Information FOR Tabassum:
 

[B][U][CENTER]Afghanistan[/CENTER][/U][/B]
[B]Islamic Republic of Afghanistan[/B]
National name: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Afghanestan
[B]President[/B]: Hamid Karzai (2002)
[B]Total and land area[/B]: 250,000 sq mi (647,500 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 31,056,997 (growth rate: 2.7%); birth rate: 46.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 160.2/1000; life expectancy: 43.3; density per sq mi: 124
[B]Capital and largest city [/B](2003 est.): Kabul, 2,206,300
[B]Other large cities: [/B]Kandahar, 349,300; Mazar-i-Sharif, 246,900; Charikar, 202,600; Herat, 171,500
[B]Monetary unit: [/B]Afghani
[B]Languages: [/B]Pashtu, Dari Persian, other Turkic and minor languages
Ethnicity/race: Pashtun 42%, Tajik 27%, Hazara 9%, Uzbek 9% minor ethnic groups (Chahar Aimaks, Turkmen, Baloch, and others)
[B]Religion: [/B]Islam (Sunni 80%, Shiite 19%), other 1%
[B]Literacy rate: [/B]36% (1999 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2003 est.): $21.5 billion; per capita $800. Real growth rate: 7.5%. Inflation: 10.3%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 12%. Agriculture: opium, wheat, fruits, nuts, wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins. Labor force (2001 est): 11.8 million; agriculture 80%, industry 10%, services 10%. Natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones. Industries: small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper. Exports: $446 million (FY03–04): opium, fruits and nuts, handwoven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semiprecious gems. Imports: $3.759 billion (FY03–04)): capital goods, food, textiles, petroleum products. Major trading partners: U.S., France, India, Pakistan, South Korea, Japan, Germany, Turkmenistan, Kenya (2003).

[B]Communications[/B]: Telephones: main lines in use: 33,100 (2002); mobile cellular: 15,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 21, FM 23, shortwave 1 (broadcasts in Pashtu, Afghan Persian (Dari), Urdu, and English) (2003). Television broadcast stations: at least 10 (one government run central television station in Kabul and regional stations in nine of the 30 provinces; the regional stations operate on a reduced schedule; also, in 1997, there was a station in Mazar-e Sharif reaching four northern Afghanistan provinces) (1998). Internet users: 1,000 (2002).

[B]Transportation: [/B]Highways: total: 21,000 km; paved: 2,793 km; unpaved: 18,207 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 1,200 km; chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to about 500 DWT (2004). Ports and harbors: Kheyrabad, Shir Khan. Airports: 47 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes[/B]: The UN has been able to repatriate over two million Afghan refugees but several million more continue to reside in Iran and Pakistan in camps and elsewhere, many at their own choosing; Coalition and Pakistani forces continue to patrol remote tribal areas to control the borders and stem organized terrorist and other illegal cross-border activities; regular meetings between Pakistani and Coalition allies aim to resolve periodic claims of boundary encroachments; occasional conflicts over water-sharing arrangements with Amu Darya and Helmand River states
[B]Geography[/B]

Afghanistan, approximately the size of Texas, is bordered on the north by Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, on the extreme northeast by China, on the east and south by Pakistan, and by Iran on the west. The country is split east to west by the Hindu Kush mountain range, rising in the east to heights of 24,000 ft (7,315 m). With the exception of the southwest, most of the country is covered by high snow-capped mountains and is traversed by deep valleys.

[B]Government[/B]In June 2002 a multiparty republic replaced an interim government that had been established in Dec. 2001, following the fall of the Islamic Taliban government.

[B][U][CENTER]Albania[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Albania
[B]National name[/B]: Republika e Shqiperise
[B]President[/B]: Alfred Moisiu (2002)
[B]Prime Minister: [/B]Sali Berisha (2005)
[B]Land area: [/B]10,579 sq mi (27,400 sq km); total area: 11,100 sq mi (28,748 sq km)
[B]Population [/B](2006 est.): 3,581,655 (growth rate: 0.5%); birth rate: 15.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 20.8/1000; life expectancy: 77.4; density per sq mi: 339
[B]Capital and largest city (2003 est.): [/B]Tirana, 353,400
Other large cities: Durres, 113,900; Elbasan, 97,000
[B]Monetary unit[/B]: Lek
[B]Languages: [/B]Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek
[B]Ethnicity/race: [/B]Albanian 95%, Greeks 3%, other 2%: Vlachs, Gypsies, Serbs, and Bulgarians (1989 est.)
[B]Religions: [/B]Islam 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10% (est.)
[B]Literacy rate: [/B]87% (2003 est.)
[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $17.46 billion; per capita $4,900. Real growth rate: 5.6%. Inflation: 3.2%. Unemployment: 14.8% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.). Arable land: 21%. Agriculture: wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products. Labor force: 1.09 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers); agriculture 57%, nonagricultural private sector 20%, public sector 23%. Industries: food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower. Exports: $552.4 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco. Imports: $2.076 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals. Major trading partners: Italy, Greece, Germany, Turkey (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 255,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 1.1 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001). Internet hosts: 455 (2004). Internet users: 30,000 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: total: 447 km 2004). Highways: total: 18,000 km; paved: 5,400 km; unpaved: 12,600 km (2002). Waterways: 43 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore. Airports: 11 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in neighboring countries, and the peaceful resolution of interethnic disputes; some ethnic Albanian groups in neighboring countries advocate for a "greater Albania," but the idea has little appeal among Albanian nationals; thousands of unemployed Albanians emigrate annually to nearby Italy and other developed countries.

[B]Geography[/B]
Albania is situated on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea, with Montenegro and Serbia to the north, Macedonia to the east, and Greece to the south. Slightly larger than Maryland, Albania is composed of two major regions: a mountainous highland region (north, east, and south) constituting 70% of the land area, and a western coastal lowland region that contains nearly all of the country's agricultural land and is the most densely populated part of Albania.

[B]Government[/B]
Emerging democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Algeria[/CENTER][/U][/B]

People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
[B]National name: [/B]Al Jumhuriyah al Jaza'iriyah ad Dimuqratiyah ash Sha'biyah
[B]President: [/B]Abdel-Aziz Bouteflika (1999)
[B]Prime Minister[/B]: Ahmed Ouyahia (2003)
[B]Total and land area: [/B]919,590 sq mi (2,381,741 sq km)
[B]Population (2006 est.): [/B]32,930,091 (growth rate: 1.2%); birth rate: 17.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 29.9/1000; life expectancy: 73.3; density per sq mi: 36
[B]Capital and largest city (2003 est.): [/B]Algiers, 3,917,000 (metro. area), 1,742,800 (city proper)
[B]Other large cities: [/B]Oran, 752,200; Constantine, 530,100; Batna, 278,100; Annaba, 246,700
[B]Monetary unit: [/B]Dinar
[B]Languages: [/B]Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects
[B]Ethnicity/race: [/B]Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1%
[B]Religion: [/B]Islam (Sunni) 99% (state religion), Christian and Jewish 1%
Literacy rate: 70%
[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $212.3 billion; per capita $6,600. Real growth rate: 6.1%. Inflation: 3.1%. Unemployment: 25.4%. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle. Labor force: 9.91 million; agriculture 14%, industry 13.4%, construction and public works 10%, trade 14.6%, government 32%, other 16% (2003 est.). Industries: petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc. Exports: $32.16 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97%. Imports: $15.25 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est): capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods. Major trading partners: Italy, U.S., France, Spain, Canada, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, China, Turkey (2003).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 2,199,600 (2003); mobile cellular: 1,447,310 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 25, FM 1, shortwave 8 (1999). Television broadcast stations: 46 (plus 216 repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 897 (2004). Internet users: 500,000 (2002).
Transportation: Railways: total: 3,973 km (2004). Highways: total: 104,000 km; paved: 71,656 km (including 640 km of expressways); unpaved: 32,344 km (1999). Ports and harbors: Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Djendjene, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda. Airports: 137 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]Algeria supports the exiled Sahrawi Polisario Front and rejects Moroccan administration of Western Sahara; Algeria's border with Morocco remains an irritant to bilateral relations, each nation has accused the other of harboring militants and arms smuggling; in an attempt to improve relations after unilaterally imposing a visa requirement on Algerians in the early 1990s, Morocco lifted the requirement in mid-2004 - a gesture not reciprocated by Algeria; Algeria remains concerned about armed bandits operating throughout the Sahel who sometimes destabilize southern Algerian towns; dormant disputes include Libyan claims of about 32,000 sq km still reflected on its maps of southeastern Algeria and the FLN's assertions of a claim to Chirac Pastures in southeastern Morocco.

[B]Geography[/B]

Nearly four times the size of Texas, Algeria is bordered on the west by Morocco and Western Sahara and on the east by Tunisia and Libya. The Mediterranean Sea is to the north, and to the south are Mauritania, Mali, and Niger. The Saharan region, which is 85% of the country, is almost completely uninhabited. The highest point is Mount Tahat in the Sahara, which rises 9,850 ft (3,000 m).

[B]Government[/B]
Parliamentary republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Angola[/CENTER][/U][/B]Republic of Angola
[B]National name: [/B]Republica de Angola
President: José Eduardo dos Santos (1979)
Prime Minister: Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos (2003)
Total and land area: 481,350 sq mi (1,246,699 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 12,127,071 (growth rate: 2.4%); birth rate: 45.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 185.4/1000; life expectancy: 38.6; density per sq mi: 25
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Luanda, 2,297,200
Other large cities: Huambo, 171,000; Lubango, 136,000
Monetary unit: New Kwanza
Languages: Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages
Ethnicity/race: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22%
Religions: Indigenous 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.)
Literacy rate: 42% (1998 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $23.17 billion; per capita $2,100. Real growth rate: 11.7%. Inflation: 43.8%. Unemployment: extensive unemployment and underemployment affecting more than half the population (2001 est.). Arable land: 2%. Agriculture: bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish. Labor force: 5.41 million; agriculture 85%, industry and services 15% (2003 est.). Industries: petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles, ship repair. Natural resources: petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium. Exports: $12.76 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): crude oil, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton. Imports: $4.896 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods. Major trading partners: U.S., China, Taiwan, France, Portugal, South Africa, Netherlands, Brazil, UK (2003).

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 96,300 (2003); mobile cellular: 130,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 36, FM 7, shortwave 9 (2000). Television broadcast stations: 6 (2000). Internet hosts: 17 (2003). Internet users: 41,000 (2002).

[B]Transportation: [/B]Railways: total: 2,771 km (2004). Highways: total: 51,429 km; paved: 5,328 km; unpaved: 46,101 km (2001). Waterways: 1,300 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Cabinda, Luanda, Soyo. Airports: 243 (2004 est.).
[B]International disputes: [/B]90,000 Angolan refugees were repatriated by 2004, the remaining refugees in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia are expected to return in 2005; many Cabinda exclave secessionists have sought shelter in neighboring states.

[B]Geography[/B]Angola, more than three times the size of California, extends for more than 1,000 mi (1,609 km) along the South Atlantic in southwest Africa. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Congo are to the north and east, Zambia is to the east, and Namibia is to the south. A plateau averaging 6,000 ft (1,829 m) above sea level rises abruptly from the coastal lowlands. Nearly all the land is desert or savanna, with hardwood forests in the northeast.

[B]Government[/B]
Angola underwent a transition from a one-party socialist state to a nominally multiparty democracy in 1992.

[B][U][CENTER]Antigua and Barbuda[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: James Beethoven Carlisle (1993)
Prime Minister: Baldwin Spencer (2004)
Total and land area: 170 sq mi (440 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 69,108 (growth rate: 0.6%); birth rate: 16.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 18.9/1000; life expectancy: 72.2; density per sq mi: 407
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): St. John's, 23,500
Other large cities: English Harbour, 2,900; Codrington (capital of Barbuda), est. pop. 870
Monetary unit: East Caribbean dollar
Languages: English (official), local dialects
Ethnicity/race: black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian
Religions: Christian (predominantly Anglican and other Protestant; some Roman Catholic)
Literacy rate: 89% (1960 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2002 est.): $750 million; per capita $11,000. Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 0.4% (2000 est.). Unemployment: 11% (2001 est.). Arable land: 18%. Agriculture: cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock. Labor force: 30,000; commerce and services 82%, industry 11%, agriculture 7% (1983). Industries: tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances). Natural resources: negl.; pleasant climate fosters tourism. Exports: $689 million (2002): petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8%. Imports: $692 million (2002 est.): food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil. Major trading partners: Germany, UK, U.S., Singapore, Poland, UK, Trinidad and Tobago (2003).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations
[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 38,000 (2002); mobile cellular: 38,200 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997). Internet hosts: 1,665 (2003). Internet users: 10,000 (2002).
Transportation: Highways: total: 250 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Saint John's. Airports: 3 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]none.

[B]Geography[/B]
Antigua, the larger of the two main islands, is 108 sq mi (280 sq km). The island dependencies of Redonda (an uninhabited rocky islet) and Barbuda (a coral island formerly known as Dulcina) are 0.5 sq mi (1.30 sq km) and 62 sq mi (161 sq km), respectively.

[B]Government[/B]Constitutional monarchy.

[B][U][CENTER]Argentina[/CENTER][/U][/B]Argentine Republic

National name: República Argentina
President: Néstor Kirchner (2003)
Land area: 1,056,636 sq mi (2,736,690 sq km); total area: 1,068,302 sq mi (2,766,890 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 39,921,833 (growth rate: 1.0%); birth rate: 16.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 14.7/1000; life expectancy: 76.1; density per sq mi: 38
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Buenos Aires, 13,076,300 (metro. area), 12,116,400 (city proper)
Other large cities: Córdoba, 1,486,200; Rosario, 1,276,900; Mendoza, 988,600; Mar del Plata, 683,700
Monetary unit: Peso
Languages: Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French
Ethnicity/race: white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%; mestizo, Amerindian, other 3%
Religions: Roman Catholic 92%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%
Literacy rate: 96.2% (1995 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $483.5 billion; per capita $12,400. Real growth rate: 8.3%. Inflation: 6.1%. Unemployment: 14.8%. Arable land: 12%. Agriculture: sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock. Labor force: 15.04 million; agriculture n.a., industry n.a., services n.a. Industries: food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel. Natural resources: fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium. Exports: $33.78 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles. Imports: $22.06 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics. Major trading partners: Brazil, Chile, U.S., China, Spain, Germany (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 8,009,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 6.5 million (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM n.a. (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 742,358 (2003). Internet users: 4.1 million (2002).

[B]Transportation: [/B]Railways: total: 34,091 km (167 km electrified) (2004). Highways: total: 215,471 km; paved: 63,348 km (including 734 km of expressways); unpaved: 152,123 km (1999). Waterways: 11,000 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Punta Colorada, Rosario, San Lorenzo-San Martin, San Nicolas. Airports: 1,334 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]Argentina claims the UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in its constitution; it briefly occupied the Falklands in 1982, but in 1995 agreed no longer to seek settlement by force; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps UK and Chilean claims (see Antarctic disputes); unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations; uncontested dispute between Brazil and Uruguay over Braziliera Island in the Quarai/Cuareim River leaves the tripoint with Argentina in question,

[B]Geography[/B]:

Second in South America only to Brazil in size and population, Argentina is a plain, rising from the Atlantic to the Chilean border and the towering Andes peaks. Aconcagua (22,834 ft, 6,960 m) is the highest peak in the world outside Asia. Argentina is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay on the north, and by Uruguay and Brazil on the east. The northern area is the swampy and partly wooded Gran Chaco, bordering on Bolivia and Paraguay. South of that are the rolling, fertile Pampas, which are rich in agriculture and sheep- and cattle-grazing and support most of the population. Next southward is Patagonia, a region of cool, arid steppes with some wooded and fertile sections.

[B]Government[/B]
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Armenia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
National Name: Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun
President: Robert Kocharian (1998)
Prime Minister: Andranik Markarian (2000)
Land area: 10,965 sq mi (28,400 sq km); total area: 11,506 sq mi (29,800 sq km);
Population (2006 est.): 2,976,372 (growth rate: –0.2%); (Armenian, 93%; others, Kurds, Ukrainians, and Russians); birth rate: 12.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 22.5/1000; life expectancy: 71.8; density per sq mi: 271
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Yerevan, 1,462,700 (metro. area), 1,267,600 (city proper)
Other large cities: Vanadzor, 147,400; Gyumri (Leninakan), 125,300; Abovian, 59,300
Monetary unit: Dram
Languages: Armenian 96%, Russian 2%, other 2%
Ethnicity/race: Armenian 93%, Russian 2%, Azeri 1%, other (mostly Yezidi Kurds) 4% (2002). Note: as of the end of 1993, virtually all Azeris had emigrated from Armenia
Religion: Armenian Apostolic 94%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi 2%
Literacy rate: 99% (1989 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $13.65 billion; per capita $4,600. Real growth rate: 9%. Inflation: 3.5%. Unemployment: 30%. Note: official rate is 10.9% for 2000. Arable land: 18%. Agriculture: fruit (especially grapes), vegetables; livestock. Labor force: 1.4 million (2001); agriculture 45%, industry 25%, services 30% (2002 est). Industries: diamond-processing, metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines, electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric, chemicals, trucks, instruments, microelectronics, jewelry manufacturing, software development, food processing, brandy. Natural resources: small deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, alumina. Exports: $850 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): diamonds, mineral products, foodstuffs, energy. Imports: $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds. Major trading partners: Belgium, UK, Israel, Russia, Iran, U.S., Germany, UAE, Italy, Ukraine (2003).
[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 562,600 (2003); mobile cellular: 114,400 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 3 (plus an unknown number of repeaters) (1998). Internet hosts: 2,206 (2004). Internet users: 150,000 (2003).
[B]Transportation: [/B]Railways: total: 845 km (2004). Highways: total: 8,431 km; paved: 8,161 km (includes 7,567 km of expressways); unpaved: 270 km (2002). Waterways: n.a. Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 16 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in Nagorno-Karabakh and since the early 1990s, has militarily occupied 16% of Azerbaijan—Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues to mediate dispute; over 800,000 mostly ethnic Azerbaijanis were driven from the occupied lands and Armenia; about 230,000 ethnic Armenians were driven from their homes in Azerbaijan into Armenia; Azerbaijan seeks transit route through Armenia to connect to Naxcivan exclave; border with Turkey remains closed over Nagorno-Karabakh dispute; ethnic Armenian groups in Javakheti region of Georgia seek greater autonomy; tens of thousands of Armenians emigrate, primarily to Russia, to seek employment.

[B]Geography[/B]

Armenia is located in the southern Caucasus and is the smallest of the former Soviet republics. It is bounded by Georgia on the north, Azerbaijan on the east, Iran on the south, and Turkey on the west. Contemporary Armenia is a fraction of the size of ancient Armenia. A land of rugged mountains and extinct volcanoes, its highest point is Mount Aragats, 13,435 ft (4,095 m).
Government
Republic.
[B][CENTER][U]Australia[/U][/CENTER][/B]
Commonwealth of Australia
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: Michael Jeffery (2003)
Prime Minister: John Howard (1996)
Land area: 2,941,283 sq mi (7,617,931 sq km); total area: 2,967,909 sq mi (7,686,850 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 20,264,082 (growth rate: 0.9%); birth rate: 12.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.6/1000; life expectancy: 80.5; density per sq mi: 7
Capital (2003 est.): Canberra, 327,700
Largest cities: Sydney, 4,250,100; Melbourne, 3,610,800; Brisbane, 1,545,700; Perth, 1,375,200; Adelaide, 1,087,600
Monetary unit: Australian dollar
Languages: English, native languages
Ethnicity/race: Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal (353,000) and other 1%
Religions: Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%
Literacy rate: 100% (1980 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $611.7 billion; per capita $30,700. Real growth rate: 3.5%. Inflation: 2.3%. Unemployment: 5.1% (Dec. 2004 est.). Arable land: 7%. Agriculture: wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry. Labor force: 10.35 million; agriculture 3.6%, industry 26.4%, services 70%. Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel. Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum. Exports: $86.89 billion (2004 est.): coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment. Imports: $98.1 billion (2004 est.): machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products. Major trading partners: Japan, U.S., China, South Korea, New Zealand, UK, Germany (2003).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 10.815 million (2003); mobile cellular: 14.347 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 104 (1997). Internet hosts: 2,847,763 (2003). Internet users: 9.472 million (2002).

[B]Transportation: [/B]Railways: total: 54,439 km (3,859 km electrified) (2004). Highways: total: 811,603 km; paved: 314,090 km (including 18,619 km of expressways); unpaved: 497,513 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2004). Ports and harbors: Brisbane, Dampier, Fremantle, Gladstone, Hay Point, Melbourne, Newcastle, Port Hedland, Port Kembla, Port Walcott, Sydney. Airports: 448 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]East Timor and Australia continue to meet but disagree over how to delimit a permanent maritime boundary and share unexploited petroleum resources that fall outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia (see also Ashmore and Cartier Islands dispute); regional states express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime indentification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted claims to UNCLOS to extend its continental margin from both its mainland and Antarctic claims.

[B]Geography[/B]

The continent of Australia, with the island state of Tasmania, is approximately equal in area to the United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii). Mountain ranges run from north to south along the east coast, reaching their highest point in Mount Kosciusko (7,308 ft; 2,228 m). The western half of the continent is occupied by a desert plateau that rises into barren, rolling hills near the west coast. The Great Barrier Reef, extending about 1,245 mi (2,000 km), lies along the northeast coast. The island of Tasmania (26,178 sq mi; 67,800 sq km) is off the southeast coast.
[B]Government[/B]

Democracy. Symbolic executive power is vested in the British monarch, who is represented throughout Australia by the governor-general.

[B][U][CENTER]Austria[/CENTER][/U][/B]Republic of Austria

National name: Republik Österreich
President: Heinz Fischer (2004)
Chancellor: Wolfgang Schüssel (2000)
Land area: 31,942 sq mi (82,730 sq km); total area: 32,382 sq mi (83,870 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 8,192,880 (growth rate: 0.1%); birth rate 8.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.6/1000; life expectancy: 79.1; density per sq mi: 256
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Vienna, 2,041,300 (metro area), 1,523,600 (city proper)
Other large cities: Graz, 219,500; Linz, 185,300; Salzburg, 145,500; Innsbruck, 115,600
Monetary units: Euro (formerly schilling)
Languages: German 98% (official nationwide); Slovene, Croatian, Hungarian (each official in one region)
Ethnicity/race: German 88.5%, recent immigrant groups 10% (includes Turks, Bosnians, Serbians, Croatians), indigenous minorities 1.5% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma) (2001)
Religions: Roman Catholic 74%, Protestant 5%, Islam 4%, other 17%
Literacy rate: 98%

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $255.9 billion; per capita $31,300. Real growth rate: 1.9%. Inflation: 1.8%. Unemployment: 4.4%. Arable land: 17%. Agriculture: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber. Labor force: 3.45 million; services 67%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 4%. Industries: construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, metals, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism. Natural resources: oil, coal, lignite, timber, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, magnesite, tungsten, graphite, salt, hydropower. Exports: $102.7 billion (f.o.b., 2004): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs. Imports: $101.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Germany, Italy, Switzerland, U.S., UK, France, Hungary, Netherlands (2003).

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 3.881 million (2003); mobile cellular: 7,094,500 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 65 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 10 (plus more than 1,000 repeaters) (2001). Internet hosts: 387,006 (2004). Internet users: 3.73 million (2003).
Transportation: Railways: total: 6,021 km (3,552 km electrified) (2004). Highways: 200,000 km; paved: 200,000 km (including 1,645 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Waterways: 358 km (2003). Ports and harbors: Enns, Krems, Linz, Vienna. Airports: 55 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]none

[B]Geography[/B]Slightly smaller than Maine, Austria includes much of the mountainous territory of the eastern Alps (about 75% of the area). The country contains many snowfields, glaciers, and snowcapped peaks, the highest being the Grossglockner (12,530 ft; 3,819 m). The Danube is the principal river. Forests and woodlands cover about 40% of the land.
[B]Government[/B]Federal republic.

[B]Bahamas[/B]Commonwealth of the Bahamas
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: Ivy Dumont (2001)
Prime Minister: Perry Christie (2002)
Land area: 3,888 sq mi (10,070 sq km); total area: 5,382 sq mi 13,940 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 303,770 (growth rate: 0.6%); birth rate: 17.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 24.7/1000; life expectancy: 65.6; density per sq mi: 78
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Nassau, 222,200
Monetary unit: Bahamian dollar
Languages: English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
Ethnicity/race: black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
Religions: Baptist 32%, Anglican 20%, Roman Catholic 19%, Methodist 6%, Church of God 6%, other Protestant 12%
Literacy rate: 98.2% (1995 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $5.295 billion; per capita $17,700. Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 1.2%. Unemployment: 10.2%. Arable land: 1%. Agriculture: citrus, vegetables; poultry. Labor force: 156,000 (1999); tourism 40%, other services 50%, industry 5%, agriculture 5% (1995 est.). Industries: tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe. Natural resources: salt, aragonite, timber, arable land. Exports: $636 million (2003 est.): mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals; fruit and vegetables. Imports: $1.63 billion (2003): machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, mineral fuels; food and live animals. Major trading partners: U.S., Spain, Germany, France, Poland, Switzerland, Peru, Paraguay, South Korea, Italy, Brazil, Japan, Venezuela (2003).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 131,700 (2003); mobile cellular: 121,800 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004). Television broadcast stations: 2 (2004). Internet hosts: 302 (2003). Internet users: 84,000 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 2,693 km; paved: 1,546 km; unpaved: 1,147 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point. Airports: 63 (2004 est.).
International disputes: have not been able to agree on the alignment of a maritime boundary with the US; continues to monitor and interdict Haitian refugees fleeing economic privation and political instability.
[B]Geography[/B]

The Bahamas are an archipelago of about 700 islands and 2,400 uninhabited islets and cays lying 50 mi off the east coast of Florida. They extend for about 760 mi (1,223 km). Only about 30 of the islands are inhabited; the most important is New Providence (80 sq mi; 207 sq km), on which the capital, Nassau, is situated. Other islands include Grand Bahama, Abaco, Eleuthera, Andros, Cat Island, and San Salvador (or Watling's Island).

[B]Government[/B]
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Bahrain[/CENTER][/U][/B]Kingdom of Bahrain

National Name: Mamlakat al Bahrayn
King: Hamad ibn Isa al-Khalifah (1999)
Prime Minister: Khalifah ibn Sulman al-Khalifah (1970)
Total and land area: 257 sq mi (665 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 698,585 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 17.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 16.8/1000; life expectancy: 74.5; density per sq mi: 2,721
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Al-Manámah, 527,000 (metro area), 149,900 (city proper)
Monetary unit: Bahrain dinar
Languages: Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu
Ethnicity/race: Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8%
Religion: Islam (Shiite 70%, Sunni 30%)
Literacy rate: 89% (2003 est.)

[B]Economic summary[/B]: GDP/PPP (2004 est): $13.01 billion; per capita $19,200. Real growth rate: 5.6%. Inflation: 2.1%. Unemployment: 15% (1998 est.). Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish. Labor force: 370,000; note: 44% of the population in the 15–64 age group is non-national; industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1% (1997 est.). Industries: petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism. Natural resources: oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls. Exports: $8.205 billion (2004 est.): petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles. Imports: $5.87 billion (2004 est.): crude oil, machinery, chemicals. Major trading partners: U.S., South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Japan, UK, Germany (2003).

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 185,800 (2003); mobile cellular: 443,100 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 4 (1997). Internet hosts: 1,334 (2003). Internet users: 195,700 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 3,459 km; paved: 2,653 km; unpaved: 806 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Mina' Salman, Sitrah. Airports: 4 (2004 est.).
[B]International disputes[/B]: none.

[B]Geography[/B]Bahrain, which means “two seas,” is an archipelago in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Saudi Arabia. The islands for the most part are level expanses of sand and rock. A causeway connects Bahrain to Saudi Arabia.
[B]Government[/B]Constitutional monarchy.
[B][U][CENTER]Bangladesh[/CENTER][/U][/B]
People's Republic of Bangladesh
President: Iajuddin Ahmed (2002)
Prime Minister: Khaleda Zia (2001)
Land area: 51,703 sq mi (133,911 sq km); total area: 55,599 sq mi (144,000 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 147,365,352 (growth rate: 2.1%); birth rate: 29.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 60.8/1000; life expectancy: 62.5; density per sq mi: 2,850
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Dhaka, 10,356,500 (metro.area), 8,942,300 (city proper)
Other large cities: Chittagong, 2,592,400; Khulna, 1,211,500
Monetary unit: Taka
Principal languages: Bangla (official), English
Ethnicity/race: Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998)
Religions: Islam 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1%
Literacy rate: 43% (2003 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $275.7 billion; per capita $2,000. Real growth rate: 4.9%. Inflation: 6%. Unemployment: 40% (includes underemployment). Arable land: 62%. Agriculture: rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry. Labor force: 65.49 million; note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; agriculture 63%, services 26%, industry 11% (FY95/96). Industries: cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar. Natural resources: natural gas, arable land, timber, coal. Exports: $7.478 billion (2004 est.): garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood (2001). Imports: $10.03 billion (2004 est.): machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement (2000). Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, UK, France, India, China, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong (2003).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 740,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 1.365 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999) Television broadcast stations: 15 (1999). Internet hosts: 1 (2003). Internet users: 243,000 (2003).

[B]Transportation: [/B]Railways: total: 2,706 km (2004). Highways: total: 207,486 km; paved: 19,773 km; unpaved: 187,713 km (1999). Waterways: 8,372 km; note: includes 2,575 km main cargo routes (2004). Ports and harbors: Chittagong, Mongla Port. Airports: 16 (2004 est.).
International disputes: discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint Bangladesh-India boundary inspection in 2005 revealed 92 pillars are missing; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources.

[B]Geography[/B]
Bangladesh, on the northern coast of the Bay of Bengal, is surrounded by India, with a small common border with Myanmar in the southeast. The country is low-lying riverine land traversed by the many branches and tributaries of the Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers. Tropical monsoons and frequent floods and cyclones inflict heavy damage in the delta region.
[B]Government[/B]
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Barbados[/CENTER][/U][/B]
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Governor-General: Sir Clifford Husbands (1996)
Prime Minister: Owen Arthur (1994)
Total and land area: 166 sq mi (430 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 279,912 (growth rate: 0.4%); birth rate: 12.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 11.8/1000; life expectancy: 72.8; density per sq mi: 1,686
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Bridgetown, 98,900
Monetary unit: Barbados dollar
Language: English
Ethnicity/race: black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6%
Religions: Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12%
Literacy rate: 97% (1995 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $4.569 billion; per capita: $16,400. Real growth rate: 2.3%. Inflation: –0.5%. Unemployment: 10.7% (2003 est.). Arable land: 37%. Agriculture: sugarcane, vegetables, cotton. Labor force: 128,500 (2001 est.); services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.). Industries: tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export. Natural resources: petroleum, fish, natural gas. Exports: $206 million (2002): sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components. Imports: $1.039 billion (2002): consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components. Major trading partners: U.S., Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Japan (2003).
Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 134,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 140,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004). Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus two cable channels) (2004). Internet hosts: 204 (2003). Internet users: 100,000 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 1,600 km; paved: 1,578 km; unpaved: 22 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Bridgetown. Airports: 1 (2004 est.).
[B]International disputes[/B]: in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration that will result in a binding award challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters and the southern limit of Barbadian traditional fishing; joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea.

[B]Geography[/B]
An island in the Atlantic about 300 mi (483 km) north of Venezuela, Barbados is only 21 mi long (34 km) and 14 mi across (23 km) at its widest point. It is circled by fine beaches and narrow coastal plains. The highest point is Mount Hillaby (1,105 ft; 337 m) in the north-central area.
[B]Government[/B]
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Belarus[/CENTER][/U][/B]Republic of Belarus
National Name: Respublika Byelarus'
President: Alyaksandr Lukashenka (1994)
Prime Minister: Syarhey Sidorski (2003)
Total and land area: 80,154 sq mi (207,600 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 10,293,011 (growth rate: –0.1%); birth rate: 11.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 13.0/1000; life expectancy: 69.1; density per sq mi: 128
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Mensk (Minsk), 1,769,500
Other large cities: Gomel, 502,200; Mogilyov, 374,000; Vitebsk, 355,800; Grodno, 314,100; Brest, 306,300; Bobruysk, 228,100
Monetary unit: Belorussian ruble
Languages: Belorussian (White Russian), Russian, other
Ethnicity/race: Belorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
Religion: Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Literacy rate: 100% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $70.5 billion; per capita $6,800. Real growth rate: 6.4%. Inflation: 17.4%. Unemployment: 2% officially registered unemployed (2004); large number of underemployed workers. Arable land: 30%. Agriculture: grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk. Labor force: 4.305 million (Dec. 31, 2003); agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.). Industries: metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators. Natural resources: forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay. Exports: $11.47 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs. Imports: $13.57 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals. Major trading partners: Russia, UK, Poland, Germany, Netherlands, Ukraine (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3,071,300 (2003); mobile cellular: 1.118 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 5,308 (2004). Internet users: 1,391,900 (2003).
Transportation: Railways: total: 5,512 km (2004). Highways: total: 79,990 km; paved: 69,351 km; unpaved: 10,639 km (2004). Waterways: 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003). Ports and harbors: Mazyr. Airports: 133 (2004 est.).
International disputes: 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundary with Latvia remains undemarcated but a third of the border with Lithuania was demarcated in 2004.

[B]Geography[/B]
Much of Belarus (formerly the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic of the USSR, and then Byelorussia) is a hilly lowland with forests, swamps, and numerous rivers and lakes. There are wide rivers emptying into the Baltic and Black Seas. Its forests cover over one-third of the land and its peat marshes are a valuable natural resource. The largest lake is Narach, 31 sq mi (79.6 sq km).
[B]Government[/B]
Republic.

[B]Continued.......[/B]

[B][U][CENTER]Belgium[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Kingdom of Belgium

National name: Royaume de Belgique—Koninkrijk België

Sovereign: King Albert II (1993)

Prime Minister: Guy Verhofstadt (1999)

Land area: 11,672 sq mi (30,230 sq km); total area: 11,787 sq mi (30,528 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 10,379,067 (growth rate: 0.1%); birth rate: 10.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.6/1000; life expectancy: 78.8; density per sq mi: 889

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Brussels, 1,750,600 (metro area), 981,200 (city proper)

Other large cities: Antwerp, 952,600 (metro area), 450,000 (city proper); Ghent, 226,900; Charleroi, 201,200; Liège, 185,700; Bruges, 117,200

Monetary units: Euro (formerly Belgian franc)

Languages: Dutch (Flemish) 60%, French 40%, German less than 1% (all official)

Ethnicity/race: Fleming, Walloon, mixed, or other

Religion: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%

Literacy rate: 98% (2003 est.)

[B]Economic summary: [/B]GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $316.2 billion; per capita $30,600. Real growth rate: 2.6%. Inflation: 1.9%. Unemployment: 12% (first half, 2004 est.). Arable land: 23%. Agriculture: sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk. Labor force: 4.75 million; agriculture 1.3%, industry 24.5%, services 74.2% (2003 est.). Industries: engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum. Natural resources: coal, natural gas, construction materials, silica sand, carbonates. Exports: $255.7 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs. Imports: $235 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products. Major trading partners: Germany, France, Netherlands, UK, U.S., Italy, Ireland (2003).

[B]Communications: [/B]Telephones: main lines in use: 5,120,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 8,135,500 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: FM 79, AM 7, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 166,799 (2004). Internet users: 3.4 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 3,521 km (2,927 km electrified) (2004). Highways: total: 149,028 km; paved: 116,540 km (including 1,729 km of expressways); unpaved: 32,488 km (2002). Waterways: 2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2003). Ports and harbors: Antwerp, Brussels, Gent, Liege, Oostende, Zeebrugge. Airports: 43 (2004 est.).

[B]International disputes: [/B]none.

[B]Geography[/B]
Located in western Europe, Belgium has about 40 mi of seacoast on the North Sea, at the Strait of Dover, and is approximately the size of Maryland. The Meuse and the Schelde, Belgium's principal rivers, are important commercial arteries.

[B]Government[/B]

Parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch. Under the 1994 constitution, autonomy was granted to the Walloon region (Wallonia), the Flemish region (Flanders), and the bilingual Brussels-Capital region; autonomy was also guaranteed for the Flemish-, French-, and German-speaking “communities.” The central government retains responsibility for foreign policy, defense, taxation, and social security.

[B][U][CENTER]Benin[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Benin

National name: Republique du Benin

President: Yayi Boni (2006)

Land area: 42,710 sq mi (110,619 sq km); total area: 43,483 sq mi (112,620 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 7,862,944 (growth rate: 2.7%); birth rate: 38.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 79.6/1000; life expectancy: 53.0; density per sq mi: 184

Capital (2003 est.): Porto-Novo (official), 231,600

Largest cities: Cotonou (de facto capital) 734,600; Parakou 205,300; Djougou, 184,200

Monetary unit: CFA Franc

Languages: French (official), Fon, Yoruba, tribal languages

Ethnicity/race: African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500

Religions: indigenous 50%, Christian 30%, Islam 20%

Literacy rate: 41% (2000)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $8.338 billion; per capita $1,200. Real growth rate: 5%. Inflation: 2.8%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 18%. Agriculture: cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001). Labor force: n.a. Industries: textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001). Natural resources: small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber. Exports: $720.9 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa. Imports: $934.5 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products. Major trading partners: China, India, Thailand, Ghana, Niger, Indonesia, Nigeria, Italy, France, UK, Côte d'Ivoire, Thailand (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 66,500 (2003); mobile cellular: 236,200 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2001). Internet hosts: 879 (2004). Internet users: 70,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 578 km (2004). Highways: total: 6,787 km; paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways); unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2004). Ports and harbors: Cotonou. Airports: 5 (2004 est.).

International disputes: two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and the states expect a ruling in 2005 from the ICJ over the disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; a joint task force was established in 2004 that resolved disputes over and redrew the maritime and the 870-km land boundary with Nigeria, including the sovereignty over seven villages along the Okpara River; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones.

Geography
This West African nation on the Gulf of Guinea, between Togo on the west and Nigeria on the east, is about the size of Tennessee. It is bounded also by Burkina Faso and Niger on the north. The land consists of a narrow coastal strip that rises to a swampy, forested plateau and then to highlands in the north. A hot and humid climate blankets the entire country.

Government
Republic under a multiparty democratic rule.

[B][U][CENTER]Bhutan[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Kingdom of Bhutan

Ruler: King Jigme Singye Wangchuck (1972)

Prime Minister: Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba (2004)

Total and land area: 18,147 sq mi (47,001 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 2,279,723 (growth rate: 2.1%); birth rate: 33.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 98.4/1000; life expectancy: 54.8; density per sq mi: 126

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Thimphu (official), 60,200

Monetary unit: Ngultrum

Languages: Dzongkha (official), Tibetan dialects (among Bhotes), Nepalese dialects (among Nepalese)

Ethnicity/race: Bhote 50%, ethnic Nepalese 35%, indigenous or migrant tribes 15%

Religions: Lamaistic Buddhist 75%, Indian- and Nepalese-influenced Hinduism 25%

Literacy rate: 42% (1995 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2003 est.): $2.9 billion; per capita $1,400. Real growth rate: 5.3%. Inflation: 3% (2002 est.). Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: rice, corn, root crops, citrus, grains; dairy products, eggs. Labor force: n.a.; note: massive lack of skilled labor (1997 est.); agriculture 93%, services 5%, industry and commerce 2%. Industries: cement, wood products, processed fruits, alcoholic beverages, calcium carbide. Natural resources: timber, hydropower, gypsum, calcium carbide. Exports: $154 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.): electricity (to India), cardamom, gypsum, timber, handicrafts, cement, fruit, precious stones, spices. Imports: $196 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.): fuel and lubricants, grain, machinery and parts, vehicles, fabrics, rice. Major trading partners: India, Bangladesh, Philippines, Japan, Austria (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 25,200 (2003); mobile cellular: 22,000 (2005). Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2005). Internet hosts: 985 (2003). Internet users: 15,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 4,007 km; paved: 24 km; unpaved: 3,983 km (2002). Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 2 (2004 est.).

International disputes: approximately 104,000 Bhutanese refugees live in Nepal, 90% of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees camps; Bhutan cooperates with India to expel Indian separatists.

Geography
Mountainous Bhutan, half the size of Indiana, is situated on the southeast slope of the Himalayas, bordered on the north and east by Tibet and on the south and west and east by India. The landscape consists of a succession of lofty and rugged mountains and deep valleys. In the north, towering peaks reach a height of 24,000 ft (7,315 m).

Government
Monarchy.

[B][U][CENTER]Brazil[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Federative Republic of Brazil

National name: República Federativa do Brasil

President: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (2003)

Land area: 3,265,059 sq mi (8,456,511 sq km); total area: 3,286,488 sq mi (8,511,965 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 188,078,227 (growth rate: 1.0%); birth rate: 16.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 28.6/1000; life expectancy: 72.0; density per sq mi: 58

Capital (2003 est.): Brasília, 2,160,100

Largest cities: São Paulo, 18,847,400 (metro. area), 10,195,000 (city proper); Rio de Janeiro, 11,437,100 (metro. area), 6,119,800 (city proper); Salvador, 2,590,400; Belo Horizonte, 2,347,500; Recife, 1,485,500; Porto Alegre, 1,372,700

Monetary unit: Real

Languages: Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French

Ethnicity/race: white (includes Portuguese, German, Italian, Spanish, Polish) 55%, mixed white and black 38%, black 6%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 1%

Religion: Roman Catholic 80%

Literacy rate: 80% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.492 trillion; per capita $8,100. Real growth rate: 5.1%. Inflation: 7.6%. Unemployment: 11.5%. Arable land: 7%. Agriculture: coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef. Labor force: 89 million; agriculture 20%, industry 14%, services 66% (2003 est.). Industries: textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment. Natural resources: bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber. Exports: $95 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): transport equipment, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee, autos. Imports: $61 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, electrical and transport equipment, chemical products, oil. Major trading partners: U.S., Argentina, China, Netherlands, Germany, Japan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 38.81 million (2002); mobile cellular: 46,373,300 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1,365, FM 296, shortwave 161 (of which 91 are collocated with AM stations) (1999). Television broadcast stations: 138 (1997). Internet hosts: 3,163,349 (2003). Internet users: 14.3 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 29,412 km (1,567 km electrified) (2004). Highways: total: 1,724,929 km; paved: 94,871 km; unpaved: 1,630,058 km (2000). Waterways: 50,000 km (most in areas remote from industry and population) (2004). Ports and harbors: Gebig, Itaqui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, San Sebasttiao, Santos, Sepetiba Terminal, Tubarao, Vitoria. Airports: 4,136 (2004 est.).

International disputes: unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and illegal narcotics trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations; uncontested dispute with Uruguay over certain islands in the Quarai/Cuareim and Invernada boundary streams and the resulting tripoint with Argentina; in 2004 Brazil submitted its claims to UNCLOS to extend its maritime continental margin.

Geography
Brazil covers nearly half of South America and is the continent's largest nation. It extends 2,965 mi (4,772 km) north-south, 2,691 mi (4,331 km) east-west, and borders every nation on the continent except Chile and Ecuador. Brazil may be divided into the Brazilian Highlands, or plateau, in the south and the Amazon River Basin in the north. Over a third of Brazil is drained by the Amazon and its more than 200 tributaries. The Amazon is navigable for ocean steamers to Iquitos, Peru, 2,300 mi (3,700 km) upstream. Southern Brazil is drained by the Plata system—the Paraguay, Uruguay, and Paraná Rivers.

Government
Federal republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Cambodia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Kingdom of Cambodia

National Name: Preahreacheanacha Kampuchea

King: Norodom Sihamoni (2004)

Prime Minister: Hun Sen (1998)

Land area: 68,154 sq mi (176,519 sq km); total area: 69,900 sq mi (181,040 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 13,881,427 (growth rate: 1.8%); birth rate: 26.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 68.8/1000; life expectancy: 59.3; density per sq mi: 204

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Phnom Penh, 1,169,800

Monetary unit: Riel

Languages: Khmer (official), French, English

Ethnicity/race: Khmer 90%, Vietnamese 5%, Chinese 1%, other 4%

Religions: Theravada Buddhist 95%, others 5%

Literacy rate: 70% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $26.99 billion; per capita $2,000. Real growth rate: 5.4%. Inflation: 3.1%. Unemployment: 2.5% (2000 est.). Arable land: 21%. Agriculture: rice, rubber, corn, vegetables, cashews, tapioca. Labor force: 7 million; agriculture 75% (2004 est.). Industries: tourism, garments, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining, textiles. Natural resources: oil and gas, timber, gemstones, some iron ore, manganese, phosphates, hydropower potential. Exports: $2.311 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): clothing, timber, rubber, rice, fish, tobacco, footwear. Imports: $3.129 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum products, cigarettes, gold, construction materials, machinery, motor vehicles, pharmaceutical products. Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, UK, Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Vietnam, Taiwan, South Korea (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 35,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 380,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 17, (2003). Television broadcast stations: 7 (2003). Internet hosts: 818 (2003). Internet users: 30,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 602 km (2004). Highways: total: 12,323 km; paved: 1,996 km; unpaved: 10,327 km (2000 est.). Waterways: 2,400 km (mainly on Mekong River) (2004). Ports and harbors: Phnom Penh. Airports: 20 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Thailand dispute sections of boundary with missing boundary markers and Thai encroachments into Cambodian territory; maritime boundary with Vietnam is hampered by unresolved dispute over offshore islands; Cambodia accuses Thailand of obstructing access to Preah Vihear temple ruins awarded to Cambodia by ICJ decision in 1962; in 2004 Cambodian-Laotian and Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commissions reerect missing markers completing most of their demarcations.

Geography
Situated on the Indochinese peninsula, Cambodia is bordered by Thailand and Laos on the north and Vietnam on the east and south. The Gulf of Thailand is off the western coast. The size of Missouri, the country consists chiefly of a large alluvial plain ringed by mountains and on the east is the Mekong River. The plain is centered around Lake Tonle Sap, which is a natural storage basin of the Mekong.

Government
Multiparty liberal democracy under a constitutional monarchy.

[B][U][CENTER]Chile[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Chile

National name: República de Chile

President: Michelle Bachelet (2006)

Land area: 289,112 sq mi (748,800 sq km); total area: 292,260 sq mi (756,950 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 16,134,219 (growth rate: 0.9%); birth rate: 15.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 8.6/1000; life expectancy: 76.8; density per sq mi: 56

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Santiago, 5,333,100 (metro. area), 4,372,800 (city proper)

Other large cities: Viña del Mar, 303,100; Valparaíso, 274,100; Talcahuano, 252,800; Temuco, 247,200; Concepción, 217,600

Monetary unit: Chilean Peso

Language: Spanish

Ethnicity/race: white and white-Amerindian 95%, Amerindian 3%, other 2%

Religions: Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 11%, small Jewish and Muslim populations

Literacy rate: 96% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $169.1 billion; per capita $10,700. Real growth rate: 5.8%. Inflation: 2.4%. Unemployment: 8.5%. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry, wool; fish; timber. Labor force: 6.2 million; agriculture 13.6%, industry 23.4%, services 63% (2003). Industries: copper, other minerals, foodstuffs, fish processing, iron and steel, wood and wood products, transport equipment, cement, textiles. Natural resources: copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower. Exports: $29.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): copper, fruit, fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals, wine. Imports: $22.53 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles, natural gas. Major trading partners: U.S., Japan, China, South Korea, Mexico, Italy, Argentina, Brazil (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3.467 million (2002); mobile cellular: 6,445,700 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 180 (eight inactive), FM 64, shortwave 17 (one inactive) (1998). Television broadcast stations: 63 (plus 121 repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 202,429 (2003). Internet users: 3.575 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 6,585 km (2004). Highways: total: 79,605 km; paved: 16,080 km; unpaved: 63,525 km (2001). Waterways: 725 km. Ports and harbors: Antofagasta, Arica, Huasco, Iquique, Lirquen, San Antonio, San Vicente, Valparaiso. Airports: 364 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile to Bolivian gas and other commodities; Peru proposes changing its latitudinal maritime boundary with Chile to an equidistance line with a southwestern axis; territorial claim in Antarctica (Chilean Antarctic Territory) partially overlaps Argentine and British claims.

Geography
Situated south of Peru and west of Bolivia and Argentina, Chile fills a narrow 2,880 mi (4,506 km) strip between the Andes and the Pacific. One-third of Chile is covered by the towering ranges of the Andes. In the north is the driest place on Earth, the Atacama Desert, and in the center is a 700-mile-long (1,127 km) thickly populated valley with most of Chile's arable land. At the southern tip of Chile's mainland is Punta Arenas, the southernmost city in the world, and beyond that lies the Strait of Magellan and Tierra del Fuego, an island divided between Chile and Argentina. The southernmost point of South America is Cape Horn, a 1,390-foot (424 m) rock on Horn Island in the Wollaston group, which belongs to Chile. Chile also claims sovereignty over 482,628 sq mi (1,250,000 sq km) of Antarctic territory; the Juan Fernández Islands, about 400 mi (644 km) west of the mainland; and Easter Island, about 2,000 mi (3,219 km) west.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Colombia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Colombia

National name: República de Colombia

President: Alvaro Uribe (2002)

Land area: 401,042 sq mi (1,038,699 sq km); total area: 439,736 sq mi (1,138,910 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 43,593,035 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 20.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 20.4/1000; life expectancy: 72.0; density per sq mi: 109

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Santafé de Bogotá, 6,837,800

Other large cities: Cali, 2,283,200; Medellín, 1,957,800; Barranquilla, 1,330,400; Cartagena, 901,500

Monetary unit: Colombian Peso

Language: Spanish

Ethnicity/race: mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%

Religion: Roman Catholic 90%

Literacy rate: 93% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $281.1 billion; per capita $6,600. Real growth rate: 3.6%. Inflation: 5.9%. Unemployment: 13.6%. Arable land: 2%. Agriculture: coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp. Labor force: 20.7 million; services 46%, agriculture 30%, industry 24% (1990). Industries: textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower. Exports: $15.5 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers. Imports: $15.34 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): iindustrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity. Major trading partners: U.S., Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico, China, Japan, Germany (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 8,768,100 (2003); mobile cellular: 6,186,200 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999). Television broadcast stations: 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997). Internet hosts: 115,158 (2003). Internet users: 2,732,200 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 3,304 km (2004). Highways: total: 112,998 km; paved: 26,000 km; unpaved: 84,000 km (2000). Waterways: 9,187 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Muelles El Bosque, Puerto Bolivar, Santa Marta, Turbo. Airports: 980 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; dispute with Venezuela over maritime boundary and Los Monjes Islands near the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian-organized illegal narcotics, guerrilla, and paramilitary activities penetrate all of its neighbors' borders and have created a serious refugee crisis with over 300,000 persons having fled the country, mostly into neighboring states.

Geography
Colombia is bordered on the northwest by Panama, on the east by Venezuela and Brazil, and on the southwest by Peru and Ecuador. Through the western half of the country, three Andean ranges run north and south. The eastern half is a low, jungle-covered plain, drained by spurs of the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers, inhabited mostly by isolated tropical-forest Indian tribes. The fertile plateau and valley of the eastern range are the most densely populated parts of the country.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Comoros[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Union of the Comoros

National Name: Union des Comores

President: Azali Assoumani (2002)

Total and land area: 838 sq mi (2,170 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 690,948 (growth rate: 2.9%); birth rate: 36.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 72.8/1000; life expectancy: 62.3; density per sq mi: 825

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Moroni (on Grande Comoro), 60,200

Monetary unit: Franc

Languages: Arabic and French (both official), Shikomoro (Swahili/Arabic blend)

Ethnicity/race: Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava

Religions: Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%

Literacy rate: 57% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP: (2002 est.) $441 million; per capita $700. Real growth rate: 2%. Inflation: 3.5% (2001 est.). Unemployment: 20% (1996 est.). Arable land: 36%. Agriculture: vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca). Labor force: 144,500 (1996 est.): agriculture 80%. Industries: tourism, perfume distillation. Natural resources: negl. Exports: $28 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra. Imports: $88 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods; petroleum products, cement, transport equipment. Major trading partners: France, Germany, U.S., Singapore, Japan, South Africa, UAE, Kenya, Mauritius (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 13,200 (2003); mobile cellular: 2,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001). Television broadcast stations: n.a. Internet hosts: 11 (2003). Internet users: 5,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 880 km; paved: 673 km; unpaved: 207 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Mayotte, Moutsamoudou. Airports: 4 (2004 est.).

International disputes: claims French-administered Mayotte.

Geography
The Comoros Islands—Grande Comoro (Ngazidja), Anjouan, Mohéli, and Mayotte (which is not part of the country and retains ties to France)—constitute an archipelago of volcanic origin in the Indian Ocean, 190 mi off the coast of Mozambique.

Government
Emerging republic.


[B][U][CENTER]Congo, Republic of[/CENTER][/U][/B]

National name: République du Congo

President: Denis Sassou-Nguesso (1997)

Land area: 131,853 sq mi (341,499 sq km); total area: 132,047 sq mi (342,000 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 3,702,314 (growth rate: 2.6%); birth rate: 42.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 85.3/1000; life expectancy: 52.8; density per sq mi: 28

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Brazzaville, 1,169,900

Other large city: Pointe-Noire, 544,200

Monetary unit: CFA Franc

Languages: French (official), Lingala, Monokutuba, Kikongo, many local languages and dialects

Ethnicity/race: Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans (mostly French) and other 3%

Religions: Christian 50%, animist 48%, Islam 2%

Literacy rate: 84% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $2.324 billion; per capita $800. Real growth rate: 3.7%. Inflation: 1.8%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 1%. Agriculture: cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products. Labor force: n.a. Industries: petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes. Natural resources: petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, natural gas, hydropower. Exports: $2.224 billion (f.o.b., 2004): petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds. Imports: $749.3 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: China, Taiwan, U.S., South Korea, Trinidad and Tobago, France, Italy, India, Belgium (2003).

.Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 7,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 330,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 46 (2003). Internet users: 15,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 894 km (2004). Highways: total: 12,800 km; paved: 1,242 km; unpaved: 11,558 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2004). Ports and harbors: Brazzaville, Djeno, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire. Airports: 32 (2004 est.).

International disputes: about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area.

Geography
The Congo is situated in west-central Africa astride the equator. It borders Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Angola exclave of Cabinda, with a short stretch of coast on the South Atlantic. Its area is nearly three times that of Pennsylvania. Most of the inland is tropical rain forest, drained by tributaries of the Congo River.

Government
Dictatorship.

[B][U][CENTER]Croatia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Croatia

National Name: Republika Hrvatska

President: Stipe Mesic (2000)

Prime Minister: Ivo Sanader (2003)

Land area: 21,781 sq mi (56,414 sq km); total area: 21,831 sq mi (56,542 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 4,494,749 (growth rate: –0.03%); birth rate: 9.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 6.7/1000; life expectancy: 74.7; density per sq mi: 206

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Zagreb, 685,500

Other large cities: Split, 173,600; Rijeka, 142,500; Osijek, 89,600

Monetary unit: Kuna

Languages: Croatian 96% (official), other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, German)

Ethnicity/race: Croat 89.6%, Serb 4.5%, Bosniak 0.5%, Hungarian 0.4%, Slovene 0.3%, Czech 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Albanian 0.1%, Montenegrin 0.1%, others 4.1% (2001)

Religions: Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, Muslim 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, others and unknown 6.2% (2001)

Literacy rate: 99% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $50.33 billion; per capita $11,200. Real growth rate: 3.7%. Inflation: 2.5%. Unemployment: 13.8%. Arable land: 26%. Agriculture: wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products. Labor force: 1.71 million; agriculture 2.7%, industry 32.8%, services 64.5% (2004). Industries: chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism. Natural resources: oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower. Exports: $7.845 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels. Imports: $16.7 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Slovenia, Austria, France, Russia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.825 million (2002); mobile cellular: 2.553 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999). Television broadcast stations: 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995). Internet hosts: 29,644 (2004). Internet users: 1.014 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 2,726 km (2004). Highways: total: 28,344 km; paved: 23,979 km (including 455 km of expressways); unpaved: 4,365 km (2002). Waterways: 785 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Omisalj, Ploce, Rijeka, Sibenik, Vukovar (on Danube). Airports: 68 (2004 est.).

International disputes: discussions continue with Bosnia and Herzegovina over several small disputed sections of the boundary; the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Pirin Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia, remains un-ratified and in dispute; as a European Union peripheral state, neighboring Slovenia must conform to the strict Schengen border rules to curb illegal migration and commerce through southeastern Europe while encouraging close cross-border ties with Croatia.


Geography
Croatia is a former Yugoslav republic on the Adriatic Sea. It is about the size of West Virginia. Part of Croatia is a barren, rocky region lying in the Dinaric Alps. The Zagorje region north of the capital, Zagreb, is a land of rolling hills, and the fertile agricultural region of the Pannonian Plain is bordered by the Drava, Danube, and Sava Rivers in the east. Over one-third of Croatia is forested.

Government
Presidential/parliamentary democracy

[B][U][CENTER]Cyprus[/CENTER][/U][/B]
Republic of Cyprus

National name: Kypriaki Dimokratia—Kibris Cumhuriyeti

President: Tassos Papadopoulos (2003)

Land area: 3,568 sq mi (9,241 sq km); total area: 3,571 sq mi ()

Population (2006 est.): 784,301 (growth rate: 0.5%); birth rate: 12.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 7.0/1000; life expectancy: 77.8; density per sq mi: 220

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Lefkosia (Nicosia) (in government-controlled area), 197,600

Monetary unit: Cyprus pound

Languages: Greek, Turkish (both official); English

Ethnicity/race: Current: Greek 77%, Turkish 18% (each concentrated almost exclusively in separate areas); other 5% (2001)

Religions: Greek Orthodox 78%, Islam 18%, Maronite, Armenian Apostolic, and other 4%

Literacy rate: 98% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP: Greek Cypriot area (2004 est.): $15.71 billion; $20,300 per capita; Turkish Cypriot area (2004 est.): $4.54 billion; $7,135 per capita. Real growth rate: Greek Cypriot area: 3.2%; Turkish Cypriot area: 2.6%. Inflation: Greek Cypriot area: 2.4%; Turkish Cypriot area: 12.6% (2003 est.). Unemployment: Greek Cypriot area: 3.2%; Turkish Cypriot area: 5.6%. Arable land: 8%. Agriculture: citrus, vegetables, barley, grapes, olives, vegetables, poultry, pork, lamb, kids, dairy, cheese. Labor force: Greek Cypriot area: 330,000; Turkish Cypriot area: 95,025; Greek Cypriot area: agriculture 4.9%, industry 19.4%, services 75.6%; Turkish Cypriot area: agriculture 15.1%, industry 27%, services 57.9% (2003 est.). Industries: tourism, food and beverage processing; cement and gypsum production; ship repair and refurbishment; textiles; light chemicals; metal products; wood, paper, stone, and clay products. Natural resources: copper, pyrites, asbestos, gypsum, timber, salt, marble, clay earth pigment. Exports: Greek Cypriot area: $1.094 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): citrus, potatoes, pharmaceuticals, cement, clothing, and cigarettes; Turkish Cypriot area: $49.3 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): citrus, potatoes, textiles. Imports: Greek Cypriot area: $5.258 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): consumer goods, petroleum and lubricants, intermediate goods, machinery, transport equipment; Turkish Cypriot area: $415.2 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): vehicles, fuel, cigarettes, food, minerals, chemicals, machinery. Major trading partners: UK, Greece, Lebanon, Italy, Germany, Japan, France, China, U.S. (2003).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: Greek Cypriot area: 427,400 (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 86,228 (2002); mobile cellular: Greek Cypriot area: 417,900 (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 143,178 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: Greek Cypriot area: AM 7, FM 60, shortwave 1 (1998); Turkish Cypriot area: AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: Greek Cypriot area: 4 (plus 225 low-power repeaters); Turkish Cypriot area: 4 (plus 5 repeaters) (Sept. 1995). Internet hosts: 5,901 (2004). Internet users: 210,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: Greek Cypriot area: 11,593 km; Turkish Cypriot area: 2,350 km; paved: Greek Cypriot area: 7,211 km; Turkish Cypriot area: 1,370 km; unpaved: Greek Cypriot area: 4,382 km (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 980 km (1996). Ports and harbors: Famagusta, Kyrenia, Larnaca, Limassol, Vasilikos. Airports: 17 (2004 est.).

International disputes: hostilities in 1974 divided the island into two de facto autonomous entities, the internationally recognized Cypriot Government and a Turkish-Cypriot community (north Cyprus); the 1,000-strong UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) has served in Cyprus since 1964 and maintains the buffer zone between north and south; March 2003 reunification talks failed, but Turkish-Cypriots later opened their borders to temporary visits by Greek Cypriots; on 24 April 2004, the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities voted in simultaneous and parallel referenda on whether to approve the UN-brokered Annan Plan that would have ended the thirty-year division of the island by establishing a new "United Cyprus Republic," a majority of Greek Cypriots voted "no"; on 1 May 2004, Cyprus entered the European Union still divided, with the EU's body of legislation and standards (acquis communitaire) suspended in the north.

Geography
The third-largest island in the Mediterranean (one and one-half times the size of Delaware), Cyprus lies off the southern coast of Turkey and the western shore of Syria. The highest peak is Mount Olympus at 6,406 ft (1,953 m).

Government
Republic. Mediation efforts by the UN seek to reunify the Greek and Turkish areas of the island under one federated system of government.

[B][U][CENTER]Czech Republic[/CENTER][/U][/B]

National name: Ceska Republika

President: Vaclav Klaus (2003)

Prime Minister: Jiri Paroubek (2005)

Land area: 29,836 sq mi (77,276 sq km); total area: 30,450 sq mi (78,866 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 10,235,455 (growth rate: –0.1%); birth rate: 9.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 3.9/1000; life expectancy: 76.2; density per sq mi: 343

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Prague, 1,378,700 (metro. area), 1,169,800 (city proper)

Other large cities: Brno, 376,400; Ostrava, 317,700; Plzen, 164,900; Olomouc, 102,900

Monetary unit: Koruna

Language: Czech

Ethnicity/race: Czech 81.2%, Moravian 13.2%, Slovak 3.1%, Polish 0.6%, German 0.5%, Silesian 0.4%, Roma (Gypsy) 0.3%, Hungarian 0.2%, other 0.5% (1991)

Religions: atheist 39.8%, Roman Catholic 39.2%, Protestant 4.6%, Orthodox 3%, other 13.4%

Literacy rate: 100% (1999 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $172.2 billion; per capita $16,800. Real growth rate: 3.7%. Inflation: 3.2%. Unemployment: 10.6%. Arable land: 40%. Agriculture: wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry. Labor force: 5.25 million; agriculture 4%, industry 38%, services 58% (2002 est.). Industries: metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments. Natural resources: hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber. Exports: $66.51 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and transport equipment 52%, chemicals 5%, raw materials and fuel 9% (2003). Imports: $68.19 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and transport equipment 46%, raw materials and fuels 15%, chemicals 10% (2003). Major trading partners: Germany, Slovakia, Austria, UK, Poland, France, Italy, Netherlands, China, Russia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3.626 million (2003); mobile cellular: 9,708,700 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000). Television broadcast stations: 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000). . Internet hosts: 295,677 (2004). Internet users: 2.7 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 9,543 km (2004). Highways: total: 127,204 km; paved: 127,204 km (including 518 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Waterways: 664 km (on Elbe, Vltava, and Oder rivers) (2004). Ports and harbors: Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem. Airports: 120 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in February 2005, the ICJ refused to rule on the restitution of Liechtenstein's land and property assets in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1945 as German property; individual Sudeten Germans seek restitution for property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II.

Geography
The Czech Republic's central European landscape is dominated by the Bohemian Massif, which rises to heights of 3,000 ft (900 m) above sea level. This ring of mountains encircles a large elevated basin, the Bohemian Plateau. The principal rivers are the Elbe and the Vltava.

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Egypt[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Arab Republic of Egypt

National name: Jumhuriyat Misr al-Arabiyah

President: Hosni Mubarak (1981)

Prime Minister: Ahmed Nazif (2004)

Land area: 384,344 sq mi (995,451 sq km); total area: 386,662 sq mi (1,001,450 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 78,887,007 (growth rate: 1.8%); birth rate: 22.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 31.3/1000; life expectancy: 71.3; density per sq mi: 205

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Cairo, 15,892,400 (metro. area), 7,937,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Alexandria, 3,891,000; Giza, 2,597,600 (part of Cairo metro. area); Shubra el Khema, 1,018,000 (part of Cairo metro. area); El Mahalla el Kubra, 462,300

Monetary unit: Egyptian pound

Languages: Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes

Ethnicity/race: Eastern Hamitic stock (Egyptians, Bedouins, and Berbers) 99%, Greek, Nubian, Armenian, other European (primarily Italian and French) 1%

Religions: Islam (mostly Sunni) 94%, Coptic Christian and other 6%

Literacy rate: 58% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $316.3 billion; per capita $4,200. Real growth rate: 4.5%. Inflation: 9.5%. Unemployment: 10.9%. Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: cotton, rice, corn, wheat, beans, fruits, vegetables; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats. Labor force: 20.71 million; agriculture 32%, industry 17%, services 51% (2001 est.). Industries: textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, metals. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, zinc. Exports: $11 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): crude oil and petroleum products, cotton, textiles, metal products, chemicals. Imports: $19.21 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, wood products, fuels. Major trading partners: U.S., Italy, UK, Germany, France, China, Saudi Arabia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 9.6 million (2005); mobile cellular: 8,583,940 (2005). Radio broadcast stations: AM 42 (plus 15 repeater stations), FM 14, shortwave 3 (1999). Television broadcast stations: 98 (Sept. 1995). Internet hosts: 3,401 (2004). Internet users: 4.2 million (2005).

Transportation: Railways: total: 5,063 km (2004). Highways: total: 64,000 km; paved: 49,984 km; unpaved: 14,016 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 3,500 km; note: includes Nile River, Lake Nasser, Alexandria-Cairo Waterway, and numerous smaller canals in delta; Suez Canal (193.5 km including approaches) navigable by oceangoing vessels drawing up to 17.68 m (2004). Ports and harbors: Alexandria, Damietta, El Dekheila, Port Said, Suez, Zeit. Airports: 87 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Egypt and Sudan retain claims to administer the two triangular areas that extend north and south of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, but have withdrawn their military presence; Egypt is developing the Hala'ib Triangle north of the Treaty line; since the attack on Taba and other Egyptian resort towns on the Red Sea in October 2004, Egypt vigilantly monitors the Sinai and borders with Israel and the Gaza Strip; Egypt does not extend domestic asylum to some 70,000 persons who identify as Palestinians but who largely lack UNRWA assistance and, until recently, UNHCR recognition as refugees.

Geography
Egypt, at the northeast corner of Africa on the Mediterranean Sea, is bordered on the west by Libya, on the south by the Sudan, and on the east by the Red Sea and Israel. It is nearly one and one-half times the size of Texas. Egypt is divided into two unequal, extremely arid regions by the landscape's dominant feature, the northward-flowing Nile River. The Nile starts 100 mi (161 km) south of the Mediterranean and fans out to a sea front of 155 mi between the cities of Alexandria and Port Said.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]United Kingdom[/CENTER][/U][/B]

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Prime Minister: Tony Blair (1997)

Land area: 93,278 sq mi (241,590 sq km); total area: 94,526 sq mi (244,820 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 60,609,153 (growth rate: 0.3%); birth rate: 10.7/1000; infant mortality rate:5.1/1000; life expectancy: 78.5; density per sq mi: 650

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): London, 11,219,000 (metro. area), 7,417,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Glasgow, 1,099,400; Birmingham, 971,800; Liverpool, 461,900; Edinburgh, 460,000; Leeds, 417,000; Bristol, 406,500; Manchester, 390,700; Bradford, 288,400

Monetary unit: Pound sterling (£)

Languages: English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic

Ethnicity/race: English 81.5%; Scottish 9.6%; Irish 2.4%; Welsh 1.9%; Ulster 1.8%; West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%

Religions: Anglican and Roman Catholic 40 million, Muslim 1.5 million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 500,000, Hindu 500,000, Jewish 350,000

Literacy rate: 99% (2000 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.782 trillion; per capita $29,600. Real growth rate: 3.2%. Inflation: 1.4%. Unemployment: 4.8%. Arable land: 23%. Agriculture: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish. Labor force: 29.78 million; agriculture 1.5%, industry 19.1%, services 79.5% (2004). Industries: machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods. Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land. Exports: $347.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco. Imports: $439.4 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, France, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Spain, Italy (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 34.878 million (1997); mobile cellular: 13 million (yearend 1998). Radio broadcast stations: AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998). Radios: 84.5 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995). Televisions: 30.5 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): more than 400 (2000). Internet users: 34.3 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 16,893 km (2002). Highways: total: 371,913 km; paved: 371,913 km (including 3,913 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (1999). Waterways: 3,200 km. Ports and harbors: Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport, Tyne. Airports: 470 (2002).

International disputes: Gibraltar residents vote overwhelmingly in referendum against “total shared sovereignty” arrangement worked out between Spain and UK to change 300-year rule over colony; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory) and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; Argentina claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM.



Geography
The United Kingdom, consisting of Great Britain (England, Wales, and Scotland) and Northern Ireland, is twice the size of New York State. England, in the southeast part of the British Isles, is separated from Scotland on the north by the granite Cheviot Hills; from them the Pennine chain of uplands extends south through the center of England, reaching its highest point in the Lake District in the northwest. To the west along the border of Wales—a land of steep hills and valleys—are the Cambrian Mountains, while the Cotswolds, a range of hills in Gloucestershire, extend into the surrounding shires.

Important rivers flowing into the North Sea are the Thames, Humber, Tees, and Tyne. In the west are the Severn and Wye, which empty into the Bristol Channel and are navigable, as are the Mersey and Ribble.

Government
The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a queen and a Parliament that has two houses: the House of Lords, with 574 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 bishops; and the House of Commons, which has 651 popularly elected members. Supreme legislative power is vested in Parliament, which sits for five years unless dissolved sooner. The House of Lords was stripped of most of its power in 1911, and now its main function is to revise legislation. In Nov. 1999 hundreds of hereditary peers were expelled in an effort to make the body more democratic. The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the cabinet, headed by the prime minister.

England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th century; the union between England and Wales, begun in 1284 with the Statute of Rhuddlan, was not formalized until 1536 with an Act of Union; in another Act of Union in 1707, England and Scotland agreed to permanently join as Great Britain; the legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927.

[B][U][CENTER]Fiji[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of the Fiji Islands

President: Ratu Josefa Iloilo (2000)

Prime Minister: Laisenia Qarase (2001)

Total and land area: 7,054 sq mi (18,270 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 905,949 (growth rate: 1.4%); birth rate: 22.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 12.3/1000; life expectancy: 69.8; density per sq mi: 128

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Suva (on Viti Levu), 177,300

Monetary unit: Fiji dollar

Languages: English (official), Fijian, Hindustani

Ethnicity/race: Fijian 51%, Indian 44%, European, other Pacific Islanders, overseas Chinese, and other 5% (1998)

Religions: Christian 52% (Methodist 37%, Roman Catholic 9%), Hindu 38%, Islam 8%, other 2%

Literacy rate: 94% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $5.173 billion; per capita $5,900. Real growth rate: 3.6%. Inflation: 1.6% (2002 est.). Unemployment: 7.6% (1999). Arable land: 11%. Agriculture: sugarcane, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), rice, sweet potatoes, bananas; cattle, pigs, horses, goats; fish. Labor force: 137,000 (1999); agriculture, including subsistence agriculture 70% (2001 est.). Industries: tourism, sugar, clothing, copra, gold, silver, lumber, small cottage industries. Natural resources: timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil potential, hydropower. Exports: $609 million (f.o.b., 2002): sugar, garments, gold, timber, fish, molasses, coconut oil. Imports: $835 million (c.i.f., 2002): manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products, food, chemicals. Major trading partners: U.S., Australia, UK, Samoa, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 102,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 109,900 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 13, FM 40, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: n.a. Internet hosts: 493 (2003). Internet users: 55,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 597 km; note: belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar (2003). Highways: total: 3,440 km; paved: 1,692 km; unpaved: 1,748 km (1999 est.) ). Waterways: 203 km; 122 km navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges (2004). Ports and harbors: Lambasa, Lautoka, Suva. Airports: 28 (2004 est.).

International disputes: none.

Geography
Fiji consists of 332 islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean about 1,960 mi (3,152 km) from Sydney, Australia. About 110 of these islands are inhabited. The two largest are Viti Levu (4,109 sq mi; 10,642 sq km) and Vanua Levu (2,242 sq mi; 5,807 sq km).

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Finland[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Finland

National name: Suomen Tasavalta—Republiken Finland

President: Tarja Halonen (2000)

Prime Minister: Matti Vanhanen (2003)

Land area: 117,942 sq mi (305,470 sq km); total area: 130,558 sq mi (338,145 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 5,231,372 (growth rate: 0.1%); birth rate: 10.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 3.5/1000; life expectancy: 78.5; density per sq mi: 44

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Helsinki, 1,162,900 (metro. area), 582,600 (city proper)

Other large cities: Espoo, 229,500; Tampere, 201,200; Vantaa, 189,200; Turku, 178,100

Monetary unit: Euro (formerly markka)

Languages: Finnish 93.4%, Swedish 5.9% (both official); small Sami- (Lapp) and Russian-speaking minorities

Ethnicity/race: Finn 93%, Swede 6%, Sami (Lapp) 0.11%, Romany (Gypsy) 0.12%, Tatar 0.02%

Religions: Evangelical Lutheran 89%, Greek Orthodox 1%, none 9%, other 1%

Literacy rate: 100% (1980 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $151.2 billion; per capita $29,000. Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 0.7%. Unemployment: 8.9%. Arable land: 7%. Agriculture: barley, wheat, sugar beets, potatoes; dairy cattle; fish. Labor force: 2.66 million; public services 32%, industry 22%, commerce 14%, finance, insurance, and business services 10%, agriculture and forestry 8%, transport and communications 8%, construction 6%. Industries: metals and metal products, electronics, machinery and scientific instruments, shipbuilding, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, clothing. Natural resources: timber, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, limestone. Exports: $61.04 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals; timber, paper, pulp (1999). Imports: $45.17 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn and fabrics, grains (1999). Major trading partners: Germany, Sweden, U.S., UK, Russia, Netherlands, Denmark, France (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 2.548 million (2003); mobile cellular: 4.7 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 186, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999). Internet hosts: 1,219,173 (2004). Internet users: 2.65 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 5,851 km (2004). Highways: total: 78,197 km; paved: 50,539 km (including 794 km of expressways); unpaved: 27,658 km (2004). Waterways: 7,842 km note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2004). Ports and harbors: Hamina, Hanko, Helsinki, Kotka, Naantali, Pori, Porvou, Raahe, Rauma, Turku. Airports: 148 (2004 est.).

International disputes: various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other areas ceded to the Soviet Union, but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands.

Geography
Finland is three times the size of Ohio. It is heavily forested and contains thousands of lakes, numerous rivers, and extensive areas of marshland. Except for a small highland region in the extreme northwest, the country is a lowland less than 600 ft (180 m) above sea level. Off the southwest coast are the Swedish-populated Åland Islands (581 sq mi; 1,505 sq km), which have had an autonomous status since 1921.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]France[/CENTER][/U][/B]

French Republic

National name: République Française

President: Jacques Chirac (1995)

Prime Minister: Dominique de Villepin (2005)

Land area: 210,668 sq mi (545,630 sq km); total area: 211,209 sq mi (547,030 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 60,876,136 (growth rate: 0.4%); birth rate: 12.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.2/1000; life expectancy: 79.7; density per sq mi: 289

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Paris, 11,330,700 (metro. area), 2,110,400 (city proper)

Other large cities: Marseille, 820,700; Lyon, 443,900; Toulouse, 411,800; Nice, 332,000; Nantes, 282,300; Strasbourg, 272,600; Bordeaux, 217,000

Monetary unit: Euro (formerly French franc)

Languages: French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects (Provençal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish)

Ethnicity/race: Celtic and Latin with Teutonic, Slavic, North African, Southeast Asian, and Basque minorities

Religions: Roman Catholic 83%–88%, Protestant 2%, Islam 5%–10%, Jewish 1%

Literacy rate: 99% (1980 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.737 trillion; per capita $28,700. Real growth rate: 2.1%. Inflation: 2.3%. Unemployment: 10.1%. Arable land: 34%. Agriculture: wheat, cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, wine grapes; beef, dairy products; fish. Labor force: 27.7 million; services 71.5%, industry 24.4%, agriculture 4.1% (1999). Industries: machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics; textiles, food processing; tourism. Natural resources: coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorospar, gypsum, timber, fish. Exports: $419 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and transportation equipment, aircraft, plastics, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, beverages. Imports: $419.7 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, vehicles, crude oil, aircraft, plastics, chemicals. Major trading partners: Germany, Spain, UK, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, U.S. (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 33,905,400 (2003); mobile cellular: 41,683,100 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 41, FM about 3,500 (this figure is an approximation and includes many repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 584 (plus 9,676 repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 2,396,761 (2004). Internet users: 21.9 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 29,519 km (2004). Highways: total: 893,100 km; paved: 893,100 km (including 12,000 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Waterways: 8,500 km (1,686 km accessible to craft of 3,000 metric tons) (2000). Ports and harbors: Bordeaux, Calais, Dunkerque, La Pallice, Le Havre, Marseille, Nantes, Paris, Rouen, Strasbourg. Airports: 478 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Madagascar claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island; Comoros claims Mayotte; Mauritius claims Tromelin Island; territorial dispute between Suriname and the French overseas department of French Guiana; France asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Adelie Land); France and Vanuatu claim Matthew and Hunter Islands, east of New Caledonia.

Geography
France is about 80% the size of Texas. In the Alps near the Italian and Swiss borders is western Europe's highest point—Mont Blanc (15,781 ft; 4,810 m). The forest-covered Vosges Mountains are in the northeast, and the Pyrénées are along the Spanish border. Except for extreme northern France, the country may be described as four river basins and a plateau. Three of the streams flow west—the Seine into the English Channel, the Loire into the Atlantic, and the Garonne into the Bay of Biscay. The Rhône flows south into the Mediterranean. For about 100 mi (161 km), the Rhine is France's eastern border. In the Mediterranean, about 115 mi (185 km) east-southeast of Nice, is the island of Corsica (3,367 sq mi; 8,721 sq km).

Government
Fifth republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Germany[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Federal Republic of Germany

National name: Bundesrepublik Deutschland

President: Horst Köhler (2004)

Chancellor: Angela Merkel (2005)

Land area: 135,236 sq mi (350,261 sq km); total area: 137,847 sq mi (357,021 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 82,422,299 (growth rate: –0.02%); birth rate: 8.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 4.1/1000; life expectancy: 78.8; density per sq mi: 609

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Berlin (capital since Oct. 3, 1990), 3,933,300 (metro. area), 3,274,500 (city proper)

Other large cities: Hamburg, 1,686,100; Munich, 1,185,400; Cologne, 965,300; Frankfurt, 648,000; Essen, 588,800; Dortmund, 587,600; Stuttgart, 581,100; Düsseldorf, 568,900; Bremen, 527,900; Hanover, 516,300; Duisburg, 513,400

Monetary unit: Euro (formerly Deutsche mark)

Language: German

Ethnicity/race: German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, Italian 0.7%, Greek 0.4%, Polish 0.4%, other 4.6%

Religions: Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Islam 3.7%, Unaffiliated or other 28.3%

Literacy rate: 99% (1977 est.)

Economic summary GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $2.362 trillion; per capita $28,700. Real growth rate: 1.7%. Inflation: 1.6%. Unemployment: 10.6%. Arable land: 34%. Agriculture: potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry. Labor force: 42.63 million; industry 33.4%, agriculture 2.8%, services 63.8% (1999). Industries: among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles. Natural resources: iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land. Exports: $893.3 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles. Imports: $716.7 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals. Major trading partners: France, U.S., UK, Italy, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Spain, China (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 54.35 million (2003); mobile cellular: 64.8 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 51, FM 767, shortwave 4 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 2,686,119 (2004). Internet users: 39 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 46,142 km (20,100 km electrified) (2004). Highways: total: 230,735 km; paved: 230,735 km (including 11,515 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Waterways: 7,500 km (1999); note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2004). Ports and harbors: Bremen, Bremerhaven, Brunsbuttel, Duisburg, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Mainz, Rostock, Wilhemshaven. Airports: 550 (2004 est.).

International disputes: none.

Geography
Located in central Europe, Germany is made up of the North German Plain, the Central German Uplands (Mittelgebirge), and the Southern German Highlands. The Bavarian plateau in the southwest averages 1,600 ft (488 m) above sea level, but it reaches 9,721 ft (2,962 m) in the Zugspitze Mountains, the highest point in the country. Germany's major rivers are the Danube, the Elbe, the Oder, the Weser, and the Rhine. Germany is about the size of Montana.

Government
Federal republic.

[B][U][CENTER]United Kingdom[/CENTER][/U][/B]

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Prime Minister: Tony Blair (1997)

Land area: 93,278 sq mi (241,590 sq km); total area: 94,526 sq mi (244,820 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 60,609,153 (growth rate: 0.3%); birth rate: 10.7/1000; infant mortality rate:5.1/1000; life expectancy: 78.5; density per sq mi: 650

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): London, 11,219,000 (metro. area), 7,417,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Glasgow, 1,099,400; Birmingham, 971,800; Liverpool, 461,900; Edinburgh, 460,000; Leeds, 417,000; Bristol, 406,500; Manchester, 390,700; Bradford, 288,400

Monetary unit: Pound sterling (£)

Languages: English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic

Ethnicity/race: English 81.5%; Scottish 9.6%; Irish 2.4%; Welsh 1.9%; Ulster 1.8%; West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%

Religions: Anglican and Roman Catholic 40 million, Muslim 1.5 million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 500,000, Hindu 500,000, Jewish 350,000

Literacy rate: 99% (2000 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.782 trillion; per capita $29,600. Real growth rate: 3.2%. Inflation: 1.4%. Unemployment: 4.8%. Arable land: 23%. Agriculture: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish. Labor force: 29.78 million; agriculture 1.5%, industry 19.1%, services 79.5% (2004). Industries: machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods. Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land. Exports: $347.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco. Imports: $439.4 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, France, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Spain, Italy (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 34.878 million (1997); mobile cellular: 13 million (yearend 1998). Radio broadcast stations: AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998). Radios: 84.5 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995). Televisions: 30.5 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): more than 400 (2000). Internet users: 34.3 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 16,893 km (2002). Highways: total: 371,913 km; paved: 371,913 km (including 3,913 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (1999). Waterways: 3,200 km. Ports and harbors: Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport, Tyne. Airports: 470 (2002).

International disputes: Gibraltar residents vote overwhelmingly in referendum against “total shared sovereignty” arrangement worked out between Spain and UK to change 300-year rule over colony; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory) and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; Argentina claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM.
Geography
The United Kingdom, consisting of Great Britain (England, Wales, and Scotland) and Northern Ireland, is twice the size of New York State. England, in the southeast part of the British Isles, is separated from Scotland on the north by the granite Cheviot Hills; from them the Pennine chain of uplands extends south through the center of England, reaching its highest point in the Lake District in the northwest. To the west along the border of Wales—a land of steep hills and valleys—are the Cambrian Mountains, while the Cotswolds, a range of hills in Gloucestershire, extend into the surrounding shires.

Important rivers flowing into the North Sea are the Thames, Humber, Tees, and Tyne. In the west are the Severn and Wye, which empty into the Bristol Channel and are navigable, as are the Mersey and Ribble.

Government
The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a queen and a Parliament that has two houses: the House of Lords, with 574 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 bishops; and the House of Commons, which has 651 popularly elected members. Supreme legislative power is vested in Parliament, which sits for five years unless dissolved sooner. The House of Lords was stripped of most of its power in 1911, and now its main function is to revise legislation. In Nov. 1999 hundreds of hereditary peers were expelled in an effort to make the body more democratic. The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the cabinet, headed by the prime minister.

England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th century; the union between England and Wales, begun in 1284 with the Statute of Rhuddlan, was not formalized until 1536 with an Act of Union; in another Act of Union in 1707, England and Scotland agreed to permanently join as Great Britain; the legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927.

[B][U][CENTER]Greece[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Hellenic Republic

National name: Elliniki Dimokratia

President: Karolos Papoulias (2005)

Prime Minister: Kostas Karamanlis (2004)

Land area: 50,502 sq mi (130,800 sq km); total area: 50,942 sq mi (131,940 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 10,688,058 (growth rate: 0.2%); birth rate: 9.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 5.4/1000; life expectancy: 79.2; density per sq mi: 212

Capital (2003 est.): Athens, 3,247,000 (metro. area), 747,300 (city proper)

Other large cities: Thessaloníki, 361,200; Piraeus, 179,300; Patras, 167,000

Monetary unit: Euro (formerly drachma)

Languages: Greek 99% (official), English, French

Ethnicity/race: Greek 98%, other 2%; note: the Greek government states there are no ethnic divisions in Greece

Religions: Greek Orthodox 98%, Islam 1.3%, other 0.7%

Literacy rate: 98% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $226.4 billion; per capita $21,300. Real growth rate: 3.7%. Inflation: 2.9%. Unemployment: 10%. Arable land: 21%. Agriculture: wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, olives, tomatoes, wine, tobacco, potatoes; beef, dairy products. Labor force: 4.4 million; agriculture 12%, industry 20%, services 68% (2004 est.). Industries: tourism; food and tobacco processing, textiles; chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum. Natural resources: lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential. Exports: $15.5 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles. Imports: $54.28 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, transport equipment, fuels, chemicals. Major trading partners: Germany, Italy, UK, U.S., Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Russia, South Korea, Netherlands, Japan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 5,205,100 (2003); mobile cellular: 8,936,200 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 26, FM 88, shortwave 4 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 36 (plus 1,341 low-power repeaters); also two stations in the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (1995). Internet hosts: 208,977 (2004). Internet users: 1,718,400 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 2,571 km (2004). Highways: total: 117,000 km; paved: 107,406 km (including 470 km of expressways); unpaved: 9,594 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 6 km; note: Corinth Canal (6 km) crosses the Isthmus of Corinth; shortens sea voyage by 325 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Agioitheodoroi, Aspropyrgos, Irakleion, Pachi, Peiraiefs, Thessaloniki. Airports: 80 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Greece and Turkey continue discussions to resolve their complex maritime, air, territorial, and boundary disputes in the Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Turkey; Greece rejects the use of the name Macedonia or Republic of Macedonia

Geography
Located in southern Europe, Greece forms an irregular-shaped peninsula in the Mediterranean with two additional large peninsulas projecting from it: the Chalcidice and the Peloponnese. The Greek Islands are generally subdivided into two groups, according to location: the Ionian Islands (including Corfu, Cephalonia, and Leucas) west of the mainland and the Aegean Islands (including Euboea, Samos, Chios, Lesbos, and Crete) to the east and south. North-central Greece, Epirus, and western Macedonia are all mountainous. The main chain of the Pindus Mountains extends from northwest Greece to the Peloponnese. Mount Olympus, rising to 9,570 ft (2,909 m), is the highest point in the country.

Government
Parliamentary republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Hungary[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Hungary

National name: Magyar Köztársaság

President: László Sólyom (2005)

Prime Minister: Ferenc Gyurcsány (2004)

Land area: 35,653 sq mi (92,341 sq km); total area: 35,919 sq mi (93,030 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 9,981,334 (growth rate: –0.3%); birth rate: 9.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 8.4/1000; life expectancy: 72.7; density per sq mi: 280

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Budapest, 2,597,000 (metro. area), 1,769,500 (city proper)

Other large cities: Debrecen, 210,500; Miskolc, 182,600; Szeged, 173,200; Pécs, 163,900

Monetary unit: Forint

Languages: Magyar (Hungarian) 98.2%, other 1.8%

Ethnicity/race: Hungarian 89.9%, Roma 4%, German 2.6%, Serb 2%, Slovak 0.8%, Romanian 0.7%

Religions: Roman Catholic 67.5%, Calvinist 20%, Lutheran 5%, atheist and others 7.5%

Literacy rate: 99% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $149.3 billion; per capita $14,900. Real growth rate: 3.9%. Inflation: 7%. Unemployment: 5.9%. Arable land: 50%. Agriculture: wheat, corn, sunflower seed, potatoes, sugar beets; pigs, cattle, poultry, dairy products. Labor force: 4.17 million; agriculture 6.2%, industry 27.1%, services 66.7% (2002). Industries: mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), motor vehicles. Natural resources: bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils, arable land. Exports: $54.62 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment 61.1%, other manufactures 28.7%, food products 6.5%, raw materials 2%, fuels and electricity 1.6% (2003). Imports: $58.68 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment 51.6%, other manufactures 35.7%, fuels and electricity 7.7%, food products 3.1%, raw materials 2.0% (2003). Major trading partners: Germany, Austria, Italy, France, UK, Netherlands, China, Russia, Japan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3,666,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 6,862,800 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 17, FM 57, shortwave 3 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 35 (plus 161 low-power repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 383,071 (2004). Internet users: 1.6 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 7,875 km (2004). Highways: total: 159,568 km; paved: 70,050 km (including 533 km of expressways); unpaved: 89,518 km (2002). Waterways: 1,622 km (most on Danube River) (2004). Ports and harbors: Budapest, Dunaujvaros, Gyor-Gonyu, Csepel, Baja, Mohacs (2003). Airports: 44 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in 2004, Hungary amended the status law extending special social and cultural benefits and voted down a referendum to extend dual citizenship to ethnic Hungarians living in neighboring states, which have objected to such measures; consultations continue between Slovakia and Hungary over Hungary's completion of its portion the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Hungary must implement the strict Schengen border rules.

Geography
This central European country is the size of Indiana. Most of Hungary is a fertile, rolling plain lying east of the Danube River and drained by the Danube and Tisza rivers. In the extreme northwest is the Little Hungarian Plain. South of that area is Lake Balaton (250 sq mi; 648 sq km).

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Iceland[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Iceland

National name: Lydveldid Island

President: Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (2004)

Prime Minister: Halldór Ásgrímsson (2004)

Land area: 38,707 sq mi (100,251 sq km); total area: 39,769 sq mi (103,000 sq km)1

Population (2006 est.): 299,388 (growth rate: 0.9%); birth rate: 13.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 3.3/1000; life expectancy: 80.3; density per sq mi: 8

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Reykjavik, 184,200 (metro. area), 114,800 (city proper)

Monetary unit: Icelandic króna

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

Ethnicity/race: homogeneous mixture of Norse/Celtic descendants 94%, population of foreign origin 6%

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

Literacy rate: 100% (1997 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $9.373 billion; per capita $31,900. Real growth rate: 1.8%. Inflation: 4%. Unemployment: 3.1%. Arable land: 0.07%. Agriculture: potatoes, green vegetables, mutton, dairy products, fish. Labor force: 158,100; agriculture, fishing and fish processing 10.3%, industry 18.3%, services 71.4% (2003). Industries: fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production, geothermal power; tourism. Natural resources: fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite. Exports: $2.902 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): fish and fish products 70%, aluminum, animal products, ferrosilicon, diatomite. Imports: $3.307 billion (2004 est.): machinery and equipment, petroleum products; foodstuffs, textiles. Major trading partners: UK, Germany, Netherlands, U.S., Spain, Denmark, Norway, France, Sweden, Italy (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 190,700 (2003); mobile cellular: 279,100 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 14 (plus 156 low-power repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 122,175 (2004). Internet users: 195,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 13,004 km; paved: 4,331 km; unpaved: 8,673 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Grundartangi, Hafnarfjordur, Hornafjordhur, Reykjavik, Seydhisfjordhur. Airports: 98 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Iceland disputes Denmark's alignment of the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm.

Geography
Iceland, an island about the size of Kentucky, lies in the north Atlantic Ocean east of Greenland and just touches the Arctic Circle. It is one of the most volcanic regions in the world. More than 13% is covered by snowfields and glaciers, and most of the people live in the 7% of the island that is made up of fertile coastland. The Gulf Stream keeps Iceland's climate milder than one would expect from an island near the Arctic Circle.

Government
Constitutional republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Indonesia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Indonesia

National name: Republik Indonesia

President: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (2004)

Land area: 705,188 sq mi (1,826,440 sq km); total area: 741, 100 sq mi (1,919,440 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 245,452,739 (growth rate: 1.4%); birth rate: 20.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 34.4/1000; life expectancy: 69.9; density per sq mi: 348

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Jakarta, 17,891,000 (metro. area), 8,827,900 (city proper)

Other large cities: Surabaya, 3,038,800; Bandung, 2,733,500; Medan, 2,204,300; Semarang, 1,267,100

Monetary unit: Rupiah

Languages: Bahasa Indonesia (official), English, Dutch, Javanese, and more than 580 other languages and dialects

Ethnicity/race: Javanese 45%, Sundanese 14%, Madurese 7.5%, coastal Malays 7.5%, other 26%

Religions: Islam 88%, Protestant 5%, Roman Catholic 3%, Hindu 2%, Buddhist 1%, other 1%

Literacy rate: 89% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $827.4 billion; per capita $3,500. Real growth rate: 4.9%. Inflation: 6.1%. Unemployment: 9.2%. Arable land: 11%. Agriculture: rice, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, rubber, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, copra, poultry, beef, pork, eggs. Labor force: 111.5 million; agriculture 45%, industry 16%, services 39% (1999 est.) Industries: petroleum and natural gas, textiles, apparel, footwear, mining, cement, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber, food, tourism. Natural resources: petroleum, tin, natural gas, nickel, timber, bauxite, copper, fertile soils, coal, gold, silver. Exports: $69.86 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): oil and gas, electrical appliances, plywood, textiles, rubber. Imports: $45.07 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment; chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Japan, U.S., Singapore, South Korea, China, Thailand, Australia, Saudi Arabia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 7.75 million (2002); mobile cellular: 11.7 million (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 678, FM 43, shortwave 82 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 41 (1999). Internet hosts: 62,036 (2003). Internet users: 8 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 6,458 km (2004). 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). Ports and harbors: Banjarmasin, Belawan, Ciwandan, Krueg Geukueh, Palembang, Panjang, Sungai Pakning, Tanjung Perak, Tanjung Priok. Airports: 667 (2004 est.).

International disputes: 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; 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 left maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Celebes Sea in dispute, culminating in hostile confrontations in March 2005 over concessions to the Ambalat oil block; the ICJ decision has prompted Indonesia to assert claims to and to establish a presence on its smaller outer islands; Indonesia and Singapore pledged in 2005 to finalize their 1973 maritime boundary agreement by defining unresolved areas north of Batam Island; Indonesian secessionists, squatters, and illegal migrants create repatriation problems for Papua New Guinea; piracy remains a problem in the Malacca Strait.

Geography
Indonesia is an archipelago in Southeast Asia consisting of 17,000 islands (6,000 inhabited) and straddling the equator. The largest islands are Sumatra, Java (the most populous), Bali, Kalimantan (Indonesia's part of Borneo), Sulawesi (Celebes), the Nusa Tenggara islands, the Moluccas Islands, and Irian Jaya (also called West Papua), the western part of New Guinea. Its neighbor to the north is Malaysia and to the east is Papua New Guinea.

Indonesia, part of the “ring of fire,” has the largest number of active volcanoes in the world. Earthquakes are frequent. Wallace's line, a zoological demarcation between Asian and Australian flora and fauna, divides Indonesia.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Iran[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Islamic Republic of Iran

National name: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran

Chief of State: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (1989)

President: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005)

Land area: 631,659 sq mi (1,635,999 sq km); total area: 636,296 sq mi (1,648,000 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 68,688,433 (growth rate: 1.1%); birth rate: 17.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 40.3/1000; life expectancy: 70.3; density per sq mi: 109

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Teheran, 11,224,800 (metro. area), 7,893,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Mashad, 2,061,100; Isfahan, 1,378,600; Tabriz, 1,213,400

Monetary unit: Rial

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

Ethnicity/race: Persian 51%, Azerbaijani 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions: Islam 98% (Shi'a 89%, Sunni 9%); Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2%

Literacy rate: 79% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $516.7 billion; per capita $7,700. Real growth rate: 6.3%. Inflation: 15.5%. Unemployment: 11.2%. Arable land: 9%. Agriculture: wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar. Labor force: 23 million; note: shortage of skilled labor; agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.). Industries: petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur. Exports: $38.79 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets. Imports: $31.3 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies. Major trading partners: Japan, China, Italy, Taiwan, Turkey, South Korea, Germany, France, UAE, Russia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 14,571,100 (2003); mobile cellular: 3,376,500 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997). Internet hosts: 5,269 (2004). Internet users: 4.3 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: 7,203 km (2004). 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). Ports and harbors: Assaluyeh, Bushehr. Airports: 305 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; 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

Geography
Iran, a Middle Eastern country south of the Caspian Sea and north of the Persian Gulf, is three times the size of Arizona. It shares borders with Iraq, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

The Elburz Mountains in the north rise to 18,603 ft (5,670 m) at Mount Damavend. From northwest to southeast, the country is crossed by a desert 800 mi (1,287 km) long.

Government
Iran has been an Islamic theocracy since the Pahlavi monarchy regime was overthrown on Feb. 11, 1979.

[B][U][CENTER]Ireland[/CENTER][/U][/B]

National name: Éire

President: Mary McAleese (1997)

Taoiseach (Prime Minister): Bertie Ahern (1997)

Land area: 26,598 sq mi (68,889 sq km); total area: 27,135 sq mi (70,280 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 4,062,235 (growth rate: 1.2%); birth rate: 14.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 5.3/1000; life expectancy: 77.7; density per sq mi: 153

Capital (2003 est.): Dublin, 1,018,500

Other large cities: Cork, 193,400; Limerick, 84,900; Galway, 67,200

Monetary units: Euro (formerly Irish pound [punt])

Languages: English, Irish (Gaelic)

Ethnicity/race: Celtic, English

Religions: Roman Catholic 91.6%, Anglican 2.5%, other 5.9%

Literacy rate: 98% (1981 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $126.4 billion; per capita $31,900. Real growth rate: 5.1%. Inflation: 2.2%. Unemployment: 4.3%. Arable land: 15%. Agriculture: turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products. Labor force: 1.92 million; agriculture 8%, industry 29%, services 64% (2002 est.). Industries: steel, lead, zinc, silver, aluminum, barite, and gypsum mining processing; food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals; machinery, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, ship construction and refurbishment; glass and crystal; software, tourism. Natural resources: zinc, lead, natural gas, barite, copper, gypsum, limestone, dolomite, peat, silver. Exports: $103.8 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products. Imports: $60.65 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): data processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum and petroleum products, textiles, clothing. Major trading partners: U.S., UK, Belgium, Germany, France, Netherlands, Italy (2003)

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.955 million (2003); mobile cellular: 3.4 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001). Internet hosts: 162,228 (2004). Internet users: 1.26 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 3,312 km (2004). Highways: total: 95,736 km; paved: 95,736 km (including 125 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Waterways: 753 km (pleasure craft only) (2004). Ports and harbors: Cork, Dublin, New Ross, Shannon Foynes, Waterford. Airports: 36 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Ireland, Iceland, and the UK dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm.

Geography
Ireland is situated in the Atlantic Ocean and separated from Great Britain by the Irish Sea. Half the size of Arkansas, it occupies the entire island except for the six counties that make up Northern Ireland. Ireland resembles a basin—a central plain rimmed with mountains, except in the Dublin region. The mountains are low, with the highest peak, Carrantuohill in County Kerry, rising to 3,415 ft (1,041 m). The principal river is the Shannon, which begins in the north-central area, flows south and southwest for about 240 mi (386 km), and empties into the Atlantic.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Israel[/CENTER][/U][/B]

State of Israel

National name: Medinat Yisra'el

President: Moshe Katsav (2000)

Prime Minister: Ehud Olmert (2006)

Land area: 7,849 sq mi (20,329 sq km); total area: 8,019 sq mi (20,770 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 6,352,117 (growth rate: 1.2%); birth rate: 18.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 6.9/1000; life expectancy: 79.5; density per sq mi: 809

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Jerusalem,1 695,500

Other large cities: Tel Aviv, 365,300; Haifa, 280,200

Monetary unit: Shekel

Languages: Hebrew (official), Arabic, English

Ethnicity/race: Jewish 80.1% (Europe/Americas/Oceania-born 32.1%, Israel-born 20.8%, Africa-born 14.6%, Asia-born 12.6%), non-Jewish 19.9% (mostly Arab) (1996 est.)

Religions: Judaism 80.1%, Islam 14.6% (mostly Sunni), Christian 2.1%, others 3.2% (1996 est.)

Literacy rate: 95% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $129 billion; per capita $20,800. Real growth rate: 3.9%. Inflation: 0%. Unemployment: 10.7%. Arable land: 16%. Agriculture: citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products. Labor force: 2.68 million; public services 31.2%, manufacturing 20.2%, finance and business 13.1%, commerce 12.8%, construction 7.5%, personal and other services 6.4%, transport, storage, and communications 6.2%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 2.6% (1996). Industries: high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics, fiber optics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, construction, metals products, chemical products, plastics, diamond cutting, textiles and footwear. Natural resources: timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand. Exports: 34.41 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel. Imports: $36.84 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, consumer goods. Major trading partners: U.S., Belgium, Hong Kong, Germany, UK, Switzerland, Italy (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3.006 million (2002); mobile cellular: 6.334 million (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 17 (plus 36 low-power repeaters) (1995). Internet hosts: 437,516 (2004). Internet users: 2 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 640 km (2004). Highways: total: 16,903 km; paved: 16,903 km (including 56 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Ashdod, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa. Airports: 51 (2004 est.).

International disputes: West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel announced its intention to pull out Israeli settlers and withdraw from the Gaza Strip and four settlements in the northern West Bank in 2005; Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights); since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) headquartered in Jerusalem monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region.
1. Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the U.S., like nearly all other countries, maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv.

Geography
Israel, slightly larger than Massachusetts, lies at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by Egypt on the west, Syria and Jordan on the east, and Lebanon on the north. Its maritime plain is extremely fertile. The southern Negev region, which comprises almost half the total area, is largely a desert. The Jordan, the only important river, flows from the north through Lake Hule (Waters of Merom) and Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee or Sea of Tiberias), finally entering the Dead Sea, 1,349 ft (411 m) below sea level—the world's lowest land elevation.

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Italy[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Italian Republic

National name: Repubblica Italiana

President: Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (1999)

Prime Minister: Silvio Berlusconi (2001)

Land area: 113,521 sq mi (294,019 sq km); total area: 116,306 sq mi (301,230 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 58,133,509 (growth rate: 0.04%); birth rate: 8.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 5.8/1000; life expectancy: 79.8; density per sq mi: 512

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Rome, 3,550,900 (metro. area), 2,455,600 (city proper)

Other large cities: Milan, 1,180,700; Naples, 991,700; Turin, 856,000; Palermo, 651,500; Genoa, 602,500; Bologna, 369,300; Florence, 351,600; Bari, 311,900; Catania, 305,900; Venice, 265,700

Monetary unit: Euro (formerly lira)

Languages: Italian (official); German-, French-, and Slovene-speaking minorities

Ethnicity/race: Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian- and Greek-Italians in the south)

Religions: Roman Catholic (predominant), Protestant, Jewish, Islamic

Literacy rate: 99% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.609 trillion; per capita $27,700. Real growth rate: 1.3%. Inflation: 2.3%. Unemployment: 8.6%. Arable land: 28%. Agriculture: fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish. Labor force: 24.27 million; services 63%, industry 32%, agriculture 5% (2001). Industries: tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics. Natural resources: mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal, arable land. Exports: $336.4 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals. Imports: $329.3 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco. Major trading partners: Germany, France, U.S., Spain, UK, Netherlands, Belgium (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 26.596 million (2003); mobile cellular: 55.918 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995). . Internet hosts: 1,437,511 (2004). Internet users: 18.5 million (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 19,319 km (2004). Highways: total: 479,688 km; paved: 479,688 km (including 6,621 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (1999). Waterways: 2,400 km; note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2004). Ports and harbors: Augusta, Genoa, Livorno, Melilli Oil Terminal, Ravenna, Taranto, Trieste, Venice. Airports: 134 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa.

Geography
Italy, slightly larger than Arizona, is a long peninsula shaped like a boot, surrounded on the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea and on the east by the Adriatic. It is bounded by France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia to the north. The Apennine Mountains form the peninsula's backbone; the Alps form its northern boundary. The largest of its many northern lakes is Garda (143 sq mi; 370 sq km); the Po, its principal river, flows from the Alps on Italy's western border and crosses the Lombard plain to the Adriatic Sea. Several islands form part of Italy; the largest are Sicily (9,926 sq mi; 25,708 sq km) and Sardinia (9,301 sq mi; 24,090 sq km).

Government
Republic.

...Continued.....

Salam,

:clap :clap :clap
Superb contribution Sibga...
Complete it.....

Regards,
Muskan

Sibga,

its really very informative
complete it


Regards
Qurat

Miss Bhugti, excellent job!

Also take a look at:

[url]www.infoplease.com[/url]
[url]www.cia.gov[/url] [CIA Factbook]

The CIA Factbook 2006 has been uploaded recently.

Regards,

aoa....
 

thanku...muskan,,, choto ada :D... & Qurat...

ohhh i mention the source now......:D

that is...

[url]http://www.infoplease.com/countries.html[/url]

ok...:)
tc
AH

B...
 

[B][U][CENTER]Azerbaijan[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Azerbaijan

National Name: Azarbaycan Respublikasi

President: Ilham Aliyev (2003)

Prime Minister: Artur Rasizade (2003)

Land area: 33,243 sq mi (86,100 sq km); total area:33,436 sq mi (86,600 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 7,961,619 (growth rate: 0.7%); birth rate: 20.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 79.0/1000; life expectancy:63.9; density per sq mi: 239

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Baku, 2,118,600 (metro area), 1,235,400 (city proper), a port on the Caspian Sea

Other large cities (2004 est.): Ganja, 303,000; Sumgait, 280,500

Monetary unit: Manat

Languages: Azerbaijani Turkic 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% (1995 est.)

Ethnicity/race: Azeri 90%, Dagestani 3.2%, Russian 2.5%, Armenian 2%, other 2.3% (1998 est.). Note: almost all Armenians live in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region

Religions: Islam 93.4%, Russian Orthodox 2.5%, Armenian Orthodox 2.3%, other 1.8% (1995 est.)

Literacy rate: 97% (1989 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $30.01 billion; per capita $3,800. Real growth rate: 9.8%. Inflation: 4.6%. Unemployment: 1.2% (official rate). Arable land: 19%. Agriculture: cotton, grain, rice, grapes, fruit, vegetables, tea, tobacco; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats. Labor force: 5.09 million; agriculture and forestry 32%, industry and construction 15%, services 53% (1997). Industries: petroleum and natural gas, petroleum products, oilfield equipment; steel, iron ore, cement; chemicals and petrochemicals; textiles. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina. Exports: $3.168 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): oil and gas 90%, machinery, cotton, foodstuffs. Imports: $3.622 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, oil products, foodstuffs, metals, chemicals. Major trading partners: Italy, Czech Republic, Germany, France, Turkey, Georgia, Russia, UK, U.S., Kazakhstan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 923,800 (2002); mobile cellular: 870,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997). Internet hosts: 586 (2004). Internet users: 300,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 2,957 km (2004). Highways: total: 28,030 km; paved: 25,890 km; unpaved: 2,130 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Baku (Baki). Airports: 50 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in Nagorno-Karabakh and militarily occupies almost one-fifth of Azerbaijan—Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues to mediate dispute; Azerbaijan signed bilateral agreements with Russia delimiting the Caspian seabed, but littoral states are far from multilateral agreement on dividing the waters and seabed regimes—Iran insists on division of Caspian Sea into five equal sectors while Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan have generally agreed upon equidistant seabed boundaries; Iran threatens to conduct oil exploration in Azerbaijani-claimed waters, while interdicting Azerbaijani activities; Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan await ICJ decision to resolve sovereignty dispute over oilfields in the Caspian Sea.

Geography
Azerbaijan is located on the western shore of the Caspian Sea at the southeast extremity of the Caucasus. The region is a mountainous country, and only about 7% of it is arable land. The Kura River Valley is the area's major agricultural zone.

Government
Constitutional republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Belize[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Governor-General: Sir Colville Young (1993)

Prime Minister: Said Musa (1998)

Land area: 8,803 sq mi (22,800 sq km); total area: 8,867 sq mi (22,966 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 287,730 (growth rate: 2.3%); birth rate: 28.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 24.9/1000; life expectancy: 68.3; density per sq mi: 33

Capital (2003 est.): Belmopan, 8,700

Largest city: Belize City, 52,600

Monetary unit: Belize dollar

Languages: English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole

Ethnicity/race: mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7%

Religions: Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Anglican 5.3%, Methodist 3.5%, Mennonite 4.1%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Pentecostal 7.4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), none 9.4%, other 14%

Literacy rate: 94% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.778 billion; per capita $6,500. Real growth rate: 3.5%. Inflation: 2.9%. Unemployment: 12.9% (2003). Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments. Labor force: 90,000; note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel; agriculture 27%, industry 18%, services 55% (2001 est.). Industries: garment production, food processing, tourism, construction. Natural resources: arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower. Exports: $401.4 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood. Imports: $579.9 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco. Major trading partners: U.S., UK, France, Mexico, Cuba (2003).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 33,300 (2003); mobile cellular: 60,400 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997). Internet hosts: 2,613 (2003). Internet users: 30,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 2,872 km; paved: 488 km; unpaved: 2,384 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2004). Ports and harbors: Belize City. Airports: 43 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Guatemalan squatters continue to settle in the largely uninhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; OAS is attempting to revive the 2002 failed Differendum that created a small adjustment to land boundary, a Guatemalan maritime corridor in Caribbean, joint ecological park for disputed Sapodilla Cays, and substantial US-UK financial package

Geography
Belize is situated on the Caribbean Sea, south of Mexico and east and north of Guatemala in Central America. In area, it is about the size of New Hampshire. Most of the country is heavily forested with various hardwoods. Mangrove swamps and cays along the coast give way to hills and mountains in the interior. The highest point is Victoria Peak, 3,681 ft (1,122 m).

Government
Parliamentary democracy within the British Commonwealth.

[B][U][CENTER]Bolivia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Bolivia

National name: República de Bolivia

President: Evo Morales (2006)

Land area: 418,683 sq mi (1,084,389 sq km); total area: 424,164 sq mi (1,098,580 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 8,989,046 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 23.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 51.8/1000; life expectancy: 65.8; density per sq mi: 21

Historic and judicial capital (2003 est.): Sucre, 204,200; Administrative capital: La Paz, 1,576,100 (metro. area), 830,500 (city proper)

Other large cities: Santa Cruz, 1,168,700; Cochabamba, 815,800; El Alto, 728,500; Oruro, 211,700

Monetary unit: Boliviano

Languages: Spanish, Quechua, Aymara (all official)

Ethnicity/race: Quechua 30%, mestizo 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15%

Religion: Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5%

Literacy rate: 87% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $22.33 billion; per capita $2,600. Real growth rate: 3.7%. Inflation: 4.9%. Unemployment: 9.2% in urban areas with widespread underemployment (2003 est.). Arable land: 3%. Agriculture: soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber. Labor force: 3.8 million; agriculture n.a., industry n.a., services n.a. Industries: mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing. Natural resources: tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower. Exports: $1.986 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin. Imports: $1.595 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans. Major trading partners: Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, U.S., Peru, Argentina, Chile (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 600,100 (2003); mobile cellular: 1,401,500 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999). Television broadcast stations: 48 (1997). Internet hosts: 7,080 (2003). Internet users: 270,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 3,519 km (2004). Highways: total: 60,282 km; paved: 3,979 km; unpaved: 56,303 km (2002). Waterways: 10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2004). Ports and harbors:Puerto Aguirre (on the Paraguay/Parana waterway, at the Bolivia/Brazil border); also, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay. Airports: 1,065 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile for Bolivian natural gas and other commodities.

Geography
Landlocked Bolivia is equal in size to California and Texas combined. Brazil forms its eastern border; its other neighbors are Peru and Chile on the west and Argentina and Paraguay on the south. The western part, enclosed by two chains of the Andes, is a great plateau—the Altiplano, with an average altitude of 12,000 ft (3,658 m). Almost half the population lives on the plateau, which contains Oruro, Potosí, and La Paz. At an altitude of 11,910 ft (3,630 m), La Paz is the highest administrative capital city in the world. The Oriente, a lowland region ranging from rain forests to grasslands, comprises the northern and eastern two-thirds of the country. Lake Titicaca, at an altitude of 12,507 ft (3,812 m), is the highest commercially navigable body of water in the world.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Bosnia and Herzegovina[/CENTER][/U][/B]

National Name: Bosna i Hercegovina

Presidency, Chairman of the (rotating): Sulejman Tihic (2006)

Prime Minister: Adnan Terzic (2002)

Total and land area: 19,741 sq mi (51,129 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 4,498,976 (all data dealing with population are subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by military action and ethnic cleansing) (growth rate: 1.4%); birth rate: 8.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 9.8/1000; life expectancy: 78.0; density per sq mi: 228

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Sarajevo, 581,500 (unofficial)

Other large cities: Banja Luka, 189,700; Tuzla 119,200; Mostar, 90,800

Monetary unit: Marka

Languages: Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian (all official)

Ethnicity/race: Bosniak 48%, Serb 37.1%, Croat 14.3%, other 0.6% (2000)

Religions: Muslim 40%, Orthodox 31%, Roman Catholic 15%, other 14%

Literacy rate: n.a.

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $26.21 billion; per capita $6,500. Real growth rate: 5%. Inflation: 1.1%. Unemployment: 44% officially; however, gray economy may reduce actual unemployment to near 20%. Arable land: 14%. Agriculture: wheat, corn, fruits, vegetables; livestock. Labor force: 1.026 million (2001); agriculture n.a., industry n.a., services n.a. Industries: steel, coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, manganese, bauxite, vehicle assembly, textiles, tobacco products, wooden furniture, tank and aircraft assembly, domestic appliances, oil refining (2001). Natural resources: coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, cobalt, manganese, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand, forests, hydropower. Exports: $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): metals, clothing, wood products. Imports: $5.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Italy, Croatia, Germany, Slovenia, Hungary, Austria (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 938,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 1.05 million (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 16, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 33 (plus 277 repeaters) (Sept. 1995). Internet hosts: 6,994 (2004). Internet users: 100,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 1,021 km (electrified 795 km) (2004). Highways: total: 21,846 km; paved: 11,424 km; unpaved: 10,422 km (1999 est). Waterways: Sava River (northern border) open to shipping but use limited because of no agreement with neighboring countries (2004). Ports and harbors: Bosanska Gradiska, Bosanski Brod, Bosanski Samac, and Brcko (all inland waterway ports on the Sava), Orasje. Airports: 27 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro have delimited most of their boundary, but sections along the Drina River remain in dispute; discussions continue with Croatia on several small disputed sections of the boundary.

Geography
Bosnia and Herzegovina make up a triangular-shaped republic, about half the size of Kentucky, on the Balkan peninsula. The Bosnian region in the north is mountainous and covered with thick forests. The Herzegovina region in the south is largely rugged, flat farmland. It has a narrow coastline without natural harbors stretching 13 mi (20 km) along the Adriatic Sea.

Government
Emerging democracy, with a rotating, tripartite presidency divided between predominantly Serb, Croatian, and Bosnian political parties.

[B][U][CENTER]Botswana[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Botswana

President: Festus Mogae (1998)

Land area: 226,012 sq mi (585,371 sq km); total area: 231,804 sq mi (600,370 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 1,639,833 (growth rate: 0.0%); birth rate: 23.1/1000; infant mortality rate: 53.7/1000; life expectancy: 33.7; density per sq mi: 7

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Gaborone, 195,000

Monetary unit: Pula

Languages: English (official), Setswana

Ethnicity/race: Tswana (or Setswana) 79%, Kalanga 11%, Basarwa 3%, other (including Kgalagadi and white) 7%

Religions: indigenous beliefs 85%, Christian 15%

Literacy rate: 80% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $15.05 billion; per capita $9,200. Real growth rate: 3.5%. Inflation: 7%. Unemployment: 23.8%. Arable land: 1%. Agriculture: livestock, sorghum, maize, millet, beans, sunflowers, groundnuts. Labor force: 264,000 formal sector employees (2000). Industries: diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash; livestock processing; textiles. Natural resources: diamonds, copper, nickel, salt, soda ash, potash, coal, iron ore, silver. Exports: $2.94 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): diamonds, copper, nickel, soda ash, meat, textiles. Imports: $2.255 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): foodstuffs, machinery, electrical goods, transport equipment, textiles, fuel and petroleum products, wood and paper products, metal and metal products. Major trading partners: European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Southern African Customs Union (SACU), Zimbabwe (2000).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 142,400 (2002); mobile cellular: 435,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 13, shortwave 4 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2001). Internet hosts: 1,920 (2003). Internet users: 60,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 888 km (2004). Highways: total: 10,217 km; paved: 5,619 km; unpaved: 4,598 km (1999). Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 85 (2004 est.).

International disputes: commission established with Namibia has yet to resolve small residual disputes along the Caprivi Strip, including the Situngu marshlands along the Linyanti River; downstream Botswana residents protest Namibia's planned construction of the Okavango hydroelectric dam at Popavalle (Popa Falls); Botswana has built electric fences to stem the thousands of Zimbabweans who flee to find work and escape political persecution; Namibia has long supported and in 2004 Zimbabwe dropped objections to plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing their short, but not clearly delimited Botswana-Zambia boundary.

Geography
Twice the size of Arizona, Botswana is in south-central Africa, bounded by Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. Most of the country is near-desert, with the Kalahari occupying the western part of the country. The eastern part is hilly, with salt lakes in the north.

Government
Parliamentary republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Brunei[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Brunei Darussalam

National Name: Negara Brunei Darussalam

Sultan: Haji Hassanal Bolkiah (1967)

Land area: 2,035 sq mi (5,271 sq km); total area: 2,228 sq mi (5,770 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 379,444 (growth rate: 1.9%); birth rate: 18.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 12.2/1000; life expectancy: 75.0; density per sq mi: 186

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Bandar Seri Begawan, 78,000

Other large cities: Kuala Belait 27,800, Seria 23,400

Monetary unit: Brunei dollar

Languages: Malay (official), English, Chinese

Ethnicity/race: Malay 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other 12%

Religions: Islam (official religion) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and other 10%

Literacy rate: 92% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2003 est.): $6.842 billion; per capita $23,600. Real growth rate: 3.2%. Inflation: 0.3%. Unemployment: 3.2% (2002 est.). Arable land: 1%. Agriculture: rice, vegetables, fruits, chickens, water buffalo. Labor force: 158,000; note: includes foreign workers and military personnel; temporary residents make up 40% of labor force (2002 est.); government 48%, production of oil, natural gas, services, and construction 42%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10% (1999 est.). Industries: petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, timber. Exports: $7.7 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): crude oil, natural gas, refined products. Imports: $5.2 billion (c.i.f., 2003): machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals. Major trading partners: Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Australia, U.S., China, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Australia.

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 90,000 (2002); mobile cellular: 137,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997). Internet hosts: 6,409 (2003). Internet users: 35,000 (2002).

Transportation: Highways: total: 2,525 km; paved: 2,525 km; unpaved: 0 km (2000). Waterways: 209 km; navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m (2004). Ports and harbors: Lumut, Muara, Seria. Airports: 2 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in 2003 Brunei and Malaysia ceased gas and oil exploration in their disputed offshore and deepwater seabeds and negotiations have stalemated prompting consideration of international legal adjudication; Malaysia's land boundary with Brunei around Limbang is in dispute; Brunei established an exclusive economic fishing zone encompassing Louisa Reef in southern Spratly Islands in 1984 but makes no public territorial claim to the offshore reefs; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions in the Spratly Islands but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants.

Geography
About the size of Delaware, Brunei is an independent sultanate on the northwest coast of the island of Borneo in the South China Sea, wedged between the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.

Government
Constitutional sultanate.

[B][U][CENTER]Bulgaria[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Bulgaria

President: Georgi Purvanov (2002)

Prime Minister: Sergei Stanishev (2005)

Land area: 42,683 sq mi (110,549 sq km); total area: 42,823 sq mi (110,910 sq km )

Population (2006 est.): 7,385,367 (growth rate: –0.9%); birth rate: 9.7/1000; infant mortality rate: 19.9/1000; life expectancy: 72.3; density per sq mi: 173

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Sofia, 1,088,700

Other large cities: Plovdiv, 338,200; Varna, 312,300; Burgas, 192,000; Ruse, 161,000

Monetary unit: Lev

Languages: Bulgarian; secondary languages strongly correspond to ethnic breakdown

Ethnicity/race: Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) 2%

Religions: Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Islam 12.2%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 3.4% (1998)

Literacy rate: 99% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $61.63 billion; per capita $8,200. Real growth rate: 5.3%. Inflation: 6.1%. Unemployment: 12.7%. Arable land: 40%. Agriculture: vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets. Labor force: 3.398 million; agriculture 11%, industry 32.7%, services 56.3% (3rd quarter 2004 est.). Industries: electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel. Natural resources: bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land. Exports: $9.134 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels. Imports: $12.23 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; fuels, minerals, and raw materials. Major trading partners: Italy, Germany, Greece, Turkey, France, U.S., Russia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 2,868,200 (2002); mobile cellular: 2,597,500 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001). Internet hosts: 53,421 (2004). Internet users: 630,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 4,294 km (2004). Highways: total: 37,077 km; paved: 34,111 km (including 328 km of expressways); unpaved: 2,966 km (2002). Waterways: 470 km (2004). Ports and harbors: Burgas, Varna. Airports: 213 (2004 est.).

International disputes: none.

Geography
Bulgaria shares borders with Serbia, Macedonia, Romania, Greece, and Turkey. Two mountain ranges and two great valleys mark the topography of Bulgaria, a country the size of Tennessee and situated on the Black Sea. The Maritsa is Bulgaria's principal river, and the Danube also flows through the country.

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Burkina Faso[/CENTER][/U][/B]

President: Blaise Compaoré (1987)

Prime Minister: Paramanga Ernest Yonli (2000)

Land area: 105,714 sq mi (273,799 sq km); total area: 105,869 sq mi (274,200 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 13,902,972 (growth rate: 3.0%); birth rate: 45.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 91.3/1000; life expectancy: 48.9; density per sq mi: 132

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Ouagadougou, 962,100

Monetary unit: CFA Franc

Languages: French (official); native African (Sudanic) languages 90%

Ethnicity/race: Mossi (over 40%), Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, Fulani

Religions: Islam 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10%

Literacy rate: 27% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $15.74 billion; per capita $1,200. Real growth rate: 4.8%. Inflation: 2.4%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 14%. Agriculture: cotton, peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, sorghum, millet, corn, rice; livestock. Labor force: 5 million; note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2003). Industries: cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold. Natural resources: manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates, pumice, salt. Exports: $418.6 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): cotton, livestock, gold. Imports: $866.3 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): capital goods, food products, petroleum. Major trading partners: Singapore, China, Thailand, Italy, Ghana, Colombia, France, Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Belgium (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 65,400 (2003); mobile cellular: 227,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 17, shortwave 3 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 442 (2003). Internet users: 48,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 622 km (2004). Highways: total: 12,506 km; paved: 2,001 km; unpaved: 10,505 km (1999). Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 33 (2004 est.).

International disputes: two villages are in dispute along the border with Benin; Benin accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; Burkina Faso border regions remain a staging area for Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire rebels and an asylum for refugees caught in local fighting; the Ivoirian Government accuses Burkina Faso of sheltering Ivoirian rebels.

Geography
Slightly larger than Colorado, Burkina Faso, formerly known as Upper Volta, is a landlocked country in West Africa. Its neighbors are Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, and Ghana. The country consists of extensive plains, low hills, high savannas, and a desert area in the north.

Government
Parliamentary.

[B][U][CENTER]Burma (Myanmar) [/CENTER][/U][/B]

Union of Myanmar

National name: Pyidaungsu Myanmar Naingngandau

Head of State: Senior Gen. Than Shwe (1992)

Prime Minister: Lt. Gen. Soe Win (2004)

Land area: 253,954 sq mi (657,741 sq km); total area: 261,70 q mi (sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 47,382,633 (growth rate: 0.8%); birth rate: 17.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 61.9/1000; life expectancy: 61.0; density per sq mi: 187

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Rangoon (Yangon), 4,344,100

Other large city: Mandalay, 1,147,400

Monetary unit: Kyat

Languages: Burmese, minority languages

Ethnicity/race: Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%

Religions: Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Islam 4%, Animist 1%, other 2%

Literacy rate: 83% (1995 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $74.3 billion; per capita $1,700. Real growth rate: –1.3%. Inflation: 17.2%. Unemployment: 5.2%. Arable land: 15%. Agriculture: rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products. Labor force: 27.01 million; agriculture 70%, industry 7%, services 23% (2001 est.). Industries: agricultural processing; knit and woven apparel; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; cement. Natural resources: petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower. Exports: $2.137 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): clothing, gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice. Imports: $1.754 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): fabric, petroleum products, plastics, machinery, transport equipment, construction materials, crude oil; food products. Major trading partners: Thailand, India, U.S., China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 250,000 (2000); mobile cellular: 8,492 (1997). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 3 (1998). Radios: 4.2 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 2 (1998). Televisions: 320,000 (2000). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1; note: as of Sept. 2000, Internet connections were legal only for the government, tourist offices, and a few large businesses (2000). Internet users: 10,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 3,955 km (2002). Highways: total: 28,200 km; paved: 3,440 km; unpaved: 24,760 km (1996 est.). Waterways: 12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels. Ports and harbors: Bassein, Bhamo, Chauk, Mandalay, Moulmein, Myitkyina, Rangoon, Akyab (Sittwe), Tavoy. Airports: 80 (2002).

International disputes: despite continuing border committee talks, significant differences remain with Thailand over boundary alignment and the handling of ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities.

Geography
Slightly smaller than Texas, Myanmar occupies the Thailand/Cambodia portion of the Indochinese peninsula. India lies to the northwest and China to the northeast. Bangladesh, Laos, and Thailand are also neighbors. The Bay of Bengal touches the southwest coast. The fertile delta of the Irrawaddy River in the south contains a network of intercommunicating canals and nine principal river mouths.

Government
Military regime.

[B][U][CENTER]Burundi[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Burundi

National name: Republika y'u Burundi

President: Pierre Nkurunziza (2005)

Land area: 9,903 sq mi (25,649 sq km); total area: 10,745 sq mi (27,830 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 8,090,068 (growth rate: 3.7%); birth rate: 42.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 63.1/1000; life expectancy: 50.8; density per sq mi: 817

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Bujumbura, 331,700

Other large city: Gitega, 45,700

Monetary unit: Burundi franc

Languages: Kirundi and French (official), Swahili

Ethnicity/race: Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 62%, indigenous 23%, Islam 10%, Protestant 5%

Literacy rate: 52% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $4.001 billion; per capita $600. Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 8.5%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 35%. Agriculture: coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides. Labor force: 2.99 million (2002); agriculture 93.6%, industry 2.3%, services 4.1% (2002 est.). Industries: light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing. Natural resources: nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone. Exports: $31.84 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides. Imports: $138.2 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: Switzerland, UK, Rwanda, Netherlands, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, France, India, Japan, China (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 23,900 (2003); mobile cellular: 64,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2001). Internet hosts: 22 (2003). Internet users: 14,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 14,480 km; paved: 1,028 km; unpaved: 13,452 km (1999 est.). Waterways: mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2004). Ports and harbors: Bujumbura. Airports: 8 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Tutsi, Hutu, other conflicting ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces continue fighting in the Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda in an effort to gain control over populated and natural resource areas; government heads pledge to end conflict, but localized violence continues despite the presence of about 6,000 peacekeepers from the UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) since 2004; although some 150,000 Burundian refugees have been repatriated, as of February 2005, Burundian refugees still reside in camps in western Tanzania as well as the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Geography
Wedged between Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda in east-central Africa, Burundi occupies a high plateau divided by several deep valleys. It is equal in size to Maryland.

Government
Republic.

Remaining...C countries...
 

[B][U][CENTER]Cameroon[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Canada[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Cape Verde[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Central African Republic[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Chad[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]China[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Congo, Democratic Republic of the [/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Costa Rica[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Côte d'Ivoire[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

[B][U][CENTER]Cuba[/CENTER][/U][/B]

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.

D......
 

[B][U][CENTER]Djibouti[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Djibouti

National name: Jumhouriyya Djibouti

President: Ismail Omar Guelleh (1999)

Prime Minister: Dileita Mohamed Dileita (2001)

Land area: 8,486 sq mi (21,979 sq km); total area: 8,880 sq mi (23,000 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 486,530 (growth rate: 2.0%); birth rate: 39.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 102.4/1000; life expectancy: 43.2; density per sq mi: 57

Capital (1995 est.): Djibouti, 383,000

Monetary unit: Djibouti franc

Languages: French and Arabic (both official), Somali, Afar

Ethnicity/race: Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5%

Religions: Islam 94%, Christian 6%

Literacy rate: 68% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2002 est.): $619 million; per capita $1,300. Real growth rate: 3.5%. Inflation: 2%. Unemployment: 50% (2004 est.). Arable land: 0.04%. Agriculture: fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels, animal hides. Labor: 282,000 (2000). Industries: construction, agricultural processing, salt. Natural resources: geothermal areas, gold, clay, granite, limestone, marble, salt, diatomite, gypsum, pumice, petroleum. Exports: $155 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit). Imports: $665 million (f.o.b., 2002 est.): foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products. Major trading partners: Somalia, Yemen, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, China, India, France, UK, U.S. (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 9,500 (2003); mobile cellular: 23,000 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 1 (2004). Internet users: 6,500 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 100 km (Djibouti segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) (2004). Highways: total: 2,890 km; paved: 364 km; unpaved: 2,526 km (1999 est.). Waterways: none. Ports and harbors: Djibouti. Airports: 13 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with "Somaliland" leadership while maintaining some political ties to various factions in Somalia; although most of the 26,000 Somali refugees in Djibouti who fled civil unrest in the early 1990s have returned, several thousand still await repatriation in UNHCR camps.

Geography
Djibouti lies in northeast Africa on the Gulf of Aden at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. It borders on Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia. The country, the size of Massachusetts, is mainly a stony desert, with scattered plateaus and highlands.

Government
Republic with a unicameral legislature.

[B][U][CENTER]Dominica[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Commonwealth of Dominica

President: Nicholas Liverpool (2003)

Prime Minister: Roosevelt Skerrit (2004)

Total and land area: 290 sq mi (751 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 68,910 (growth rate: –0.1%); birth rate: 15.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 13.7/1000; life expectancy: 74.9; density per sq mi: 238

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Roseau, 20,000

Monetary unit: East Caribbean dollar

Languages: English (official) and French patois

Ethnicity/race: black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian

Religions: Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6%

Literacy rate: 94% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2003 est.): $384 million; per capita $5,500. Real growth rate: –1%. Inflation: 1% (2001 est.). Unemployment: 23% (2000 est.). Arable land: 7%. Labor force: 25,000 (1999 est); agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28%. Agriculture: bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited. Industries: soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes. Natural resources: timber, hydropower, arable land. Exports: $39 million (f.o.b., 2003 est.): bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges. Imports: $98.2 million (f.o.b., 2003 est.): manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals. Major trading partners: UK, Jamaica, U.S., Antigua and Barbuda, Guyana, Japan, Trinidad and Tobago, China, South Korea (2003).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 23,700 (2002); mobile cellular: 9,400 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (2004). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2004). Internet hosts: 681 (2003). Internet users: 12,500 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 780 km; paved: 393 km; unpaved: 393 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Portsmouth, Roseau. Airports: 2 (2004 est.).

International disputes: joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea.

Geography
Dominica (pronounced Dom-in-EEK-a) is a mountainous island of volcanic origin of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, south of Guadeloupe and north of Martinique.

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Dominican Republic[/CENTER][/U][/B]

National name: República Dominicana

President: Leonel Fernández (2004)

Land area: 18,680 sq mi (48,381 sq km); total area: 18,815 sq mi (48,730 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 9,183,984 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 23.2/1000; infant mortality rate: 28.2/1000; life expectancy: 71.7; density per sq mi: 492

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Santo Domingo, 2,851,300 (metro. area), 2,252,400 (city proper)

Other large city: Santiago de los Caballeros, 501,800

Monetary unit: Dominican Peso

Language: Spanish

Ethnicity/race: white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73%

Religion: Roman Catholic 95%

Literacy rate: 85% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $55.68 billion; per capita $6,300. Real growth rate: 1.7%. Inflation: 55%. Unemployment: 17%. Arable land: 23%. Agriculture: sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs. Labor force: 2.3 million to 2.6 million (2000 est); services and government 58.7%, industry 24.3%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.). Industries: tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco. Natural resources: nickel, bauxite, gold, silver. Exports: $5.446 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods. Imports: $8.093 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Major trading partners: U.S., Canada, Haiti, Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 901,800 (2003); mobile cellular: 2,120,400 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 25 (1997). Internet hosts: 64,197 (2003). Internet users: 500,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 1,743 km (2004). Highways: total: 12,600 km; paved: 6,224 km; unpaved: 6,376 km (1999). Ports and harbors: Boca Chica, Puerto Plata, Rio Haina, Santo Domingo. Airports: 31 (2004 est.).

International disputes: increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find work.

Geography
The Dominican Republic in the West Indies occupies the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, which it shares with Haiti. Its area equals that of Vermont and New Hampshire combined. Duarte Peak, at 10,417 ft (3,175 m), is the highest point in the West Indies.

Government
Representative democracy.

E.....
 

[B][U][CENTER]East Timor[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste

National name: Republika Demokratika Timor Lorosa'e/Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste

President: José Alexandre (Xanana) Gusmão (2002)

Prime Minister: Mari Alkatiri (2002)

Total and land area: 5,641 sq mi (14,609 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 1,062,777 (growth rate: 2.1%); birth rate: 27.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 45.9/1000; life expectancy: 66.3; density per sq mi: 188

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Dili, 50,800

Monetary unit: U.S. dollar

Languages: Tetum, Portuguese (official); Bahasa Indonesia, English; other indigenous languages, including Tetum, Galole, Mambae, and Kemak

Ethnicity/race: Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian), Papuan, small Chinese minority

Religions: Roman Catholic 90%, Islam 4%, Protestant 3%, Hindu 0.5%, Buddhist, animist (1992 est.)

Literacy rate: 48% (2001)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $370 million; per capita $400. Real growth rate: 1%. Inflation: 4% (2003 est.). Unemployment: 50% (including underemployment) (1992 est.). Arable land: 5%. Agriculture: coffee, rice, maize, cassava, sweet potatoes, soybeans, cabbage, mangoes, bananas, vanilla. Labor force: n.a. Industries: printing, soap manufacturing, handicrafts, woven cloth. Natural resources: gold, petroleum, natural gas, manganese, marble. Exports: $8 million (2004 est.): coffee, sandalwood, marble; note—the potential for oil and vanilla exports. Imports: $167 million (2004 est.): food, gasoline, kerosene, machinery. Major trading partners: Portugal, Taiwan, Germany, U.S., Indonesia, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Portugal, Malaysia, China.

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: n.a.; mobile cellular: n.a.. Radio broadcast stations: n.a. Television broadcast stations: n.a. Internet hosts: n.a. Internet users: n.a.

Transportation: Railways: total: 0 km. Highways: total: 3,800 km; paved: 428 km; unpaved: 3,372 km (1995). Waterways: n.a. Ports and harbors: n.a. Airports: 8 (2004 est.).

International disputes: UN Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) has maintained about a thousand peacekeepers in East Timor since 2002; East Timor-Indonesia Boundary Committee continues to meet, survey, and delimit the land boundary, but several sections of the boundary especially around the Oekussi enclave remain unresolved; Indonesia and East Timor contest the sovereignty of the uninhabited coral island of Palau Batek/Fatu Sinai, which prevents delimitation of the northern maritime boundaries; many of 28,000 East Timorese refugees still residing in Indonesia in 2003 have returned, but many continue to refuse repatriation; East Timor and Australia continue to meet but disagree over how to delimit a permanent maritime boundary and share unexploited potential petroleum resources that fall outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; dispute with Australia also hampers creation of a southern maritime boundary with Indonesia.

Geography
East Timor is located in the eastern part of Timor, an island in the Indonesian archipelago that lies between the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. East Timor includes the enclave of Oecussi, which is located within West Timor (Indonesia). After Indonesia, East Timor's closest neighbor is Australia, 400 mi to the south. It is semiarid and mountainous.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Ecuador[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Ecuador

National name: República del Ecuador

President: Alfredo Palacio (2005)

Land area: 106,888 sq mi (276,840 sq km); total area: 109, 483 sq mi (283,560 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 13,547,510 (growth rate: 1.5%); birth rate: 22.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 22.9/1000; life expectancy: 76.4; density per sq mi: 127

Capital (2003 est.): Quito 1,780,700 (metro. area), 1,443,900 (city proper)

Largest cities: Guayaquil, 2,597,600 (metro. area), 2,013,500 (city proper); Cuenca, 285,700

Monetary unit: U.S. dollar

Languages: Spanish (official), Quechua, other Amerindian languages

Ethnicity/race: mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Amerindian 25%, Spanish 7%, black 3%

Religion: Roman Catholic 95%

Literacy rate: 93% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $49.51 billion; per capita $3,700. Real growth rate: 5.8%. Inflation: 2%. Unemployment: 11.1%, underemployment 47%. Arable land: 6%. Agriculture: bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane; cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products; balsa wood; fish, shrimp . Labor force: 4.53 million (urban); agriculture 8%, industry 24%, services 68% (2001). Industries: petroleum, food processing, textiles, wood products, chemicals. Natural resources: petroleum, fish, timber, hydropower. Exports: $7.56 billion (2004 est.): petroleum, bananas, cut flowers, shrimp. Imports: $7.65 billion (2004 est.): vehicles, medicinal products, telecommunications equipment, electricity. Major trading partners: U.S., Colombia, Germany, Venezuela, Brazil, Chile, Japan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.549 million (2003); mobile cellular: 2,394,400 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 392, FM 35, shortwave 29 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 7 (plus 14 repeaters) (2001). Televisions: 2.5 million (2001). Internet hosts: 3,188 (2003). Internet users: 569,700 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 966 km (2004). Highways: total: 43,197 km; paved: 8,164 km; unpaved: 35,033 km (2002). Waterways: 1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2003). Ports and harbors: Esmeraldas, Guayaquil, La Libertad, Manta, Puerto Bolivar. Airports: 205 (2004 est.).

International disputes: organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border and caused over 20,000 refugees to flee into Ecuador in 2004

Geography
Ecuador, about equal in area to Nevada, is in the northwest part of South America fronting on the Pacific. To the north is Colombia and to the east and south is Peru. Two high and parallel ranges of the Andes, traversing the country from north to south, are topped by tall volcanic peaks. The highest is Chimborazo at 20,577 ft (6,272 m). The Galápagos Islands (or Colón Archipelago: 3,029 sq mi; 7,845 sq km), in the Pacific Ocean about 600 mi (966 km) west of the South American mainland, became part of Ecuador in 1832.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]El Salvador[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of El Salvador

National name: República de El Salvador

President: Antonio Saca (2004)

Land area: 8,000 sq mi (20,720 sq km); total area: 8,124 sq mi (21,040 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 6,822,378 (growth rate: 1.7%); birth rate: 26.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 24.4/1000; life expectancy: 71.5; density per sq mi: 853

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): San Salvador, 1,791,700 (metro. area), 504,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Santa Ana, 167,200; San Miguel, 145,100; Zacatecoluca, 36,700

Monetary units: Colón; U.S. dollar

Languages: Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians)

Ethnicity/race: mestizo 90%, white 9%, Amerindian 1%

Religions: Catholics 83%; growing population of evangelical Protestants (1992)

Literacy rate: 80% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $32.35 billion; per capita $4,900. Real growth rate: 1.8%. Inflation: 5.4%. Unemployment: 6.3%—but the economy has much underemployment. Arable land: 32%. Agriculture: coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products. Labor force: 2.75 million; agriculture 17.1%, industry 17.1%, services 65.8% (2003 est.). Industries: food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals. Natural resources: hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land. Exports: $3.249 billion (2004 est.): offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity. Imports: $5.968 billion (2004 est.): raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity. Major trading partners: U.S., Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 752,600 (2003); mobile cellular: 1,149,800 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 61 (plus 24 repeaters), FM 30, shortwave 0 (1998). Television broadcast stations: 5 (1997). Internet hosts: 4,084 (2003). Internet users: 550,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 283 km; note: length of operational route reduced from 562 km to 283 km by disuse and lack of maintenance (2004). Highways: total: 10,029 km; paved: 1,986 km (including 327 km of expressways); unpaved: 8,043 km (1999 est.). Waterways: Rio Lempa partially navigable (2004). Ports and harbors: Acajutla, Puerto Cutuco. Airports: 73 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in 1992, the ICJ ruled on the delimitation of "bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras boundary, but despite OAS intervention and a further ICJ ruling in 2003, full demarcation of the border remains stalled; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca advocating Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny Conejo Island, not identified in the ICJ decision, off Honduras in the Gulf of Fonseca.

Geography
Situated on the Pacific coast of Central America, El Salvador has Guatemala to the west and Honduras to the north and east. It is the smallest of the Central American countries, with an area equal to that of Massachusetts, and it is the only one without an Atlantic coastline. Most of the country is on a fertile volcanic plateau about 2,000 ft (607 m) high.

Government
Republic.

[B][U][CENTER]Equatorial Guinea[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Equatorial Guinea

National name: Républica de Guinea Ecuatorial

President: Col. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (1979)

Prime Minister: Miguel Abia Biteo Borico (2004)

Total and land area: 10,830 sq mi (28,050 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 540,109 (growth rate: 2.1%); birth rate: 35.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 89.2/1000; life expectancy: 49.5; density per sq mi: 50

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Malabo, 92,900

Monetary unit: CFA Franc

Languages: Spanish, French (both official); pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo

Ethnicity/race: Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Río Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish

Religions: nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices

Literacy rate: 86% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2002 est.): $1.27 billion; per capita $2,700. Real growth rate: 20%. Inflation: 8.5% (2004 est.). Unemployment: 30% (1998 est.). Arable land: 5%. Agriculture: coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber. Labor force: n.a. Industries: petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay. Exports: $2.77 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa. Imports: $1.167 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): petroleum sector equipment, other equipment. Major trading partners: U.S., Spain, China, Canada, Italy, UK, France, Côte d'Ivoire, Spain, Norway (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 9,600 (2003); mobile cellular: 41,500 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2002). Internet hosts: 3 (2004). Internet users: 1,800 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 0 km. Highways: total: 2,880 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Malabo. Airports: 4 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River, imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision, and the unresolved Bakasi allocation contribute to the delay in implementation; UN has been pressing Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to pledge to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay.

Geography
Equatorial Guinea, formerly Spanish Guinea, consists of Río Muni (10,045 sq mi; 26,117 sq km), on the western coast of Africa, and several islands in the Gulf of Guinea, the largest of which is Bioko (formerly Fernando Po) (785 sq mi; 2,033 sq km). The other islands are Annobón, Corisco, Elobey Grande, and Elobey Chico. The total area is twice that of Connecticut.

Government
Dictatorship.

[B][U][CENTER]Eritrea[/CENTER][/U][/B]

State of Eritrea

National name: Hagere Ertra

President: Isaias Afwerki (1993)

Total and land area: 46,842 sq mi (121,320 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 4,786,994 (growth rate: 2.5%); birth rate: 34.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 46.3/1000; life expectancy: 59.0; density per sq mi: 102

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Asmara, 899,000 (metro. area), 400,000 (city proper)

Other large cities: the ports of Massawa, 30,700; and Assab, 56,300

Monetary unit: Nakfa

Languages: Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages

Ethnicity/race: ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%

Religions: Islam, Eritrean Orthodox Christianity, Roman Catholic, Protestant

Literacy rate: 59% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $4.154 billion; per capita $900. Real growth rate: 2.5%. Inflation: 10%. Unemployment: n.a. (2003 est.). Arable land: 5%. Agriculture: sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish. Labor force: n.a.; agriculture 80%, industry and services 20%. Industries: food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles, salt, cement, commercial ship repair. Natural resources: gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish. Exports: $64.44 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures (2000). Imports: $622 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods (2000). Major trading partners: Malaysia, Italy, France, U.S., Turkey, UK, Russia (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 38,100 (2003); mobile cellular: n.a.; note: mobile cellular service was introduced in May 2001 Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 1, shortwave 2 (2000). Television broadcast stations: 1 (2000). Internet hosts: 1,047 (2004). Internet users: 9,500 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 306 km (2004). Highways: total: 4,010 km; paved: 874 km; unpaved: 3,136 km (1999 est.). Ports and harbors: Assab, Massawa. Airports: 17 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but despite international intervention, mutual animosities, accusations and armed posturing prevail, preventing demarcation; Ethiopia refuses to withdraw to the delimited boundary until technical errors made by the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications; since 2000, the UN Peacekeeping Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) monitors the 25km-wide Temporary Security Zone in Eritrea until the demarcation; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; Eritrea protests Yemeni fishing around the Hanish Islands awarded to Eritrea by the ICJ in 1999.

Geography
Eritrea was formerly the northernmost province of Ethiopia and is about the size of Indiana. Much of the country is mountainous. Its narrow Red Sea coastal plain is one of the hottest and driest places in Africa. The cooler central highlands have fertile valleys that support agriculture. Eritrea is bordered by the Sudan on the north and west, the Red Sea on the north and east, and Ethiopia and Djibouti on the south.

Government
A transitional government committed to a democratic system.

[B][U][CENTER]Estonia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Republic of Estonia

National name: Eesti Vabariik

President: Arnold Rüütel (2001)

Prime Minister: Andrus Ansip (2005)

Land area: 16,684 sq mi (43,211 sq km); total area: sq mi (sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 1,324,333 (growth rate: –0.6%); birth rate: 10.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 7.7/1000; life expectancy: 72.0; density per sq mi: 79

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Tallinn, 379,000

Other large city: Tartu, 100,100

Monetary unit: Kroon

Languages: Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, Finnish, other

Ethnicity/race: Estonian 65.3%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Belorussian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.6% (1998)

Religions: Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish

Literacy: 100% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $19.23 billion; per capita $14,300. Real growth rate: 6%. Inflation: 3%. Unemployment: 9.6%. Arable land: 16%. Agriculture: potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish. Labor force: 660,000; industry 20%, agriculture 11%, services 69% (1999 est.). Industries: engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; information technology, telecommunications. Natural resources: oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud. Exports: $5.701 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001). Imports: $7.318 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001). Major trading partners: Finland, Sweden, Russia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, China, Japan (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 475,000 (2002); mobile cellular: 881,000 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 3 (2001). Internet hosts: 82,142 (2004). Internet users: 444,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 968 km (2004). Highways: total: 55,944 km; paved: 13,874 km (including 99 km of expressways); unpaved: 42,070 km (2002). Waterways: 500 km (2003). Ports and harbors: Kopli, Kuivastu, Muuga, Tallinn, Virtsu. Airports: 29 (2004 est.).

International disputes: in 1996, the Estonia-Russia technical border agreement was initialed but both states have been hesitant to sign and ratify it, with Russia asserting that Estonia needs to better assimilate Russian-speakers and Estonian groups pressing for realignment of the boundary based more closely on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules.

Geography
Estonia is mainly a lowland country that is bordered by the Baltic Sea, Latvia, and Russia. It has numerous lakes and forests and many rivers, most draining northward into the Gulf of Finland or eastward into Lake Peipus, its largest lake.

Government
Parliamentary democracy.

[B][U][CENTER]Ethiopia[/CENTER][/U][/B]

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

National name: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik

President: Girma Woldegiorgis (2001)

Prime Minister: Meles Zenawi (1995)

Land area: 432,310 sq mi (1,119,683 sq km); total area: 435,186 sq mi (1,127,127 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 74,777,981 (growth rate: 2.3%); birth rate: 38.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 93.6/1000; life expectancy: 49.0; density per sq mi: 173

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Addis Ababa, 2,716,200

Monetary unit: Birr

Languages: Amharic (official), Tigrigna, Orominga, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, English, over 70 others

Ethnicity/race: Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigrean 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1%

Religions: Islam 45%–50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%–40%, animist 12%, other 3%–8%

Literacy rate: 43% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $54.89 billion; per capita $800. Real growth rate: 11.6%. Inflation: 2.4%. Unemployment: n.a. Arable land: 11%. Agriculture: cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, sugarcane, potatoes, qat; hides, cattle, sheep, goats. Labor force: n.a.; agriculture and animal husbandry 80%, government and services 12%, industry and construction 8% (1985). Industries: food processing, beverages, textiles, chemicals, metals processing, cement. Natural resources: small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower. Exports: $562.8 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds. Imports: $2.104 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles. Major trading partners: Djibouti, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Italy, U.S., China (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 435,000 (2003); mobile cellular: 97,800 (2003). Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 0, shortwave 1 (2001). Television broadcast stations: 1 plus 24 repeaters (2002). Internet hosts: 9 (2003). Internet users: 75,000 (2003).

Transportation: Railways: total: 681 km (Ethiopian segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) (2004). Highways: total: 33,297 km; paved: 3,996 km; unpaved: 29,301 km (2002). Ports and harbors: Ethiopia is landlocked and has used ports of Assab and Massawa in Eritrea and port of Djibouti. Airports: 83 (2004 est.).

International disputes: Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but despite international intervention, mutual animosities, accusations and armed posturing prevail, preventing demarcation; Ethiopia refuses to withdraw to the delimited boundary until technical errors made by the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications; Ethiopia has only an administrative line and no international border with the Oromo region of southern Somalia where it maintains alliances with local clans in opposition to the unrecognized Somali Interim Government in Mogadishu; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; the UNHCR expects most of the remaining 23,000 Somali refugees in Ethiopia to be repatriated in 2005; efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan have been delayed by civil war

Geography
Ethiopia is in east-central Africa, bordered on the west by the Sudan, the east by Somalia and Djibouti, the south by Kenya, and the northeast by Eritrea. It has several high mountains, the highest of which is Ras Dashan at 15,158 ft (4,620 m). The Blue Nile, or Abbai, rises in the northwest and flows in a great semicircle before entering the Sudan. Its chief reservoir, Lake Tana, lies in the northwest.

Government
Federal republic.

[B][U][CENTER]United Kingdom[/CENTER][/U][/B]

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)

Prime Minister: Tony Blair (1997)

Land area: 93,278 sq mi (241,590 sq km); total area: 94,526 sq mi (244,820 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 60,609,153 (growth rate: 0.3%); birth rate: 10.7/1000; infant mortality rate:5.1/1000; life expectancy: 78.5; density per sq mi: 650

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): London, 11,219,000 (metro. area), 7,417,700 (city proper)

Other large cities: Glasgow, 1,099,400; Birmingham, 971,800; Liverpool, 461,900; Edinburgh, 460,000; Leeds, 417,000; Bristol, 406,500; Manchester, 390,700; Bradford, 288,400

Monetary unit: Pound sterling (£)

Languages: English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic

Ethnicity/race: English 81.5%; Scottish 9.6%; Irish 2.4%; Welsh 1.9%; Ulster 1.8%; West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%

Religions: Anglican and Roman Catholic 40 million, Muslim 1.5 million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 500,000, Hindu 500,000, Jewish 350,000

Literacy rate: 99% (2000 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $1.782 trillion; per capita $29,600. Real growth rate: 3.2%. Inflation: 1.4%. Unemployment: 4.8%. Arable land: 23%. Agriculture: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish. Labor force: 29.78 million; agriculture 1.5%, industry 19.1%, services 79.5% (2004). Industries: machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods. Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land. Exports: $347.2 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco. Imports: $439.4 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: U.S., Germany, France, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Spain, Italy (2003).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 34.878 million (1997); mobile cellular: 13 million (yearend 1998). Radio broadcast stations: AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998). Radios: 84.5 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995). Televisions: 30.5 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): more than 400 (2000). Internet users: 34.3 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 16,893 km (2002). Highways: total: 371,913 km; paved: 371,913 km (including 3,913 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km (1999). Waterways: 3,200 km. Ports and harbors: Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport, Tyne. Airports: 470 (2002).

International disputes: Gibraltar residents vote overwhelmingly in referendum against “total shared sovereignty” arrangement worked out between Spain and UK to change 300-year rule over colony; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory) and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; Argentina claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM.

Geography
The United Kingdom, consisting of Great Britain (England, Wales, and Scotland) and Northern Ireland, is twice the size of New York State. England, in the southeast part of the British Isles, is separated from Scotland on the north by the granite Cheviot Hills; from them the Pennine chain of uplands extends south through the center of England, reaching its highest point in the Lake District in the northwest. To the west along the border of Wales—a land of steep hills and valleys—are the Cambrian Mountains, while the Cotswolds, a range of hills in Gloucestershire, extend into the surrounding shires.

Important rivers flowing into the North Sea are the Thames, Humber, Tees, and Tyne. In the west are the Severn and Wye, which empty into the Bristol Channel and are navigable, as are the Mersey and Ribble.

Government
The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a queen and a Parliament that has two houses: the House of Lords, with 574 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 bishops; and the House of Commons, which has 651 popularly elected members. Supreme legislative power is vested in Parliament, which sits for five years unless dissolved sooner. The House of Lords was stripped of most of its power in 1911, and now its main function is to revise legislation. In Nov. 1999 hundreds of hereditary peers were expelled in an effort to make the body more democratic. The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the cabinet, headed by the prime minister.

England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th century; the union between England and Wales, begun in 1284 with the Statute of Rhuddlan, was not formalized until 1536 with an Act of Union; in another Act of Union in 1707, England and Scotland agreed to permanently join as Great Britain; the legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927.

Link:[url]http://www.infoplease.com/countries.html[/url]