Geography - note: strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe

People Iceland

Population: 293,966 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 22.5% (male 33,522; female 32,489) 15-64 years: 65.8% (male 98,091; female 95,450) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 15,552; female 18,862) (2004 est.)

Median age: total: 33.8 years male: 33.3 years female: 34.3 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.97% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 13.83 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 3.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 3.44 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 80.18 years male: 78.18 years female: 82.27 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.93 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.2% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 220 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (2003 est.)

Nationality: noun: Icelander(s) adjective: Icelandic

Ethnic groups: homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6%

Religions: Evangelical Lutheran 87.1%, other Protestant 4.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, other 7.1% (2002)

Languages: Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.9% (1997 est.) male: NA female: NA

Government Iceland

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Iceland conventional short form: Iceland local short form: Island local long form: Lydhveldidh Island

Government type: constitutional republic

Capital: Reykjavik

Administrative divisions: 8 regions; Austurland, Hofudhborgarsvaedhi, Nordhurland Eystra, Nordhurland Vestra, Sudhurland, Sudhurnes, Vestfirdhir, Vesturland

Independence: 1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark)

National holiday: Independence Day, 17 June (1944)

Constitution: 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944

Legal system: civil law system based on Danish law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON (since 1 August 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Halldor ASGRIMSSON (since 15 September 2004); note - Former Prime Minister David ODDSSON switched positions with former Foreign Minister Halldor ASGRIMMSON cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: president, which is largely a ceremonial post, elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 June 2004 (next to be held June 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON wins with 85.6% of the vote, Baldur AGUSTSSON 12.5%, Astthor MAGNUSSON 1.9%

Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament or Althing (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 10 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Independence Party 33.7%, Social Democratic Alliance 31.0%, Progressive Party 17.7%, Left-Green Alliance 8.8%, Liberal Party 7.4%; seats by party - Independence Party 22, Social Democratic Alliance 20, Progressive Party 12, Left-Green Alliance 5, Liberal Party 4

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice)

Political parties and leaders: Independence Party or IP [David ODDSSON]; Left-Green Alliance or LGP [Steingrimur SIGFUSSON]; Liberal Party or LP [Gudjon KRISTJANSSON]; Progressive Party or PP [Halldor ASGRIMSSON]; Social Democratic Alliance (includes People's Alliance or PA, Social Democratic Party or SDP, Women's List) or SDA [Ossur SKARPHEDINSSON]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Helgi AGUSTSSON consulate(s) general: New York FAX: [1] (202) 265-6656 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6653 chancery: Suite 1200, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1704

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador James I. GADSDEN embassy: Laufasvegur 21, 101 Reykjavik mailing address: US Embassy, PSC 1003, Box 40, FPO AE 09728-0340 telephone: [354] 562-9100 FAX: [354] 562-9118

Flag description: blue with a red cross outlined in white extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag)

Economy Iceland

Economy - overview: Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural resources (except for abundant geothermal power), the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides 70% of export earnings and employs 12% of the work force. The economy remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon. Government policies include reducing the budget and current account deficits, limiting foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and fishing policies, diversifying the economy, and privatizing state-owned industries. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism and whale watching. Growth had been remarkably steady in 1996-2001 at 3%-5%, but could not be sustained in 2002 in an environment of global recession. Growth resumed in 2003, and inflation dropped back from 5% to 2%.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $8.678 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 2.6% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $30,900 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 9.2% (includes fishing 12%) industry: 26.7% services: 64.2% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 21.6% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line: NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.1% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 160,000 (2003)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 5.1%, fishing and fish processing 11.8%, manufacturing 12.9%, construction 10.7%, services 59.5% (1999)

Unemployment rate: 3.4% (2003 est.)

Budget: revenues: $4.205 billion expenditures: $4.405 billion, including capital expenditures of $467 million (2003)

Public debt: 41.5% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products: potatoes, green vegetables, mutton, dairy products, fish

Industries: fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production, geothermal power; tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 8.1% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production: 7.894 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption: 7.341 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption: 16,300 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: 0 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports: 15,470 bbl/day (2001)

Current account balance: $-574 million (2003)

Exports: $2.379 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities: fish and fish products 70%, animal products, aluminum, diatomite, ferrosilicon

Exports - partners: Germany 17.4%, UK 17.4%, Netherlands 11.2%, US 9.8%, Spain 6.3%, Denmark 5%, Norway 4.5%, France 4% (2003)

Imports: $2.59 billion (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, petroleum products; foodstuffs, textiles

Imports - partners: Germany 11.8%, Denmark 8%, US 7.5%, UK 7.5%, Norway 7%, Sweden 6.5%, Netherlands 6.2%, Italy 4.7% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $818.7 million (2003)

Debt - external: $2.6 billion (1999)

Economic aid - donor: NA

Currency: Icelandic krona (ISK)

Currency code: ISK

Exchange rates: Icelandic kronur per US dollar - 76.709 (2003), 91.6617 (2002), 97.4246 (2001), 78.6159 (2000), 72.3353 (1999)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications Iceland

Telephones - main lines in use: 190,700 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 279,100 (2003)

Telephone system: general assessment: extensive domestic service domestic: the trunk network consists of coaxial and fiber-optic cables and microwave radio relay links international: country code - 354; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Iceland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998)

Radios: 260,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 14 (plus 156 low-power repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 98,000 (1997)

Internet country code: .is

Internet hosts: 122,175 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 20 (2001)

Internet users: 195,000 (2003)

Transportation Iceland

Highways: total: 12,955 km paved/oiled gravel: 3,863 km unpaved: 9,092 km (2003)

Ports and harbors: Akureyri, Hornafjordhur, Isafjordhur, Keflavik, Raufarhofn, Reykjavik, Seydhisfjordhur, Straumsvik, Vesttmannaeyjar

Merchant marine: total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,341 GRT/6,019 DWT registered in other countries: 26 (2004 est.) by type: petroleum tanker 1

Airports: 100 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 5 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 93 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 61 (2004 est.)

Military Iceland

Military branches: no regular armed forces; Police, Coast Guard

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 75,568 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 66,503 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: 0

Military - note: defense is provided by the US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered at Keflavik

Transnational Issues Iceland

Disputes - international: Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area) remains dormant; dispute with Denmark over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 nm; disputes with Denmark, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 nm

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005



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@India

Introduction India

Background: The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world, dates back at least 5,000 years. Aryan tribes from the northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkish in the 12th were followed by European traders, beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands. Indian armed forces in the British army played a vital role in both World Wars. Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism under Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU led to independence in 1947. The subcontinent was divided into the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. Fundamental concerns in India include the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir, massive overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and ethnic and religious strife, all this despite impressive gains in economic investment and output.

Geography India

Location: Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates: 20 00 N, 77 00 E

Map references: Asia

Area: total: 3,287,590 sq km land: 2,973,190 sq km water: 314,400 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly more than one-third the size of the US

Land boundaries: total: 14,103 km border countries: Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605 km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380 km, Nepal 1,690 km, Pakistan 2,912 km

Coastline: 7,000 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate: varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

Terrain: upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Kanchenjunga 8,598 m

Natural resources: coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land

Land use: arable land: 54.4% permanent crops: 2.74% other: 42.86% (2001)

Irrigated land: 590,000 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes

Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; desertification; air pollution from industrial effluents and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage and runoff of agricultural pesticides; tap water is not potable throughout the country; huge and growing population is overstraining natural resources

Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes

People India

Population: 1,065,070,607 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 31.7% (male 173,869,856; female 164,003,915) 15-64 years: 63.5% (male 349,785,804; female 326,289,402) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 25,885,725; female 25,235,905) (2004 est.)

Median age: total: 24.4 years male: 24.4 years female: 24.4 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.44% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 22.8 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 8.38 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 57.92 deaths/1,000 live births female: 57.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 58.52 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 63.99 years male: 63.25 years female: 64.77 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.85 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.8% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 3.97 million (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 310,000 (2001 est.)

Nationality: noun: Indian(s) adjective: Indian

Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000)

Religions: Hindu 81.3%, Muslim 12%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi 2.5% (2000)

Languages: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 59.5% male: 70.2% female: 48.3% (2003 est.)

Government India

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of India conventional short form: India

Government type: federal republic

Capital: New Delhi

Administrative divisions: 28 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal

Independence: 15 August 1947 (from UK)

National holiday: Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

Constitution: 26 January 1950

Legal system: based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President Abdul KALAM (since 26 July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT (since 19 August 2002) elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and the legislatures of the states for a five-year term; election last held NA July 2002 (next to be held 18 July 2007); vice president elected by both houses of Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 12 August 2002 (next to be held NA August 2007); prime minister chosen by parliamentary members of the majority party following legislative elections; election last held April - May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) head of government: Prime Minister Manmohan SINGH (since NA May 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister election results: Abdul KALAM elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 89.6%; Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT elected vice president; percent of Parliament vote - 59.8%

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya Sabha (a body consisting of not more than 250 members, up to 12 of which are appointed by the president, the remainder are chosen by the elected members of the state and territorial assemblies; members serve six-year terms) and the People's Assembly or Lok Sabha (545 seats; 543 elected by popular vote, 2 appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms) elections: People's Assembly - last held 20 April through 10 May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - INC 145, BJP 138, CPI(M) 43, SP 36, RJD 21, BSP 19, DMK 16, SS 12, BJD 11, CPI 10, NCP 9, JDU 8, SAD 8, PMK 6, TDP 5, TRS 5, JMM 5, LJSP 4, MDMK 4, independents 5, other 30

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president and remain in office until they reach the age of 65)

Political parties and leaders: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [C. Jayalalitha JAYARAM]; All India Forward Bloc or AIFB, [D. BISWAS, general secretary]; Asom Gana Parishad [Brindaban GOSWAMI]; Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]; Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Venkaiah NAIDU]; Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]; Communist Party of India or CPI [Ardhendu Bhushan BARDHAN]; Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist or CPI/ML [Dipankar BHATTACHARYA]; Congress (I) Party [Sonia GANDHI]; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham or DMK (a regional party in Tamil Nadu) [M. KARUNANIDHI]; Indian National Congress or INC [leader NA]; Indian National League [Suliaman SAITH]; Janata Dal (Secular) [H. D. Deve GOWDA]; Janata Dal (United) or JDU [Sharad YADAV]; Jharkhand Mukti Morcha or JMM [leader NA]; Kerala Congress (Mani faction) [K. M. MANI]; Lok Jan Shakti Party or LSP [leader NA]; Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or MDMK [VAIKO]; Muslim League [G. M. BANATWALA]; Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]; Pattali Makkal Katchi or PMK [leader NA]; Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Laloo Prasad YADAV]; Revolutionary Socialist Party or RSP [Abani ROY]; Samajwadi Party or SP [Mulayam Singh YADAV]; Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [G. S. TOHRA]; Shiv Sena or SS [Bal THACKERAY]; Tamil Maanila Congress [G. K. VASAN]; Telangana Rashtra Samithi or TRS [leader NA]; Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU]; Trinamool Congress [Mamata BANERJEE]

Political pressure groups and leaders: numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy, including the All Parties Hurriyat Conference

International organization participation: AfDB, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, C, CERN (observer), CP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Ranendra SEN consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New York, and San Francisco FAX: [1] (202) 265-4351 telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000 chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador David C. MULFORD embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000 FAX: [91] (11) 2419-0017 consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay)

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange) (top), white, and green with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band

Economy India

Economy - overview: India's economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of support services. Government controls have been reduced on foreign trade and investment, and privatization of domestic output has proceeded slowly. The economy has posted an excellent average growth rate of 6% since 1990, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers. Despite strong growth, the World Bank and others worry about the continuing public-sector budget deficit, running at approximately 60% of GDP.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $3.033 trillion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 8.3% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 23.6% industry: 28.4% services: 48% (2002 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 23.1% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line: 25% (2002 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.5% highest 10%: 33.5% (1997)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 37.8 (1997)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.8% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 472 million (2003)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 60%, industry 17%, services 23% (1999)

Unemployment rate: 9.5% (2003)

Budget: revenues: $86.69 billion expenditures: $114.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $13.5 billion (2003)

Public debt: 59.7% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products: rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

Industries: textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software

Industrial production growth rate: 6.5% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production: 533.3 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption: 497.2 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports: 321 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports: 1.54 billion kWh (2001)

Oil - production: 732,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption: 2.13 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: NA (2001)

Oil - imports: NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves: 4.33 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production: 22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 542.4 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance: $3.41 billion (2003)

Exports: $57.24 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities: textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures

Exports - partners: US 20.6%, China 6.4%, UK 5.3%, Hong Kong 4.8%, Germany 4.4% (2003)

Imports: $74.15 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities: crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals

Imports - partners: US 6.4%, Belgium 5.6%, UK 4.8%, China 4.3%, Singapore 4% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $102.3 billion (2003)

Debt - external: $101.7 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $2.9 billion (FY98/99)

Currency: Indian rupee (INR)

Currency code: INR

Exchange rates: Indian rupees per US dollar - 46.5806 (2003), 48.6103 (2002), 47.1864 (2001), 44.9416 (2000), 43.0554 (1999)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Communications India

Telephones - main lines in use: 48.917 million (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 26,154,400 (2003)

Telephone system: general assessment: recent deregulation and liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies have prompted rapid change; local and long distance service provided throughout all regions of the country, with services primarily concentrated in the urban areas; steady improvement is taking place with the recent admission of private and private-public investors, but telephone density remains low at about seven for each 100 persons nationwide but only one per 100 persons in rural areas and a national waiting list of over 1.7 million; fastest growth is in cellular service with modest growth in fixed lines domestic: expansion of domestic service, although still weak in rural areas, resulted from increased competition and dramatic reductions in price led in large part by wireless service; mobile cellular service (both CDMA and GSM) introduced in 1994 and organized nationwide into four metropolitan cities and 19 telecom circles each with about three private service providers and one state-owned service provider; in recent years significant trunk capacity added in the form of fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest domestic satellite systems, the Indian National Satellite system (INSAT), with 5 satellites supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT) international: country code - 91; satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); nine gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam; 5 submarine cables, including Sea-Me-We-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay), Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East (SAFE) with landing site at Cochin, i2icn linking to Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic (2004)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 153, FM 91, shortwave 68 (1998)

Radios: 116 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 562 (of which 82 stations have 1 kW or greater power and 480 stations have less than 1 kW of power) (1997)

Televisions: 63 million (1997)

Internet country code: .in

Internet hosts: 86,871 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 43 (2000)

Internet users: 18.481 million (2003)

Transportation India

Railways: total: 63,140 km (15,994 km electrified) broad gauge: 45,099 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 14,776 km 1.000-m gauge; 3,265 km 0.762-m gauge and 0.610-m gauge (2003)

Highways: total: 3,319,644 km paved: 1,517,077 km unpaved: 1,802,567 km (1999 est.)

Waterways: 14,500 km note: 5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels (2004)

Pipelines: gas 6,171 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,195 km; oil 5,613 km; refined products 5,567 km (2004)

Ports and harbors: Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Vishakhapatnam

Merchant marine: total: 306 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,555,507 GRT/11,069,791 DWT by type: bulk 90, cargo 77, chemical tanker 14, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 2, container 10, liquefied gas 10, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 93, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 1 registered in other countries: 63 (2004 est.) foreign-owned: China 2, Portugal 1

Airports: 333 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 234 over 3,047 m: 14 2,438 to 3,047 m: 47 914 to 1,523 m: 74 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 78

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 99 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 under 914 m: 45 (2004 est.) 914 to 1,523 m: 42

Heliports: 20 (2003 est.)

Military India

Military branches: Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard, various security or paramilitary forces (including Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, National Security Guards, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Special Frontier Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Railway Protection Force, and Defense Security Corps)

Military manpower - military age and obligation: 16 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 293,677,117 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 172,153,371 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 11,174,415 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $14,018.8 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.4% (2003)

Transnational Issues India

Disputes - international: Kashmir remains the world's most highly militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas), but recent discussions and confidence-building measures among parties are beginning to defuse tensions; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding lands to China in the 1965 boundary agreement; disputes with Pakistan over Indus River water sharing and the terminus of the Sir Creek Estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch, which prevents maritime boundary delimitation; Pakistani maps continue to show Junagadh claim in Indian Gujarat State; most of the rugged, militarized boundary with China is in dispute, but sides have committed to begin resolution with discussions on the least disputed Middle Sector; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to work on resolution of minor disputed boundary sections; discussions with Bangladesh remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, to exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, to allocate divided villages, and to stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, and violence; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; dispute with Bangladesh over volcanic New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; India seeks cooperation from Bhutan and Burma to keep out Indian Nagaland insurgents; joint border commission continues to work on small disputed sections of boundary with Nepal; India has instituted a stricter border regime to restrict transit of Maoist insurgents and illegal cross-border activities from Nepal

Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): 92,394 (China), 60,922 (Sri Lanka) IDPs: 650,000 (Jammu and Kashmir conflicts; most IDPs are Kashmiri Hindus) (2004)

Illicit drugs: world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; transit point for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries; illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through the hawala system

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005



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@Indian Ocean

Introduction Indian Ocean

Background: The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, but larger than the Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean). Four critically important access waterways are the Suez Canal (Egypt), Bab el Mandeb (Djibouti-Yemen), Strait of Hormuz (Iran-Oman), and Strait of Malacca (Indonesia-Malaysia). The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Indian Ocean south of 60 degrees south.

Geography Indian Ocean

Location: body of water between Africa, the Southern Ocean, Asia, and Australia

Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 80 00 E

Map references: Political Map of the World

Area: total: 68.556 million sq km note: includes Andaman Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, Flores Sea, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Java Sea, Mozambique Channel, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Savu Sea, Strait of Malacca, Timor Sea, and other tributary water bodies

Area - comparative: about 5.5 times the size of the US

Coastline: 66,526 km

Climate: northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/June and October/November in the northern Indian Ocean and January/February in the southern Indian Ocean

Terrain: surface dominated by counterclockwise gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the southern Indian Ocean; unique reversal of surface currents in the northern Indian Ocean; low atmospheric pressure over southwest Asia from hot, rising, summer air results in the southwest monsoon and southwest-to-northeast winds and currents, while high pressure over northern Asia from cold, falling, winter air results in the northeast monsoon and northeast-to-southwest winds and currents; ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Indian Ocean Ridge and subdivided by the Southeast Indian Ocean Ridge, Southwest Indian Ocean Ridge, and Ninetyeast Ridge

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Java Trench -7,258 m highest point: sea level 0 m

Natural resources: oil and gas fields, fish, shrimp, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules

Natural hazards: occasional icebergs pose navigational hazard in southern reaches

Environment - current issues: endangered marine species include the dugong, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in the Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Red Sea

Geography - note: major chokepoints include Bab el Mandeb, Strait of Hormuz, Strait of Malacca, southern access to the Suez Canal, and the Lombok Strait



Economy Indian Ocean

Economy - overview: The Indian Ocean provides major sea routes connecting the Middle East, Africa, and East Asia with Europe and the Americas. It carries a particularly heavy traffic of petroleum and petroleum products from the oilfields of the Persian Gulf and Indonesia. Its fish are of great and growing importance to the bordering countries for domestic consumption and export. Fishing fleets from Russia, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan also exploit the Indian Ocean, mainly for shrimp and tuna. Large reserves of hydrocarbons are being tapped in the offshore areas of Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, and western Australia. An estimated 40% of the world's offshore oil production comes from the Indian Ocean. Beach sands rich in heavy minerals and offshore placer deposits are actively exploited by bordering countries, particularly India, South Africa, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.

Transportation Indian Ocean

Ports and harbors: Chennai (Madras; India), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Durban (South Africa), Jakarta (Indonesia), Kolkata (Calcutta; India) Melbourne (Australia), Mumbai (Bombay; India), Richards Bay (South Africa)

Transnational Issues Indian Ocean

Disputes - international: some maritime disputes (see littoral states)

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005



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@Indonesia

Introduction Indonesia

Background: The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; the islands were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. Indonesia declared its independence after Japan's surrender, but it required four years of intermittent negotiations, recurring hostilities, and UN mediation before the Netherlands agreed to relinquish its colony. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic state. Current issues include: alleviating widespread poverty, preventing terrorism, continuing the transition to popularly-elected governments after four decades of authoritarianism, implementing reforms of the banking sector, addressing charges of cronyism and corruption, holding the military and police accountable for human rights violations, and resolving armed separatist movements in Aceh and Papua.

Geography Indonesia

Location: Southeastern Asia, archipelago between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean

Geographic coordinates: 5 00 S, 120 00 E

Map references: Southeast Asia

Area: total: 1,919,440 sq km water: 93,000 sq km land: 1,826,440 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly less than three times the size of Texas

Land boundaries: total: 2,830 km border countries: East Timor 228 km, Malaysia 1,782 km, Papua New Guinea 820 km

Coastline: 54,716 km

Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate: tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands

Terrain: mostly coastal lowlands; larger islands have interior mountains

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Puncak Jaya 5,030 m

Natural resources: petroleum, tin, natural gas, nickel, timber, bauxite, copper, fertile soils, coal, gold, silver

Land use: arable land: 11.32% permanent crops: 7.23% other: 81.45% (2001)

Irrigated land: 48,150 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: occasional floods, severe droughts, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, forest fires

Environment - current issues: deforestation; water pollution from industrial wastes, sewage; air pollution in urban areas; smoke and haze from forest fires

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note: archipelago of 17,508 islands (6,000 inhabited); straddles equator; strategic location astride or along major sea lanes from Indian Ocean to Pacific Ocean

People Indonesia

Population: 238,452,952 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 29.4% (male 35,635,790; female 34,416,854) 15-64 years: 65.5% (male 78,097,767; female 78,147,909) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 5,308,986; female 6,845,646) (2004 est.)

Median age: total: 26.1 years male: 25.7 years female: 26.6 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.49% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 21.11 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 6.26 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 36.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 31.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 42.09 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.26 years male: 66.84 years female: 71.8 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 110,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 2,400 (2003 est.)

Nationality: noun: Indonesian(s) adjective: Indonesian

Ethnic groups: Javanese 45%, Sundanese 14%, Madurese 7.5%, coastal Malays 7.5%, other 26%

Religions: Muslim 88%, Protestant 5%, Roman Catholic 3%, Hindu 2%, Buddhist 1%, other 1% (1998)

Languages: Bahasa Indonesia (official, modified form of Malay), English, Dutch, local dialects, the most widely spoken of which is Javanese

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 87.9% male: 92.5% female: 83.4% (2002)

Government Indonesia

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Indonesia conventional short form: Indonesia local short form: Indonesia former: Netherlands East Indies; Dutch East Indies local long form: Republik Indonesia

Government type: republic

Capital: Jakarta

Administrative divisions: 30 provinces (propinsi-propinsi, singular - propinsi), 2 special regions* (daerah-daerah istimewa, singular - daerah istimewa), and 1 special capital city district** (daerah khusus ibukota); Aceh*, Bali, Banten, Bengkulu, Gorontalo, Irian Jaya Barat, Jakarta Raya**, Jambi, Jawa Barat, Jawa Tengah, Jawa Timur, Kalimantan Barat, Kalimantan Selatan, Kalimantan Tengah, Kalimantan Timur, Kepulauan Bangka Belitung, Kepulauan Riau, Lampung, Maluku, Maluku Utara, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Nusa Tenggara Timur, Papua, Riau, Sulawesi Barat, Sulawesi Selatan, Sulawesi Tengah, Sulawesi Tenggara, Sulawesi Utara, Sumatera Barat, Sumatera Selatan, Sumatera Utara, Yogyakarta*; note - with the implementation of decentralization on 1 January 2001, the 357 districts or regencies became the key administrative units responsible for providing most government services

Independence: 17 August 1945 (independence proclaimed); 27 December 1949 (Netherlands recognizes Indonesian independence)

National holiday: Independence Day, 17 August (1945)

Constitution: August 1945, abrogated by Federal Constitution of 1949 and Provisional Constitution of 1950, restored 5 July 1959

Legal system: based on Roman-Dutch law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts and by new criminal procedures and election codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 17 years of age; universal and married persons regardless of age

Executive branch: chief of state: President Susilo Bambang YUDHOYONO (since 20 October 2004) and Vice President Muhammad Yusuf KALLA (since 20 October 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government elections: president and vice president were elected by direct vote of the citizenry head of government: President Susilo Bambang YUDHOYONO (since 20 October 2004) and Vice President Muhammad Yusuf KALLA (since 20 October 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president election results: Susilo Bambang YUDHOYONO elected president receiving 60.6% of vote; MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri received 39.4%

Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives or Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR) (550 seats; members serve five-year terms); House of Regional Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Daerah or DPD), constitutionally mandated role includes providing legislative input to DPR on issues affecting regions; People's Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat or MPR) has role in inaugurating and impeaching President and in amending constitution; consists of popularly-elected members in DPR and DPD; MPR does not formulate national policy elections: last held 5 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Golkar 21.6%, PDI-P 18.5%, PKB 10.6%, PPP 8.2%, PD 7.5%, PKS 7.3%, PAN 6.4%, others 19.9%; seats by party - Golkar 128, PDI-P 109, PPP 58, PD 55, PAN 53, PKB 52, PKS 45, others 50 note: because of election rules, the number of seats won does not always follow the number of votes received by parties

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Mahkamah Agung (justices appointed by the president from a list of candidates approved by the legislature); a separate Constitutional Court or Makhama Konstitusi was invested by the president on 16 August 2003; in March 2004 the Supreme Court assumed administrative and financial responsibility for the lower court system from the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights

Political parties and leaders: Crescent Moon and Star Party or PBB [Yusril Ihza MAHENDRA, chairman]; Democratic Party or PD [Subur BUDHISANTOSO, chairman]; Functional Groups Party or Golkar [Yusuf KALLA, chairman]; Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle or PDI-P [MEGAWATI Sukarnoputri, chairperson]; National Awakening Party or PKB [Alwi SHIHAB, chairman]; National Mandate Party or PAN [Amien RAIS, chairman]; Prosperous Justice Party or PKS [MAHFUD, acting chairman]; United Development Party or PPP [Hamzah HAZ, chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, CP, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador SOEMADI Brotodiningrat chancery: 2020 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 FAX: [1] (202) 775-5365 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco telephone: [1] (202) 775-5200

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador B. Lynn PASCOE embassy: Jalan 1 Medan Merdeka Selatan 3-5, Jakarta 10110 mailing address: Unit 8129, Box 1, FPO AP 96520 telephone: [62] (21) 3435-9000 FAX: [62] (21) 385-7189 consulate(s) general: Surabaya

Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; similar to the flag of Monaco, which is shorter; also similar to the flag of Poland, which is white (top) and red

Economy Indonesia

Economy - overview: Indonesia, a vast polyglot nation, faces economic development problems stemming from recent acts of terrorism, unequal resource distribution among regions, endemic corruption, the lack of reliable legal recourse in contract disputes, weaknesses in the banking system, and a generally poor climate for foreign investment. Indonesia withdrew from its IMF program at the end of 2003, but issued a "White Paper" that commits the government to maintaining fundamentally sound macroeconomic policies previously established under IMF guidelines. Investors, however, continued to face a host of on-the-ground microeconomic problems and an inadequate judicial system. Keys to future growth remain internal reform, building up the confidence of international and domestic investors, and strong global economic growth.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $758.8 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 4.1% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,200 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 16.6% industry: 43.6% services: 39.9% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 19.7% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line: 27% (1999)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 4% highest 10%: 26.7% (1999)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 37 (2001)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.6% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 105.7 million (2003)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 45%, industry 16%, services 39% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 8.7% (2003 est.)

Budget: revenues: $40.91 billion expenditures: $44.95 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)

Public debt: 72.9% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products: rice, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, rubber, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, copra, poultry, beef, pork, eggs

Industries: petroleum and natural gas, textiles, apparel, footwear, mining, cement, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber, food, tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 3.7% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production: 95.78 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption: 89.08 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production: 1.451 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption: 1.045 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: NA (2001)

Oil - imports: NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves: 7.083 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production: 69 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 36.2 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 32.8 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 2.549 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance: $7.336 billion (2003)

Exports: $63.89 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities: oil and gas, electrical appliances, plywood, textiles, rubber

Exports - partners: Japan 22.3%, US 12.1%, Singapore 8.9%, South Korea 7.1%, China 6.2% (2003)

Imports: $40.22 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs

Imports - partners: Japan 13%, Singapore 12.8%, China 9.1%, US 8.3%, Thailand 5.2%, Australia 5.1%, South Korea 4.7%, Saudi Arabia 4.6% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $36.25 billion (2003)

Debt - external: $135.7 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $43 billion Indonesia finished its IMF program in December 2003 but still receives bilateral aid through the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI), which pledged $2.8 billion in grants and loans for 2004. (2003 est.)

Currency: Indonesian rupiah (IDR)

Currency code: IDR

Exchange rates: Indonesian rupiahs per US dollar - 8,577.13 (2003), 9,311.19 (2002), 10,260.8 (2001), 8,421.77 (2000), 7,855.15 (1999)

Fiscal year: calendar year; note - previously was 1 April - 31 March, but starting with 2001, has been changed to calendar year

Communications Indonesia

Telephones - main lines in use: 7.75 million (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 11.7 million (2002)

Telephone system: general assessment: domestic service fair, international service good domestic: interisland microwave system and HF radio police net; domestic satellite communications system international: country code - 62; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 678, FM 43, shortwave 82 (1998)

Radios: 31.5 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 41 (1999)

Televisions: 13.75 million (1997)

Internet country code: .id

Internet hosts: 62,036 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 24 (2000)

Internet users: 8 million (2002)

Transportation Indonesia

Railways: total: 6,458 km narrow gauge: 5,961 km 1.067-m gauge (125 km electrified); 497 km 0.750-m gauge (2003)

Highways: total: 342,700 km paved: 158,670 km unpaved: 184,030 km (1999 est.)

Waterways: 21,579 km note: Sumatra 5,471 km, Java and Madura 820 km, Kalimantan 10,460 km, Sulawesi (Celebes) 241 km, Irian Jaya 4,587 km (2004)

Pipelines: condensate 850 km; condensate/gas 128 km; gas 8,506 km; oil 7,472 km; oil/gas/water 66 km; refined products 1,329 km (2004)

Ports and harbors: Cilacap, Cirebon, Jakarta, Kupang, Makassar, Palembang, Semarang, Surabaya

Merchant marine: total: 718 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,192,847 GRT/4,319,739 DWT by type: bulk 47, cargo 398, chemical tanker 13, container 57, liquefied gas 6, livestock carrier 1, passenger 10, passenger/cargo 13, petroleum tanker 128, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 15, short-sea/passenger 9, specialized tanker 12, vehicle carrier 7 registered in other countries: 109 (2004 est.) foreign-owned: France 1, Germany 1, Greece 1, Honduras 1, Hong Kong 2, Japan 3, Malaysia 1, Monaco 2, Panama 1, Philippines 2, Singapore 12, Switzerland 1, United Kingdom 2, United States 1

Airports: 661 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 154 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 49 under 914 m: 44 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 44

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 513 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 under 914 m: 480 (2004 est.) 914 to 1,523 m: 27

Heliports: 22 (2003 est.)

Military Indonesia

Military branches: Indonesia Armed Forces (TNI): Army (TNI-AD), Navy (TNI-AL, including Marines, Naval Air arm), Air Force (TNI-AU)

Military manpower - military age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years (2002)

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 66,458,805 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 38,728,029 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 2,196,424 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1 billion (FY98)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.3% (FY98)

Transnational Issues Indonesia

Disputes - international: East Timor-Indonesia Boundary Committee continues to meet, survey and delimit land boundary, but several sections of the boundary remain unresolved; Indonesia and East Timor contest the sovereignty of the uninhabited coral island of Palau Batek/Fatu Sinai, which hinders a decision on a northern maritime boundary; numbers of East Timor refugees in Indonesia refuse repatriation; a 1997 treaty between Indonesia and Australia settled some parts of their maritime boundary but outstanding issues remain; ICJ's award of Sipadan and Ligitan islands to Malaysia in 2002 prompted Indonesia to assert claims to and to establish a presence on its smaller outer islands; Indonesian secessionists, squatters, and illegal migrants create repatriation problems for Papua New Guinea

Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs: 535,000 (government offensives against rebels in Aceh; most IDPs in Aceh, Central Kalimantan, Maluku, and Central Sulawesi Provinces) (2004)

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis largely for domestic use; possible growing role as transshipment point for Golden Triangle heroin

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005



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@Iran

Introduction Iran

Background: Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist President and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction have floundered as conservative politicians have prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and consolidated their control over the government.

Geography Iran

Location: Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates: 32 00 N, 53 00 E

Map references: Middle East

Area: total: 1.648 million sq km land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries: total: 5,440 km border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km

Coastline: 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: natural prolongation contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf

Climate: mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Terrain: rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur

Land use: arable land: 8.72% permanent crops: 1.39% other: 89.89% (2001)

Irrigated land: 75,620 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes

Environment - current issues: air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note: strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport

People Iran

Population: 69,018,924 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 28% (male 9,935,527; female 9,411,647) 15-64 years: 67.2% (male 23,608,621; female 22,744,128) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 1,645,246; female 1,673,755) (2004 est.)

Median age: total: 23.5 years male: 23.3 years female: 23.7 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.07% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 17.1 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 5.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 42.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 42.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 43.01 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.66 years male: 68.31 years female: 71.07 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.93 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 20,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 290 (2001 est.)

Nationality: noun: Iranian(s) adjective: Iranian

Ethnic groups: Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions: Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2%

Languages: Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 79.4% male: 85.6% female: 73% (2003 est.)

Government Iran

Country name: conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran conventional short form: Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran

Government type: theocratic republic

Capital: Tehran

Administrative divisions: 28 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan

Independence: 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)

National holiday: Republic Day, 1 April (1979) note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925)

Constitution: 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership

Legal system: the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government

Suffrage: 15 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989) elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 8 June 2001 (next to be held June 2005) election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president; percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77% cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries head of government: President (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani (since 3 August 1997); First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-Yazdi (since 26 August 2001)

Legislative branch: unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 20 February 2004 with a runoff held 7 May 2004 (next to be held February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50, independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats unaccounted for

Judicial branch: Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a special administrative court

Political parties and leaders: formal political parties are a relatively new phenomenon in the Islamic Republic and most conservatives still prefer to work through political pressure groups rather than parties; a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd Khordad front, which includes political parties as well as less formal pressure groups and organizations, achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majles in early 2000; groups in the coalition include: Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF); Executives of Construction Party (Kargozaran); Solidarity Party; Islamic Labor Party; Mardom Salari; Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO); and Militant Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); the coalition is expected to participate in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004; a new apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic Iran, took a leading position in the new Majles afte winning a majority of the seats in February 2004

Political pressure groups and leaders: political pressure groups conduct most of Iran's political activities; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic Coalition Party (Motalefeh), and Islamic Engineers Society; active pro-reform student groups include the Organization for Strengthening Unity; opposition groups include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front, Marz-e Por Gohar, and various ethnic and Monarchist organizations; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mujahidin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and Komala

International organization participation: CP, ECO, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO

Diplomatic representation in the US: none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990; FAX [1] (202) 965-1073

Diplomatic representation from the US: none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Economy Iran

Economy - overview: Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and statist policies that create major distortions throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale - workshops, farming, and services. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $22 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not eased economic hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. In December 2003 a major earthquake devastated the city of Bam in southeastern Iran, killing more than 30,000 people.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $478.2 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 6.1% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,000 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 12.5% industry: 41.2% services: 46.2% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 28.6% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line: 40% (2002 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 16.4% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 22.32 million note: shortage of skilled labor (2003 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.)

Unemployment rate: 15.7% (2002 est.)

Budget: revenues: $40.38 billion expenditures: $40.29 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.6 billion (2003 est.)

Public debt: 28.2% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products: wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar

Industries: petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments

Industrial production growth rate: 3% excluding oil (2003 est.)

Electricity - production: 124.6 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption: 115.9 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production: 3.804 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption: 1.277 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: 2.2 million bbl/day (2003)

Oil - imports: NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves: 94.39 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production: 61.5 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 65.59 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 110 million cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 4.2 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 24.8 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance: $3.935 billion (2003)

Exports: $29.88 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities: petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets

Exports - partners: Japan 21.8%, China 9.7%, Italy 6.3%, Taiwan 5.5%, Turkey 5.4%, South Korea 5.4% (2003)

Imports: $25.26 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities: industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies

Imports - partners: Germany 11%, France 8.6%, China 8.4%, Italy 8.1%, UAE 7.9%, South Korea 6.5%, Russia 4.8%, Japan 4.1% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $25.13 billion (2003)

Debt - external: $10.96 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $408 million (2002 est.)

Currency: Iranian rial (IRR)

Currency code: IRR

Exchange rates: rials per US dollar - 8,193.89 (2003), 6,906.96 (2002), 1,753.56 (2001), 1,764.43 (2000), 1,752.93 (1999) note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002.

Fiscal year: 21 March - 20 March

Communications Iran

Telephones - main lines in use: 14,571,100 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 3,376,500 (2003)

Telephone system: general assessment: inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; and thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches international: country code - 98; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat

Radio broadcast stations: AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998)

Radios: 17 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 4.61 million (1997)

Internet country code: .ir

Internet hosts: 5,269 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 100 (2002)

Internet users: 4.3 million (2003)

Transportation Iran

Railways: total: 7,203 km broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 7,109 km 1.435-m gauge (189 km electrified) (2003)

Highways: total: 167,157 km paved: 94,109 km (including 890 km of expressways) unpaved: 73,048 km (1998)

Waterways: 850 km (on Karun River and Lake Urmia) (2004)

Pipelines: condensate/gas 212 km; gas 16,998 km; liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,256 km; refined products 7,808 km (2004)

Ports and harbors: Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Ahvaz, Bandar 'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, Bandar-e Lengeh, Bandar-e Mahshahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar (Bandar Beheshti), Jazireh-ye Khark, Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr (limited operation since November 1992), Now Shahr

Merchant marine: total: 134 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,715,242 GRT/8,240,069 DWT by type: bulk 40, cargo 36, chemical tanker 3, container 7, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large load carrier 5, petroleum tanker 33, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea/passenger 1 registered in other countries: 10 (2004 est.)

Airports: 303 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 127 over 3,047 m: 39 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 32 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 26

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 178 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 under 914 m: 39 (2004 est.) 914 to 1,523 m: 129

Heliports: 13 (2003 est.)

Military Iran

Military branches: Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Command), Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) (includes Ground Forces, Air Force, Navy, Qods Force [special operations], and Basij [Popular Mobilization Army]), Law Enforcement Forces

Military manpower - military age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory military service; 16 years of age for volunteers; soldiers as young as 9 were recruited extensively during the Iran-Iraq war; conscript service obligation - 18 months (2004)

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 20,937,348 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 12,434,810 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 912,569 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $4.3 billion (2003 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 3.3% (2003 est.)

Transnational Issues Iran

Disputes - international: Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed waters on Helmand River tributaries in periods of drought; thousands of Afghan refugees still reside in Iran; creation of a maritime boundary with Iraq remains in hiatus until full sovereignty is restored in Iraq; Iran and UAE engage in direct talks and solicit Arab League support to resolve disputes over Iran's occupation of Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island; Iran stands alone among littoral states in insisting upon a division of the Caspian Sea into five equal sectors

Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): 1,223,823 (Afghanistan), 124,014 (Iraq) (2004)

Illicit drugs: despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and according to official Iranian statistics there are at least 2 million drug users in the country; lax anti-money-laundering regulations

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005



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@Iraq

Introduction Iraq

Background: Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq was occupied by Britain during the course of World War I; in 1920, it was declared a League of Nations mandate under UK administration. In stages over the next dozen years, Iraq attained its independence as a kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of military strongmen ruled the country, the latest was SADDAM Husayn. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-88). In August 1990, Iraq seized Kuwait, but was expelled by US-led, UN coalition forces during the Gulf War of January-February 1991. Following Kuwait's liberation, the UN Security Council (UNSC) required Iraq to scrap all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles and to allow UN verification inspections. Continued Iraqi noncompliance with UNSC resolutions over a period of 12 years resulted in the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and the ouster of the SADDAM Husayn regime. Coalition forces remain in Iraq, helping to restore degraded infrastructure and facilitating the establishment of a freely elected government, while simultaneously dealing with a robust insurgency. The Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) in June 2004 and the election of its president, Ghazi al-Ujayl al-YAWR, was held in January 2005.

Geography Iraq

Location: Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait

Geographic coordinates: 33 00 N, 44 00 E

Map references: Middle East

Area: total: 437,072 sq km water: 4,910 sq km land: 432,162 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Idaho

Land boundaries: total: 3,650 km border countries: Iran 1,458 km, Jordan 181 km, Kuwait 240 km, Saudi Arabia 814 km, Syria 605 km, Turkey 352 km

Coastline: 58 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: not specified

Climate: mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq

Terrain: mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: unamed peak 3,611 m; note - this peak is not Gundah Zhur 3,607 m or Kuh-e Hajji-Ebrahim 3,595 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur

Land use: arable land: 13.15% permanent crops: 0.78% other: 86.07% (2001)

Irrigated land: 35,250 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms, floods

Environment - current issues: government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Marsh Arabs, who inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification

Environment - international agreements: party to: Law of the Sea signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geography - note: strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf

People Iraq

Population: 25,374,691 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 40.3% (male 5,198,966; female 5,039,173) 15-64 years: 56.7% (male 7,280,167; female 7,094,688) 65 years and over: 3% (male 357,651; female 404,046) (2004 est.)

Median age: total: 19.2 years male: 19.1 years female: 19.3 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.74% (2004 est.)

Birth rate: 33.09 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate: 5.66 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 52.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 46.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 58.58 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 68.26 years male: 67.09 years female: 69.48 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.4 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: less than 500 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA

Nationality: noun: Iraqi(s) adjective: Iraqi

Ethnic groups: Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5%

Religions: Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3%

Languages: Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 40.4% male: 55.9% female: 24.4% (2003 est.)

Government Iraq

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Iraq conventional short form: Iraq local short form: Al Iraq local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah

Government type: none; note - the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) was appointed on 1 June 2004

Capital: Baghdad

Administrative divisions: 18 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Anbar, Al Basrah, Al Muthanna, Al Qadisiyah, An Najaf, Arbil, As Sulaymaniyah, At Ta'mim, Babil, Baghdad, Dahuk, Dhi Qar, Diyala, Karbala', Maysan, Ninawa, Salah ad Din, Wasit

Independence: 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government

National holiday: Revolution Day, 17 July (1968); note - this holiday was celebrated under the SADDAM Husayn regime but the Iraqi Interim Government has yet to declare a new national holiday

Constitution: interim constitution signed 8 March 2004; note - the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) was enacted 8 March 2004 to govern the country until an elected Iraqi Transitional Government can draft and ratify a new constitution in 2005

Legal system: based on civil and Islamic law under the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) and Transitional Administrative Law (TAL)

Suffrage: formerly 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: Interim Iraqi Government (IG) President Ghazi al-Ujayl al-YAWR (since 1 June 2004); Deputy Presidents Ibrahim al-JAFARI and Rowsch SHAWAYS (since 1 June 2004); note - the President and Deputy Presidents comprise the Presidency Council head of government: Interim Iraqi Government (IG) Prime Minister Ayad ALLAWI (since 28 June 2004) cabinet: 31 ministers appointed by the Presidency Council, plus a Deputy Prime Minister, Barham SALIH elections: scheduled to be held January 2005

Legislative branch: Iraqi Interim National Council formed in July 2004

Judicial branch: Supreme Court appointed by the Prime Minister, confirmed by the Presidency Council

Political parties and leaders: note - the Iraqi political parties included below reflect only the major groups; new political parties continue to emerge, indicative of a rapidly changing political landscape; Al-Sadr Movement [Muqtada Al-SADR]; Da'wa Party [Ibrahim al-JA'FARI]; Iraqi Hizballah [Karim Mahud al-MUHAMMADAWI]; Iraqi National Accord or INA [Ayad ALLAWI]; Iraqi National Congress or INC [Ahmad CHALABI]; Jama'at al Fadilah or JAF [Ayatollah Muhammad ' Ali al-YAQUBI]; The Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq or SCIRI [Abd al-Aziz al-HAKIM]; Constitutional Monarchy Movement or CMM [Sharif Ali Bin al-HUSAYN]; Independent Iraqi Alliance or IIA [Falah al-NAQIB]; Iraqi Independent Democrats or IID [Adnan PACHACHI, Mahdi al-HAFIZ]; Iraqi Islamic Party or IIP [Muhsin Abd al-HAMID, Hajim al-HASSANI]; Iraqi National Unity Movement or INUM [Ahmad al-KUBAYSI, chariman]; Muslim Ulama Council or MUC [Harith Sulayman al-DARI, secretary general]; Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP [Masud BARZANI]; Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK [Jalal TALABANI]

Political pressure groups and leaders: an insurgency against the Iraqi Interim Government and Coalition forces is primarily concentrated in Baghdad and in areas west and north of the capital; the diverse, multigroup insurgency is led principally by Sunni Arabs whose only common denominator is a shared desire to oust the Coalition and end US influence in Iraq

International organization participation: ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 1801 P Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 FAX: [1] (202) 462-5066 telephone: [1] (202) 483-7500

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE embassy: Baghdad mailing address: APO AE 09316 telephone: 00-1-240-553-0584 ext. 4354; note - Consular Section FAX: NA

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with three green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; the phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in green Arabic script - Allahu to the right of the middle star and Akbar to the left of the middle star - was added in January 1991 during the Persian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of Syria, which has two stars but no script, Yemen, which has a plain white band, and that of Egypt which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; design is based upon the Arab Liberation colors

Economy Iraq

Economy - overview: Iraq's economy is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and damage to oil export facilities by Iran led the government to implement austerity measures, borrow heavily, and later reschedule foreign debt payments; Iraq suffered economic losses from that war of at least $100 billion. After hostilities ended in 1988, oil exports gradually increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged facilities. Iraq's seizure of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international economic sanctions, and damage from military action by an international coalition beginning in January 1991 drastically reduced economic activity. Although government policies supporting large military and internal security forces and allocating resources to key supporters of the regime have hurt the economy, implementation of the UN's oil-for-food program beginning in December 1996 helped improve conditions for the average Iraqi citizen. Iraq was allowed to export limited amounts of oil in exchange for food, medicine, and some infrastructure spare parts. In December 1999, the UN Security Council authorized Iraq to export under the program as much oil as required to meet humanitarian needs. The drop in GDP in 2001-02 was largely the result of the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices. Per capita food imports increased significantly, while medical supplies and health care services steadily improved. Per capita output and living standards were still well below the pre-1991 level, but any estimates have a wide range of error. The military victory of the US-led coalition in March-April 2003 resulted in the shutdown of much of the central economic administrative structure, but with the loss of a comparatively small amount of capital plant. The rebuilding of oil, electricity, and other production is proceeding steadily at the start of 2004 with foreign support and despite the continuation of severe internal strife. A joint UN and World Bank report released in the fall of 2003 estimated that Iraq's key reconstruction needs through 2007 would cost $55 billion. In October 2003, international donors pledged assistance worth more than $33 billion toward this rebuilding effort.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $37.92 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: -21.8% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 6% industry: 13% services: 81% (1993 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 29.3% (2003 est.)

Labor force: 7.8 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA

Unemployment rate: NA (2003 est.)

Budget: revenues: $12.8 billion NA expenditures: $13.4 billion NA, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 budget)

Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep

Industries: petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing

Industrial production growth rate: NA

Electricity - production: 36.01 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption: 33.49 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production: 2.2 million bbl/day; note - prewar production was 2.8 million bbl/day (January 2004 est.)

Oil - consumption: 460,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: 1.7 million bbl/day (January 2004)

Oil - imports: NA (2001)

Oil - proved reserves: 113.8 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production: 2.76 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 2.76 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 3.149 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance: $1.136 billion (2003)

Exports: $7.542 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities: crude oil

Exports - partners: US 48.8%, Jordan 8.4%, Canada 8%, Italy 7.9%, Morocco 5.3% (2003)

Imports: $6.521 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities: food, medicine, manufactures

Imports - partners: Turkey 18.1%, Jordan 13.4%, Vietnam 10.7%, US 6.9%, Germany 5%, UK 4.7% (2003)

Debt - external: $93.95 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: more than $33 billion in foreign aid pledged for 2004-07 (2004)

Currency: New Iraqi dinar (NID) as of 22 January 2004

Currency code: NID, IQD prior to 22 January 2004

Exchange rates: New Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 1,890 (second half, 2003)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications Iraq

Telephones - main lines in use: 675,000; note - an unknown number of telephone lines were damaged or destroyed during the March-April 2003 war (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 20,000 (2002)

Telephone system: general assessment: the 2003 war severely disrupted telecommunications throughout Iraq including international connections; USAID is overseeing the repair of switching capability and the construction of mobile and satellite communications facilities domestic: repairs to switches and lines destroyed in the recent fighting continue but sabotage remains a problem; cellular service is expected to be in place within two years international: country code - 964; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Arabsat (inoperative); coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey; Kuwait line is probably nonoperational

Radio broadcast stations: after 17 months of unregulated media growth, there are approximately 80 radio stations on the air inside Iraq (2004)

Radios: 4.85 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 21 (2004)

Televisions: 1.75 million (1997)

Internet country code: .iq

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)

Internet users: 25,000 (2002)

Transportation Iraq

Railways: total: 1,963 km standard gauge: 1,963 km 1.435-m gauge (2003)

Highways: total: 45,550 km paved: 38,399 km unpaved: 7,151 km (2000 est.)

Waterways: 5,275 km (not all navigable) note: Euphrates River (2,815 km), Tigris River (1,895 km), and Third River (565 km) are principal waterways (2004)

Pipelines: gas 1,739 km; oil 5,418 km; refined products 1,343 km (2004)

Ports and harbors: Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, and Al Basrah have limited functionality

Merchant marine: total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,221 GRT/125,255 DWT by type: cargo 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 3 (2004 est.)

Airports: 111; note - unknown number were damaged during the March-April 2003 war (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 79 over 3,047 m: 21 2,438 to 3,047 m: 36 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 32 under 914 m: 9 (2004 est.) over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5

Heliports: 6 (2003 est.)

Military Iraq

Military branches: note: in the summer of 2003 the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) began recruiting and training a New Iraqi Army (NIA) that would have a purely defensive mission and capability; in March 2004, the Iraqi Interim Government established a Ministry of Defense to create an Iraqi Armed Force; at that time the NIA was renamed the Iraqi Armed Force - Army (IAF-A); plans also were put into effect to reconstitute an Iraqi Army Air Corps (IAAC) and Coastal Defense Force (navy), but there are no plans to reconstitute an Iraqi Air Force; the Army's primary new focus will be domestic counterinsurgency, which is a change of direction from the CPA's intent to create an army not involved in domestic politics; in mid-2004 the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps (ICDC) was designated the Iraqi National Guard (ING) and subordinated to the Defense Ministry and the Iraqi Armed Forces Pre-war Iraqi military equipment was largely destroyed by Coalition forces during combat operations in early 2003 or subsequently looted or scrapped (September 2004)