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Geography Togo
Location: Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana
Geographic coordinates: 8 00 N, 1 10 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 56,785 sq km water: 2,400 sq km land: 54,385 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than West Virginia
Land boundaries: total: 1,647 km border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km
Coastline: 56 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 30 NM
Climate: tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Terrain: gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Agou 986 m
Natural resources: phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land
Land use: arable land: 41.37% permanent crops: 1.84% other: 56.79% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 70 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues: deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna
People Togo
Population: 5,429,299 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 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 44.5% (male 1,211,252; female 1,203,564) 15-64 years: 53% (male 1,404,763; female 1,473,360) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 57,535; female 78,825) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 17.3 years male: 16.9 years female: 17.7 years (2002)
Population growth rate: 2.37% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 35.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 11.51 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 68.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 60.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 76.58 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 53.43 years male: 51.47 years female: 55.45 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.97 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 6% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 150,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 12,000 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Togolese (singular and plural) adjective: Togolese
Ethnic groups: native African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1%
Religions: indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20%
Languages: French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 60.9% male: 75.4% female: 46.9% (2003 est.)
Government Togo
Country name: conventional long form: Togolese Republic conventional short form: Togo local short form: none former: French Togoland local long form: Republique Togolaise
Government type: republic under transition to multiparty democratic rule
Capital: Lome
Administrative divisions: 5 regions (regions, singular - region); De La Kara, Des Plateaux, Des Savanes, Centrale, Maritime
Independence: 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)
National holiday: Independence Day, 27 April (1960)
Constitution: multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992
Legal system: French-based court system
Suffrage: NA years of age; universal adult
Executive branch: chief of state: President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967) head of government: Prime Minister Koffi SAMA (since 29 June 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 1 June 2003 (next to be held NA June 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Gnassingbe EYADEMA reelected president; percent of vote - Gnassingbe EYADEMA 57.2%, Emmanuel Akitani BOB 34.1%, Yawovi AGBOYIBO 5.2%, Maurice Dahuku PERE 2.3%, Edem KODJO 1.0%
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 27 October 2002 (next NA 2007) note: two opposition parties boycotted the election, the Union of the Forces for Change, and the Action Committee for Renewal election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPT 72, RSD 3, UDPS 2, Juvento 2, MOCEP 1, independents 1
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Political parties and leaders: Juvento [Monsilia DJATO]; Movement of the Believers of Peace and Equality or MOCEP [leader NA]; Rally for the Support for Development and Democracy or RSDD [Hanay OLYMPIO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [President Gnassingbe EYADEMA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Gagou KOKOU] note: Rally of the Togolese People or RPT, led by President EYADEMA, was the only party until the formation of multiple parties was legalized 12 April 1991
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Akoussoulelou BODJONA FAX: [1] (202) 232-3190 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4212 chancery: 2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Gregory ENGLE embassy: Angle Rue Kouenou and Rue 15 Beniglato, Lome mailing address: B. P. 852, Lome telephone: [228] 221 29 91 through 221 29 94 FAX: [228] 221 79 52
Flag description: five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
Economy Togo
Economy - overview: This small sub-Saharan economy is heavily dependent on both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported. Cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings, with cotton being the most important cash crop. Togo is the world's fourth-largest producer of phosphate, but production fell an estimated 22% in 2002 due to power shortages and the cost of developing new deposits. The government's decade-long effort, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to implement economic reform measures, encourage foreign investment, and bring revenues in line with expenditures has moved slowly. Progress depends on following through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress toward legislative elections, and continued support from foreign donors.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $7.594 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.9% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 42% industry: 21% services: 37% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: 32% (1989 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4% (2002 est.)
Labor force: 1.74 million (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (1998 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues: $232 million expenditures: $252 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
Industries: phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement; handicrafts, textiles, beverages
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 101.6 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 98.7% hydro: 1.3% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 614.5 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: 520 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by Ghana (2001)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 10,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA (2001)
Oil - imports: NA (2001)
Agriculture - products: coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish
Exports: $449 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities: reexports, cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa
Exports - partners: Ghana 17.7%, Benin 13.3%, Burkina Faso 8.2%, Philippines 4.9%, Niger 4.1% (2002)
Imports: $561 million f.o.b. (2002)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products
Imports - partners: France 21.3%, China 17%, Netherlands 6.5%, Germany 5.3%, UK 4.8%, Italy 4.4% (2002)
Debt - external: $1.4 billion (2000)
Economic aid - recipient: ODA $80 million (2000 est.)
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Currency code: XOF
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Togo
Telephones - main lines in use: 25,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 2,995 (1997)
Telephone system: general assessment: fair system based on a network of microwave radio relay routes supplemented by open-wire lines and a mobile cellular system domestic: microwave radio relay and open-wire lines for conventional system; cellular system has capacity of 10,000 telephones international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Symphonie
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios: 940,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 3 (plus two repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 73,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .tg
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 3 (2001)
Internet users: 50,000 (2002)
Transportation Togo
Railways: total: 525 km narrow gauge: 525 km 1.000-m gauge (2002)
Highways: total: 7,520 km paved: 2,376 km unpaved: 5,144 km (1999 est.)
Waterways: 50 km (Mono river)
Ports and harbors: Kpeme, Lome
Merchant marine: total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,918 GRT/3,852 DWT ships by type: cargo 1, specialized tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Greece 1 (2002 est.)
Airports: 9 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Military Togo
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 1,270,146 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 666,132 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $23.72 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.8% (FY02)
Transnational Issues Togo
Disputes - international: in 2001 Benin claimed Togo moved boundary monuments - joint commission presently resurveying the boundary
Illicit drugs: transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Tokelau
Introduction Tokelau
Background: Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925.
Geography Tokelau
Location: Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates: 9 00 S, 172 00 W
Map references: Oceania
Area: total: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 10 sq km
Area - comparative: about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 101 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November)
Terrain: low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 5 m
Natural resources: NEGL
Land use: arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile) permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: lies in Pacific typhoon belt
Environment - current issues: very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand
Geography - note: consists of three atolls, each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over three meters above sea level
People Tokelau
Population: 1,418 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 42% 15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.01% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: NA (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: NA% male: NA% female: NA%
Life expectancy at birth: total population: NA years male: 68 years female: 70 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: NA children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Tokelauan(s) adjective: Tokelauan
Ethnic groups: Polynesian
Religions: Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2% note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant
Languages: Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English
Literacy: NA
Government Tokelau
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Tokelau
Dependency status: self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand
Government type: NA
Capital: none; each atoll has its own administrative center
Administrative divisions: none (territory of New Zealand)
Independence: none (territory of New Zealand)
National holiday: Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840)
Constitution: administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970
Legal system: New Zealand and local statutes
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by Administrator Lindsay WATT (since NA March 1993) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term head of government: Aliki Faipule Pio TUIA (since NA 2002) cabinet: the Council of Faipule, consisting of three elected leaders - one from each atoll - functions as a cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral General Fono (48 seats; members chosen by each atoll's Council of Elders or Taupulega to serve three-year terms); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
Judicial branch: Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau
Political parties and leaders: none
Political pressure groups and leaders: none
International organization participation: SPC, UNESCO (associate), WHO (associate)
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of New Zealand)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of New Zealand)
Flag description: the flag of New Zealand is used
Economy Tokelau
Economy - overview: Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services, with annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.5 million (1993 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: NA%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 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: NA
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues: $430,830 expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.)
Industries: small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: NA kWh
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: NA kWh
Agriculture - products: coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats
Exports: $98,000 f.o.b. (1983)
Exports - commodities: stamps, copra, handicrafts
Exports - partners: NZ (2000)
Imports: $323,000 c.i.f. (1983)
Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, building materials, fuel
Imports - partners: NZ (2000)
Debt - external: $0
Economic aid - recipient: from New Zealand about $4 million annually
Currency: New Zealand dollar (NZD)
Currency code: NZD
Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.154 (2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8632 (1998), 1.5083 (1997)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications Tokelau
Telephones - main lines in use: NA
Telephones - mobile cellular: 0 (2001)
Telephone system: general assessment: adequate domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA note: each atoll has a radio broadcast station of unknown type that broadcasts shipping and weather reports (1998)
Radios: 1,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .tk
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)
Internet users: NA
Transportation Tokelau
Railways: 0 km
Highways: total: NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km
Waterways: none
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Merchant marine: none (2002 est.)
Airports: none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2002)
Military Tokelau
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of New Zealand
Transnational Issues Tokelau
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Tonga
Introduction Tonga
Background: The archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. It became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its independence in 1970 and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only monarchy in the Pacific.
Geography Tonga
Location: Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 175 00 W
Map references: Oceania
Area: total: 748 sq km water: 30 sq km land: 718 sq km
Area - comparative: four times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 419 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate: tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December)
Terrain: most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m
Natural resources: fish, fertile soil
Land use: arable land: 23.61% permanent crops: 43.06% other: 33.33% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou
Environment - current issues: deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited)
People Tonga
Population: 108,141 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 38.2% (male 21,085; female 20,265) 15-64 years: 57.6% (male 30,785; female 31,532) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 1,973; female 2,501) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 19.8 years male: 19.3 years female: 20.3 years (2002)
Population growth rate: 1.9% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 24.51 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 5.54 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 13.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 14.75 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 68.88 years male: 66.43 years female: 71.44 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Tongan(s) adjective: Tongan
Ethnic groups: Polynesian, Europeans about 300
Religions: Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents)
Languages: Tongan, English
Literacy: definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English total population: 98.5% male: 98.4% female: 98.7% (1996 est.)
Government Tonga
Country name: conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga conventional short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands
Government type: hereditary constitutional monarchy
Capital: Nuku'alofa
Administrative divisions: 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u
Independence: 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)
National holiday: Independence Day, 4 June (1970)
Constitution: 4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967
Legal system: based on English law
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: King Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965) note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the Cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed for life by the monarch cabinet: Cabinet, appointed by the monarch, consists of 12 members head of government: Prime Minister Prince Lavaka ata ULUKALALA (since NA February 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister Tevita TOPOU (since NA January 2001)
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats - 12 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms) elections: last held 7 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote - pro-democratic 70%; seats - pro-democratic 7, traditionalist 2
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (consists of the Privy Council with the addition of the chief justice of the Supreme Court)
Political parties and leaders: there are no political parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: Tonga Human Rights and Democracy Movement or THRDM [Akilisi POHIVA, president]
International organization participation: ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Sonatane T. T. TUPOU chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1136 consulate(s) general: San Francisco FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga
Flag description: red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
Economy Tonga
Economy - overview: Tonga has a small, open economy with a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $236 million (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 26% industry: 12% services: 62% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 8.4% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 33,908 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 65% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 13.3% (1996 est.)
Budget: revenues: $39.9 million expenditures: $52.4 million, including capital expenditures of $1.9 million (FY 99/00 est.)
Industries: tourism, fishing
Industrial production growth rate: 8.6% (FY 98/99)
Electricity - production: 27.27 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 25.36 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 1,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA (2001)
Oil - imports: NA (2001)
Agriculture - products: squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish
Exports: $8.9 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities: squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops
Exports - partners: Japan 43.2%, US 41.2%, Greece 4% (2002)
Imports: $70 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners: New Zealand 30.8%, Fiji 20.7%, US 14.2%, Australia 13.2%, China 6.1% (2002)
Debt - external: $57.5 million (June 2001)
Economic aid - recipient: Australia $5.5 million, New Zealand $2.3 million (FY01/02)
Currency: pa'anga (TOP)
Currency code: TOP
Exchange rates: pa'anga per US dollar NA (2002), 2.12 (2001), 1.76 (2000), 1.6 (1999), 1.49 (1998)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
Communications Tonga
Telephones - main lines in use: 8,000 (1996)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 302 (1996)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (1996)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (2001)
Radios: 61,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 2 (2001)
Televisions: 2,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .to
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 2 (2000)
Internet users: 1,000 (2000)
Transportation Tonga
Railways: 0 km
Highways: total: 680 km paved: 184 km unpaved: 496 km (1999 est.)
Waterways: none
Ports and harbors: Neiafu, Nuku'alofa, Pangai
Merchant marine: total: 78 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 250,020 GRT/350,055 DWT ships by type: bulk 6, cargo 44, chemical tanker 4, container 1, liquefied gas 5, livestock carrier 2, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Albania 1, Australia 4, Austria 1, Bolivia 1, Cyprus 1, Djibouti 1, Egypt 2, Greece 4, Lebanon 2, Liberia 2, Marshall Islands 2, Morocco 1, Norway 1, Panama 1, Romania 3, Russia 1, Sao Tome and Principe 1, Saudi Arabia 2, Singapore 1, Sweden 1, Switzerland 3, Syria 5, Ukraine 1, UAE 16, US 4 (2002 est.)
Airports: 6 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Military Tonga
Military branches: Tonga Defense Services (made up of three operational command components and two support elements, including the Royal Marines, Royal Guards, Maritime Force, a support/logistics group, and a training group), Police; note - a new air wing that will be subordinate to the Ministry of Defense is being developed
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
Transnational Issues Tonga
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Trinidad and Tobago
Introduction Trinidad and Tobago
Background: The islands came under British control in the 19th century; independence was granted in 1962. The country is one of the most prosperous in the Caribbean, thanks largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing. Tourism, mostly in Tobago, is targeted for expansion and is growing.
Geography Trinidad and Tobago
Location: Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates: 11 00 N, 61 00 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total: 5,128 sq km land: 5,128 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Delaware
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 362 km
Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin contiguous zone: 24 NM
Climate: tropical; rainy season (June to December)
Terrain: mostly plains with some hills and low mountains
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, asphalt
Land use: arable land: 14.62% permanent crops: 9.16% other: 76.22% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 30 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms
Environment - current issues: water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt
People Trinidad and Tobago
Population: 1,104,209 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 22.2% (male 125,470; female 119,270) 15-64 years: 70% (male 402,137; female 370,600) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 38,928; female 47,804) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 29.9 years male: 29.5 years female: 30.4 years (2002)
Population growth rate: -0.68% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 12.74 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 8.71 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: -10.79 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 24.97 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 26.93 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.59 years male: 67.07 years female: 72.23 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.78 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 2.5% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 17,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 1,200 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s) adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian
Ethnic groups: black 39.5%, East Indian (a local term - primarily immigrants from northern India) 40.3%, mixed 18.4%, white 0.6%, Chinese and other 1.2%
Religions: Roman Catholic 29.4%, Hindu 23.8%, Anglican 10.9%, Muslim 5.8%, Presbyterian 3.4%, other 26.7%
Languages: English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98% (2003 est.)
Government Trinidad and Tobago
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Port-of-Spain
Administrative divisions: 8 counties, 3 municipalities*, and 1 ward**; Arima*, Caroni, Mayaro, Nariva, Port-of-Spain*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint Patrick, San Fernando*, Tobago**, Victoria
Independence: 31 August 1962 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 31 August (1962)
Constitution: 1 August 1976
Legal system: based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President George Maxwell RICHARDS (since 17 March 2003) head of government: Prime Minister Patrick MANNING (since 24 December 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term; election last held 14 February 2003 (next to be held NA 2008); the president usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives election results: George Maxwell RICHARDS elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 43%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; members appointed by the president for a maximum term of five years) and the House of Representatives (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 October 2002 (next to be held by October 2007) note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly, with 15 members serving four-year terms election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - PNM 55.5%, UNC 44.5%; seats by party - PNM 20, UNC 16
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Judicature (comprised of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission); High Court of Justice; Court of Appeals the highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London
Political parties and leaders: National Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Hochoy CHARLES]; People's Empowerment Party or PEP [leader NA]; People's National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; Team Unity or TUN [Ramesh MAHARAJ]; United National Congress or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Jamaat-al Musilmeen [Yasin BAKR]
International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Marina Annette VALERE (as of February 2003) chancery: 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York FAX: [1] (202) 785-3130 telephone: [1] (202) 467-6490
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Roy L. AUSTIN embassy: 15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain mailing address: P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain telephone: [1] (868) 622-6372 through 6376, 622-6176 FAX: [1] (868) 628-5462
Flag description: red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side to the lower fly side
Economy Trinidad and Tobago
Economy - overview: Trinidad and Tobago has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses. A leading performer the past four years has been the booming natural gas sector. Tourism is a growing sector, although not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The economy benefits from low inflation and a trade surplus. The year 2002 was marked by solid growth in the oil sector, offset in part by domestic political uncertainty.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $11.07 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3.2% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.6% industry: 43.2% services: 55.2% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 21% (1992 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.3% (2002 est.)
Labor force: 564,000 (2000)
Labor force - by occupation: construction and utilities 12.4%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 14%, agriculture 9.5%, services 64.1% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 10.8% (2002)
Budget: revenues: $1.54 billion expenditures: $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $117.3 million (1998)
Industries: petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles
Industrial production growth rate: 2.6% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production: 5.315 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 99.8% hydro: 0% other: 0.2% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 4.943 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production: 125,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 24,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA (2001)
Oil - imports: NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves: 716 million bbl (37257)
Natural gas - production: 15.19 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 11.54 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 3.65 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 610.6 billion cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products: cocoa, sugarcane, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry
Exports: $4.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities: petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers
Exports - partners: US 56.9%, Jamaica 7.3%, France 4.4% (2002)
Imports: $3.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals
Imports - partners: US 42%, Cote d'Ivoire 5.5%, UK 5%, Japan 4.5%, Brazil 4.3% (2002)
Debt - external: $2.8 billion (2002 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $24 million (1999 est.)
Currency: Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TTD)
Currency code: TTD
Exchange rates: Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.24 (2002), 6.23 (2001), 6.3 (2000), 6.3 (1999), 6.3 (1998)
Fiscal year: 1 October - 30 September
Communications Trinidad and Tobago
Telephones - main lines in use: 252,000 (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 17,411 (1997)
Telephone system: general assessment: excellent international service; good local service domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Barbados and Guyana
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 680,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (1997)
Televisions: 425,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .tt
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 17 (2000)
Internet users: 120,000 (2002)
Transportation Trinidad and Tobago
Railways: minimal agricultural railroad system near San Fernando; common carrier railway service was discontinued in 1968 (2001)
Highways: total: 8,320 km paved: 4,252 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1999 est.)
Waterways: none
Pipelines: condensate 253 km; gas 1,117 km; oil 478 km (2003)
Ports and harbors: Pointe-a-Pierre, Point Fortin, Point Lisas, Port-of-Spain, Scarborough, Tembladora
Merchant marine: total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,032 GRT/5,106 DWT ships by type: cargo 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: US 1 (2002 est.)
Airports: 6 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Military Trinidad and Tobago
Military branches: Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (including Ground Force, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Trinidad and Tobago Police Service
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 327,823 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 233,488 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $90 million (1999)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.4% (1999)
Transnational Issues Trinidad and Tobago
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; producer of cannabis
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Tromelin Island
Introduction Tromelin Island
Background: First explored by the French in 1776, the island came under the jurisdiction of Reunion in 1814. At present, it serves as a sea turtle sanctuary and is the site of an important meteorological station.
Geography Tromelin Island
Location: Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Geographic coordinates: 15 52 S, 54 25 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 1 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 1 sq km
Area - comparative: about 1.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 3.7 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: tropical
Terrain: low, flat, and sandy; likely volcanic
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 7 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (grasses; scattered bushes) (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: climatologically important location for forecasting cyclones; wildlife sanctuary (seabirds, tortoises)
People Tromelin Island
Population: uninhabited, except for visits by scientists (July 2003 est.)
Government Tromelin Island
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Tromelin Island local short form: Ile Tromelin local long form: none
Dependency status: possession of France; administered by a high commissioner of the Republic, resident in Reunion
Legal system: the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Flag description: the flag of France is used
Economy Tromelin Island
Economy - overview: no economic activity
Communications Tromelin Island
Communications - note: important meteorological station
Transportation Tromelin Island
Waterways: none
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Airports: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Military Tromelin Island
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France
Transnational Issues Tromelin Island
Disputes - international: claimed by Mauritius
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Tunisia
Introduction Tunisia
Background: Following independence from France in 1956, President Habib BOURGUIBA established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. In recent years, Tunisia has taken a moderate, non-aligned stance in its foreign relations. Domestically, it has sought to defuse rising pressure for a more open political society.
Geography Tunisia
Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Libya
Geographic coordinates: 34 00 N, 9 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 163,610 sq km water: 8,250 sq km land: 155,360 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Georgia
Land boundaries: total: 1,424 km border countries: Algeria 965 km, Libya 459 km
Coastline: 1,148 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south
Terrain: mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into the Sahara
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Shatt al Gharsah -17 m highest point: Jebel ech Chambi 1,544 m
Natural resources: petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt
Land use: arable land: 18.67% permanent crops: 12.87% other: 68.46% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 3,800 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: toxic and hazardous waste disposal is ineffective and poses health risks; water pollution from raw sewage; limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements: party to: 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 signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note: strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration
People Tunisia
Population: 9,924,742 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 27% (male 1,388,839; female 1,297,313) 15-64 years: 66.6% (male 3,306,782; female 3,299,883) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 309,103; female 322,822) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 26.2 years male: 25.7 years female: 26.7 years (2002)
Population growth rate: 1.09% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 16.53 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 5.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 26.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 29.89 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 74.4 years male: 72.77 years female: 76.15 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.9 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.04% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Tunisian(s) adjective: Tunisian
Ethnic groups: Arab 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1%
Religions: Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Jewish and other 1%
Languages: Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 74.2% male: 84% female: 64.4% (2003 est.)
Government Tunisia
Country name: conventional long form: Tunisian Republic conventional short form: Tunisia local short form: Tunis local long form: Al Jumhuriyah at Tunisiyah
Government type: republic
Capital: Tunis
Administrative divisions: 24 governorates; Ariana (Aryanah), Beja (Bajah), Ben Arous (Bin 'Arus), Bizerte (Banzart), Gabes (Qabis), Gafsa (Qafsah), Jendouba (Jundubah), Kairouan (Al Qayrawan), Kasserine (Al Qasrayn), Kebili (Qibili), Kef (Al Kaf), Mahdia (Al Mahdiyah), Manouba (Manubah), Medenine (Madanin), Monastir (Al Munastir), Nabeul (Nabul), Sfax (Safaqis), Sidi Bou Zid (Sidi Bu Zayd), Siliana (Silyanah), Sousse (Susah), Tataouine (Tatawin), Tozeur (Tawzar), Tunis, Zaghouan (Zaghwan)
Independence: 20 March 1956 (from France)
National holiday: Independence Day, 20 March (1956)
Constitution: 1 June 1959; amended 12 July 1988
Legal system: based on French civil law system and Islamic law; some judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session
Suffrage: 20 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (since 7 November 1987) head of government: Prime Minister Mohamed GHANNOUCHI (since 17 November 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI reelected for a third term without opposition; percent of vote - Zine El Abidine BEN ALI nearly 100%
Legislative branch: unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Majlis al-Nuwaab (182 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - RCD 92%; seats by party - RCD 148, MDS 13, UDU 7, PUP 7, Al-Tajdid 5, PSL 2; note - reforms enabled opposition parties to win up to 20% of seats, increasing the number of seats they hold from 19 in the last election to 34 now
Judicial branch: Court of Cassation or Cour de Cassation
Political parties and leaders: Al-Tajdid Movement [Adel CHAOUCH]; Constitutional Democratic Rally Party (Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique) or RCD [President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (official ruling party)]; Liberal Social Party or PSL [Mounir BEJI]; Movement of Democratic Socialists or MDS [Khamis CHAMMARI]; Popular Unity Party or PUP [Mohamed Belhaj AMOR]; Unionist Democratic Union or UDU [Abderrahmane TLILI]
Political pressure groups and leaders: the Islamic fundamentalist party, Al Nahda (Renaissance), is outlawed
International organization participation: ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, BSEC (observer), ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OAU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Hatem ATALLAH FAX: [1] (202) 862-1858 telephone: [1] (202) 862-1850 chancery: 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Rust M. DEMING embassy: Zone Nord-Est des Berges du Lac Nord de Tunis, 2045 La Goulette, Tunisia mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [216] 71 782-566 FAX: [216] 71 789-719
Flag description: red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam
Economy Tunisia
Economy - overview: Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Governmental control of economic affairs while still heavy has gradually lessened over the past decade with increasing privatization, simplification of the tax structure, and a prudent approach to debt. Real growth averaged 5.4% in 1997-2001 but slowed to 1.9% in 2002 because of agricultural drought, slow investment, and lackluster tourism. Increased rainfall portends higher growth levels for 2003, but continued regional tension from the war in Iraq will most likely continue to suppress tourism earnings. Tunisia has agreed to gradually remove barriers to trade with the European Union over the next decade. Broader privatization, further liberalization of the investment code to increase foreign investment, improvements in government efficiency, and reduction of the trade deficit are among the challenges for the future.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $67.13 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.8% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 12% industry: 32% services: 56% (2003 est.)
Population below poverty line: 6% (2000 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 31.8% (1995)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 41.7 (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (2002 est.)
Labor force: 2.69 million note: shortage of skilled labor (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: services 55%, industry 23%, agriculture 22% (1995 est.)
Unemployment rate: 15.4% (2002 est.)
Budget: revenues: $5.2 billion expenditures: $5.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.6 billion (2002 est.)
Industries: petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, agribusiness, beverages
Industrial production growth rate: 3.5% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production: 10.48 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 99.5% hydro: 0.5% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 9.748 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: 1 million kWh (2001)
Oil - production: 72,580 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 87,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA (2001)
Oil - imports: NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves: 417 million bbl (37257)
Natural gas - production: 2.25 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 3.83 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 1.58 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 77.16 billion cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products: olives, olive oil, grain, dairy products, tomatoes, citrus fruit, beef, sugar beets, dates, almonds
Exports: $6.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities: textiles, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, agricultural products, hydrocarbons
Exports - partners: France 31.3%, Italy 21.6%, Germany 11.5%, Spain 4.8%, Libya 4.7%, Belgium 4.3% (2002)
Imports: $8.7 billion f.o.b. (2002)
Imports - commodities: textiles, machinery and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, food
Imports - partners: France 25.6%, Italy 19.5%, Germany 8.9%, Spain 5% (2002)
Debt - external: $13.6 billion (2003 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $222.7 million (2000)
Currency: Tunisian dinar (TND)
Currency code: TND
Exchange rates: Tunisian dinars per US dollar - 1.42 (2002), 1.44 (2001), 1.37 (2000), 1.19 (1999), 1.14 (1998)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Tunisia
Telephones - main lines in use: 654,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 50,000 (1998)
Telephone system: general assessment: above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; Internet access available domestic: trunk facilities consist of open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel; two international gateway digital switches
Radio broadcast stations: AM 7, FM 20, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: 2.06 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 26 (plus 76 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 920,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .tn
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)
Internet users: 400,000 (2002)
Transportation Tunisia
Railways: total: 2,152 km standard gauge: 468 km 1.435-m gauge dual gauge: 10 km 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (three rails) (2002) narrow gauge: 1,674 km 1.000-m gauge (65 km electrified)
Highways: total: 18,997 km paved: 12,310 km (including 142 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,687 km (2000)
Waterways: none
Pipelines: gas 3,059 km; oil 1,203 km; refined products 345 km (2003)
Ports and harbors: Bizerte, Gabes, La Goulette, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis, Zarzis
Merchant marine: total: 14 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 139,990 GRT/148,394 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 3, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.)
Airports: 30 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 14 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 16 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 7 (2002)
Military Tunisia
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces, National Guard
Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,866,984 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 1,629,241 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 106,513 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $356 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.5% (FY99)
Transnational Issues Tunisia
Disputes - international: none
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Turkey
Introduction Turkey
Background: Present-day Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter, the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN, and in 1952 it became a member of NATO. Turkey intervened militarily on Cyprus in 1974 to protect Turkish Cypriots and prevent a Greek takeover of the island; the northern 37 percent of the island remains under Turkish Cypriot control. Relations between the two countries remain strained, but have begun to improve over the past few years. In 1984, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Marxist-Leninist, separatist group, initiated an insurgency in southeast Turkey, often using terrorist tactics to try to attain its goal of an independent Kurdistan. The group - whose leader, Abdullah OCALAN, was captured in Kenya in February 1999 - has observed a unilateral cease-fire since September 1999, although there have been occasional clashes between Turkish military units and some of the 4,000-5,000 armed PKK militants, most of whom currently are encamped in northern Iraq. The PKK changed its name to the Kurdistan Freedom and Democracy Congress (KADEK) in April 2002.
Geography Turkey
Location: southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
Geographic coordinates: 39 00 N, 35 00 E
Map references: Middle East
Area: total: 780,580 sq km water: 9,820 sq km land: 770,760 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Texas
Land boundaries: total: 2,648 km border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km
Coastline: 7,200 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: in Black Sea only: to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the former USSR territorial sea: 6 NM in the Aegean Sea; 12 NM in Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea
Climate: temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
Terrain: high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain ranges
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m
Natural resources: antimony, coal, chromium, mercury, copper, borate, sulfur, iron ore, arable land, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 34.53% permanent crops: 3.36% other: 62.11% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 42,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: very severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van
Environment - current issues: water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Environmental Modification
Geography - note: strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas; Mount Ararat, the legendary landing place of Noah's Ark, is in the far eastern portion of the country
People Turkey
Population: 68,109,469 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 27.2% (male 9,422,242; female 9,082,840) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 22,978,251; female 22,243,477) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 2,013,926; female 2,368,733) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 26.8 years male: 26.7 years female: 27 years (2002)
Population growth rate: 1.16% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 17.59 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 5.95 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 44.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 47.91 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.8 years male: 69.41 years female: 74.3 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.03 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% - note: no country specific models provided (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Turk(s) adjective: Turkish
Ethnic groups: Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20% (estimated)
Religions: Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)
Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.5% male: 94.3% female: 78.7% (2003 est.)
Government Turkey
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Turkey conventional short form: Turkey local long form: Turkiye Cumhuriyeti local short form: Turkiye
Government type: republican parliamentary democracy
Capital: Ankara
Administrative divisions: 81 provinces (iller, singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Duzce, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Igdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak
Independence: 29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)
National holiday: Independence Day, 29 October (1923)
Constitution: 7 November 1982
Legal system: derived from various European continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Ahmet Necdet SEZER (since 16 May 2000) elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a seven-year term; election last held 5 May 2000 (next to be held NA May 2007); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president note: a National Security Council serves as an advisory body to the government composed of top military and cabinet officials and presided over by the president cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister head of government: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (14 March 2003); note - Abdullah GUL resigned 11 March 2003; Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN was given a mandate to form a new government election results: Ahmed Necdet SEZER elected president on the third ballot; percent of National Assembly vote - 60% note: president must have a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly on the first two ballots and a simple majority on the third ballot
Legislative branch: unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi (550 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 November 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); note - a special rerun of the General Election in the province of Siirt on 9 March 2003 resulted in the election of Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN to a seat in parliament, a prerequisite for becoming prime minister on 13 March 2003 election results: percent of vote by party - AKP 34.3%, CHP 19.4%, DYP 9.6%, MHP 8.3%, ANAP 5.1%, DSP 1.1%, and others; seats by party - AKP 363, CHP 178, independents 9; note - parties surpassing the 10% threshold are entitled to parliamentary seats
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeals and Council of State (judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors)
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Left Party or DSP [Bulent ECEVIT]; Justice and Development Party or AKP [Recep Tayip ERDOGAN]; Motherland Party or ANAP [Ahmet Mesut YILMAZ]; Nationalist Action Party or MHP [Devlet BAHCELI]; Republican People's Party or CHP [Deniz BAYKAL]; True Path Party (sometimes translated as Correct Way Party) or DYP [Tansu CILLER]; Young Party or GP [Cem UZAN]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Confederation of Public Sector Unions or KESK [Sami EVREN]; Confederation of Revolutionary Workers Unions or DISK [Suleyman CELEBI]; Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or MUSIAD [Erol YARAR]; Moral Rights Workers Union or Hak-Is [Salim USLU]; Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TUSIAD [Muharrem KAYHAN]; Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions or TISK [Refik BAYDUR]; Turkish Confederation of Labor or Turk-Is [Bayram MERAL]; Turkish Confederation of Tradesmen and Craftsmen or TESK [Dervis GUNDAY; Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity Exchanges or TOBB [M. Rifat HISARCIKLIOGLU]
International organization participation: AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CERN (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Osman Faruk LOGOGLU FAX: [1] (202) 612-6744 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York chancery: 2525 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-6700
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Eric S. EDELMAN embassy: 110 Ataturk Boulevard, Kavaklidere, 06100 Ankara mailing address: PSC 93, Box 5000, APO AE 09823 telephone: [90] (312) 455-5555 FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019 consulate(s) general: Istanbul consulate(s): Adana; note - there is a Consular Agent in Izmir
Flag description: red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening
Economy Turkey
Economy - overview: Turkey's dynamic economy is a complex mix of modern industry and commerce along with a traditional agriculture sector that in 2001 still accounted for 40% of employment. It has a strong and rapidly growing private sector, yet the state still plays a major role in basic industry, banking, transport, and communication. The most important industry - and largest exporter - is textiles and clothing, which is almost entirely in private hands. In recent years the economic situation has been marked by erratic economic growth and serious imbalances. Real GNP growth has exceeded 6% in many years, but this strong expansion has been interrupted by sharp declines in output in 1994, 1999, and 2001. Meanwhile, the public sector fiscal deficit has regularly exceeded 10% of GDP - due in large part to the huge burden of interest payments, which account for more than 50% of central government spending. Inflation, in recent years in the high double-digit range, fell to 26% in 2003. Perhaps because of these problems, foreign direct investment in Turkey remains low - less than $1 billion annually. In late 2000 and early 2001 a growing trade deficit and serious weaknesses in the banking sector plunged the economy into crisis - forcing Turkey to float the lira and pushing the country into recession. Results in 2002-03 were much better, because of strong financial support from the IMF and tighter fiscal policy. Continued slow global growth and serious political tensions in the Middle East could result in negative growth in 2004.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $489.7 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 7.8% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,300 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 12.9% industry: 30.4% services: 56.7% (2001)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 32.3% (1994)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 41.5 (1994)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 45.2% (2002 est.)
Labor force: 23.8 million note: about 1.2 million Turks work abroad (2001 3rd quarter)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 39.7%, services 37.9%, industry 22.4% (3rd quarter, 2001)
Unemployment rate: 10.8% (plus underemployment of 6.1%) (2002 est.)
Budget: revenues: $42.4 billion expenditures: $69.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001)
Industries: textiles, food processing, autos, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper
Industrial production growth rate: 8.5% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production: 116.6 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 79.3% hydro: 20.4% other: 0.3% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 112.6 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports: 433 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports: 4.579 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production: 48,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 619,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: 46,110 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: 616,500 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - proved reserves: 288.4 million bbl (37257)
Natural gas - production: 312 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 15.94 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 15.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 8.685 billion cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products: tobacco, cotton, grain, olives, sugar beets, pulse, citrus; livestock
Exports: $35.1 billion f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities: apparel, foodstuffs, textiles, metal manufactures, transport equipment
Exports - partners: Germany 16.6%, US 9.2%, UK 8.5%, Italy 6.4%, France 6% (2002)
Imports: $50.8 billion c.i.f. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery, chemicals, semi-finished goods, fuels, transport equipment
Imports - partners: Germany 13.7%, Italy 8.1%, Russia 7.6%, US 6%, France 5.9%, UK 4.8%, Switzerland 4.1% (2002)
Debt - external: $118.3 billion (Yearend 2001)
Economic aid - recipient: ODA, $300 million (2000)
Currency: Turkish lira (TRL)
Currency code: TRL
Exchange rates: NA (2002), 1,225,590 (2001), 625,218 (2000), 418,783 (1999), 260,724 (1998), 151,865 (1997)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Turkey
Telephones - main lines in use: 19.5 million (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 17.1 million (2001)
Telephone system: general assessment: undergoing rapid modernization and expansion, especially with cellular telephones domestic: additional digital exchanges are permitting a rapid increase in subscribers; the construction of a network of technologically advanced intercity trunk lines, using both fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay is facilitating communication between urban centers; remote areas are reached by a domestic satellite system; the number of subscribers to mobile cellular telephone service is growing rapidly international: international service is provided by three submarine fiber-optic cables in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, linking Turkey with Italy, Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, Romania, and Russia; also by 12 Intelsat earth stations, and by 328 mobile satellite terminals in the Inmarsat and Eutelsat systems (2002)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 16, FM 107, shortwave 6 (2001)
Radios: 11.3 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 635 (plus 2,934 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 20.9 million (1997)
Internet country code: .tr
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 50 (2001)
Internet users: 2.5 million (2002)
Transportation Turkey
Railways: total: 8,607 km standard gauge: 8,607 km 1.435-m gauge (2,131 km electrified) (2002)
Highways: total: 385,960 km paved: 131,226 km (including 1,749 km of expressways) unpaved: 254,734 km (1999)
Waterways: 1,200 km (approximately)
Pipelines: gas 3,177 km; oil 3,562 km (2003)
Ports and harbors: Gemlik, Hopa, Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Kocaeli (Izmit), Icel (Mersin), Samsun, Trabzon
Merchant marine: total: 525 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,306,506 GRT/8,424,837 DWT ships by type: bulk 125, cargo 229, chemical tanker 44, combination bulk 3, combination ore/oil 3, container 34, liquefied gas 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 35, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 26, short-sea passenger 10, specialized tanker 5 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belize 1, Cyprus 1, Denmark 2, Greece 1, Italy 1, Thailand 1, UK 11 (2002 est.)
Airports: 120 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 86 over 3,047 m: 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 30 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 5 (2002) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 34 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 24 (2002) 914 to 1,523 m: 8
Heliports: 8 (2002)
Military Turkey
Military branches: Land Forces, Navy (includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force, Coast Guard, Gendarmerie
Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 19,534,455 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 11,801,267 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 679,882 (2003 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $8.1 billion (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 4.5% (2002 est.)
Transnational Issues Turkey
Disputes - international: complex maritime, air, and territorial disputes with Greece in the Aegean Sea; Cyprus question remains with Greece; Syria and Iraq protest Turkish hydrological projects to control upper Euphrates waters; Turkey is quick to rebuff any perceived Syrian claim to Hatay province; border with Armenia remains closed over Nagorno-Karabakh
Illicit drugs: key transit route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe and - to a far lesser extent the US - via air, land, and sea routes; major Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003
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@Turkmenistan
Introduction Turkmenistan
Background: Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1925. It achieved its independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. President NIYAZOV retains absolute control over the country and opposition is not tolerated. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects can be worked out.
Geography Turkmenistan
Location: Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 60 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area: total: 488,100 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 488,100 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than California
Land boundaries: total: 3,736 km border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km
Coastline: 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: subtropical desert
Terrain: flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya -81 m; note - Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya (the lake has dropped as low as -110 m) highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt
Land use: arable land: 3.47% permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.39% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 17,500 sq km (2003 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salination, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: landlocked; the western and central low-lying, desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau
People Turkmenistan
Population: 4,775,544 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 36.8% (male 899,954; female 855,293) 15-64 years: 59.2% (male 1,386,606; female 1,438,333) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 74,958; female 120,400) (2003 est.)
Median age: total: 21.1 years male: 20.2 years female: 22 years (2002)
Population growth rate: 1.82% (2003 est.)
Birth rate: 28.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate: 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 73.17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 69.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 61.19 years male: 57.72 years female: 64.84 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.5 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: less than 100 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Turkmen(s) adjective: Turkmen
Ethnic groups: Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazakh 2%, other 5.1% (1995)
Religions: Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%
Languages: Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.)
Government Turkmenistan
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic local short form: Turkmenistan
Government type: republic
Capital: Ashgabat
Administrative divisions: 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dashoguz Welayaty, Lebap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
Independence: 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 27 October (1991)
Constitution: adopted 18 May 1992
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992 (next to be held NA); note - President NIYAZOV was unanimously approved as president for life by the Assembly on 28 December 1999); deputy chairmen of the cabinet of ministers are appointed by the president election results: Saparmurat NIYAZOV elected president without opposition; percent of vote - Saparmurat NIYAZOV 99.5% note: NIYAZOV's term in office was extended indefinitely on 28 December 1999 by the Assembly (Majlis) during a session of the People's Council (Halk Maslahaty)
Legislative branch: under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (more than 100 seats, some of which are elected by popular vote and some of which are appointed; meets at least yearly) and a unicameral Assembly or Majlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) election results: Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - all 50 elected officials preapproved by President NIYAZOV; most are from the DPT elections: People's Council - NA; Assembly - last held 12 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president)
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT [Saparmurat NIYAZOV] note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries; the two most prominent opposition groups-in-exile have been Gundogar and Erkin; Gundogar was led by former Foreign Minister Boris SHIKHUMRADOV until his arrest and imprisonment in the wake of the 25 November 2002 assassination attempt on President NIYAZOV; Erkin is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based out of Moscow
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Mered Bairamovich ORAZOV FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Tracey A. JACOBSON embassy: 9 Pushkin Street, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45 FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14
Flag description: green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five carpet guls (designs used in producing rugs) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon and five white stars appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe
Economy Turkmenistan
Economy - overview: Turkmenistan is largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and large gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton, making it the world's tenth-largest producer. With an authoritarian ex-Communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. Privatization goals remain limited. In 1998-2003, Turkmenistan suffered from the continued lack of adequate export routes for natural gas and from obligations on extensive short-term external debt. At the same time, however, total exports rose by 38% in 2003, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, the burden of foreign debt, and the unwillingness of the government to adopt market-oriented reforms. However, Turkmenistan's cooperation with the international community in transporting humanitarian aid to Afghanistan may foreshadow a change in the atmosphere for foreign investment, aid, and technological support. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In any event, GDP increased substantially in 2003 because of a strong recovery in agriculture and rapid industrial growth. |
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