Cameroon
Republic of Cameroon
National name: République du Cameroun
President: Paul Biya (1982)
Prime Minister: Ephraïm Inoni (2004)
Land area: 181,251 sq mi (469,440 sq km); total area: 183,567 sq mi (475,440 sq km)
Population (2005 est.): 16,380,005 (growth rate: 1.9%); birth rate: 34.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 68.3/1000; life expectancy: 47.8; density per sq mi: 96
Capital: Yaoundé, 1,395,200 (metro. area), 1,154,400 (city proper)
Largest city: Douala, 1,490,500 (metro. area), 1,274.300 (city proper)
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages: French, English (both official); 24 major African language groups
Ethnicity/race: Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwest Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1%
Religions: indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Islam 20%
Literacy rate: 79% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $30.17 billion; per capita $1,900. Real growth rate: 4.9%. Inflation: 1%. Unemployment: 30% (2001 est.). Arable land: 13%. Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber. Labor force: 6.68 million; agriculture 70%, industry and commerce 13%, other 17%. Industries: petroleum production and refining, aluminum production, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber, ship repair. Natural resources: petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower. Exports: $2.445 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton. Imports: $1.979 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, electrical equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food. Major trading partners: Spain, Italy, France, Netherlands, U.S., Nigeria, Japan, China, Germany (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 110,900 (2002); mobile cellular: 1.077 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 479 (2004). Internet users: 60,000 (2002); note: Cameroon also had more than 100 cyber-cafes in 2001.
Transportation: Railways: total: 1,008 km (2004). Highways: total: 34,300 km; paved: 4,288 km; unpaved: 30,012 km (1999 est.). Waterways: navigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2004). Ports and harbors: Douala, Limboh Terminal. Airports: 47 (2004 est.).
International disputes: ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission, which continues to meet regularly to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; implementation of the ICJ ruling on the Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea is impeded by imprecisely defined coordinates, the unresolved Bakassi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi Peninsula, then agreed, but has yet to withdraw its forces while much of the indigenous population opposes cession; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger.
Geography
Cameroon is a Central African nation on the Gulf of Guinea, bordered by Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. It is nearly twice the size of Oregon. Mount Cameroon (13,350 ft; 4,069 m), near the coast, is the highest elevation in the country. The main rivers are the Benue, Nyong, and Sanaga.
Government
After a 1972 plebiscite, a unitary republic was formed out of East and West Cameroon to replace the former federal republic.
Canada
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: Michaëlle Jean (2005)
Prime Minister: Stephen Harper (2006)
Land area: 3,511,003 sq mi (9,093,507 sq km); total area: 3,855,102 sq mi (9,984,670 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 33,098,932 (growth rate: 0.9%); birth rate: 10.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.7/1000; life expectancy: 80.2; density per sq mi: 9
Capital (2004 est.): Ottawa, Ontario, 1,142,700 (metro. area)
Largest cities (metropolitan areas) (2004 est.): Toronto, 5,203,600; Montreal, 3,606,700; Vancouver, 2,160,000; Calgary, 1,037,100; Edmonton, 1,101,600; Quebec, 710,700; Hamilton, 710,300; Winnipeg, 702,400; London, 459,700; Kitchener, 450,100
Monetary unit: Canadian dollar
Languages: English 59.3%, French 23.2% (both official); other 17.5%
Ethnicity/race: British Isles origin 28%, French origin 23%, other European 15%, indigenous Indian and Inuit 2%, other, mostly Asian, African, Arab 6%, mixed background 26%
Religions: Roman Catholic 46%, Protestant 36%, other 18% (based on 1991 census)
Literacy rate: 97% (1986 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.023 trillion; per capita $31,500. Real growth rate: 2.4%. Inflation: 1.9%. Unemployment: 7%. Arable land: 5%. Agriculture: wheat, barley, oilseed, tobacco, fruits, vegetables; dairy products; forest products; fish. Labor force: 17.37 million (2004); services 74%, manufacturing 15%, construction 5%, agriculture 3%, other 3% (2000). Industries: transportation equipment, chemicals, processed and unprocessed minerals, food products; wood and paper products; fish products, petroleum and natural gas. Natural resources: iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower. Exports: $315.6 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): motor vehicles and parts, industrial machinery, aircraft, telecommunications equipment; chemicals, plastics, fertilizers; wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, natural gas, electricity, aluminum. Imports: $256.1 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, crude oil, chemicals, electricity, durable consumer goods. Major trading partners: U.S., Japan, UK, China (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 19,950,900 (2003); mobile cellular: 13,221,800 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 245, FM 582, shortwave 6 (2004). Television broadcast stations: 80 (plus many repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 3,210,081 (2003). Internet users: 16.11 million (2002).
Transportation: Railways: total: 48,683 km (2004). Highways: total: 1.408 million km; paved: 497,306 km (including 16,900 km of expressways); unpaved: 911,494 km (2002). Waterways: 631 km; note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with United States (2003). Ports and harbors: Fraser River Port, Goderich, Montreal, Port Cartier, Quebec, Saint John's (Newfoundland), Sept Isles, Vancouver. Airports: 1,326 (2004 est.).
International disputes: managed maritime boundary disputes with the US at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; working toward greater cooperation with US in monitoring people and commodities crossing the border; uncontested sovereignty dispute with Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland.
Geography
Covering most of the northern part of the North American continent and with an area larger than that of the United States, Canada has an extremely varied topography. In the east the mountainous maritime provinces have an irregular coastline on the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Atlantic. The St. Lawrence plain, covering most of southern Quebec and Ontario, and the interior continental plain, covering southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan and most of Alberta, are the principal cultivable areas. They are separated by a forested plateau rising from Lakes Superior and Huron.
Westward toward the Pacific, most of British Columbia, the Yukon, and part of western Alberta are covered by parallel mountain ranges, including the Rockies. The Pacific border of the coast range is ragged with fjords and channels. The highest point in Canada is Mount Logan (19,850 ft; 6,050 m), which is in the Yukon. The two principal river systems are the Mackenzie and the St. Lawrence. The St. Lawrence, with its tributaries, is navigable for over 1,900 mi (3,058 km).
Government
Canada is a federation of ten provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan) and three territories (Northwest Territories, Yukon, and as of April 1, 1999, Nunavut). Formally considered a constitutional monarchy, Canada is governed by its own House of Commons. While the governor-general is officially the representative of Queen Elizabeth II, in reality the governor-general acts only on the advice of the Canadian prime minister.
Cape Verde
Republic of Cape Verde
National name: República de Cabo Verde
President: Pedro Pires (2001)
Prime Minister: José Maria Neves (2001)
Total and land area: 1,556 sq mi (4,030 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 420,979 (growth rate: 0.6%); birth rate: 24.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 46.5/1000; life expectancy: 70.7; density per sq mi: 271
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Praia, 99,400
Other large city: Mindelo, 66,100
Monetary unit: Cape Verdean escudo
Languages: Portuguese, Criuolo
Ethnicity/race: Creole (mulatto) 71%, African 28%, European 1%
Religion: Roman Catholic (infused with indigenous beliefs), Protestant (mostly Church of the Nazarene)
Literacy rate: 77% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2002 est.): $600 million; per capita $1,400. Real growth rate: 5%. Inflation: 1.5%. Unemployment: 21% (2000 est.). Arable land: 10%. Agriculture: bananas, corn, beans, sweet potatoes, sugarcane, coffee, peanuts; fish. Labor force: n.a. Industries: food and beverages, fish processing, shoes and garments, salt mining, ship repair. Natural resources: salt, basalt rock, limestone, kaolin, fish, clay, gypsum. Exports: $61.11 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): fuel, shoes, garments, fish, hides. Imports: $387.3 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): foodstuffs, industrial products, transport equipment, fuels. Major trading partners: Portugal, France, U.S., UK, Netherlands (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 71,700 (2003); mobile cellular: 53,300 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 15 (and 17 repeaters), shortwave 0 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (and 7 repeaters) (2002). Internet hosts: 118 (2004). Internet users: 20,400 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: total: 0 km. Highways: total: 1,350 km; paved: 932 km; unpaved: 418 km (2000). Waterways: none. Ports and harbors: Mindelo, Praia, Tarrafal. Airports: 7; note: 3 airports are reported to be nonoperational (2004 est.).
International disputes: none
Geography
Cape Verde, only slightly larger than Rhode Island, is an archipelago in the Atlantic 385 mi (500 km) west of Senegal.
The islands are divided into two groups: Barlavento in the north, composed of Santo Antão (291 sq mi; 754 sq km), Boa Vista (240 sq mi; 622 sq km), São Nicolau (132 sq mi; 342 sq km), São Vicente (88 sq mi; 246 sq km), Sal (83 sq mi; 298 sq km), and Santa Luzia (13 sq mi; 34 sq km); and Sotavento in the south, consisting of São Tiago (383 sq mi; 992 sq km), Fogo (184 sq mi; 477 sq km), Maio (103 sq mi; 267 sq km), and Brava (25 sq mi; 65 sq km). The islands are mostly mountainous, with the land deeply scarred by erosion. There is an active volcano on Fogo.
Government
Republic.
Central African Republic
National name: République Centrafricaine
President: Gen. François Bozizé (2003)
Prime Minister: Elie Doté (2005)
Total and land area: 240,533 sq mi (622,980 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 4,303,356 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 33.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 85.6/1000; life expectancy: 43.5; density per sq mi: 18
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Bangui, 810,000 (metro. area), 669,800 (city proper)
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages: French (official), Sangho (lingua franca, national), tribal languages
Ethnicity/race: Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2%
Religions: indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant and Roman Catholic (both with animist influence) 25% each, Islam 15%
Literacy rate: 51% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $4.248 billion; per capita $1,100. Real growth rate: 0.5%. Inflation: 3.6% (2001 est.). Unemployment: 8% (23% for Bangui) (2001 est.). Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: cotton, coffee, tobacco, manioc (tapioca), yams, millet, corn, bananas; timber. Labor force: n.a. Industries: diamond mining, logging, brewing, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles. Natural resources: diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower. Exports: $172 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco. Imports: $136 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals. Major trading partners: Belgium, Italy, Spain, France, Indonesia, Cameroon, U.S. (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 9,000 (2002); mobile cellular: 13,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2001). Internet hosts: 6 (2002). Internet users: 5,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 23,810 km; paved: 643 km; unpaved: 23,167 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 2,800 km (primarily on the Oubangui and Sangha rivers) (2004). Ports and harbors: Bangui, Nola, Salo, Nzinga. Airports: 50 (2004 est.).
International disputes: about 30,000 refugees fleeing the 2002 civil conflict in the CAR still reside in southern Chad; periodic skirmishes over water and grazing rights among related pastoral populations along the border with southern Sudan persist.
Geography
Situated about 500 mi (805 km) north of the equator, the Central African Republic is a landlocked nation bordered by Cameroon, Chad, the Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of Congo. The Ubangi and the Shari are the largest of many rivers.
Government
Multiparty republic since 1991.
Chad
Republic of Chad
National name: République du Tchad
President: Idriss Déby (1990)
Prime Minister: Pascal Yoadimnadji (2005)
Land area: 486,178 sq mi (1,259,201 sq km); total area: 495,755 sq mi (1,284,000 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 9,944,201 (growth rate: 2.9%); birth rate: 45.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 91.5/1000; life expectancy: 47.5; density per sq mi: 20
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): N'Djamena, 609,600
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages: French, Arabic (both official); Sara; more than 120 languages and dialects
Ethnicity/race: 200 distinct groups. North and center, mostly Muslim: Arabs, Gorane (Toubou, Daza, Kreda), Zaghawa, Kanembou, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Hausa, Boulala, and Maba. South, mostly Christian or animist: Sara (Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye), Moundang, Moussei, Massa
Religions: Islam 51%, Christian 35%, animist 7%, other 7%
Literacy rate: 48% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $15.66 billion; per capita $1,600. Real growth rate: 38%. Inflation: 8%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels. Labor force: n.a.; agriculture more than 85% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing). Industries: oil, cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials. Natural resources: petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad), gold, limestone, sand and gravel, salt. Exports: $365 million (f.o.b., 2003 est.): cotton, cattle, gum arabic. Imports: $500.7 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles. Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, Portugal, France, Morocco, Cameroon, Netherlands (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 11,800 (2002); mobile cellular: 65,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 5 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 8 (2004). Internet users: 15,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 33,400 km; paved: 267 km; unpaved: 33,133 km (1999 est.). Waterways: Chari and Legone rivers are navigable only in wet season (2002). Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 50 (2004 est.).
International disputes: since 2003, Janjawid armed militia and Sudanese military have driven about 200,000 Darfur region refugees into eastern Chad; Chad remains an important mediator in the Sudanese civil conflict; Chadian Aozou rebels reside in southern Libya; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger.
Geography
A landlocked country in north-central Africa, Chad is about 85% the size of Alaska. Its neighbors are Niger, Libya, the Sudan, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, and Nigeria. Lake Chad, from which the country gets its name, lies on the western border with Niger and Nigeria. In the north is a desert that runs into the Sahara.
Government
Republic.
China
People's Republic of China
National name: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo
President: Hu Jintao (2003)
Prime Minister: Wen Jiabao (2003)
Land area: 3,600,927 sq mi (9,326,411 sq km); total area: 3,705,407 sq mi (9,596,960 sq km)1
Population (2006 est.): 1,313,973,713 (growth rate: 0.6%); birth rate: 13.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 23.1/1000; life expectancy: 72.6; density per sq mi: 365
Capital (2003 est.): Beijing, 9,376,200 (metro. area), 6,619,000 (city proper)
Largest cities: Shanghai, 12,039,900 (metro. area), 9,005,600 (city proper); Tianjin (Tientsin), 4,333,900; Wuhan, 3,959,700; Shenyang (Mukden), 3,574,100; Guangzhou, 3,473,800; Haerbin, 2,904,900; Xian, 2,642,100; Chungking (Chongquing) 2,370,100; Chengdu, 2,011,000; Hong Kong (Xianggang), 1,361,200
Monetary unit: Yuan/Renminbi
Languages: Standard Chinese (Mandarin/Putonghua), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages
Ethnicity/race: Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%.
Religions: Officially atheist; Christian 3%–4%; Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%–2%. (2002 est.)
Literacy rate: 86% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $7.262 trillion; per capita $5,600. Real growth rate: 9.1% (official data). Inflation: 4.1%. Unemployment: urban unemployment roughly 9.8%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas. Arable land: 15%. Agriculture: rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, apples, cotton, oilseed, pork, fish. Labor force: 760.8 million (2003); agriculture 49%, industry 22%, services 29% (2003 est.). Industries: mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals; coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and locomotives, ships, and aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles and satellites. Natural resources: coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest). Exports: $583.1 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, plastics, optical and medical equipment, iron and steel. Imports: $552.4 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, plastics, optical and medical equipment, organic chemicals, iron and steel. Major trading partners: U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Germany, Taiwan (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 263 million (2003); mobile cellular: 269 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997). Internet hosts: 160,421 (2003). Internet users: 94 million (2004).
Transportation: Railways: total: 71,898 (2002). Highways: total: 1,765,222 million km; paved: 395,410 km (with at least 25,130 km of expressways); unpaved: 1,369,812 km (2002 est.). Waterways: 121,557 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Dalian, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai. Airports: 472 (2004 est.).
International disputes: in 2005, China and India initiate drafting principles to resolve all aspects of their extensive boundary and territorial disputes together with a security and foreign policy dialogue to consolidate discussions related to the boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, and other matters; recent talks and confidence-building measures have begun to defuse tensions over Kashmir, site of the world's largest and most 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); India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; about 90,000 ethnic Tibetan exiles reside primarily in India as well as Nepal and Bhutan; China asserts sovereignty over the Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions in the Spratlys but is not the legally binding "code of conduct" sought by some parties; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; China occupies some of the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; China and Taiwan have become more vocal in rejecting both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon prospecting; certain islands in the Yalu and Tumen rivers are in an uncontested dispute with North Korea and a section of boundary around Mount Paektu is considered indefinite; China seeks to stem illegal migration of tens of thousands of North Koreans; in 2004, China and Russia divided up the islands in the Amur, Ussuri, and Argun Rivers, ending a century-old border dispute; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; environmentalists in Burma and Thailand remain concerned about China's construction of hydroelectric dams upstream on the Nujiang/Salween River in Yunnan Province.
1. Including Manchuria and Tibet.
Geography
The greater part of the country is mountainous. Its principal ranges are the Tien Shan, the Kunlun chain, and the Trans-Himalaya. In the southwest is Tibet, which China annexed in 1950. The Gobi Desert lies to the north. China proper consists of three great river systems: the Yellow River (Huang He), 2,109 mi (5,464 km) long; the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang), the third-longest river in the world at 2,432 mi (6,300 km); and the Pearl River (Zhu Jiang), 848 mi (2,197 km) long.
Government
Communist state.
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
National Name: Republique Democratique du Congo
President: Joseph Kabila (2001)
Land area: 875,520 sq mi (2,267,599 sq km); total area: 905,568 sq mi (2,345,410 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 62,660,551 (growth rate: 3.1%); birth rate: 43.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 88.6/1000; life expectancy: 51.5; density per sq mi: 72
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Kinshasa, 6,541,300
Other large cities: Lubumbashi, 1,105,900; Mbuji-Mayi, 938,000; Kolwezi, 832,400; Kisangani, 523,000
Monetary unit: Congolese franc
Languages: French (official), Lingala, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba
Ethnicity/race: over 200 African ethnic groups, the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes—Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic)—make up about 45% of the population
Religions: Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Islam 10%; other syncretic and indigenous 10%
Literacy rate: 66% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $42.74 billion; per capita $700. Real growth rate: 7.5%. Inflation: 14% (2003 est.). Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products. Labor force: 14.51 million (1993 est.). Industries: mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement, commercial ship repair. Natural resources: cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber. Exports: $1.417 billion (f.o.b., 2002 est.): diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt. Imports: $933 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels. Major trading partners: Belgium, U.S., Zimbabwe, Finland, South Africa, France, Germany, Kenya, Netherlands (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 10,000 (2002); mobile cellular: 1 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 4 (2001). Internet hosts: 153 (2003). Internet users: 50,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: total: 5,138 km (2004). Highways: total: 157,000 km; paved: n.a. (including 30 km of expressways); unpaved: n.a. (1999 est.). Waterways: 15,000 km (navigation on the Congo curtailed by fighting) (2004). Ports and harbors: Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka. Airports: 230 (2004 est.).
International disputes: heads of the Great Lakes states and UN pledge to end conflict but unchecked tribal, rebel, and militia fighting continues unabated in the northeastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, drawing in the neighboring states of Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda; the UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) has maintained over 14,000 peacekeepers in the region since 1999; thousands of Ituri refugees from the Congo continue to flee the fighting primarily into Uganda; 90,000 Angolan refugees were repatriated by 2004 with the remainder in the Democratic Republic of the Congo expected to return in 2005; in 2005, DROC and Rwanda established a border verification mechanism to address accusations of Rwandan military supporting Congolese rebels and the DROC providing rebel Rwandan “Interhamwe” forces the means and bases to attack Rwandan forces; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area.
Geography
The Congo, in west-central Africa, is bordered by the Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, the Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Angola, and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one-quarter the size of the U.S. The principal rivers are the Ubangi and Bomu in the north and the Congo in the west, which flows into the Atlantic. The entire length of Lake Tanganyika lies along the eastern border with Tanzania and Burundi.
Government
Dictatorship.
Costa Rica
Republic of Costa Rica
National name: República de Costa Rica
President: Abel Pacheco (2002)
Land area: 19,560 sq mi (50,660 sq km); total area: 19,730 sq mi (51,100 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 4,075,261 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 18.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 9.7/1000; life expectancy: 77.0; density per sq mi: 208
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): San José, 1,527,300 (metro. area), 337,200 (city proper)
Monetary unit: Colón
Languages: Spanish (official), English
Ethnicity/race: white (including mestizo) 94%, black 3%, Amerindian 1%, Chinese 1%, other 1%
Religion: Roman Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.3%, other Protestant 0.7%, other 4.8%, none 3.2%
Literacy rate: 96% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $37.97 billion; per capita $9,600. Real growth rate: 3.9%. Inflation: 11.5%. Unemployment: 6.6%. Arable land: 4%. Agriculture: coffee, pineapples, bananas, sugar, corn, rice, beans, potatoes; beef; timber. Labor force: 1.81 million; agriculture 20%, industry 22%, services 58% (1999 est.). Industries: microprocessors, food processing, textiles and clothing, construction materials, fertilizer, plastic products. Natural resource: hydropower. Exports: $6.184 billion (2004 est.): coffee, bananas, sugar; pineapples; textiles, electronic components, medical equipment. Imports: $7.842 billion (2004 est.): raw materials, consumer goods, capital equipment, petroleum. Major trading partners: U.S., Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Venezuela (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.132 million (2002); mobile cellular: 528,047 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 65, FM 51, shortwave 19 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 20 (plus 43 repeaters) (2002). Internet hosts: 10,826 (2003). Internet users: 800,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: total: 278 km (2004). Highways: total: 35,303 km; paved: 4,236 km; unpaved: 31,067 km (2002). Waterways: 730 km (seasonally navigable by small craft) (2004). Ports and harbors: Caldera, Puerto Limon. Airports: 149 (2004 est.).
International disputes: legal dispute over navigational rights of Rio San Juan on the border with Nicaragua remains unresolved.
Geography
This Central American country lies between Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. Its area slightly exceeds that of Vermont and New Hampshire combined. It has a narrow Pacific coastal region. Cocos Island (10 sq mi; 26 sq km), about 300 mi (483 km) off the Pacific Coast, is under Costa Rican sovereignty.
Government
Democratic republic.
Côte d'Ivoire
Republic of Côte d'Ivoire
National name: République de Côte d'lvoire
President: Laurent Gbagbo (2000)
Prime Minister: Charles Konan Banny (transitional) (2005)
Land area: 122,780 sq mi (318,000 sq km); total area: 124,502 sq mi (322,460 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 17,654,843 (growth rate: 2.0%); birth rate: 35.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 89.1/1000; life expectancy: 48.8; density per sq mi: 144
Capital (2003 est.): Yamoussoukro (official), 185,600
Largest city: Abidjan (administrative capital), 4,113,600 (metro. area), 3,427,500 (city proper)
Monetary unit: CFA Franc
Languages: French (official) and African languages (Diaula esp.)
Ethnicity/race: Akan 42.1%, Voltaiques (Gur) 17.6%, Northern Mandes 16.5%, Krous 11%, Southern Mandes 10%, other 2.8% (includes 130,000 Lebanese and 14,000 French) (1998)
Religions: indigenous 25%–40%, Islam 35%–40%, Christian 20%–30% (2001)
Literacy rate: 51% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $24.78 billion; per capita $1,500. Real growth rate: –1%. Inflation: 1.4%. Unemployment: 13% in urban areas (1998). Arable land: 10%. Agriculture: coffee, cocoa beans, bananas, palm kernels, corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sweet potatoes, sugar, cotton, rubber; timber. Labor force: 6.7 million; 68% agricultural. Industries: foodstuffs, beverages; wood products, oil refining, truck and bus assembly, textiles, fertilizer, building materials, electricity, ship construction and repair. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, diamonds, manganese, iron ore, cobalt, bauxite, copper, hydropower. Exports: $5.124 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): cocoa, coffee, timber, petroleum, cotton, bananas, pineapples, palm oil, fish. Imports: $3.36 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): fuel, capital equipment, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: France, Netherlands, U.S., Spain, Nigeria, UK (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 328,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 1.236 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 8, shortwave 3 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 14 (1999). Internet hosts: 3,795 (2004). Internet users: 90,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: total: 660 km (2004). Highways: total: 50,400 km; paved: 4,889 km; unpaved: 45,511 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 980 km (navigable rivers, canals, and numerous coastal lagoons) (2003). Ports and harbors: Abidjan, Aboisso, Dabou, San-Pedro. Airports: 37 (2004 est.).
International disputes: rebel and ethnic fighting against the central government in 2002 has spilled into neighboring states, driven out foreign cocoa workers from nearby countries, and, in 2004, resulted in 6,000 peacekeepers deployed as part of UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) assisting 4,000 French troops already in-country; the Ivorian Government accuses Burkina Faso and Liberia of supporting Ivorian rebels.
Geography
Côte d'Ivoire (also known as the Ivory Coast), in western Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, is a little larger than New Mexico. Its neighbors are Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Ghana. The country consists of a coastal strip in the south, dense forests in the interior, and savannas in the north.
Government
Presidential/parliamentary democracy until Dec. 1999, when a coup installed a military dictatorship.
Cuba
Republic of Cuba
National name: República de Cuba
President: Fidel Castro (1976)
Total and land area: 42,803 sq mi (110,860 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 11,382,820 (growth rate: 0.3%); birth rate: 11.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 6.2/1000; life expectancy: 77.4; density per sq mi: 266
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Havana, 2,686,000 (metro. area), 2,343,700 (city proper)
Other large cities: Santiago de Cuba, 554,400; Camagüey, 354,400; Holguin, 319,300; Guantánamo, 274,300; Santa Clara, 251,800
Monetary unit: Cuban Peso
Language: Spanish
Ethnicity/race: mulatto 51%, white 37%, black 11%, Chinese 1%
Religion: nominally 85% Roman Catholic before Castro assumed power
Literacy rate: 97% (2003 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $33.92 billion; per capita $3,000. Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 3.1%. Unemployment: 2.5%. Arable land: 33%. Agriculture: sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock. Labor force: 4.55 million; agriculture 24%, industry 25%, services 51% (1999). Industries: sugar, petroleum, tobacco, construction, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery, pharmaceuticals. Natural resources: cobalt, nickel, iron ore, copper, manganese, salt, timber, silica, petroleum, arable land. Exports: $2.104 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee. Imports: $5.296 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals. Major trading partners: Netherlands, Canada, Russia, Spain, China, Venezuela, Italy, U.S., Mexico, France (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 574,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 17,900 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 169, FM 55, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 58 (1997). . Internet hosts: 1,529 (2003). Internet users: 120,000; note: private citizens are prohibited from buying computers or accessing the Internet without special authorization; foreigners may access the Internet in large hotels, but are subject to firewalls; some Cubans buy illegal passwords on the black market, or take advantage of public outlets to access limited email and the government-controlled "intranet" (2004).
Transportation: Railways: total: 4,226 km; in addition, 7,742 km of track is in private use by sugar plantations (2004). Highways: total: 60,858 km; paved: 29,820 km (including 638 km of expressway); unpaved: 31,038 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 240 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Cienfuegos, Cienfuegos, Havana, Matanza. Airports: 170 (2004 est.).
International disputes: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease.
Geography
The largest island of the West Indies group (equal in area to Pennsylvania), Cuba is also the westernmost—just west of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and 90 mi (145 km) south of Key West, Fla., at the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico. The island is mountainous in the southeast and south-central area (Sierra Maestra). It is flat or rolling elsewhere. Cuba also includes numerous smaller islands, islets, and cays.
Government
Communist state.