 |
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Exports: $155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities: shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing
Exports - partners: France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001)
Imports: $625 million c.i.f. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities: food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals
Imports - partners: France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.)
Debt - external: $1.2 billion (1988)
Economic aid - recipient: NA
Currency (code): euro (EUR)
Currency code: EUR
Exchange rates: Euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications French Guiana
Telephones - main lines in use: 51,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 138,200 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: fair open-wire and microwave radio relay system international: country code - 594; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998)
Radios: 104,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 30,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .gf
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (2000)
Internet users: 3,200 (2002)
Transportation French Guiana
Highways: total: 817 km (1998)
Waterways: 3,760 km note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers, 3,300 km by native craft (2004)
Ports and harbors: Degrad des Cannes
Merchant marine: registered in other countries: 3
Airports: 11 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.)
Military French Guiana
Military branches: no regular military forces; Gendarmerie
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 47,809 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 38,676 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France
Transnational Issues French Guiana
Disputes - international: Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) in French Guiana
Illicit drugs: small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@French Polynesia
Introduction French Polynesia
Background: The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996.
Geography French Polynesia
Location: Oceania, archipelagoes in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia
Geographic coordinates: 15 00 S, 140 00 W
Map references: Oceania
Area: total: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls) land: 3,660 sq km water: 507 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 2,525 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate: tropical, but moderate
Terrain: mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Orohena 2,241 m
Natural resources: timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 0.82% permanent crops: 5.46% other: 93.72% (2001)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: occasional cyclonic storms in January
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: includes five archipelagoes (4 volcanic, 1 coral); Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru
People French Polynesia
Population: 270,485 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 26.7% (male 36,947/female 35,403) 15-64 years: 67.4% (male 94,710/female 87,546) 65 years and over: 5.9% (male 8,018/female 7,861) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 27.48 years male: 27.84 years female: 27.1 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.52% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 16.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 4.63 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 8.44 deaths/1,000 live births male: 9.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.9 years male: 73.5 years female: 78.42 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.04 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: French Polynesian(s) adjective: French Polynesian
Ethnic groups: Polynesian 78%, Chinese 12%, local French 6%, metropolitan French 4%
Religions: Protestant 54%, Roman Catholic 30%, other 10%, no religion 6%
Languages: French 61.1% (official), Polynesian 31.4% (official), Asian languages 1.2%, other 0.3%, unspecified 6% (2002 census)
Literacy: definition: age 14 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1977 est.)
Government French Polynesia
Country name: conventional long form: Overseas Lands of French Polynesia conventional short form: French Polynesia local long form: Pays d'outre-mer de la Polynesie Francaise local short form: Polynesie Francaise former: French Colony of Oceania
Dependency status: overseas lands of France; overseas territory of France from 1946-2004
Government type: NA
Capital: Papeete
Administrative divisions: none (overseas lands of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 5 archipelagic divisions named Archipel des Marquises, Archipel des Tuamotu, Archipel des Tubuai, Iles du Vent, and Iles Sous-le-Vent note: Clipperton Island is administered by France from French Polynesia
Independence: none (overseas lands of France)
National holiday: Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Constitution: 4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Legal system: based on French system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner of the Republic Michel MATHIEU (since 24 October 2001); note - Michel MATHIER leaves 30 July 2005, replaced by Jacques MICHAUT (acting high commissioner), until the arrival of Anne BOQUET in early September 2005 head of government: President of the Territorial Government of French Polynesia Oscar TEMARU (since 3 March 2005); President of the Territorial Assembly Antony GEROS (since 9 May 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers; president submits a list of members of the Territorial Assembly for approval by them to serve as ministers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the Territorial Government and the president of the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly
Legislative branch: unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (57 seats - changed from 49 seats for May 2004 election; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held May 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - People's Rally for the Republic (Gaullist) 28, Union for Democracy 27, New Star 1, This Country is Yours 1; after by-elections of 13 February 2005 seating was as follows: People's Rally for the Republic 27, Union for Democracy 27, and Alliance for a New Democracy 3 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; two seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, UMP 1
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Administrative Law or Tribunal Administratif
Political parties and leaders: Independent Front for the Liberation of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira) [Oscar TEMARU]; New Fatherland Party (Ai'a Api) [Emile VERNAUDON]; People's Rally for the Republic of Polynesia or RPR (Tahoeraa Huiraatira) [Gaston FLOSSE]; The New Star (Te Fetia Api) [Philippe SHYLE]; This Country is Yours (No Oe E Te Nunaa) [Nicle BOUTEAU]; Union for Democracy or UPD [Oscar TEMARU]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: FZ, ICFTU, PIF (observer), UPU, WMO
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas lands of France)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas lands of France)
Flag description: two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions
Economy French Polynesia
Economy - overview: Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence agricultural economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. With the halt of French nuclear testing in 1996, the military contribution to the economy fell sharply. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. Other sources of income are pearl farming and deep-sea commercial fishing. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefits substantially from development agreements with France aimed principally at creating new businesses and strengthening social services.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $4.58 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $17,500 (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4% industry: 18% services: 78% (2002)
Labor force: 70,000 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 13%, industry 19%, services 68% (2002)
Unemployment rate: 11.8% (1994)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.5% (2002 est.)
Budget: revenues: $1 billion expenditures: $900 million, including capital expenditures of $185 million (1996)
Agriculture - products: coconuts, vanilla, vegetables, fruits; poultry, beef, dairy products, coffee
Industries: tourism, pearls, agricultural processing, handicrafts, phosphates
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 380 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 60.7% hydro: 39.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 353.4 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 4,750 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Exports: $244 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities: cultured pearls, coconut products, mother-of-pearl, vanilla, shark meat
Exports - partners: France 36.6%, Japan 22.7%, US 16.1%, Niger 13%, Thailand 4.1% (2004)
Imports: $1.341 billion f.o.b. (2002)
Imports - commodities: fuels, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment
Imports - partners: France 47.6%, New Zealand 8.8%, Singapore 8.4%, Australia 8.3%, US 7.1% (2004)
Debt - external: NA
Economic aid - recipient: $367 million (1997)
Currency (code): Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF)
Currency code: XPF
Exchange rates: Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 96.04 (2004), 105.66 (2003), 126.71 (2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.43 (2000) note: pegged at the rate of 119.25 XPF to the euro
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications French Polynesia
Telephones - main lines in use: 52,500 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 90,000 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 689; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 14, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: 128,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 7 (plus 17 low-power repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 40,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .pf
Internet hosts: 5,123 (2003)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (2000)
Internet users: 35,000 (2002)
Transportation French Polynesia
Highways: total: 2,590 km paved: 1,735 km unpaved: 855 km (1999)
Ports and harbors: Papeete
Merchant marine: total: 15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 17,537 GRT/15,150 DWT by type: cargo 4, passenger 4, passenger/cargo 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 1 (France 1) (2005)
Airports: 50 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 37 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 8 (2004 est.)
Heliports: 1 (2004 est.)
Military French Polynesia
Military branches: no regular military forces; Gendarmerie and National Police Force
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France
Transnational Issues French Polynesia
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Introduction French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Background: The Southern Lands consist of two archipelagos, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen, and two volcanic islands, Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul. They contain no permanent inhabitants and are visited only by researchers studying the native fauna. The Antarctic portion consists of "Adelie Land," a thin slice of the Antarctic continent discovered and claimed by the French in 1840.
Geography French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Location: southeast of Africa, islands in the southern Indian Ocean, about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia; note - French Southern and Antarctic Lands include Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean, along with the French-claimed sector of Antarctica, "Adelie Land"; the US does not recognize the French claim to "Adelie Land"
Geographic coordinates: 43 00 S, 67 00 E
Map references: Antarctic Region
Area: total: 7,829 sq km land: 7,829 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen; excludes "Adelie Land" claim of about 500,000 sq km in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Area - comparative: slightly less than 1.3 times the size of Delaware
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,232 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm from Iles Kerguelen (does not include the rest of French Southern and Antarctic Lands)
Climate: antarctic
Terrain: volcanic
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Ross on Iles Kerguelen 1,850 m
Natural resources: fish, crayfish
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: islands component is widely scattered across remote locations in the southern Indian Ocean
People French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Population: no indigenous inhabitants (July 2005 est.) note: in 2002, there were 145 researchers whose numbers vary from winter (July) to summer (January) (July 2005 est.)
Government French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Country name: conventional long form: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands conventional short form: French Southern and Antarctic Lands local long form: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises local short form: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises
Dependency status: overseas territory of France since 1955; administered from Paris by Administrateur Superieur Michel CHAMPON (since 20 December 2004), assisted by Secretary General Jean-Yves HERMOSO (since NA)
Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Legal system: the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas territory of France)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas territory of France)
Flag description: the flag of France is used
Economy French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Economy - overview: Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion.
Communications French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Internet country code: .tf
Transportation French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Merchant marine: total: 75 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,092,387 GRT/5,056,658 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 1, chemical tanker 21, container 19, liquefied gas 7, petroleum tanker 15, roll on/roll off 6, vehicle carrier 4 foreign-owned: 71 (Belgium 5, Denmark 2, France 45, Germany 2, Greece 2, Hong Kong 5, Japan 4, Saudi Arabia 1, Sweden 5) (2005)
Airports: none (2004 est.)
Military French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France
Transnational Issues French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Disputes - international: French claim to "Adelie Land" in Antarctica is not recognized by the United States
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Gabon
Introduction Gabon
Background: Only two autocratic presidents have ruled Gabon since independence from France in 1960. Gabon's current President, El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba - one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world - has dominated Gabon's political scene for almost four decades. President BONGO introduced a nominal multiparty system and a new constitution in the early 1990s. However, the low turnout and allegations of electoral fraud during the most recent local elections in 2002-03 have exposed the weaknesses of formal political structures in Gabon. Presidential elections scheduled for 2005 are unlikely to bring change since the opposition remains weak, divided, and financially dependent on the current regime. Despite political conditions, a small population, abundant natural resources, and considerable foreign support have helped make Gabon one of the more prosperous and stable African countries.
Geography Gabon
Location: Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea
Geographic coordinates: 1 00 S, 11 45 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 267,667 sq km land: 257,667 sq km water: 10,000 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Colorado
Land boundaries: total: 2,551 km border countries: Cameroon 298 km, Republic of the Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km
Coastline: 885 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate: tropical; always hot, humid
Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Iboundji 1,575 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 1.26% permanent crops: 0.66% other: 98.08% (2001)
Irrigated land: 150 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: deforestation; poaching
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: a small population and oil and mineral reserves have helped Gabon become one of Africa's wealthier countries; in general, these circumstances have allowed the country to maintain and conserve its pristine rain forest and rich biodiversity
People Gabon
Population: 1,389,201 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 42.1% (male 293,668/female 291,816) 15-64 years: 53.8% (male 372,134/female 374,850) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 23,551/female 33,182) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 18.57 years male: 18.34 years female: 18.8 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.45% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 36.24 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 11.72 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 53.64 deaths/1,000 live births male: 63.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 43.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 55.02 years male: 53.63 years female: 56.45 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 8.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 48,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 3,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria (2004)
Nationality: noun: Gabonese (singular and plural) adjective: Gabonese
Ethnic groups: Bantu tribes including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Bapounou, Nzebi, Obamba), other Africans and Europeans 154,000, including 10,700 French and 11,000 persons of dual nationality
Religions: Christian 55%-75%, animist, Muslim less than 1%
Languages: French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 63.2% male: 73.7% female: 53.3% (1995 est.)
Government Gabon
Country name: conventional long form: Gabonese Republic conventional short form: Gabon local long form: Republique Gabonaise local short form: Gabon
Government type: republic; multiparty presidential regime (opposition parties legalized in 1990)
Capital: Libreville
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem
Independence: 17 August 1960 (from France)
National holiday: Founding of the Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), 12 March (1968)
Constitution: adopted 14 March 1991
Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba (since 2 December 1967) head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Francois NTOUTOUME-EMANE (since 23 January 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 6 December 1998 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba reelected; percent of vote - El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba 66.6%, Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 16.5%, Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE 13.4%
Legislative branch: bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (91 seats; members elected by members of municipal councils and departmental assemblies) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: National Assembly - last held 9 and 23 December 2001 (next to be held December 2006); Senate - last held 26 January and 9 February 2003 (next to be held by January 2009) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PDG 86, RNB-RPG 8, PGP 3, ADERE 3, CLR 2, PUP 1, PSD 1, independents 13, others 3; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PDG 53, RNB 20, PGP 4, ADERE 3, RDP 1, CLR 1, independents 9
Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme consisting of three chambers - Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal; Court of State Security; County Courts
Political parties and leaders: Circle of Liberal Reformers or CLR [General Jean Boniface ASSELE]; Congress for Democracy and Justice or CDJ [Jules Aristide Bourdes OGOULIGUENDE]; Democratic and Republican Alliance or ADERE [Divungui-di-Ndinge DIDJOB]; Gabonese Democratic Party or PDG, former sole party [Simplice Nguedet MANZELA]; Gabonese Party for Progress or PGP [Pierre-Louis AGONDJO-OKAWE]; National Rally of Woodcutters-Rally for Gabon or RNB-RPG (Bucherons) [Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE]; People's Unity Party or PUP [Louis Gaston MAYILA]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Pierre EMBONI]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pierre Claver MAGANGA-MOUSSAVOU]; Union for Democracy and Social Integration or UDIS [leader NA]; Union of Gabonese People or UPG [Pierre MAMBOUNDOU]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Jules Marius OGOUEBANDJA chancery: Suite 200, 2034 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1000 FAX: [1] (202) 332-0668 consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY embassy: Boulevard du Bord de Mer, Libreville mailing address: Centre Ville, B. P. 4000, Libreville telephone: [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, after hours - 74 34 92 FAX: [241] 74 55 07
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue
Economy Gabon
Economy - overview: Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African nations. This has supported a sharp decline in extreme poverty; yet because of high income inequality a large proportion of the population remains poor. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now accounts for 50% of GDP. Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. Devaluation of its currency by 50% in January 1994 sparked a one-time inflationary surge, to 35%; the rate dropped to 6% in 1996. The IMF provided a one-year standby arrangement in 1994-95, a three-year Enhanced Financing Facility (EFF) at near commercial rates beginning in late 1995, and stand-by credit of $119 million in October 2000. Those agreements mandate progress in privatization and fiscal discipline. France provided additional financial support in January 1997 after Gabon had met IMF targets for mid-1996. In 1997, an IMF mission to Gabon criticized the government for overspending on off-budget items, overborrowing from the central bank, and slipping on its schedule for privatization and administrative reform. The rebound of oil prices in 1999-2000 helped growth, but drops in production hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains. In December 2000, Gabon signed a new agreement with the Paris Club to reschedule its official debt. A follow-up bilateral repayment agreement with the US was signed in December 2001. Gabon signed a 14 month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2004, and received Paris Club debt rescheduling later that year. Short-term progress depends on an upbeat world economy and fiscal and other adjustments in line with IMF policies.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $7.966 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 1.9% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $5,900 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 7.4% industry: 46.7% services: 45.9% (2004 est.)
Labor force: 650,000 (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25%
Unemployment rate: 21% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.5% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 21.8% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget: revenues: $2.129 billion expenditures: $1.64 billion, including capital expenditures of $310 million (2004 est.)
Public debt: 29.3% of GDP (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products: cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber; cattle; okoume (a tropical softwood); fish
Industries: petroleum extraction and refining; manganese, and gold mining; chemicals; ship repair; food and beverage; textile; lumbering and plywood; cement
Industrial production growth rate: 1.6% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production: 1.161 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 34.5% hydro: 65.5% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 1.08 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 264,900 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption: 13,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Oil - proved reserves: 2.022 billion bbl (2004 est.)
Natural gas - production: 80 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 80 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 66.47 billion cu m (2004)
Current account balance: $196.8 million (2004 est.)
Exports: $3.71 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: crude oil 77%, timber, manganese, uranium (2001)
Exports - partners: US 53.3%, China 8.5%, France 7.4% (2004)
Imports: $1.225 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials
Imports - partners: France 43.8%, US 6.3%, UK 5.9%, Netherlands 4% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $268.6 million (2004 est.)
Debt - external: $3.804 billion (2004 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $331 million (1995)
Currency (code): Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Currency code: XAF
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Gabon
Telephones - main lines in use: 38,400 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 300,000 (2003)
Telephone system: general assessment: adequate service by African standards and improving with the help of the growing mobile cell system domestic: adequate system of cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiotelephone communication stations, and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations international: country code - 241; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Radio broadcast stations: AM 6, FM 7 (and 11 repeaters), shortwave 4 (2001)
Radios: 208,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (plus four low-power repeaters) (2001)
Televisions: 63,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .ga
Internet hosts: 93 (2004)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2001)
Internet users: 35,000 (2003)
Transportation Gabon
Railways: total: 814 km standard gauge: 814 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)
Highways: total: 8,464 km paved: 838 km unpaved: 7,626 km (2000 est.)
Waterways: 1,600 km (310 km on Ogooue River) (2003)
Pipelines: gas 210 km; oil 1,385 km (2004)
Ports and harbors: Gamba, Libreville, Lucinda, Owendo, Port-Gentil
Airports: 56 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 11 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 45 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 23 (2004 est.)
Military Gabon
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service (2001)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 276,310 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 156,632 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males: 15,150 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $184.8 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2% (2004)
Transnational Issues Gabon
Disputes - international: UN presses Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and to establish a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay; only a few hundred out of the 20,000 Republic of the Congo refugees who fled militia fighting in 2000 remain in Gabon
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Gambia, The
Introduction Gambia, The
Background: The Gambia gained its independence from the UK in 1965; it formed a short-lived federation of Senegambia with Senegal between 1982 and 1989. In 1991 the two nations signed a friendship and cooperation treaty. A military coup in 1994 overthrew the president and banned political activity, but a 1996 constitution and presidential elections, followed by parliamentary balloting in 1997, completed a nominal return to civilian rule. The country undertook another round of presidential and legislative elections in late 2001 and early 2002. Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH, the leader of the coup, has been elected president in all subsequent elections.
Geography Gambia, The
Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and Senegal
Geographic coordinates: 13 28 N, 16 34 W
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 11,300 sq km land: 10,000 sq km water: 1,300 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Delaware
Land boundaries: total: 740 km border countries: Senegal 740 km
Coastline: 80 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm continental shelf: not specified exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climate: tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler, dry season (November to May)
Terrain: flood plain of the Gambia River flanked by some low hills
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 53 m
Natural resources: fish, titanium (rutile and ilmenite), tin, zircon, silica sand, clay, petroleum
Land use: arable land: 25% permanent crops: 0.5% other: 74.5% (2001)
Irrigated land: 20 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: drought (rainfall has dropped by 30% in the last 30 years)
Environment - current issues: deforestation; desertification; water-borne diseases prevalent
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: almost an enclave of Senegal; smallest country on the continent of Africa
People Gambia, The
Population: 1,593,256 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 44.5% (male 356,079/female 352,894) 15-64 years: 52.8% (male 416,809/female 424,429) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 22,111/female 20,934) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 17.59 years male: 17.45 years female: 17.74 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.93% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 39.86 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 11.81 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.06 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 72.02 deaths/1,000 live births male: 78.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 65.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 53.75 years male: 51.91 years female: 55.64 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 5.38 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 6,800 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 600 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, yellow fever are high risks in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2004)
Nationality: noun: Gambian(s) adjective: Gambian
Ethnic groups: African 99% (Mandinka 42%, Fula 18%, Wolof 16%, Jola 10%, Serahuli 9%, other 4%), non-African 1%
Religions: Muslim 90%, Christian 9%, indigenous beliefs 1%
Languages: English (official), Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous vernaculars
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 40.1% male: 47.8% female: 32.8% (2003 est.)
Government Gambia, The
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of The Gambia conventional short form: The Gambia
Government type: republic under multiparty democratic rule
Capital: Banjul
Administrative divisions: 5 divisions and 1 city*; Banjul*, Central River, Lower River, North Bank, Upper River, Western
Independence: 18 February 1965 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 18 February (1965)
Constitution: 24 April 1970; suspended July 1994; rewritten and approved by national referendum 8 August 1996; reestablished January 1997
Legal system: based on a composite of English common law, Koranic law, and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH (since 18 October 1996; note - from 1994 to 1996 he was Chairman of the Junta); Vice President Isatou Njie SAIDY (since 20 March 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH (since 18 October 1996; note - from 1994 to 1996 was he Chairman of the Junta); Vice President Isatou Njie SAIDY (since 20 March 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 18 October 2001 (next to be held October 2006) election results: Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH reelected president; percent of vote - Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH 52.9%, Ousainou DARBOE 32.7%
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (53 seats; 48 elected by popular vote, five appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms) elections: last held 17 January 2002 (next to be held February 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - APRC 45, PDOIS 2, NRP 1,
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders: Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction or APRC - the ruling party [Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH]; Gambian People's Party-Progressive People's Party-United Democratic Party or GPP-PPP-UDP Coalition [Ousainou DARBOE]; National Convention Party or NCP [Sheriff DIBBA]; National Reconciliation Party or NRP [Hamat N. K. BAH]; People's Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism or PDOIS [Sidia JATTA] note: in August 2001, an independent electoral commission allowed the reregistration of the GPP, NCP, and PPP, three parties banned since 1996
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) chancery: Suite 905, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 785-1379 FAX: [1] (202) 785-1430
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph D. STAFFORD, III embassy: Kairaba Avenue, Fajara, Banjul mailing address: P. M. B. No. 19, Banjul telephone: [220] 392856, 392858, 391971 FAX: [220] 392475
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue with white edges, and green
Economy Gambia, The
Economy - overview: The Gambia has no significant mineral or natural resource deposits and has a limited agricultural base. About 75% of the population depends on crops and livestock for its livelihood. Small-scale manufacturing activity features the processing of peanuts, fish, and hides. Reexport trade normally constitutes a major segment of economic activity, but a 1999 government-imposed preshipment inspection plan, and instability of the Gambian dalasi (currency) have drawn some of the reexport trade away from The Gambia. The government's 1998 seizure of the private peanut firm Alimenta eliminated the largest purchaser of Gambian groundnuts; the following two marketing seasons saw substantially lower prices and sales. Despite an announced program to begin privatizing key parastatals, no plans have been made public that would indicate that the government intends to follow through on its promises. Unemployment and underemployment rates remain extremely high; short-run economic progress depends on sustained bilateral and multilateral aid, on responsible government economic management, on continued technical assistance from the IMF and bilateral donors, and on expected growth in the construction sector.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $2.799 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 26.8% industry: 14.5% services: 58.7% (2004 est.)
Labor force: 400,000 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 75%, industry, commerce, and services 19%, government 6%
Unemployment rate: NA (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 25.3% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget: revenues: $44.85 million expenditures: $59.94 million, including capital expenditures of $4.1 million (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products: rice, millet, sorghum, peanuts, corn, sesame, cassava (tapioca), palm kernels; cattle, sheep, goats
Industries: processing peanuts, fish, and hides; tourism; beverages; agricultural machinery assembly, woodworking, metalworking; clothing
Industrial production growth rate: NA
Electricity - production: 90.31 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 83.99 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 1,900 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Current account balance: $-16.4 million (2004 est.)
Exports: $114.4 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: peanut products, fish, cotton lint, palm kernels, re-exports
Exports - partners: India 21.4%, Thailand 15.1%, UK 13.7%, France 12.9%, Germany 8.7%, Italy 7.5% (2004)
Imports: $180.9 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, manufactures, fuel, machinery and transport equipment
Imports - partners: China 23.7%, Senegal 11.6%, Brazil 5.9%, UK 5.5%, Netherlands 4.5%, US 4.4% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $113.1 million (2004 est.)
Debt - external: $476 million (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $45.4 million (1995)
Currency (code): dalasi (GMD)
Currency code: GMD
Exchange rates: dalasi per US dollar - 27.306 (2003), 27.306 (2003), 19.918 (2002), 15.687 (2001), 12.788 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Gambia, The
Telephones - main lines in use: 38,400 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 100,000 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment: adequate; a packet switched data network is available domestic: adequate network of microwave radio relay and open-wire international: country code - 220; microwave radio relay links to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001)
Radios: 196,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (government-owned) (1997)
Televisions: 5,000 (2000)
Internet country code: .gm
Internet hosts: 568 (2004)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (2001)
Internet users: 25,000 (2002)
Transportation Gambia, The
Highways: total: 2,700 km paved: 956 km unpaved: 1,744 km (1999)
Waterways: 390 km (on River Gambia; small ocean-going vessels can reach 190 km) (2004)
Ports and harbors: Banjul
Merchant marine: total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 30,976 GRT/10,978 DWT by type: passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Switzerland 1) (2005)
Airports: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Military Gambia, The
Military branches: Gambian National Army (GNA), Gambian Navy (GN), Presidential Guard, National Guard
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2001)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 309,279 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 188,117 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 0.3% (2004)
Transnational Issues Gambia, The
Disputes - international: attempts to stem refugees, cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and other illegal activities by separatists from southern Senegal's Casamance region as well as from conflicts in other west African states
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Gaza Strip
Introduction Gaza Strip
Background: The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external and internal security and for public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank began in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but were derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continued to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. Following the death of longtime Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT in November 2004, the election of his successor Mahmud ABBAS in January 2005 brought about a turning point in the conflict. In February 2005 the Israeli Government voted to disengage from the Gaza Strip by dismantling all Israeli settlements and removing all Israeli settlers. This process was completed in September 2005. Nonetheless, Israel maintains offshore maritime control as well as airspace control. The future political status of the Gaza Strip has yet to be determined.
Geography Gaza Strip
Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel
Geographic coordinates: 31 25 N, 34 20 E
Map references: Middle East
Area: total: 360 sq km land: 360 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: total: 62 km border countries: Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km
Coastline: 40 km
Maritime claims: Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation
Climate: temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Terrain: flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Auda) 105 m
Natural resources: arable land, natural gas
Land use: arable land: 28.95% permanent crops: 21.05% other: 50% (2001)
Irrigated land: 120 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: droughts
Environment - current issues: desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment; water-borne disease; soil degradation; depletion and contamination of underground water resources
Geography - note: there are 25 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Gaza Strip (February 2002 est.)
People Gaza Strip
Population: 1,376,289 note: in addition, there are more than 5,000 Israeli settlers in the Gaza Strip (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 48.5% (male 342,186/female 325,899) 15-64 years: 48.8% (male 342,927/female 329,354) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 15,036/female 20,887) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 15.65 years male: 15.5 years female: 15.81 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: 3.77% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 40.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 3.87 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 22.93 deaths/1,000 live births male: 24.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.79 years male: 70.5 years female: 73.15 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 5.91 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: NA adjective: NA
Ethnic groups: Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%
Religions: Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish 0.6%
Languages: Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91.9% male: 96.3% female: 87.4% (2003 est.)
Government Gaza Strip
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Gaza Strip local long form: none local short form: Qita Ghazzah
Economy Gaza Strip
Economy - overview: High population density, limited land access, and strict internal and external controls have kept economic conditions in the Gaza Strip - the smaller of the two areas under the Palestinian Authority - even more degraded than in the West Bank. An anticipated Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005 may offer some medium-term opportunities for economic growth. The beginning of the second intifadah in September 2000 sparked an economic downturn, largely the result of Israeli closure policies; these policies, which were imposed in response to security interests in Israel, disrupted labor and commodity relationships with the Gaza Strip. In 2001, and even more severely in 2003, Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant, the disruption of administrative structure, and widespread business closures. Including the West Bank, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israel or in joint industrial zones have lost their jobs. International aid of $2 billion to Gaza Strip and the West Bank in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. Meanwhile unemployment has continued at half the labor force. ARAFAT's death in 2004 leaves open more political options that could affect the economy.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $768 million (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $600 (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 9% industry: 28% services: 63% (includes West Bank) (2002 est.)
Labor force: 725,000 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 14%, industry 19%, services 66% (2004)
Unemployment rate: 50% (includes West Bank) (2003 est.)
Population below poverty line: 81% (2004 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.2% (includes West Bank) (2001 est.)
Budget: revenues: $676.6 million expenditures: $1.155 billion, including capital expenditures of NA; note - these budget data include West Bank (2003)
Agriculture - products: olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Industries: generally small family businesses that produce textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in an industrial center
Industrial production growth rate: NA
Electricity - production: NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Israel
Electricity - consumption: NA kWh
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Israel (2001)
Exports: $205 million f.o.b., includes West Bank (2002)
Exports - commodities: citrus, flowers
Exports - partners: Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Imports: $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes West Bank (2002)
Imports - commodities: food, consumer goods, construction materials
Imports - partners: Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Debt - external: $108 million (includes West Bank) (1997 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $2 billion (includes West Bank) (2004 est.)
Currency (code): new Israeli shekel (ILS)
Currency code: ILS
Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Gaza Strip
Telephones - main lines in use: 95,729 (total for Gaza Strip and West Bank) (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 320,000 (cellular subscribers in both Gaza Strip and West Bank) (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: rudimentary telephone services provided by an open-wire system international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999)
Television broadcast stations: 2 (operated by the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation) (1997)
Televisions: NA; note - most Palestinian households have televisions (1997)
Internet country code: .ps
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 3 (1999)
Internet users: 60,000 (includes West Bank) (2001)
Transportation Gaza Strip
Highways: total: NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: small, poorly developed road network
Ports and harbors: Gaza
Airports: 2 (2001) note: includes Gaza International Airport (GIA), inaugurated on 24 November 1998 as part of agreements stipulated in the September 1995 Oslo II Accord and the 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum; GIA has been largely closed since October 2000 by Israeli orders and its runway was destroyed by the Israeli Defense Forces in December 2001 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Heliports: 1 (2004 est.)
Military Gaza Strip
Military branches: in accordance with the peace agreement, the Palestinian Authority is not permitted conventional military forces; there are, however, public security forces (2002)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA
Transnational Issues Gaza Strip
Disputes - international: West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel announced its intention to pull out settlers and withdraw from the Gaza Strip in 2005
Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): 922,674 (Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA)) (2004)
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Georgia
Introduction Georgia
Background: The region of present-day Georgia contained the ancient kingdoms of Colchis and Kartli-Iberia. The area came under Roman influence in the first centuries AD and Christianity became the state religion in the 330s. Domination by Persians, Arabs, and Turks was followed by a Georgian golden age (11th to the 13th centuries) that was cut short by the Mongol invasion of 1236. Subsequently, the Ottoman and Persian empires competed for influence in the region. Georgia was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 19th century. Independent for three years (1918-1921) following the Russian revolution, it was forcibly incorporated into the USSR until the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. Despite myriad problems, some progress on market reforms and democratization has been made since then. An attempt by the government to manipulate legislative elections in November 2003 touched off widespread protests that led to the resignation of Eduard SHEVARDNADZE, president since 1995. New elections in early 2004 swept Mikheil SAAKASHVILI into power along with his National Movement Party.
Geography Georgia
Location: Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between Turkey and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 42 00 N, 43 30 E
Map references: Asia
Area: total: 69,700 sq km land: 69,700 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than South Carolina
Land boundaries: total: 1,461 km border countries: Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km, Russia 723 km, Turkey 252 km
Coastline: 310 km
Maritime claims: NA
Climate: warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast
Terrain: largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhet'is Dablobi (Kolkhida Lowland) opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River Basin in the east; good soils in river valley flood plains, foothills of Kolkhida Lowland
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Mt'a Shkhara 5,201 m
Natural resources: forests, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron ore, copper, minor coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils allow for important tea and citrus growth
Land use: arable land: 11.44% permanent crops: 3.86% other: 84.7% (2001)
Irrigated land: 4,700 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: earthquakes
Environment - current issues: air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy pollution of Mtkvari River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: strategically located east of the Black Sea; Georgia controls much of the Caucasus Mountains and the routes through them
People Georgia
Population: 4,677,401 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 18% (male 444,779/female 398,162) 15-64 years: 65.9% (male 1,480,557/female 1,603,743) 65 years and over: 16% (male 300,859/female 449,301) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 37.36 years male: 34.93 years female: 39.7 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.35% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 10.25 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 9.09 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: -4.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.16 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 18.59 deaths/1,000 live births male: 20.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.88 years male: 72.59 years female: 79.67 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.41 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 3,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality: noun: Georgian(s) adjective: Georgian
Ethnic groups: Georgian 83.8%, Azeri 6.5%, Armenian 5.7%, Russian 1.5%, other 2.5% (2002 census)
Religions: Orthodox Christian 83.9%, Armenian-Gregorian 3.9%, Catholic 0.8%, Muslim 9.9%, other 0.8%, none 0.7% (2002 census)
Languages: Georgian 71% (official), Russian 9%, Armenian 7%, Azeri 6%, other 7% note: Abkhaz is the official language in Abkhazia
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 100% female: 98% (1999 est.)
Government Georgia
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Georgia local long form: none local short form: Sak'art'velo former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic
Government type: republic
Capital: T'bilisi
Administrative divisions: 9 regions (mkharebi, singular - mkhare), 9 cities (k'alak'ebi, singular - k'alak'i), and 2 autonomous republics (avtomnoy respubliki, singular - avtom respublika) : regions: Guria, Imereti, Kakheti, Kvemo Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti, Samegrelo and Zemo Svaneti, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Shida Kartli : cities: Chiat'ura, Gori, K'ut'aisi, P'ot'i, Rust'avi, T'bilisi, Tqibuli, Tsqaltubo, Zugdidi : autonomous republics: Abkhazia or Ap'khazet'is Avtonomiuri Respublika (Sokhumi), Ajaria or Acharis Avtonomiuri Respublika (Bat'umi) note: the administrative centers of the 2 autonomous republics are shown in parentheses
Independence: 9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 26 May (1918); note - 26 May 1918 is the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 9 April 1991 is the date of independence from the Soviet Union
Constitution: adopted 24 August 1995
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Mikheil SAAKASHVILI (since 25 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government for the power ministries: state security (includes interior) and defense head of government: President Mikheil SAAKASHVILI (since 25 January 2004); Prime Minister Zurab NOGHAIDELI (since 17 February 2005); note - the president is the chief of state and head of government for the power ministries: state security (includes interior) and defense; the prime minister is head of the remaining ministries of government cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 4 January 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Mikheil SAAKASHVILI elected president; percent of vote - Mikheil SAAKASHVILI 96.3%, Temur SHASHIASHVILI 1.9%
Legislative branch: unicameral Supreme Council (commonly referred to as Parliament) or Umaghiesi Sabcho (235 seats - 150 elected by party lists); members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held spring 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - National Movement-Democrats 67.6%, Rightist Opposition 7.6%, all other parties received less than 7% each; seats by party - National Movement-Democrats 135, Rightist Opposition 15
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges elected by the Supreme Council on the president's recommendation); Constitutional Court; first and second instance courts
Political parties and leaders: Burjanadze-Democrats [Nino BURJANADZE]; Georgian People's Front [Nodar NATADZE]; Georgian United Communist Party or UCPG [Panteleimon GIORGADZE]; Greens [Giorgi GACHECHILADZE]; Industry Will Save Georgia (Industrialists) or IWSG [Georgi TOPADZE]; Labor Party [Shalva NATELASHVILI]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Bachuki KARDAVA]; National Movement Democratic Front [Mikheil SAAKASHVILI] bloc composed of National Movement and Burjanadze-Democrats; National Movement [Mikheil SAAKASHVILI]; New Right [David GAMKRELIDZE]; Republican Party [David BERDZENISHVILI]; Rightist Opposition [David GAMKRELIDZE] bloc composed of Industrialists and New Right Party; Socialist Party or SPG [Irakli MINDELI]; Traditionalists [Akaki ASATIANI]; Union of National Forces-Conservatives [Koba DAVITASHVILI and Zviad DZIDZIGURI]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Georgian independent deputies from Abkhaz government in exile; separatists in the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia; supporters of the late ousted President Zviad GAMSAKHURDYA
International organization participation: BSEC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GUUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Levan MIKELADZE chancery: Suite 602, 1101 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 387-4537 FAX: [1] (202) 393-4537
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Richard M. MILES embassy: #25 Atoneli Street, T'bilisi 0105 mailing address: 7060 Tbilisi Place, Washington, DC 20521-7060 telephone: [995] (32) 989-967/68 FAX: [995] (32) 933-759
Flag description: white rectangle, in its central portion a red cross connecting all four sides of the flag; in each of the four corners is a small red bolnur-katskhuri cross; the five-cross flag appears to date back to the 14th century
Economy Georgia
Economy - overview: Georgia's main economic activities include the cultivation of agricultural products such as citrus fruits, tea, hazelnuts, and grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and output of a small industrial sector producing alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages, metals, machinery, and chemicals. The country imports the bulk of its energy needs, including natural gas and oil products. Its only sizable internal energy resource is hydropower. Despite the severe damage the economy has suffered due to civil strife, Georgia, with the help of the IMF and World Bank, has made substantial economic gains since 1995, achieving positive GDP growth and curtailing inflation. However, the Georgian Government has suffered from limited resources due to a chronic failure to collect tax revenues. Georgia's new government is making progress in reforming the tax code, enforcing taxes, and cracking down on corruption. Georgia also suffers from energy shortages; it privatized the T'bilisi electricity distribution network in 1998, but payment collection rates remain low, both in T'bilisi and throughout the regions. The country is pinning its hopes for long-term growth on its role as a transit state for pipelines and trade. The construction on the Baku-T'bilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Baku-T'bilisi-Erzerum gas pipeline have brought much-needed investment and job opportunities.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $14.45 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 9.5% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 20.5% industry: 22.6% services: 56.9% (2004 est.)
Labor force: 2.1 million (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 40%, industry 20%, services 40% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 17% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: 54% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 27.9% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 37.1 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.5% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 18.5% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget: revenues: $671.7 million expenditures: $804.7 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products: citrus, grapes, tea, hazelnuts, vegetables; livestock
Industries: steel, aircraft, machine tools, electrical appliances, mining (manganese and copper), chemicals, wood products, wine
Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2000)
Electricity - production: 6.732 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 19.7% hydro: 80.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 6.811 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 300 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 850 million kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 2,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 31,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Natural gas - production: 60 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 1.16 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 1.1 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Current account balance: $-632.9 million (2004 est.)
Exports: $909.4 million (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: scrap metal, machinery, chemicals; fuel reexports; citrus fruits, tea, wine
Exports - partners: Turkey 18.3%, Turkmenistan 17.8%, Russia 16.2%, Armenia 8.4%, UK 4.9% (2004)
Imports: $1.806 billion (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: fuels, machinery and parts, transport equipment, grain and other foods, pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners: Russia 14%, Turkey 11%, UK 9.3%, Azerbaijan 8.5%, Germany 8.2%, Ukraine 7.7%, US 6% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $231.4 million (2004 est.)
Debt - external: $1.8 billion (2002)
Economic aid - recipient: ODA $150 million (2000 est.)
Currency (code): lari (GEL)
Currency code: GEL
Exchange rates: lari per US dollar - 1.9167 (2004), 2.1457 (2003), 2.1957 (2002), 2.073 (2001), 1.9762 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Georgia
Telephones - main lines in use: 650,500 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 522,300 (2003)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: local - T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi have cellular telephone networks; urban telephone density is about 20 per 100 people; rural telephone density is about 4 per 100 people; intercity facilities include a fiber-optic line between T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi; nationwide pager service is available international: country code - 995; Georgia and Russia are working on a fiber-optic line between P'ot'i and Sochi (Russia); present international service is available by microwave, landline, and satellite through the Moscow switch; international electronic mail and telex service are available
Radio broadcast stations: AM 7, FM 12, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios: 3.02 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 12 (plus repeaters) (1998)
Televisions: 2.57 million (1997)
Internet country code: .ge
Internet hosts: 5,160 (2004)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 6 (2000)
Internet users: 150,500 (2003)
Transportation Georgia
Railways: total: 1,612 km (1,612 km electrified) broad gauge: 1,575 km 1.520-m gauge (1,575 electrified) narrow gauge: 37 km 0.912-m gauge (37 electrified) (2004)
Highways: total: 20,229 km paved: 18,914 km unpaved: 1,315 km (2002)
Pipelines: gas 1,697 km; oil 1,027 km; refined products 232 km (2004)
Ports and harbors: Bat'umi, P'ot'i
Merchant marine: total: 175 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 855,908 GRT/1,288,812 DWT by type: bulk carrier 22, cargo 133, container 3, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 6, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 105 (Albania 1, Azerbaijan 2, Cyprus 2, Egypt 3, Estonia 1, Germany 1, Greece 4, Israel 1, Lebanon 3, Romania 6, Russia 8, Syria 27, Turkey 14, Ukraine 30, UAE 2) registered in other countries: 1 (2005)
Airports: 30 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 17 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.)
Heliports: 2 (2004 est.)
Transportation - note: transportation network is in poor condition resulting from ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel shortages; network lacks maintenance and repair
Military Georgia
Military branches: Ground Forces (includes National Guard), Air and Air Defense Forces, Maritime Defense Force, Interior Forces
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (2004)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 1,038,736 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 827,281 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males: 38,857 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $23 million (FY00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 0.59% (FY00)
Military - note: a CIS peacekeeping force of Russian troops is deployed in the Abkhazia region of Georgia together with a UN military observer group; a Russian peacekeeping battalion is deployed in South Ossetia
Transnational Issues Georgia
Disputes - international: Russia and Georgia agree on delimiting 80% of their common border, leaving certain small, strategic segments and the maritime boundary unresolved; OSCE observers monitor volatile areas such as the Pankisi Gorge in the Akhmeti region and the Argun Gorge in Abkhazia; UN Observer Mission in Georgia has maintained a peacekeeping force in Georgia since 1993; Meshkheti Turks scattered throughout the former Soviet Union seek to return to Georgia; boundary with Armenia remains undemarcated; ethnic Armenian groups in Javakheti region of Georgia seek greater autonomy from the Georgian government; Azerbaijan and Georgia cannot resolve the alignment of their boundary at certain crossing areas
Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs: 260,000 (displaced from Abkhazia and South Ossetia) (2004)
Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for opiates via Central Asia to Western Europe and Russia
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Germany
Introduction Germany
Background: As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency, the euro.
Geography Germany
Location: Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Geographic coordinates: 51 00 N, 9 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 357,021 sq km land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Montana
Land boundaries: total: 3,621 km border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Coastline: 2,389 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind
Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m
Natural resources: coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land
Land use: arable land: 33.85% permanent crops: 0.59% other: 65.56% (2001)
Irrigated land: 4,850 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: flooding
Environment - current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea
People Germany
Population: 82,431,390 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 6,078,885/female 5,766,065) 15-64 years: 66.7% (male 28,006,268/female 27,003,958) 65 years and over: 18.9% (male 6,359,776/female 9,216,438) (2005 est.)
Median age: total: 42.16 years male: 40.88 years female: 43.53 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate: 0% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 8.33 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 10.55 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 4.16 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.65 years male: 75.66 years female: 81.81 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 43,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 1,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality: noun: German(s) adjective: German
Ethnic groups: German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish)
Religions: Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3%
Languages: German
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1997 est.) male: NA% female: NA%
Government Germany
Country name: conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich
Government type: federal republic
Capital: Berlin
Administrative divisions: 13 states (Laender, singular - Land) and 3 free states* (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern*, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen*, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen*
Independence: 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991
National holiday: Unity Day, 3 October (1990)
Constitution: 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004) head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998); Vice Chancellor Joschka FISCHER (since 17 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held September 2006) election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote 50.7%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (613 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block) elections: Federal Assembly - last held 18 September 2005 (next to be held September 2009); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 35.2%, SPD 34.3%, FDP 9.8%, Left 8.7%, Greens 8.1%; seats by party - CDU/CSU 225, SPD 222, FDP 61, Left 54, Greens 51; Federal Council - current composition - NA
Judicial branch: Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)
Political parties and leaders: Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; Left Party or PDS/WASG [Oskar LAFONTAINE and Gregor GYSI]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Lothar BISKY]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING] |
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