
total: 104,000 km
paved: 71,656 km (including 640 km of expressways)
unpaved: 32,344 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 6,612 km; petroleum products 298 km; natural gas
2,948 km
Ports and harbors: Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Beni Saf, Dellys,
Djendjene, Ghazaouet, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda, Tenes
Merchant marine:
total: 78 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 940,196 GRT/1,094,104 DWT
ships by type: bulk 9, cargo 27, chemical tanker 7, liquified gas 11,
petroleum tanker 5, roll-on/roll-off 13, short-sea passenger 5,
specialized tanker 1 (1999 est.)
Airports: 137 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 51
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 86
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 23
914 to 1,523 m: 41
under 914 m: 19 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
@Algeria:Military
Military branches: National Popular Army, Navy, Air Force, Territorial
Air Defense, National Gendarmerie
Military manpower - military age: 19 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 8,523,257 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 5,220,318 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 373,547 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1.3 billion (FY94)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.7% (FY94)
@Algeria:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: part of southeastern region claimed by Libya
______________________________________________________________________
AMERICAN SAMOA
@American Samoa:Introduction
Background: Settled as early as 1000 B. C., Samoa was "discovered" by
European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the
latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in
which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US
formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands
with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year.
@American Samoa:Geography
Location: Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about
one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates: 14 20 S, 170 00 W
Map references: Oceania
Area:
total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 116 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual
rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season from November to April, dry
season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal
plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island)
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata 966 m
Natural resources: pumice, pumicite
Land use:
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 10%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 70%
other: 15% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: typhoons common from December to March
Environment - current issues: limited natural fresh water resources;
the water division of the government has spent substantial funds in
the past few years to improve water catchments and pipelines
Geography - note: Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater
harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas
and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic
location in the South Pacific Ocean
@American Samoa:People
Population: 65,446 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 39% (male 13,071; female 12,304)
15-64 years: 56% (male 18,358; female 18,597)
65 years and over: 5% (male 1,631; female 1,485) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.53% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 25.81 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 4.26 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 3.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 10.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.12 years
male: 70.66 years
female: 79.84 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.6 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: American Samoan(s)
adjective: American Samoan
Ethnic groups: Samoan (Polynesian) 89%, Caucasian 2%, Tongan 4%, other
5%
Religions: Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%,
Protestant and other 30%
Languages: Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian
languages), English
note: most people are bilingual
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 98%
female: 97% (1980 est.)
@American Samoa:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa
abbreviation: AS
Data code: AQ
Dependency status: unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US;
administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the
Interior
Government type: NA
Capital: Pago Pago
Administrative divisions: none (territory of the US); there are no
first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government,
but there are three districts and two islands* at the second order;
Eastern, Manu'a, Rose Island*, Swains Island*, Western
Independence: none (territory of the US)
National holiday: Territorial Flag Day, 17 April (1900)
Constitution: ratified 1966, in effect 1967
Legal system: NA
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President William Jefferson CLINTON of the US (since
20 January 1993) and Vice President Albert GORE, Jr. (since 20 January
1993)
head of government: Governor Tauese P. SUNIA (since 3 January 1997)
and Lieutenant Governor Togiola TULAFONO (since 3 January 1997)
cabinet: NA
elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket
for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the
same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 3
November 1996 (next to be held 7 November 2000)
election results: Tauese P. SUNIA elected governor; percent of vote -
Tauese P. SUNIA (Democrat) 51%, Peter REID (independent) 49%
Legislative branch: bicameral Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of
the House of Representatives (21 seats - 20 of which are elected by
popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains
Island; members serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats;
members are elected from local chiefs and serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held NA November 1998 (next
to be held NA November 2000); Senate - last held 3 November 1996 (next
to be held 7 November 2000)
election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party
- NA; seats by party - NA; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA;
seats by party - NA
note: American Samoa elects one delegate to the US House of
Representatives; election last held 3 November 1998 (next to be held 7
November 2000); results - Eni R. F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA (Democrat)
reelected as delegate for a sixth term
Judicial branch: High Court (chief justice and associate justices are
appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior)
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party ;
Republican Party
International organization participation: ESCAP (associate), Interpol
(subbureau), IOC, SPC
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of the US)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of the US)
Flag description: blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is
based on the outer side and extends to the hoist side; a brown and
white American bald eagle flying toward the hoist side is carrying two
traditional Samoan symbols of authority, a staff and a war club
@American Samoa:Economy
Economy - overview: This is a traditional Polynesian economy in which
more than 90% of the land is communally owned. Economic activity is
strongly linked to the US, with which American Samoa conducts the
great bulk of its foreign trade. Tuna fishing and tuna processing
plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the
primary export. Transfers from the US Government add substantially to
American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to
develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote
location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes.
Tourism, a developing sector, may be held back by the current
financial difficulties in East Asia.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $150 million (1995 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,600 (1995 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Labor force: 13,949 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: government 33%, tuna canneries 34%, other
33% (1990)
Unemployment rate: 12% (1991)
Budget:
revenues: $121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants)
expenditures: $127 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(FY96/97)
Industries: tuna canneries (largely dependent on foreign fishing
vessels), handicrafts
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 125 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 116 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro,
breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products,
livestock
Exports: $313 million (1996)
Exports - commodities: canned tuna 93%
Exports - partners: US 99.6%
Imports: $471 million (1996)
Imports - commodities: materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum
products 7%, machinery and parts 6%
Imports - partners: US 62%, Japan 9%, NZ 7%, Australia 11%, Fiji 4%,
other 7%
Debt - external: $NA
Economic aid - recipient: $NA; note - important financial support from
the US
Currency: 1 US dollar (US$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: US currency is used
Fiscal year: 1 October - 30 September
@American Samoa:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 10,000 (1994)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1,200 (1994)
Telephone system:
domestic: good telex, telegraph, facsimile and cellular telephone
services; domestic satellite system with 1 Comsat earth station
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 57,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 14,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@American Samoa:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 350 km
paved: 150 km
unpaved: 200 km
Ports and harbors: Aunu'u (new construction), Auasi, Faleosao, Ofu,
Pago Pago, Ta'u
Merchant marine: none (1999 est.)
Airports: 4 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (1999 est.)
@American Samoa:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the US
@American Samoa:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
______________________________________________________________________
ANDORRA
@Andorra:Introduction
Background: Long isolated and impoverished, mountainous Andorra has
achieved considerable prosperity since World War II through its
tourist industry. Many immigrants (legal and illegal) are attracted to
the thriving economy with its lack of income taxes.
@Andorra:Geography
Location: Southwestern Europe, between France and Spain
Geographic coordinates: 42 30 N, 1 30 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 468 sq km
land: 468 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
total: 120.3 km
border countries: France 56.6 km, Spain 63.7 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; snowy, cold winters and warm, dry summers
Terrain: rugged mountains dissected by narrow valleys
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Riu Runer 840 m
highest point: Coma Pedrosa 2,946 m
Natural resources: hydropower, mineral water, timber, iron ore, lead
Land use:
arable land: 4%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 45%
forests and woodland: 35%
other: 16% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: snowslides, avalanches
Environment - current issues: deforestation; overgrazing of mountain
meadows contributes to soil erosion; air pollution; waste water
treatment and solid waste disposal
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Hazardous Wastes
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: landlocked
@Andorra:People
Population: 66,824 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 15% (male 5,382; female 4,883)
15-64 years: 72% (male 25,463; female 22,837)
65 years and over: 13% (male 4,160; female 4,099) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.22% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 10.58 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.27 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 6.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female
total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 83.46 years
male: 80.56 years
female: 86.56 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.25 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Andorran(s)
adjective: Andorran
Ethnic groups: Spanish 43%, Andorran 33%, Portuguese 11%, French 7%,
other 6% (1998)
Religions: Roman Catholic (predominant)
Languages: Catalan (official), French, Castilian
Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: 100%
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Andorra:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Principality of Andorra
conventional short form: Andorra
local long form: Principat d'Andorra
local short form: Andorra
Data code: AN
Government type: parliamentary democracy (since March 1993) that
retains as its heads of state a coprincipality; the two princes are
the president of France and bishop of Seo de Urgel, Spain, who are
represented locally by coprinces' representatives
Capital: Andorra la Vella
Administrative divisions: 7 parishes (parroquies, singular -
parroquia); Andorra la Vella, Canillo, Encamp, La Massana,
Escaldes-Engordany, Ordino, Sant Julia de Loria
Independence: 1278 (was formed under the joint suzerainty of France
and Spain)
National holiday: Mare de Deu de Meritxell, 8 September (1278)
Constitution: Andorra's first written constitution was drafted in
1991; approved by referendum 14 March 1993; came into force 4 May 1993
Legal system: based on French and Spanish civil codes; no judicial
review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: French Coprince Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995),
represented by Mr. Frederic de SAINT-SERNIN (since NA); Spanish
Coprince Episcopal Monseigneur Joan MARTI Alanis (since 31 January
1971), represented by Mr. Nemesi MARQUES OSTE (since NA)
head of government: Executive Council President Marc FORNE Molne
(since 21 December 1994)
cabinet: Executive Council or Govern designated by the Executive
Council president
elections: Executive Council president elected by the General Council
and formally appointed by the coprinces for a four-year term; election
last held 16 February 1997 (next to be held NA 2001)
election results: Marc FORNE Molne elected executive council
president; percent of General Council vote - 64%
Legislative branch: unicameral General Council of the Valleys or
Consell General de las Valls (28 seats; members are elected by direct
popular vote, 14 from a single national constituency and 14 to
represent each of the 7 parishes; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 16 February 1997 (next to be held NA February
2001)
election results: percent of vote by party - UL 57%, AND 21%, IDN 7%,
ND 7%, other 8%; seats by party - UL 16, AND 6, ND 2, IDN 2, UPO 2
Judicial branch: Tribunal of Judges or Tribunal de Batlles; Tribunal
of the Courts or Tribunal de Corts; Supreme Court of Justice of
Andorra or Tribunal Superior de Justicia d'Andorra; Supreme Council of
Justice or Consell Superior de la Justicia; Fiscal Ministry or
Ministeri Fiscal; Constitutional Tribunal or Tribunal Constitucional
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Party of Andorra (Partit
Liberal d'Andorra) or PLA ; Liberal Union or UL [Francesc
CERQUEDA]; National Democratic Group or AND ;
National Democratic Initiative or IDN ; New
Democracy or ND ; Unio Parroquial d'Ordino or
UPO
note: there are two other small parties
International organization participation: CCC, CE, ECE, ICRM, IFRCS,
Interpol, IOC, ITU, OSCE, UN, UNESCO, WHO, WIPO, WToO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juli MINOVES-TRIQUELL (also Permanent
Representative to the UN)
chancery: 2 United Nations Plaza, 25th Floor, New York, NY 10017
telephone: (212) 750-8064
FAX: (212) 750-6630
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy
in Andorra; the US Ambassador to Spain is accredited to Andorra; US
interests in Andorra are represented by the Consulate General's office
in Barcelona (Spain); mailing address: Paseo Reina Elisenda, 23, 08034
Barcelona, Spain; telephone: (3493) 280-2227; FAX: (3493) 205-7705
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side),
yellow, and red with the national coat of arms centered in the yellow
band; the coat of arms features a quartered shield; similar to the
flags of Chad and Romania, which do not have a national coat of arms
in the center, and the flag of Moldova, which does bear a national
emblem
@Andorra:Economy
Economy - overview: Tourism, the mainstay of Andorra's tiny,
well-to-do economy, accounts for roughly 80% of GDP. An estimated 9
million tourists visit annually, attracted by Andorra's duty-free
status and by its summer and winter resorts. Andorra's comparative
advantage has recently eroded as the economies of neighboring France
and Spain have been opened up, providing broader availability of goods
and lower tariffs. The banking sector, with its "tax haven" status,
also contributes substantially to the economy. Agricultural production
is limited by a scarcity of arable land, and most food has to be
imported. The principal livestock activity is sheep raising.
Manufacturing consists mainly of cigarettes, cigars, and furniture.
Andorra is a member of the EU Customs Union and is treated as an EU
member for trade in manufactured goods (no tariffs) and as a non-EU
member for agricultural products.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.2 billion (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $18,000 (1996 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.62% (1998)
Labor force: 30,787 salaried employees (1998)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 1%, industry 21%, services
72%, other 6% (1998)
Unemployment rate: 0%
Budget:
revenues: $385 million
expenditures: $342 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1997)
Industries: tourism (particularly skiing), cattle raising, timber,
tobacco, banking
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 116 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA%
nuclear: NA%
other: NA%
Electricity - consumption: NA kWh (1998 est.)
Electricity - exports: NA kWh
Electricity - imports: NA kWh; note - imports electricity from Spain
and France
Agriculture - products: small quantities of tobacco, rye, wheat,
barley, oats, vegetables; sheep
Exports: $58 million (f.o.b., 1998)
Exports - commodities: tobacco products, furniture
Exports - partners: France 34%, Spain 58% (1998)
Imports: $1.077 billion (c.i.f., 1998)
Imports - commodities: consumer goods, food, electricity
Imports - partners: Spain 48%, France 35%, US 2.3% (1998)
Debt - external: $NA
Economic aid - recipient: none
Currency: 1 French franc (F) = 100 centimes; 1 peseta (Pta) = 100
centimos; the French and Spanish currencies are used
Exchange rates: euros per US$1 - 0.9867 (January 2000), 0.9386 (1999);
French francs (F) per US$1 - 5.65 (January 1999), 5.8995 (1998),
5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996), 4.9915 (1995); Spanish pesetas (Ptas)
per US$1 - 143.39 (January 1999), 149.40 (1998), 146.41 (1997), 126.66
(1996), 124.69 (1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Andorra:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 31,980 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 8,618 (1997)
Telephone system:
domestic: modern system with microwave radio relay connections between
exchanges
international: landline circuits to France and Spain
Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 15, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 16,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 0 (1997)
Televisions: 27,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Andorra:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 269 km
paved: 198 km
unpaved: 71 km (1994 est.)
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: none
@Andorra:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France and Spain
@Andorra:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
______________________________________________________________________
ANGOLA
@Angola:Introduction
Background: Civil war has been the norm in Angola since independence
from Portugal in 1975. A 1994 peace accord between the government and
the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA)
provided for the integration of former UNITA insurgents into the
government and armed forces. A national unity government was installed
in April of 1997, but serious fighting resumed in late 1998, rendering
hundreds of thousands of people homeless. Up to 1.5 million lives may
have been lost in fighting over the past quarter century.
@Angola:Geography
Location: Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between
Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo
Geographic coordinates: 12 30 S, 18 30 E
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 1,246,700 sq km
land: 1,246,700 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 5,198 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,511 km (of which
220 km is the boundary of discontiguous Cabinda Province), Republic of
the Congo 201 km, Namibia 1,376 km, Zambia 1,110 km
Coastline: 1,600 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool,
dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April)
Terrain: narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morro de Moco 2,620 m
Natural resources: petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper,
feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium
Land use:
arable land: 2%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 23%
forests and woodland: 43%
other: 32% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 750 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on
the plateau
Environment - current issues: overuse of pastures and subsequent soil
erosion attributable to population pressures; desertification;
deforestation of tropical rain forest, in response to both
international demand for tropical timber and to domestic use as fuel,
resulting in loss of biodiversity; soil erosion contributing to water
pollution and siltation of rivers and dams; inadequate supplies of
potable water
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Desertification, Law of the Sea
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change
Geography - note: Cabinda is separated from rest of country by the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
@Angola:People
Population: 10,145,267 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 43% (male 2,215,706; female 2,172,106)
15-64 years: 54% (male 2,792,313; female 2,692,790)
65 years and over: 3% (male 124,404; female 147,948) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.15% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 46.89 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 25.01 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 195.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 38.31 years
male: 37.11 years
female: 39.56 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 6.52 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Angolan(s)
adjective: Angolan
Ethnic groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico
(mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22%
Religions: indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15%
(1998 est.)
Languages: Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42%
male: 56%
female: 28% (1998 est.)
@Angola:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Angola
conventional short form: Angola
local long form: Republica de Angola
local short form: Angola
former: People's Republic of Angola
Data code: AO
Government type: transitional government, nominally a multiparty
democracy with a strong presidential system
Capital: Luanda
Administrative divisions: 18 provinces (provincias, singular -
provincia); Bengo, Benguela, Bie, Cabinda, Cuando Cubango, Cuanza
Norte, Cuanza Sul, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Luanda, Lunda Norte, Lunda
Sul, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe, Uige, Zaire
Independence: 11 November 1975 (from Portugal)
National holiday: Independence Day, 11 November (1975)
Constitution: 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August
1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992
Legal system: based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law;
recently modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use
of free markets
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September
1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since January
1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: President DOS SANTOS originally elected (in 1979) without
opposition under a one-party system and stood for reelection in
Angola's first multiparty elections 28-29 September 1992, the last
elections to be held (next to be held NA)
election results: DOS SANTOS received 49.6% of the total vote, making
a run-off election necessary between him and second-place finisher
Jonas SAVIMBI (40.1% of the vote); the run-off was not held and
SAVIMBI's National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA)
repudiated the results of the first election; the civil war resumed
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia
Nacional (220 seats; members elected by proportional vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA)
election results: percent of vote by party - MPLA 54%, UNITA 34%,
others 12%; seats by party - MPLA 129, UNITA 70, PRS 6, FNLA 5, PLD 3,
others 7
Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Tribunal da Relacao, judges of the
Supreme Court are appointed by the president
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Analia
de Victoria PEREIRA]; National Front for the Liberation of Angola or
FNLA ; National
Union for the Total Independence of Angola or UNITA ,
largest opposition party engaged in years of armed resistance before
joining the current unity government in April 1997; Popular Movement
for the Liberation of Angola or MPLA ruling
party in power since 1975; Social Renewal Party or PRS [disputed
leadership: Eduardo KUANGANA, Antonio MUACHICUNGO]
note: about a dozen minor parties participated in the 1992 elections
but won few seats and have little influence in the National Assembly
Political pressure groups and leaders: Front for the Liberation of the
Enclave of Cabinda or FLEC [N'zita Henriques TIAGO; Antonio Bento
BEMBE]
note: FLEC is waging a small-scale, highly factionalized, armed
struggle for the independence of Cabinda Province
International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, ECA,
FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, SADC, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio dos Santos FRANCA "N'dalu"
chancery: 1615 M Street, NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: (202) 785-1156
FAX: (202) 785-1258
consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph G. SULLIVAN
embassy: number 32 Rua Houari Boumedienne, Miramar, Luanda
mailing address: international mail: Caixa Postal 6484, Luanda; pouch:
American Embassy Luanda, Department of State, Washington, DC
20521-2550
telephone: (2) 345-481, 346-418
FAX: (2) 346-924
Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and black
with a centered yellow emblem consisting of a five-pointed star within
half a cogwheel crossed by a machete (in the style of a hammer and
sickle)
@Angola:Economy
Economy - overview: Angola is an economy in disarray because of a
quarter century of nearly continuous warfare. Despite its abundant
natural resources, output per capita is among the world's lowest.
Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for 85% of the
population. Oil production and the supporting activities are vital to
the economy, contributing about 45% to GDP and 90% of exports.
Notwithstanding the signing of a peace accord in November 1994,
violence continues, millions of land mines remain, and many farmers
are reluctant to return to their fields. As a result, much of the
country's food must still be imported. To take advantage of its rich
resources - gold, diamonds, extensive forests, Atlantic fisheries, and
large oil deposits - Angola will need to implement the peace agreement
and reform government policies. Despite the increase in the pace of
civil warfare in late 1998, the economy grew by an estimated 4% in
1999. The government introduced new currency denominations in 1999,
including a 1 and 5 kwanza note. Expanded oil production brightens
prospects for 2000, but internal strife discourages investment outside
of the petroleum sector.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $11.6 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,030 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 13%
industry: 53%
services: 34% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 270% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 5 million (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 85%, industry and services
15% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: extensive unemployment and underemployment
affecting more than half the population (1999 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $928 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $963
million (1992 est.)
Industries: petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar,
bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish
processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar;
textiles
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 1.886 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 24.97%
hydro: 75.03%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 1.754 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn,
cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock;
forest products; fish
Exports: $5 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: crude oil 90%, diamonds, refined petroleum
products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton
Exports - partners: US 63%, Benelux 9%, China, Chile, France (1998)
Imports: $3 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles
and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods
Imports - partners: Portugal 20%, US 17%, South Africa 10%, Spain,
Brazil, France (1998)
Debt - external: $10.5 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $493.1 million (1995)
Currency: 1 kwanza (NKz) = 100 lwei
Exchange rates: kwanza (NKz) per US$1 - 577,304 (January 2000),
2,790,706 (1999), 392,824 (1998), 229,040 (1997), 128,029 (1996),
2,750 (1995); note - beginning in June 1998, the official rate is
determined weekly in accordance with a crawling peg scheme
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Angola:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 60,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1,994 (1995)
Telephone system: telephone service limited mostly to government and
business use; HF radiotelephone used extensively for military links
domestic: limited system of wire, microwave radio relay, and
tropospheric scatter
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 34, FM 7, shortwave 9 (1999)
Radios: 630,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 7 (1999)
Televisions: 150,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (1999)
@Angola:Transportation
Railways:
total: 2,952 km (inland, much of the track is unusable because of land
mines still in place from the civil war)
narrow gauge: 2,798 km 1.067-m gauge; 154 km 0.600-m gauge (1997)
Highways:
total: 76,626 km
paved: 19,156 km
unpaved: 57,470 km (1997 est.)
Waterways: 1,295 km navigable
Pipelines: crude oil 179 km
Ports and harbors: Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Namibe,
Porto Amboim, Soyo
Merchant marine:
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 39,305 GRT/63,067 DWT
ships by type: cargo 8, petroleum tanker 1 (1999 est.)
Airports: 249 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 32
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 217
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 31
914 to 1,523 m: 96
under 914 m: 83 (1999 est.)
@Angola:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National
Police Force
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 2,429,842 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,221,277 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 101,434 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1.2 billion (FY97/98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 25% (FY97/98)
@Angola:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: increasingly used as a transshipment point for cocaine
and heroin destined for Western Europe and other African states
______________________________________________________________________
ANGUILLA
@Anguilla:Introduction
Background: Colonized by English settlers from Saint Kitts in 1650,
Anguilla was administered by Great Britain until the early 19th
century, when the island - against the wishes of the inhabitants - was
incorporated into a single British dependency along with Saint Kitts
and Nevis. Several attempts at separation failed. In 1971, two years
after a revolt, Anguilla was finally allowed to secede; this
arrangement was formally recognized in 1980 with Anguilla becoming a
separate British dependency.
@Anguilla:Geography
Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, east of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates: 18 15 N, 63 10 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 91 sq km
land: 91 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: about half the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 61 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds
Terrain: flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crocus Hill 65 m
Natural resources: salt, fish, lobster
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (mostly rock with sparse scrub oak, few trees, some
commercial salt ponds)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: frequent hurricanes and other tropical storms (July
to October)
Environment - current issues: supplies of potable water sometimes
cannot meet increasing demand largely because of poor distribution
system
@Anguilla:People
Population: 11,797 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 26% (male 1,565; female 1,519)
15-64 years: 67% (male 4,040; female 3,839)
65 years and over: 7% (male 369; female 465) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.93% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 15.34 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.76 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 19.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 25.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.11 years
male: 73.22 years
female: 79.09 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Anguillan(s)
adjective: Anguillan
Ethnic groups: black
Religions: Anglican 40%, Methodist 33%, Seventh-Day Adventist 7%,
Baptist 5%, Roman Catholic 3%, other 12%
Languages: English (official)
Literacy:
definition: age 12 and over can read and write
total population: 95%
male: 95%
female: 95% (1984 est.)
@Anguilla:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Anguilla
Data code: AV
Dependency status: overseas territory of the UK
Government type: NA
Capital: The Valley
Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of the UK)
Independence: none (overseas territory of the UK)
National holiday: Anguilla Day, 30 May
Constitution: Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 1990
Legal system: based on English common law
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952);
represented by Governor Alan HOOLE (since 1 November 1995)
head of government: Chief Minister Hubert HUGHES (since 16 March 1994)
cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from among the
elected members of the House of Assembly
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the
monarch; chief minister appointed by the governor from among the
members of the House of Assembly
Legislative branch: unicameral House of Assembly (11 seats total, 7
elected by direct popular vote, 2 ex officio members and 2 appointed;
members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 March 1999 (next to be held 10 March 2004)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ANA
2, AUP 2, ADP 2, independent 1
Judicial branch: High Court (judge provided by Eastern Caribbean
Supreme Court)
Political parties and leaders: Anguilla Democratic Party or ADP
; Anguilla National Alliance or ANA ;
Anguilla United Party or AUP
International organization participation: Caricom (associate), CDB,
Interpol (subbureau), OECS (associate), ECLAC (associate)
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas territory of the
UK)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas territory of the
UK)
Flag description: blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper
hoist-side quadrant and the Anguillan coat of arms centered in the
outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts three orange dolphins
in an interlocking circular design on a white background with blue
wavy water below
@Anguilla:Economy
Economy - overview: Anguilla has few natural resources, and the
economy depends heavily on luxury tourism, offshore banking, lobster
fishing, and remittances from emigrants. The economy, and especially
the tourism sector, suffered a setback in late 1995 due to the effects
of Hurricane Luis in September but recovered in 1996. Increased
activity in the tourism industry, which has spurred the growth of the
construction sector, contributed to economic growth in 1997-98.
Anguillan officials have put substantial effort into developing the
offshore financing sector. A comprehensive package of financial
services legislation was enacted in late 1994. In the medium term,
prospects for the economy will depend on the tourism sector and,
therefore, on continuing income growth in the industrialized nations
as well as favorable weather conditions.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $88 million (1998 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 6.5% (1998 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,900 (1998 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4%
industry: 18%
services: 78% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (1998 est.)
Labor force: 4,400 (1992)
Labor force - by occupation: commerce 36%, services 29%, construction
18%, transportation and utilities 10%, manufacturing 3%,
agriculture/fishing/forestry/mining 4%
Unemployment rate: 7% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $20.4 million
expenditures: $23.3 million, including capital expenditures of $3.8
million (1997 est.)
Industries: tourism, boat building, offshore financial services
Industrial production growth rate: 3.1% (1997 est.)
Electricity - production: NA kWh
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA%
nuclear: NA%
other: NA%
Electricity - consumption: NA kWh
Electricity - exports: NA kWh
Electricity - imports: NA kWh
Agriculture - products: small quantities of tobacco, vegetables;
cattle raising
Exports: $4.5 million (1998)
Exports - commodities: lobster, fish, livestock, salt
Exports - partners: NA
Imports: $57.6 million (1998)
Imports - commodities: NA
Imports - partners: NA
Debt - external: $8.8 million (1998)
Economic aid - recipient: $3.5 million (1995)
Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.7000 (fixed
rate since 1976)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
@Anguilla:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 4,000 (1994)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system:
domestic: modern internal telephone system
international: microwave radio relay to island of Saint Martin
(Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 3,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 1,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Anguilla:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 279 km
paved: 253 km
unpaved: 26 km (1998 est.)
Ports and harbors: Blowing Point, Road Bay
Merchant marine: none (1999 est.)
Airports: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (1999 est.)
@Anguilla:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the UK
@Anguilla:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
______________________________________________________________________
ANTARCTICA
@Antarctica:Geography
Location: continent mostly south of the Antarctic Circle
Geographic coordinates: 90 00 S, 0 00 E
Map references: Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 14 million sq km
land: 14 million sq km (280,000 sq km ice-free, 13.72 million sq km
ice-covered) (est.)
note: fifth-largest continent, following Asia, Africa, North America,
and South America, but larger than Australia and the subcontinent of
Europe
Area - comparative: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US
Land boundaries: 0 km
note: see entry on International disputes
Coastline: 17,968 km
Maritime claims: none, but see the Disputes - international entry
Climate: severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and
distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West
Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has
the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along
the coast and average slightly below freezing
Terrain: about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock,
with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain
ranges up to 5,140 meters; ice-free coastal areas include parts of
southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic Peninsula area, and
parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers form ice shelves along
about half of the coastline, and floating ice shelves constitute 11%
of the area of the continent
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Southern Ocean 0 m
highest point: Vinson Massif 5,140 m
Natural resources: none presently exploited; iron ore, chromium,
copper, gold, nickel, platinum and other minerals, and coal and
hydrocarbons have been found in small, uncommercial quantities
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (ice 98%, barren rock 2%)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: katabatic (gravity-driven) winds blow coastward from
the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the
plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise along
the coast; volcanism on Deception Island and isolated areas of West
Antarctica; other seismic activity rare and weak
Environment - current issues: in 1998, NASA satellite data showed that
the antarctic ozone hole was the largest on record, covering 27
million square kilometers; researchers in 1997 found that increased
ultraviolet light coming through the hole damages the DNA of icefish,
an antarctic fish lacking hemoglobin; ozone depletion earlier was
shown to harm one-celled antarctic marine plants
Geography - note: the coldest, windiest, highest (on average), and
driest continent; during summer, more solar radiation reaches the
surface at the South Pole than is received at the Equator in an
equivalent period; mostly uninhabitable
@Antarctica:People
Population: no indigenous inhabitants, but there are seasonally
staffed research stations
note: approximately 29 nations, all signatory to the Antarctic Treaty,
send personnel to perform seasonal (summer) and year-round research on
the continent and in its surrounding oceans; the population of persons
doing and supporting science on the continent and its nearby islands
south of 60 degrees south latitude (the region covered by the
Antarctic Treaty) varies from approximately 4,000 in summer to 1,000
in winter; in addition, approximately 1,000 personnel including ship's
crew and scientists doing onboard research are present in the waters
of the treaty region; Summer (January) population - 3,687 total;
Argentina 302, Australia 201, Belgium 13, Brazil 80, Bulgaria 16,
Chile 352, China 70, Finland 11, France 100, Germany 51, India 60,
Italy 106, Japan 136, South Korea 14, Netherlands 10, NZ 60, Norway
40, Peru 28, Poland 70, Russia 254, South Africa 80, Spain 43, Sweden
20, UK 192, US 1,378 (1998-99); Winter (July) population - 964 total;
Argentina 165, Australia 75, Brazil 12, Chile 129, China 33, France
33, Germany 9, India 25, Japan 40, South Korea 14, NZ 10, Poland 20,
Russia 102, South Africa 10, UK 39, US 248 (1998-99); year-round
stations - 42 total; Argentina 6, Australia 4, Brazil 1, Chile 4,
China 2, Finland 1, France 1, Germany 1, India 1, Italy 1, Japan 1,
South Korea 1, NZ 1, Norway 1, Poland 1, Russia 6, South Africa 1,
Spain 1, Ukraine 1, UK 2, US 3, Uruguay 1 (1998-99); Summer-only
stations - 32 total; Argentina 3, Australia 4, Bulgaria 1, Chile 7,
Germany 1, India 1, Japan 3, NZ 1, Peru 1, Russia 3, Sweden 2, UK 5
(1998-99); in addition, during the austral summer some nations have
numerous occupied locations such as tent camps, summer-long temporary
facilities, and mobile traverses in support of research (July 2000
est.)
@Antarctica:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antarctica
Data code: AY
Government type: Antarctic Treaty Summary - the Antarctic Treaty,
signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961,
establishes the legal framework for the management of Antarctica.
Administration is carried out through consultative member meetings -
the 23rd Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting was in Peru in May
1999. At the end of 1999, there were 44 treaty member nations: 27
consultative and 17 acceding. Consultative (voting) members include
the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national
territory (some claims overlap) and 20 nonclaimant nations. The US and
some other nations that have made no claims have reserved the right to
do so. The US does not recognize the claims of others. The year in
parentheses indicates when an acceding nation was voted to full
consultative (voting) status, while no date indicates the country was
an original 1959 treaty signatory. Claimant nations are - Argentina,
Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the UK. Nonclaimant
consultative nations are - Belgium, Brazil (1983), Bulgaria (1998)
China (1985), Ecuador (1990), Finland (1989), Germany (1981), India
(1983), Italy (1987), Japan, South Korea (1989), Netherlands (1990),
Peru (1989), Poland (1977), Russia, South Africa, Spain (1988), Sweden
(1988), Uruguay (1985), and the US. Acceding (nonvoting) members, with
year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria (1987), Canada (1988),
Colombia (1988), Cuba (1984), Czech Republic (1993), Denmark (1965),
Greece (1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), North Korea (1987),
Papua New Guinea (1981), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1993), Switzerland
(1990), Turkey (1995), Ukraine (1992), and Venezuela (1999). Article 1
- area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such
as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and
equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful
purpose; Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and
cooperation shall continue; Article 3 - free exchange of information
and personnel in cooperation with the UN and other international
agencies; Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish
territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the
treaty is in force; Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or
disposal of radioactive wastes; Article 6 - includes under the treaty
all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south; Article
7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial
observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations,
and equipment; advance notice of all activities and of the
introduction of military personnel must be given; Article 8 - allows
for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states;
Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member
nations; Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any
country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty; Article 11 -
disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or,
ultimately, by the ICJ; Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding,
interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations. Other
agreements - some 200 recommendations adopted at treaty consultative
meetings and ratified by governments include - Agreed Measures for the
Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora (1964); Convention for the
Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972); Convention on the Conservation
of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980); a mineral resources
agreement was signed in 1988 but was subsequently rejected; the
Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was
signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this
agreement provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment
through five specific annexes on marine pollution, fauna, and flora,
environmental impact assessments, waste management, and protected
areas; it prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources
except scientific research.
Legal system: US law, including certain criminal offenses by or
against US nationals, such as murder, may apply to areas not under
jurisdiction of other countries. Some US laws directly apply to
Antarctica. For example, the Antarctic Conservation Act, 16 U.S.C.
section 2401 et seq., provides civil and criminal penalties for the
following activities, unless authorized by regulation of statute: the
taking of native mammals or birds; the introduction of nonindigenous
plants and animals; entry into specially protected or scientific
areas; the discharge or disposal of pollutants; and the importation
into the US of certain items from Antarctica. Violation of the
Antarctic Conservation Act carries penalties of up to $10,000 in fines
and one year in prison. The Departments of Treasury, Commerce,
Transportation, and Interior share enforcement responsibilities.
Public Law 95-541, the US Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978, requires
expeditions from the US to Antarctica to notify, in advance, the
Office of Oceans and Polar Affairs, Room 5801, Department of State,
Washington, DC 20520, which reports such plans to other nations as
required by the Antarctic Treaty. For more information, contact Permit
Office, Office of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation,
Arlington, Virginia 22230; telephone: (703) 306-1031, or see their
website at www.nsf.gov.
@Antarctica:Economy
Economy - overview: No economic activity is conducted at present,
except for fishing off the coast and small-scale tourism, both based
abroad. Antarctic fisheries in 1998-99 (1 July-30 June) reported
landing 119,898 metric tons. Unregulated fishing landed five to six
times more than the regulated fishery, and allegedly illegal fishing
in antarctic waters in 1998 resulted in the seizure (by France and
Australia) of at least eight fishing ships. A total of 10,013 tourists
visited in the 1998-99 summer, up from the 9,604 who visited the
previous year. Nearly all of them were passengers on 16 commercial
(nongovernmental) ships and several yachts that made 116 trips during
the summer. Most tourist trips lasted approximately two weeks.
@Antarctica:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 0 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system:
domestic: NA
international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 1 (American Forces Antarctic
Network-McMurdo) (1999)
Televisions: several hundred at McMurdo Sound
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Antarctica:Transportation
Ports and harbors: McMurdo (77 51 S, 166 40 E), Palmer (64 43 S, 64 03
W); government use only except by permit (see Permit Office under
"Legal System"); offshore anchorage
Airports: 18
note: 27 stations, operated by 16 national governments party to the
Antarctic Treaty, have landing facilities for either helicopters
and/or fixed-wing aircraft; commercial enterprises operate two
additional air facilities; helicopter pads are available at 27
stations; runways at 15 locations are gravel, sea-ice, blue-ice, or
compacted snow suitable for landing wheeled, fixed-wing aircraft; of
these, 1 is greater than 3 km in length, 6 are between 2 km and 3 km
in length, 3 are between 1 km and 2 km in length, 3 are less than 1 km
in length, and 2 are of unknown length; snow surface skiways, limited
to use by ski-equipped, fixed-wing aircraft,are available at another
15 locations; of these, 4 are greater than 3 km in length, 3 are
between 2 km and 3 km in length, 2 are between 1 km and 2 km in
length, 2 are less than 1 km in length, and 4 are of unknown length;
airports generally subject to severe restrictions and limitations
resulting from extreme seasonal and geographic conditions; airports do
not meet ICAO standards; advance approval from the respective
governmental or nongovernmental operating organization required for
landing (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 18
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 5 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
@Antarctica:Military
Military - note: the Antarctic Treaty prohibits any measures of a
military nature, such as the establishment of military bases and
fortifications, the carrying out of military maneuvers, or the testing
of any type of weapon; it permits the use of military personnel or
equipment for scientific research or for any other peaceful purposes
@Antarctica:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: Antarctic Treaty defers claims (see
Antarctic Treaty Summary in Government type entry); sections (some
overlapping) claimed by Argentina, Australia, Chile, France (Adelie
Land), New Zealand (Ross Dependency), Norway (Queen Maud Land), and
UK; the US and most other nations do not recognize the territorial
claims of other nations and have made no claims themselves (the US
reserves the right to do so); no formal claims have been made in the
sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west
______________________________________________________________________
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
@Antigua and Barbuda:Introduction
Background: The islands of Antigua and Barbuda became an independent
state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. Some 3,000
refugees fleeing a volcanic eruption on nearby Montserrat have settled
in Antigua and Barbuda since 1995.
@Antigua and Barbuda:Geography
Location: Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North
Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates: 17 03 N, 61 48 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 442 sq km (Antigua 281 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)
land: 442 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Redonda
Area - comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 153 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some
higher volcanic areas
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m
Natural resources: NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism
Land use:
arable land: 18%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 9%
forests and woodland: 11%
other: 62% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October);
periodic droughts
Environment - current issues: water management - a major concern
because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered
by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall
to run off quickly
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
@Antigua and Barbuda:People
Population: 66,422 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 28% (male 9,414; female 9,098)
15-64 years: 67% (male 22,199; female 22,341)
65 years and over: 5% (male 1,424; female 1,946) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.73% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 19.6 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.99 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -6.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 23.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 70.46 years
male: 68.19 years
female: 72.84 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.92 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)
adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan
Ethnic groups: black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian
Religions: Anglican (predominant), other Protestant, some Roman
Catholic
Languages: English (official), local dialects
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of
schooling
total population: 89%
male: 90%
female: 88% (1960 est.)
@Antigua and Barbuda:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda
Data code: AC
Government type: constitutional monarchy with Westminster-style
parliament
Capital: Saint John's
Administrative divisions: 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*,
Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint
Peter, Saint Philip
Independence: 1 November 1981 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 November (1981)
Constitution: 1 November 1981
Legal system: based on English common law
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General James B. CARLISLE (since NA 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Lester Bryant BIRD (since 8 March
1994)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the
advice of the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by
the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; prime minister
appointed by the governor general
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate
(17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of
Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional
representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 9 March 1999 (next to
be held NA March 2004)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP
12, UPP 4, independent 1
Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint
Lucia) (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands
and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction)
Political parties and leaders: Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement
or ACLM ; Antigua Labor Party or ALP ;
Barbuda People's Movement or BPM ; Progressive Labor
Movement or PLM ; United National Democratic Party or UNDP
; United Progressive Party or UPP , a
coalition of three opposition political parties - UNDP, ACLM, and PLM
Political pressure groups and leaders: Antigua Trades and Labor Union
or ATLU ; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh
MARSHALL]
International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC,
FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS,
OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel Alexander HURST
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
telephone: (202) 362-5211
FAX: (202) 362-5225
consulate(s) general: Miami
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy
in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US
Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda
Flag description: red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on
the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands
of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the
black band
@Antigua and Barbuda:Economy
Economy - overview: Tourism continues to be the dominant activity in
the economy accounting directly or indirectly for more than half of
GDP. In 1999 the budding offshore financial sector was seriously hurt
by financial sanctions imposed by the US and UK as a result of the
loosening of its money-laundering controls. The government has made
efforts to comply with international demands in order to get the
sanctions lifted. The dual island nation's agricultural production is
mainly directed to the domestic market; the sector is constrained by
the limited water supply and labor shortages that reflect the pull of
higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises
enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding,
handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth
in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the
industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for about
one-third of all tourist arrivals.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $524 million (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.8% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $8,200 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4%
industry: 12.5%
services: 83.5% (1996 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.6% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 30,000
Labor force - by occupation: commerce and services 82%, agriculture
11%, industry 7% (1983)
Unemployment rate: 7% (1999 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $122.6 million
expenditures: $141.2 million, including capital expenditures of $17.3
million (1997 est.)
Industries: tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing,
alcohol, household appliances)
Industrial production growth rate: 6% (1997 est.)
Electricity - production: 90 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 84 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts,
cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock
Exports: $38 million (1998)
Exports - commodities: petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, food
and live animals 4%, machinery and transport equipment 17%
Exports - partners: OECS 26%, Barbados 15%, Guyana 4%, Trinidad and
Tobago 2%, US 0.3%
Imports: $330 million (1998)
Imports - commodities: food and live animals, machinery and transport
equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil
Imports - partners: US 27%, UK 16%, Canada 4%, OECS 3%
Debt - external: $357 million (1998)
Economic aid - recipient: $2.3 million (1995)
Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.7000 (fixed
rate since 1976)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
@Antigua and Barbuda:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 20,000 (1994)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system:
domestic: good automatic telephone system
international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands
Antilles) and Guadeloupe
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 36,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997)
Televisions: 31,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Antigua and Barbuda:Transportation
Railways:
total: 77 km
narrow gauge: 64 km 0.760-m gauge; 13 km 0.610-m gauge (used almost
exclusively for handling sugarcane)
Highways:
total: 250 km (1996 est.)
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km
Ports and harbors: Saint John's
Merchant marine:
total: 607 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,528,944 GRT/4,590,590
DWT
ships by type: bulk 17, cargo 385, chemical tanker 9, combination bulk
2, container 149, liquified gas 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated
cargo 12, roll-on/roll-off 28 (1999 est.)
note: a flag of convenience registry: Germany owns 10 ships, Slovenia
2, and Cyprus 2 (1998 est.)
Airports: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
@Antigua and Barbuda:Military
Military branches: Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, Royal
Antigua and Barbuda Police Force (includes Coast Guard)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
@Antigua and Barbuda:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics
bound for the US and Europe; more significant as a
drug-money-laundering center
______________________________________________________________________
ARCTIC OCEAN
@Arctic Ocean:Introduction
Background: A spring 2000 decision by the International Hydrographic
Organization delimited a fifth world ocean from the southern portions
of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The new ocean
extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south
latitude which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit. The Arctic
Ocean remains the smallest of the world's five oceans (after the
Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Southern Ocean).
@Arctic Ocean:Geography
Location: body of water mostly north of the Arctic Circle
Geographic coordinates: 90 00 N, 0 00 E
Map references: Arctic Region
Area:
total: 14.056 million sq km
note: includes Baffin Bay, Barents Sea, Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea,
East Siberian Sea, Greenland Sea, Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, Kara Sea,
Laptev Sea, Northwest Passage, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US
Coastline: 45,389 km
Climate: polar climate characterized by persistent cold and relatively
narrow annual temperature ranges; winters characterized by continuous
darkness, cold and stable weather conditions, and clear skies; summers
characterized by continuous daylight, damp and foggy weather, and weak
cyclones with rain or snow
Terrain: central surface covered by a perennial drifting polar icepack
that averages about 3 meters in thickness, although pressure ridges
may be three times that size; clockwise drift pattern in the Beaufort
Gyral Stream, but nearly straight-line movement from the New Siberian
Islands (Russia) to Denmark Strait (between Greenland and Iceland);
the icepack is surrounded by open seas during the summer, but more
than doubles in size during the winter and extends to the encircling
landmasses; the ocean floor is about 50% continental shelf (highest
percentage of any ocean) with the remainder a central basin
interrupted by three submarine ridges (Alpha Cordillera, Nansen
Cordillera, and Lomonosov Ridge)
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Fram Basin -4,665 m
highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources: sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits,
polymetallic nodules, oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals
and whales)
Natural hazards: ice islands occasionally break away from northern
Ellesmere Island; icebergs calved from glaciers in western Greenland
and extreme northeastern Canada; permafrost in islands; virtually ice
locked from October to June; ships subject to superstructure icing
from October to May
Environment - current issues: endangered marine species include
walruses and whales; fragile ecosystem slow to change and slow to
recover from disruptions or damage; thinning polar icepack
Geography - note: major chokepoint is the southern Chukchi Sea
(northern access to the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait);
strategic location between North America and Russia; shortest marine
link between the extremes of eastern and western Russia; floating
research stations operated by the US and Russia; maximum snow cover in
March or April about 20 to 50 centimeters over the frozen ocean; snow
cover lasts about 10 months
@Arctic Ocean:Government
Data code: none; the US Government has not approved a standard for
hydrographic codes - see the Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data
Codes appendix
@Arctic Ocean:Economy
Economy - overview: Economic activity is limited to the exploitation
of natural resources, including petroleum, natural gas, fish, and
seals.
@Arctic Ocean:Transportation
Ports and harbors: Churchill (Canada), Murmansk (Russia), Prudhoe Bay
(US)
Transportation - note: sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land
routes; the Northwest Passage (North America) and Northern Sea Route
(Eurasia) are important seasonal waterways
@Arctic Ocean:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: some maritime disputes (see littoral
states); Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between
Norway and Russia
______________________________________________________________________
ARGENTINA
@Argentina:Introduction
Background: Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina
experienced periods of internal political conflict between
conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions.
After World War II, a long period of Peronist dictatorship was
followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy
returned in 1983, and four free elections since then have underscored
Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation.
@Argentina:Geography
Location: Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean,
between Chile and Uruguay
Geographic coordinates: 34 00 S, 64 00 W
Map references: South America
Area:
total: 2,766,890 sq km
land: 2,736,690 sq km
water: 30,200 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US
Land boundaries:
total: 9,665 km
border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km,
Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km
Coastline: 4,989 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in
southwest
Terrain: rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling
plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes)
highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m
Natural resources: fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin,
copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium
Land use:
arable land: 9%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 52%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 19% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 17,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes
subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can
strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding
Environment - current issues: environmental problems (urban and rural)
typical of an industrializing economy such as soil degradation,
desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas
targets
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life
Conservation
Geography - note: second-largest country in South America (after
Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between South
Atlantic and South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel,
Drake Passage)
@Argentina:People
Population: 36,955,182 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 27% (male 5,061,588; female 4,827,582)
15-64 years: 63% (male 11,625,574; female 11,613,358)
65 years and over: 10% (male 1,582,861; female 2,244,219) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.16% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 18.59 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 7.59 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 18.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.05 years
male: 71.67 years
female: 78.61 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Argentine(s)
adjective: Argentine
Ethnic groups: white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo,
Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3%
Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing),
Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%
Languages: Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2%
male: 96.2%
female: 96.2% (1995 est.)
@Argentina:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Argentine Republic
conventional short form: Argentina
local long form: Republica Argentina
local short form: Argentina
Data code: AR
Government type: republic
Capital: Buenos Aires
Administrative divisions: 23 provinces (provincias, singular -
provincia), and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires;
Catamarca; Chaco; Chubut; Cordoba; Corrientes; Distrito Federal*;
Entre Rios; Formosa; Jujuy; La Pampa; La Rioja; Mendoza; Misiones;
Neuquen; Rio Negro; Salta; San Juan; San Luis; Santa Cruz; Santa Fe;
Santiago del Estero; Tierra del Fuego, Antartica e Islas del Atlantico
Sur; Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica
Independence: 9 July 1816 (from Spain)
National holiday: Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)
Constitution: 1 May 1853; revised August 1994
Legal system: mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999);
Vice President Carlos Alberto ALVAREZ (since 10 December 1999); note -
the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December
1999); Vice President Carlos Alberto ALVAREZ (since 10 December 1999);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by
popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999
(next to be held NA October 2003)
election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of
vote - 48.5%
Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional
consists of the Senate (72 seats; formerly, three members appointed by
each of the provincial legislatures; presently transitioning to
one-third of the members being elected every two years to six-year
terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; one-half of the members
elected every two years to four-year terms)
elections: Senate - transition phase will begin in 2001 elections when
all seats will be fully contested; winners will randomly draw to
determine whether they will serve a two-year, four-year, or full
six-year term, beginning a rotating cycle renovating a third of the
body every two years; Chamber of Deputies - last held 24 October 1999
(next to be held NA October 2001)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA;
seats by bloc or party - Peronist 40, UCR 20, Frepaso 1, other 11;
Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA; seats by
bloc or party - Alliance 124 (UCR 85, Frepaso 36, others 3), Peronist
101, AR 12, other 20
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema), the nine Supreme Court
judges are appointed by the president with approval of the Senate
Political parties and leaders: Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo
CAVALLO]; Alliance (UCR, Frepaso and others) ; Front for a
Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Carlos
ALVAREZ]; Justicialist Party or PJ (Peronist
umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Raul
ALFONSIN]; several provincial parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: Argentine Association of
Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union
(manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large
landowners' association); Armed Forces; business organizations;
General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor
organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic
Church; students
International organization participation: AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE,
CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G- 6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA,
Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN,
UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU,
WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Guillermo GONZALEZ Enrique
chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: (202) 238-6400
FAX: (202) 238-6471
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami,
New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
embassy: 4300 Colombia, 1425 Buenos Aires
mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address:
Unit 4334, APO AA 34034
telephone: (1) 777-4533, 4534
FAX: (1) 777-0197
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top),
white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow
sun with a human face known as the Sun of May
@Argentina:Economy
Economy - overview: Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a
highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector,
and a diversified industrial base. However, when President Carlos
MENEM took office in 1989, the country had piled up huge external
debts, inflation had reached 200% per month, and output was
plummeting. To combat the economic crisis, the government embarked on
a path of trade liberalization, deregulation, and privatization. In
1991, it implemented radical monetary reforms which pegged the peso to
the US dollar and limited the growth in the monetary base by law to
the growth in reserves. Inflation fell sharply in subsequent years. In
1995, the Mexican peso crisis produced capital flight, the loss of
banking system deposits, and a severe, but short-lived, recession; a
series of reforms to bolster the domestic banking system followed.
Real GDP growth recovered strongly, reaching 8% in 1997. In 1998,
international financial turmoil caused by Russia's problems and
increasing investor anxiety over Brazil produced the highest domestic
interest rates in more than three years, halving the growth rate of
the economy. Conditions worsened in 1999 with GDP falling by 3%.
President Fernando DE LA RUA, who took office in December 1999,
sponsored tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit, which
had ballooned to 2.5% of GDP in 1999. The new government also arranged
a new $7.4 billion stand-by facility with the IMF for contingency
purposes - almost three times the size of the previous arrangement.
Key challenges facing the new government include reforming the
country's rigid labor code and addressing the precarious financial
situation of several highly indebted provinces.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $367 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: -3% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $10,000 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 7%
industry: 29%
services: 64% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 36% (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): -2% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 15 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services
NA%
Unemployment rate: 14% (December 1999)
Budget:
revenues: $44 billion
expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
billion (2000 est.)
Industries: food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables,
textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel
Industrial production growth rate: -7% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 75.237 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 42.71%
hydro: 47.55%
nuclear: 9.47%
other: 0.27% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 75.57 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 250 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 5.85 billion kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes,
corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock
Exports: $23 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed,
motor vehicles
Exports - partners: Brazil 24%, EU 21%, US 11% (1999 est.)
Imports: $25 billion (c.i.f., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, motor vehicles,
chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics
Imports - partners: EU 28%, US 22%, Brazil 21% (1999 est.)
Debt - external: $149 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $2.833 billion (1995)
Currency: 1 peso = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: peso is pegged to the US dollar at an exchange rate of
1 peso = $1
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Argentina:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 7.5 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1.8 million (1997)
Telephone system: 12,000 public telephones; extensive modern system
but many families do not have telephones; despite extensive use of
microwave radio relay, the telephone system frequently fails during
rainstorms, even in Buenos Aires
domestic: microwave radio relay and a domestic satellite system with
40 earth stations serve the trunk network
international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean);
two international gateways near Buenos Aires; Atlantis II submarine
cable (1999)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM
NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998)
Radios: 24.3 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 7.95 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 47 (1999)
@Argentina:Transportation
Railways:
total: 38,326 km (160 km electrified)
broad gauge: 24,481 km 1.676-m gauge (134 km electrified)
standard gauge: 2,765 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 11,080 km 1.000-m gauge (1999)
Highways:
total: 215,434 km
paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways)
unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: 10,950 km navigable
Pipelines: crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural
gas 9,918 km
Ports and harbors: Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia,
Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio
Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia
Merchant marine:
total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 218,540 GRT/333,413 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 11, rail car carrier 1,
refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off 1, short-sea passenger 2 (1999
est.)
Airports: 1,359 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 142
over 3,047 m: 5
2,438 to 3,047 m: 26
1,524 to 2,437 m: 60
914 to 1,523 m: 44
under 914 m: 7 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 1,217
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 63
914 to 1,523 m: 614
under 914 m: 536 (1999 est.)
@Argentina:Military
Military branches: Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic
(includes Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Argentine Air
Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force
Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 9,287,499 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 7,530,476 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 341,544 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $4.3 billion (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.3% (FY99)
@Argentina:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: claims UK-administered Falkland Islands
(Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South
Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica
Illicit drugs: increasing use as a transshipment country for cocaine
headed for Europe and the US; increasing use as a money-laundering
center; domestic consumption of drugs has skyrocketed
______________________________________________________________________
ARMENIA
@Armenia:Introduction
Background: An Orthodox Christian country, Armenia was incorporated
into Russia in 1828 and the USSR in 1920. Armenian leaders remain
preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over
Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated exclave, assigned to
Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began
fighting over the exclave in 1988; the struggle escalated after both
countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. By May
1994, when a cease-fire took hold, Armenian forces held not only
Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper.
The economies of both sides have been hurt by their inability to make
substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution.
@Armenia:Geography
Location: Southwestern Asia, east of Turkey
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 45 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area:
total: 29,800 sq km
land: 28,400 sq km
water: 1,400 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 1,254 km
border countries: Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan
exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: highland continental, hot summers, cold winters
Terrain: Armenian Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast
flowing rivers; good soil in Aras River valley
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Debed River 400 m
highest point: Aragats Lerr 4,095 m
Natural resources: small deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc,
alumina
Land use:
arable land: 17%
permanent crops: 3%
permanent pastures: 24%
forests and woodland: 15%
other: 41% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 2,870 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: occasionally severe earthquakes; droughts
Environment - current issues: soil pollution from toxic chemicals such
as DDT; energy blockade, the result of conflict with Azerbaijan, has
led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood; pollution
of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers; the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake
Sevan), a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens
drinking water supplies; restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant
without adequate (IAEA-recommended) safety and backup systems
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note: landlocked
@Armenia:People
Population: 3,344,336 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 24% (male 415,297; female 400,590)
15-64 years: 66% (male 1,084,588; female 1,131,387)
65 years and over: 10% (male 129,890; female 182,584) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.28% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 10.97 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 9.53 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -4.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 41.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 66.4 years
male: 61.98 years
female: 71.04 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.47 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Armenian(s)
adjective: Armenian
Ethnic groups: Armenian 93%, Azeri 3%, Russian 2%, other (mostly
Yezidi Kurds) 2% (1989)
note: as of the end of 1993, virtually all Azeris had emigrated from
Religions: Armenian Orthodox 94%
Languages: Armenian 96%, Russian 2%, other 2%
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 98% (1989 est.)
@Armenia:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Armenia
conventional short form: Armenia
local long form: Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun
local short form: Hayastan
former: Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic; Armenian Republic
Data code: AM
Government type: republic
Capital: Yerevan
Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (marzer, singular - marz) and 1
city* (k'aghak'ner, singular - k'aghak'); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir,
Geghark'unik', Kotayk', Lorri, Shirak, Syunik', Tavush, Vayots' Dzor,
Yerevan*
Independence: 28 May 1918-2 December 1920 (First Armenian Republic);
23 September 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Referendum Day, 21 September
Constitution: adopted by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Robert KOCHARIAN (since 30 March 1998)
head of government: Prime Minister Aram SARKISYAN (since 3 November
1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
special election last held 30 March 1998 (next to be held NA March
2003); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Robert KOCHARIAN elected president; percent of vote
- Robert KOCHARIAN 59%, Karen DEMIRCHYAN 41%
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Parliament) or
Azgayin Zhoghov (131 seats; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 May 1999 (next to be held in the spring of
2003)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
unity bloc 61 (Republican Party 41, People's Party of Armenia 20),
Stability Group (independent Armenian deputies who have formed a bloc)
21, ACP 10, independents 10, ARF (Dashnak) 8, Law and Unity Party 7,
NDU 6, Law-Governed Party 6, unfilled 2; note - seats by party change
frequently
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court
Political parties and leaders: Armenian Communist Party or ACP
; Armenian National Movement or ANM [Vano
SIRADEGIAN, chairman]; Armenian Revolutionary Federation ("Dashnak"
Party) or ARF ; Christian Democratic Union or CDU
; Democratic Liberal Party [Ramkavar
AZATAKAN, chairman]; Free Armenian's Mission [Ruben MNATSANIAN,
chairman]; Law and Unity Party ;
Law-Governed Party ; Mission Party
; National Democratic Union or NDU [Vazgen
MANUKIAN]; National State Party ; People's Party of
Armenia ; Republican Party ;
Shamiram Women's Movement or SWM ; Social Democratic
(Hnchakian) Party ; Stability Group [Vartan
AYVAZIAN, chairman]; Union of National Self-Determination or NSDU
International organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CE (guest), CIS,
EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM
(observer), OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Arman KIRAKOSIAN
chancery: 2225 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: (202) 319-1976
FAX: (202) 319-2982
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael LEMMON
embassy: 18 General Bagramian Avenue, Yerevan
mailing address: American Embassy Yerevan, Department of State,
Washington, DC 20521-7020
telephone: (2) 151-551
FAX: (2) 151-550
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, and
orange
@Armenia:Economy
Economy - overview: Under the old Soviet central planning system,
Armenia had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine
tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in
exchange for raw materials and energy. Since the implosion of the USSR
in December 1991, Armenia has switched to small-scale agriculture away
from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet era. The
agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and
updated technology. The privatization of industry has been at a slower
pace, but has been given renewed emphasis by the current
administration. Armenia is a food importer, and its mineral deposits
(gold, bauxite) are small. The ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan over
the ethnic Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the
breakup of the centrally directed economic system of the former Soviet
Union contributed to a severe economic decline in the early 1990s. By
1994, however, the Armenian Government had launched an ambitious
IMF-sponsored economic program that has resulted in positive growth
rates in 1995-99. Armenia also managed to slash inflation and to
privatize most small- and medium-sized enterprises. The chronic energy
shortages Armenia suffered in recent years have been largely offset by
the energy supplied by one of its nuclear power plants at Metsamor.
Continued Russian financial difficulties have hurt the trade sector
especially, but have been offset by international aid, domestic
restructuring, and foreign direct investment.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $9.9 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 5% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,900 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 40%
industry: 25%
services: 35% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 45% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (1999)
Labor force: 1.5 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 55%, services 25%,
manufacturing, mining, and construction 20% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 20% (1998 est.)
note: official rate is 9.3% for 1998
Budget:
revenues: $360 million
expenditures: $566 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1999 est.)
Industries: metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines,
electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric,
washing machines, chemicals, trucks, watches, instruments,
microelectronics
Industrial production growth rate: -2% (1998)
Electricity - production: 5.764 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 48.92%
hydro: 26.44%
nuclear: 24.64%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 5.361 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: fruit (especially grapes), vegetables;
livestock
Exports: $240 million (1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: diamonds, scrap metal, machinery and equipment,
cognac, copper ore
Exports - partners: Belgium, Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan, US, Georgia
(1998)
Imports: $782 million (1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products,
foodstuffs, diamonds
Imports - partners: Russia, US, UK, Iran, Turkey, Belgium (1998)
Debt - external: $862.7 million (1999)
Economic aid - recipient: $245.5 million (1995)
Currency: 1 dram = 100 luma
Exchange rates: dram per US$1 - 527.02 (January 2000), 535.06 (1999),
504.92 (1998), 490.85 (1997), 414.04 (1996), 405.91 (1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Armenia:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 583,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: system inadequate; now 90% privately owned and
undergoing modernization and expansion
domestic: the majority of subscribers and the most modern equipment
are in Yerevan (this includes paging and mobile cellular service)
international: Yerevan is connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe
fiber-optic cable through Iran; additional international service is
available by microwave radio relay and landline connections to the
other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and through
the Moscow international switch and by satellite to the rest of the
world; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 850,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (1998)
Televisions: 825,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (1999)
@Armenia:Transportation
Railways:
total: 825 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial
lines
broad gauge: 825 km 1.520-m gauge (825 km electrified) (1995)
Highways:
total: 15,998 km
paved: 15,998 km (including 7,567 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: NA km
Pipelines: natural gas 900 km (1991)
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: 11 (1996 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (1996 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 1 (1996 est.)
@Armenia:Military
Military branches: Army, Air Force and Air Defense Aviation, Air
Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops)
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 896,646 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 708,940 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 33,391 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $75 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 4% (FY99)
@Armenia:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the
Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist
conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; traditional demands
regarding former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided
Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis mostly for domestic
consumption; increasingly used as a transshipment point for illicit
drugs - mostly opium and hashish - to Western Europe and the US via
Iran, Central Asia, and Russia
______________________________________________________________________
ARUBA
@Aruba:Introduction
Background: Formerly one of the Netherlands Antilles, Aruba became an
autonomous part of the Netherlands in 1986.
@Aruba:Geography
Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates: 12 30 N, 69 58 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 193 sq km
land: 193 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 68.5 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: flat with a few hills; scant vegetation
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m
Natural resources: NEGL; white sandy beaches
Land use:
arable land: 7% aloe plantations included (0.01%)
permanent crops: NA%
permanent pastures: NA%
forests and woodland: NA%
other: 93% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 0.01 sq km
Natural hazards: lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt
Environment - current issues: NA
@Aruba:People
Population: 69,539 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 22% (male 7,770; female 7,194)
15-64 years: 69% (male 22,944; female 24,810)
65 years and over: 9% (male 2,831; female 3,990) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.7% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 13.1 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 6.13 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.37 years
male: 75 years
female: 81.9 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban
Ethnic groups: mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80%
Religions: Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim,
Confucian, Jewish
Languages: Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch,
English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish
Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: 97%
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Aruba:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Aruba
Data code: AA
Dependency status: part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full
autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the
Netherlands Antilles
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Oranjestad
Administrative divisions: none (part of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands)
Independence: none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; in 1990,
Aruba requested and received from the Netherlands cancellation of the
agreement to automatically give independence to the island in 1996)
National holiday: Flag Day, 18 March
Constitution: 1 January 1986
Legal system: based on Dutch civil law system, with some English
common law influence
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands
(since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN
(since 1 January 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July
1994) and Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ (since NA)
cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten)
elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a
six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister
elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 12 July
1997 (next to be held by December 2001)
election results: Jan (Henny) H. EMAN elected prime minister; percent
of legislative vote - NA; Dr. Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ elected deputy prime
minister; percent of legislative vote - NA
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats;
members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held by NA December
2001)
election results: percent of vote by party - AVP 43%, MEP 39%, OLA 9%
PPA 4%, ADN 2%, PARA 1%, MAS 0.5%; seats by party - AVP 10, MEP 9, OLA
2
Judicial branch: Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by
the monarch)
Political parties and leaders: Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo
BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA ; Aruban
Patriotic Party or PPA ; Aruban People's Party or AVP
; Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS ;
Democratic Action '86 or AD '86 ; Electoral Movement
Party or MEP ; Electoral People's Movement or MEP
; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA ;
National Democratic Action or ADN ; New Patriotic
Party or PPN
International organization participation: Caricom (observer), ECLAC
(associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WToO (associate)
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (represented by the Kingdom
of the Netherlands)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Consul General James L. WILLIAMS
embassy: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao
mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao
telephone: (9) 461-3066
FAX: (9) 461-6489
Flag description: blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes
across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in
white in the upper hoist-side corner
@Aruba:Economy
Economy - overview: Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy,
although offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also
important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade
has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities.
Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985
level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in
1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has
further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and less than 1%
unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job
vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.6 billion (1998 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3% (1998)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,800 (1998 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 41,501 (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: most employment is in wholesale and
retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants (1997
est.)
Unemployment rate: 0.6% (1996 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $541 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(2000 est.)
Industries: tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 475 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 442 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: aloes; livestock; fish
Exports: $1.17 billion (including oil reexports)(1998)
Exports - commodities: transport equipment, live animals and animal
products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment
Exports - partners: US 53.2%, Colombia 14.9%, Netherlands 8.8% (1998)
Imports: $1.52 billion (1998)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, crude oil
for refining and reexport; foodstuffs
Imports - partners: US 55.5%, Netherlands 12.3%, Japan 3.5% (1998)
Debt - external: $285 million (1996)
Economic aid - recipient: $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands
provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996
Currency: 1 Aruban florin (Af.) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Aruban florins (Af.) per US$1 - 1.7900 (fixed rate
since 1986)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Aruba:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 27,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1,718 (1995)
Telephone system:
domestic: more than adequate
international: 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands
Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 50,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 20,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Aruba:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 800 km
paved: 513 km
unpaved: 287 km
note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large
tracts of the interior (1995 est.)
Ports and harbors: Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas
Airports: 2 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1999 est.)
@Aruba:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands
@Aruba:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: drug-money-laundering center and transit point for
narcotics bound for the US and Europe
______________________________________________________________________
ASHMORE AND CARTIER ISLANDS
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Geography
Location: Southeastern Asia, islands in the Indian Ocean, northwest of
Australia
Geographic coordinates: 12 14 S, 123 05 E
Map references: Southeast Asia
Area:
total: 5 sq km
land: 5 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Ashmore Reef (West, Middle, and East Islets) and
Cartier Island
Area - comparative: about eight times the size of The Mall in
Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 74.1 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: tropical
Terrain: low with sand and coral
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 3 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (all grass and sand)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: surrounded by shoals and reefs that can pose maritime
hazards
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve established in
August 1983
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:People
Population: no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are only seasonal caretakers (July 2000 est.)
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands
conventional short form: Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Data code: AT
Dependency status: territory of Australia; administered from Canberra
by the Australian Department of the Environment, Sport, and
Territories
Legal system: relevant laws of the Northern Territory of Australia
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of Australia)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of Australia)
Flag description: the flag of Australia is used
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Economy
Economy - overview: no economic activity
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Transportation
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of Australia; periodic
visits by the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
______________________________________________________________________
ATLANTIC OCEAN
@Atlantic Ocean:Introduction
Background: A spring 2000 decision by the International Hydrographic
Organization delimited a fifth world ocean from the southern portions
of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The new ocean
extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south
latitude which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit. The Atlantic
Ocean remains the second-largest of the world's five oceans (after the
Pacific Ocean, but larger than the Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and
Arctic Ocean).
@Atlantic Ocean:Geography
Location: body of water between Africa, Europe, the Southern Ocean,
and the Western Hemisphere
Geographic coordinates: 0 00 N, 25 00 W
Map references: World
Area:
total: 76.762 million sq km
note: includes Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Caribbean Sea, Davis Strait,
Denmark Strait, part of the Drake Passage, Gulf of Mexico,
Mediterranean Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea, almost all of the Scotia
Sea, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative: slightly less than 6.5 times the size of the US
Coastline: 111,866 km
Climate: tropical cyclones (hurricanes) develop off the coast of
Africa near Cape Verde and move westward into the Caribbean Sea;
hurricanes can occur from May to December, but are most frequent from
August to November
Terrain: surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea, Denmark
Strait, and Baltic Sea from October to June; clockwise warm-water gyre
(broad, circular system of currents) in the northern Atlantic,
counterclockwise warm-water gyre in the southern Atlantic; the ocean
floor is dominated by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south
centerline for the entire Atlantic basin
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Milwaukee Deep in the Puerto Rico Trench -8,605 m
highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources: oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and
whales), sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic
nodules, precious stones
Natural hazards: icebergs common in Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, and
the northwestern Atlantic Ocean from February to August and have been
spotted as far south as Bermuda and the Madeira Islands; ships subject
to superstructure icing in extreme northern Atlantic from October to
May; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to September;
hurricanes (May to December)
Environment - current issues: endangered marine species include the
manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, and whales; drift net fishing is
hastening the decline of fish stocks and contributing to international
disputes; municipal sludge pollution off eastern US, southern Brazil,
and eastern Argentina; oil pollution in Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico,
Lake Maracaibo, Mediterranean Sea, and North Sea; industrial waste and
municipal sewage pollution in Baltic Sea, North Sea, and Mediterranean
Sea
Geography - note: major chokepoints include the Dardanelles, Strait of
Gibraltar, access to the Panama and Suez Canals; strategic straits
include the Strait of Dover, Straits of Florida, Mona Passage, The
Sound (Oresund), and Windward Passage; the Equator divides the
Atlantic Ocean into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean
@Atlantic Ocean:Government
Data code: none; the US Government has not approved a standard for
hydrographic codes - see the Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data
Codes appendix
@Atlantic Ocean:Economy
Economy - overview: The Atlantic Ocean provides some of the world's
most heavily trafficked sea routes, between and within the Eastern and
Western Hemispheres. Other economic activity includes the exploitation
of natural resources, e.g., fishing, the dredging of aragonite sands
(The Bahamas), and production of crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean
Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea).
@Atlantic Ocean:Transportation
Ports and harbors: Alexandria (Egypt), Algiers (Algeria), Antwerp
(Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Casablanca
(Morocco), Colon (Panama), Copenhagen (Denmark), Dakar (Senegal),
Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas
(Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London
(UK), Marseille (France), Montevideo (Uruguay), Montreal (Canada),
Naples (Italy), New Orleans (US), New York (US), Oran (Algeria), Oslo
(Norway), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil),
Rotterdam (Netherlands), Saint Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm (Sweden)
Transportation - note: Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two
important waterways
@Atlantic Ocean:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: some maritime disputes (see littoral states)
______________________________________________________________________
AUSTRALIA
@Australia:Introduction
Background: Australia became a commonwealth of the British Empire in
1901. It was able to take advantage of its natural resources to
rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to
make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and
II. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of
the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas,
especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's
status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to an
independent republic, was defeated in 1999.
@Australia:Geography
Location: Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South
Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates: 27 00 S, 133 00 E
Map references: Oceania
Area:
total: 7,686,850 sq km
land: 7,617,930 sq km
water: 68,920 sq km
note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than the US
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 25,760 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east;
tropical in north
Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver,
uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds,
natural gas, petroleum
Land use:
arable land: 6%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 54%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 21,070 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: cyclones along the coast; severe droughts
Environment - current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing,
industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil
salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification;
clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of
many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the
northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by
increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited
natural fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine
Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification
Geography - note: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest
country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern
coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the
Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer
@Australia:People
Population: 19,169,083 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 21% (male 2,052,095; female 1,954,543)
15-64 years: 67% (male 6,458,083; female 6,322,475)
65 years and over: 12% (male 1,040,950; female 1,340,937) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.02% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 13.08 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 7.12 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 4.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 5.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.75 years
male: 76.9 years
female: 82.74 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.79 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Australian(s)
adjective: Australian
Ethnic groups: Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Religions: Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%,
non-Christian 11%
Languages: English, native languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100% (1980 est.)
@Australia:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
conventional short form: Australia
Data code: AS
Government type: democratic, federal-state system recognizing the
British monarch as sovereign
Capital: Canberra
Administrative divisions: 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian
Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland,
South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Dependent areas: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos
(Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald
Islands, Norfolk Island
Independence: 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
National holiday: Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Constitution: 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Legal system: based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Sir William DEANE (since 16 February
1996)
head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March
1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since NA)
cabinet: Cabinet selected from among the members of Federal Parliament
by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed
by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the
majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed
prime minister by the governor general for a three-year term
note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the
Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of
the two territories; one-half of the members elected every three years
by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of
Representatives (148 seats; members elected by popular vote on the
basis of proportional representation to serve three-year terms; no
state can have fewer than five representatives)
elections: Senate - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by
October 2001); House of Representatives - last held 3 October 1998
(next to be held by October 2001)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor
Party 29, Australian Democratic Party 9, Green Party 1, One Nation
Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by
party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition
80, Australian Labor Party 67, independent 1
Judicial branch: High Court, the Chief Justice and six other justices
are appointed by the governor general
Political parties and leaders: Australian Democratic Party ;
Australian Labor Party ; Green Party ; Liberal
Party ; National Party ; One
Nation Party
Political pressure groups and leaders: Australian Democratic Labor
Party (anti-Communist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear
Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group)
International organization participation: ANZUS, APEC, AsDB, Australia
Group, BIS, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat,
Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD,
OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR,
UNITAR, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael THAWLEY
chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: (202) 797-3000
FAX: (202) 797-3168
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and
San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Genta Hawkins HOLMES
embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital
Territory 2600
mailing address: APO AP 96549
telephone: (6) 6214-5600
FAX: (6) 6214-5970
consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney
Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side
quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side
quadrant; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross
constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four,
larger, seven-pointed stars
@Australia:Economy
Economy - overview: Australia has a prosperous Western-style
capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four
dominant West European economies. Rich in natural resources, Australia
is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and
fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total
exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big
impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports
of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets
continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low
growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the
early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the
economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five
years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind the
economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than
expected growth rate. Growth in 2000 will depend on key international
commodity prices, the extent of recovery in nearby Asian economies,
and the strength of US and European markets.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $416.2 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.3% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,200 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3%
industry: 26%
services: 71% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 24.8% (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.8% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 8.9 million (December 1999)
Labor force - by occupation: services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture
5% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 7.5% (1999)
Budget:
revenues: $90.73 billion
expenditures: $89.04 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(FY98/99 est.)
Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food
processing, chemicals, steel
Industrial production growth rate: 1.5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 186.387 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 89.85%
hydro: 8.35%
nuclear: 0%
other: 1.8% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 173.34 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle,
sheep, poultry
Exports: $58 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore,
wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners: Japan 20%, EU 14%, ASEAN 11%, US 10%, South Korea,
NZ, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1998)
Imports: $67 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, computers
and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil
and petroleum products
Imports - partners: EU 24%, US 22%, Japan 14%, ASEAN 12% (1998)
Debt - external: $222 billion (1999)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98)
Currency: 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.52068 (January
2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996),
1.3486 (1995)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
@Australia:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 92 million (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 5.29 million (1998)
Telephone system: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: domestic satellite system
international: submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and
Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and
6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 25.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 104 (1997)
Televisions: 10.15 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 709 (1999)
@Australia:Transportation
Railways:
total: 33,819 km (2,540 km electrified)
broad gauge: 3,719 km 1.600-m gauge
standard gauge: 15,422 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 14,506 km 1.067-m gauge
dual gauge: 172 km NA gauges (1999)
Highways:
total: 913,000 km
paved: 353,331 km (including 13,630 km of expressways)
unpaved: 559,669 km (1996 est.)
Waterways: 8,368 km; mainly by small, shallow-draft craft
Pipelines: crude oil 2,500 km; petroleum products 500 km; natural gas
5,600 km
Ports and harbors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport
(Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston
(Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville
Merchant marine:
total: 57 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,657,194 GRT/2,206,574
DWT
ships by type: bulk 28, cargo 4, chemical tanker 4, container 1,
liquified gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 8, roll-on/roll-off 6
(1999 est.)
Airports: 408 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 265
over 3,047 m: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 115
914 to 1,523 m: 120
under 914 m: 8 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 143
1,524 to 2,437 m: 18
914 to 1,523 m: 113
under 914 m: 12 (1999 est.)
@Australia:Military
Military branches: Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal
Australian Air Force
Military manpower - military age: 17 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 4,963,948 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 4,282,821 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 135,434 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $6.9 billion (FY98/99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.9% (FY98/99)
@Australia:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian
Antarctic Territory)
Illicit drugs: Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit
opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of
opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
______________________________________________________________________
AUSTRIA
@Austria:Introduction
Background: Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian
Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in
World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and
subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies, Austria's 1955 State
Treaty declared the country "permanently neutral" as a condition of
Soviet military withdrawal. Neutrality, once ingrained as part of the
Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the
Soviet collapse and Austria's increasingly prominent role in European
affairs. A prosperous country, Austria joined the European Union in
1995 and the euro monetary system in 1999.
@Austria:Geography
Location: Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia
Geographic coordinates: 47 20 N, 13 20 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 83,858 sq km
land: 82,738 sq km
water: 1,120 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maine
Land boundaries:
total: 2,562 km
border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366
km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330
km, Switzerland 164 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent
rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional
showers
Terrain: in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the
eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m
Natural resources: iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal,
lignite, copper, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 17%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 23%
forests and woodland: 39%
other: 20% (1996 est.)
Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: some forest degradation caused by air
and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of
agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal-
and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks
transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile
Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94,
Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of
central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys;
major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern
lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures
elsewhere
@Austria:People
Population: 8,131,111 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 17% (male 697,283; female 663,459)
15-64 years: 68% (male 2,787,555; female 2,731,446)
65 years and over: 15% (male 474,067; female 777,301) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.25% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 9.9 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 9.91 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.68 years
male: 74.52 years
female: 80.99 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.39 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian
Ethnic groups: German 98%, Croatian, Slovene, other (includes
Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma)
Religions: Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17%
Languages: German
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Austria:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria
local long form: Republik Oesterreich
local short form: Oesterreich
Data code: AU
Government type: federal republic
Capital: Vienna
Administrative divisions: 9 states (bundeslaender, singular -
bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich,
Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien
Independence: 1156 (from Bavaria)
National holiday: National Day, 26 October (1955)
Constitution: 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945)
Legal system: civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review
of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate
administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 19 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential
elections
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992)
head of government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (OeVP)(since 4
February 2000); Vice Chancellor Susanne RIESS-PASSER (FPOe) (since 4
February 2000)
cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advice of
the chancellor
elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a six-year
term; presidential election last held 19 April 1998 (next to be held
in the spring of 2004); chancellor traditionally chosen by the
president from the plurality party in the National Council; in the
case of the current coalition, the chancellor was chosen from another
party after the plurality party failed to form a government; vice
chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor
election results: Thomas KLESTIL reelected president; percent of vote
- Thomas KLESTIL 63%, Gertraud KNOLL 14%, Heide SCHMIDT 11%, Richard
LUGNER 10%, Karl NOWAK 2%
note: government coalition - FPOe and OeVP
Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung
consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (64 members; members
represent each of the states on the basis of population, but with each
state having at least three representatives; members serve a four- or
six-year term) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats;
members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Council - last held 3 October 1999 (next to be
held in the fall of 2003)
election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - SPOe
33.2%, OeVP 26.9%, FPOe 26.9%, Greens 7.4%; seats by party - SPOe 65,
OeVP 52, FPOe 52, Greens 14
Judicial branch: Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof;
Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court
or Verfassungsgerichtshof
Political parties and leaders: Austrian People's Party or OeVP
; Communist Party or KPOe [Walter BAIER,
chairman]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe ;
Liberal Forum or LF ; Social Democratic Party of
Austria or SPOe ; The Greens or GA [Alexander
VAN DER BELLEN, party spokesman]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Austrian Trade Union Federation
(primarily Socialist) or OeGB; Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented
League of Austrian Industrialists or VOeI; Roman Catholic Church,
including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action; three composite
leagues of the Austrian People's Party or OeVP representing business,
labor, and farmers
International organization participation: AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group,
BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU,
ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW,
OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WCL,
WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Peter MOSER
chancery: 3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008-3035
telephone: (202) 895-6700
FAX: (202) 895-6750
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kathryn Walt HALL
embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1091, Vienna
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: (1) 313-39
FAX: (1) 310-0682
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white,
and red
@Austria:Economy
Economy - overview: Austria with its well-developed market economy and
high standard of living is closely tied to other EU economies,
especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of
foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European
market. Through privatization efforts, the 1996-98 budget
consolidation programs, and austerity measures, Austria has brought
its total public sector deficit down to 2.1% of GDP in 1999 and public
debt - at 63.1% of GDP in 1998 - more or less in line with the 60% of
GDP required by the EMU's Maastricht criteria. Cuts mainly have
affected the civil service and Austria's generous social benefit
system, the two major causes of the government's deficit. To meet
increased competition from both EU and Central European countries,
Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy
and deregulate the service sector. Growth, which slowed to 2.0% in
1999, probably will rebound to 2.8% in both 2000 and 2001.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $190.6 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $23,400 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 32.4%
services: 66.3% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.5% (1999)
Labor force: 3.7 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: services 68%, industry and crafts 29%,
agriculture and forestry 3% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 4.4% (1999)
Budget:
revenues: $54 billion
expenditures: $59.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1999 est.)
Industries: construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food,
chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard,
communications equipment, tourism (1997)
Industrial production growth rate: 2.3% (1999)
Electricity - production: 56.066 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 31.46%
hydro: 65.92%
nuclear: 0%
other: 2.62% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 51.891 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 10.5 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 10.25 billion kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit;
dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber
Exports: $62.9 billion (1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, paper and paperboard,
metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs (1998)
Exports - partners: EU 65% (Germany 36%, Italy 9%, France 5%),
Switzerland 5%, Hungary 5%, US 4.5% (1999 est.)
Imports: $69.9 billion (1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metal
goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs (1998)
Imports - partners: EU 70% (Germany 42%, Italy 8%, France 5%), US 5%,
Hungary 3%, Switzerland 3% (1999 est.)
Debt - external: $31.7 billion (1998)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $452 million (1998)
Currency: 1 Austrian schilling (AS) = 100 groschen
Exchange rates: euros per US$1 - 0.9867 (January 2000), 0.9386 (1999);
Austrian schillings (AS) per US$1 - 11.86 (January 1999), 12.91
(1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997), 10.587 (1996), 10.081 (1995)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced a common currency that is
now being used by financial institutions in some member countries at a
fixed rate of 13.7603 Austrian shillings per euro; the euro will
replace the local currency in consenting countries for all
transactions in 2002
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Austria:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 3.726 million (plus 83,100 ISDN or
Integrated Services Digital Network connections) (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 2.31 million (1998)
Telephone system:
domestic: highly developed and efficient
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean
and 1 Indian Ocean) and 2 Eutelsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 61 (plus several hundred
repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 6.08 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 51 (plus 920 repeaters) (1999)
Televisions: 4.25 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 35 (1999)
@Austria:Transportation
Railways:
total: 6,123 km (3,523 km electrified)
standard gauge: 5,639 km 1.435-m gauge (3,429 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 484 km (13 km 0.600-m gauge, 468 km 0.760-m gauge - 94
km electrified, and 3 km 0.600-m gauge) (1999)
Highways: 200,000 km
paved: 200,000 km (including 1,613 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1999)
Waterways: 358 km (1999)
Pipelines: crude oil 777 km; natural gas 840 km (1999)
Ports and harbors: Linz, Vienna, Enns, Krems
Merchant marine:
total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 65,284 GRT/91,951 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, combination bulk 2, container 2 (1999
est.)
Airports: 55 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 12 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 29 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
@Austria:Military
Military branches: Army (includes Flying Division)
Military manpower - military age: 19 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 2,088,993 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,733,681 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 51,335 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1.7 billion (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.2% (FY98)
@Austria:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and
South American cocaine destined for Western Europe
______________________________________________________________________
AZERBAIJAN
@Azerbaijan:Introduction
Background: Azerbaijan - a nation of Turkic Muslims - has been an
independent republic since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Despite a cease-fire, in place since 1994, Azerbaijan has yet to
resolve its conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani
Nagorno-Karabakh enclave (largely Armenian populated). Azerbaijan has
lost almost 20% of its territory and must support some 750,000
refugees as a result of the conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous and the
promise of wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources
remains largely unfulfilled.
@Azerbaijan:Geography
Location: Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran
and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 40 30 N, 47 30 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area:
total: 86,600 sq km
land: 86,100 sq km
water: 500 sq km
note: includes the exclave of Naxcivan Autonomous Republic and the
Nagorno-Karabakh region; the region's autonomy was abolished by
Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on 26 November 1991
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maine
Land boundaries:
total: 2,013 km
border countries: Armenia (with Azerbaijan-proper) 566 km, Armenia
(with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 221 km, Georgia 322 km, Iran (with
Azerbaijan-proper) 432 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 179
km, Russia 284 km, Turkey 9 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
note: Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km, est.)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: dry, semiarid steppe
Terrain: large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland) (much of it
below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag
Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) in west; Baku lies on Abseron Yasaqligi
(Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Bazarduzu Dagi 4,485 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous
metals, alumina
Land use:
arable land: 18%
permanent crops: 5%
permanent pastures: 25%
forests and woodland: 11%
other: 41% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 10,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: droughts; some lowland areas threatened by rising
levels of the Caspian Sea
Environment - current issues: local scientists consider the Abseron
Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the
Caspian Sea to be
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