Chapter V (36)

Terrain: broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast
coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along
southern border regions

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Mount El'brus 5,633 m

Natural resources: wide natural resource base including major
deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals,
timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder
exploitation of natural resources

Land use:
arable land: 8%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 4%
forests and woodland: 46%
other: 42% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 40,000 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: permafrost over much of Siberia is a major
impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands;
volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula

Environment--current issues: air pollution from heavy industry,
emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major
cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland
waterways and sea coasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil
contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals;
scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography--note: largest country in the world in terms of area but
unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world;
despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and
climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture

People

Population: 146,393,569 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 19% (male 14,224,033; female 13,666,440)
15-64 years: 68% (male 48,407,409; female 51,768,664)
65 years and over: 13% (male 5,698,356; female 12,628,667) (1999
est.)

Population growth rate: -0.33% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 9.64 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 14.96 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.45 male(s)/female
total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 23 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.12 years
male: 58.83 years
female: 71.72 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.34 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Russian(s)
adjective: Russian

Ethnic groups: Russian 81.5%, Tatar 3.8%, Ukrainian 3%, Chuvash
1.2%, Bashkir 0.9%, Byelorussian 0.8%, Moldavian 0.7%, other 8.1%

Religions: Russian Orthodox, Muslim, other

Languages: Russian, other

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 100%
female: 97% (1989 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Russian Federation
conventional short form: Russia
local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya
local short form: Rossiya
former: Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic

Data code: RS

Government type: federation

Capital: Moscow

Administrative divisions: oblasts (oblastey, singular--oblast'),
21 autonomous republics* (avtonomnyk respublik, singular--avtonomnaya
respublika), 10 autonomous okrugs**(avtonomnykh okrugov,
singular--avtonomnyy okrug), 6 krays*** (krayev, singular--kray), 2
federal cities (singular--gorod)****, and 1 autonomous
oblast*****(avtonomnaya oblast'); Adygeya (Maykop)*, Aginskiy
Buryatskiy (Aginskoye)**, Altay (Gorno-Altaysk)*, Altayskiy
(Barnaul)***, Amurskaya (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'skaya,
Astrakhanskaya, Bashkortostan (Ufa)*, Belgorodskaya, Bryanskaya,
Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude)*, Chechnya (Groznyy)*, Chelyabinskaya,
Chitinskaya, Chukotskiy (Anadyr')**, Chuvashiya (Cheboksary)*,
Dagestan (Makhachkala)*, Evenkiyskiy (Tura)**, Ingushetiya
(Nazran')*, Irkutskaya, Ivanovskaya, Kabardino-Balkariya
(Nal'chik)*, Kaliningradskaya, Kalmykiya (Elista)*, Kaluzkskaya,
Kamchatskaya (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya
(Cherkessk)*, Kareliya (Petrozavodsk)*, Kemerovskaya,
Khabarovskiy***, Khakasiya (Abakan)*, Khanty-Mansiyskiy
(Khanty-Mansiysk)**, Kirovskaya, Komi (Syktyvkar)*, Koryakskiy
(Palana)**, Kostromskaya, Krasnodarskiy***, Krasnoyarskiy***,
Kurganskaya, Kurskaya, Leningradskaya, Lipetskaya, Magadanskaya,
Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola)*, Mordoviya (Saransk)*, Moskovskaya, Moskva
(Moscow)****, Murmanskaya, Nenetskiy (Nar'yan-Mar)**,
Nizhegorodskaya, Novgorodskaya, Novosibirskaya, Omskaya,
Orenburgskaya, Orlovskaya (Orel), Penzenskaya, Permskaya,
Komi-Permyatskiy (Kudymkar)**, Primorskiy (Vladivostok)***,
Pskovskaya, Rostovskaya, Ryazanskaya, Sakha (Yakutsk)*,
Sakhalinskaya (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samarskaya, Sankt-Peterburg
(Saint Petersburg)****, Saratovskaya, Severnaya Osetiya-Alaniya
(Vladikavkaz)*, Smolenskaya, Stavropol'skiy***, Sverdlovskaya
(Yekaterinburg), Tambovskaya, Tatarstan (Kazan')*, Taymyrskiy
(Dudinka)**, Tomskaya, Tul'skaya, Tverskaya, Tyumenskaya, Tyva
(Kyzyl)*, Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)*, Ul'yanovskaya, Ust'-Ordynskiy
Buryatskiy (Ust'-Ordynskiy)**, Vladimirskaya, Volgogradskaya,
Vologodskaya, Voronezhskaya, Yamalo-Nenetskiy (Salekhard)**,
Yaroslavskaya, Yevreyskaya*****; note--when using a place name with
an adjectival ending 'skaya' or 'skiy,' the word Oblast' or
Avonomnyy Okrug or Kray should be added to the place name
note: the autonomous republics of Chechnya and Ingushetiya were
formerly the autonomous republic of Checheno-Ingushetia (the
boundary between Chechnya and Ingushetia has yet to be determined);
administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative
centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in
parentheses)

Independence: 24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, June 12 (1990)

Constitution: adopted 12 December 1993

Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of
legislative acts

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Boris Nikolayevich YEL'TSIN (since 12 June
1991)
head of government: Premier Yevgeniy Maksimovich PRIMAKOV (since 11
September 1998), First Deputy Premiers Yuriy Dmitriyevich MASLYUKOV
(since 11 September 1998) and Vadim Anatol'yevich GUSTOV (since 11
September 1998); Deputy Premiers Vladimir Broisovich BULGAK (since
11 September 1998), Gennadiy Vasil'yevich KULIK (since 11 September
1998), and Valentin Ivanovna MATVIYENKO (since 11 September 1998)
cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of
the premier and his deputies, ministers, and other agency heads; all
are appointed by the president
note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides
staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential
decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a
Security Council also reports directly to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held 16 June 1996 with runoff election on 3 July 1996
(next to be held NA June 2000); note--no vice president; if the
president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers because of ill
health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier succeeds him; the
premier serves as acting president until a new presidential election
is held, which must be within three months; premier and deputy
premiers appointed by the president with the approval of the Duma
election results: Boris Nikolayevich YEL'TSIN elected president;
percent of vote in runoff--YEL'TSIN 54%, Gennadiy Andreyevich
ZYUGANOV 40%

Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Federal'noye
Sobraniye consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii
(178 seats, filled ex-officio by the top executive and legislative
officials in each of the 89 federal administrative units--oblasts,
krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal
cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg; members serve four-year terms)
and the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats, half elected
in single-member districts and half elected from national party
lists; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year
terms)
elections: State Duma--last held 17 December 1995 (next to be held NA
December 1999)
election results: State Duma--percent of vote received by parties
clearing the 5% threshold entitling them to a proportional share of
the 225 party list seats--Communist Party of the Russian Federation
22.3%, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia 11.2%, Our Home Is Russia
10.1%, Yabloko Bloc 6.9%; seats by party--Communist Party of the
Russian Federation 157, independents 78, Our Home Is Russia 55,
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia 51, Yabloko Bloc 45, Agrarian
Party of Russia 20, Russia's Democratic Choice 9, Power To the
People 9, Congress of Russian Communities 5, Forward, Russia! 3,
Women of Russia 3, other parties 15

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court, judges are appointed for
life by the Federation Council on the recommendation of the
president; Supreme Court, judges are appointed for life by the
Federation Council on the recommendation of the president; Superior
Court of Arbitration, judges are appointed for life by the
Federation Council on the recommendation of the president

Political parties and leaders:
YAVLINSKIY]; Pravoye Delo (Just Cause), a coalition of reformist,
Borisovich CHUBAYS, Boris Yefimovich NEMTSOV, Sergey Vladlenovich
KIRIYENKO]
anti-market and/or ultranationalist: Communist Party of the Russian
BARKASHOV]
note: some 150 political parties, blocs, and movements registered
with the Justice Ministry as of the 19 December 1998 deadline to be
eligible to participate in the scheduled December 1999 Duma
elections; in 1995, 43 political organizations qualified to run
slates of candidates on the Duma party list ballot; among the
parties not listed above but holding seats in the Duma were Russia's
Democratic Choice, Power To the People, Congress of Russian
Communities, Forward, Russia!, and Women of Russia

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: APEC, BIS, BSEC, CBSS,
CCC, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat,
Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO,
MONUA, MTCR, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN
Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR,
UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNOMSIL, UNPREDEP, UNTSO, UPU, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant), ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Yuliy Mikhaylovich VORONTSOV
chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
consulate(s) general: New York, San Francisco, and Seattle

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador James F. COLLINS
embassy: Novinskiy Bul'var 19/23, Moscow
mailing address: APO AE 09721
consulate(s) general: St. Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of white (top),
blue, and red

Economy

Economy--overview: Seven years after the collapse of the USSR,
Russia is still struggling to establish a modern market economy and
achieve strong economic growth. Russian GDP has contracted an
estimated 43% since 1991, including a 5% drop in 1998, despite the
country's wealth of natural resources, its well-educated population,
and its diverse--although increasingly dilapidated--industrial base.
By the end of 1997, Russia had achieved some progress. Inflation had
been brought under control, the ruble was stabilized, and an
ambitious privatization program had transferred thousands of
enterprises to private ownership. Some important market-oriented
laws were also passed, including a commercial code governing
business relations and an arbitration court for resolving economic
disputes. But in 1998, the Asian financial crisis swept through the
country, contributing to a sharp decline in russia's earnings from
oil exports and resulting in an exodus of foreign investors. Matters
came to a head in August 1998 when the government allowed the ruble
to fall precipitously and stopped payment on $40 billion in ruble
bonds. Ongoing problems include an undeveloped legal and financial
system, poor progress on restructuring the military-industrial
complex, and persistently large budget deficits, largely reflecting
the inability of successive governments to collect sufficient taxes.
Russia's transition to a market economy has also been slowed by the
growing prevalence of payment arrears and barter and by widespread
corruption. The severity of Russia's economic problems is dramatized
by the large annual decline in population, estimated by some
observers at 800,000 people, caused by environmental hazards, the
decline in health care, and the unwillingness of people to have
children.

GDP: purchasing power parity--$593.4 billion (1998 est.)

GDP--real growth rate: -5% (1998 est.)

GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$4,000 (1998 est.)

GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 7%
industry: 39%
services: 54% (1997)

Population below poverty line: 28.6% (1998 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 22.2% (1993)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 84% (1998 est.)

Labor force: 66 million (1997)

Labor force--by occupation: NA

Unemployment rate: 11.5% (1998 est.) with considerable additional
underemployment

Budget:
revenues: $40 billion
expenditures: $63 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998 est.)

Industries: complete range of mining and extractive industries
producing coal, oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of
machine building from rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and
space vehicles; shipbuilding; road and rail transportation
equipment; communications equipment; agricultural machinery,
tractors, and construction equipment; electric power generating and
transmitting equipment; medical and scientific instruments; consumer
durables, textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts

Industrial production growth rate: -5.5% (1998 est.)

Electricity--production: 834 billion kWh (1997)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 68.14%
hydro: 19%
nuclear: 12.82%
other: 0.04% (1997)

Electricity--consumption: 788.036 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 24.2 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 6.6 billion kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed,
vegetables, fruits; beef, milk

Exports: $71.8 billion (1998 est.)

Exports--commodities: petroleum and petroleum products, natural
gas, wood and wood products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety
of civilian and military manufactures

Exports--partners: Ukraine, Germany, US, Belarus, other Western
and less developed countries

Imports: $58.5 billion (1998 est.)

Imports--commodities: machinery and equipment, consumer goods,
medicines, meat, grain, sugar, semifinished metal products

Imports--partners: Europe, North America, Japan, and less
developed countries

Debt--external: $164 billion (yearend 1998)

Economic aid--recipient: $8.523 billion (1995)

Currency: 1 ruble (R) = 100 kopeks

Exchange rates: rubles per US$1--22.2876 (January 1999), 9.7051
(1998), 5,785 (1997), 5,121 (1996), 4,559 (1995), 2,191 (1994)
note: the post-1 January 1998 ruble is equal to 1,000 of the pre-1
January 1998 rubles

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Telephones: 23.8 million (1997 est.)

Telephone system: the telephone system has undergone significant
changes in the 1990's; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed
to offer communication services; access to digital lines has
improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail
services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the
telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy
domestic: cross country digital trunk lines run from St. Petersburg
to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the telephone
systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital infrastructures;
cellular services, both analog and digital, are available in many
areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are still outdated,
inadequate, and low density
international: Russia is connected internationally by three undersea
fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several cities provide more
than 50,000 lines for international calls; satellite earth stations
provide access to Intelsat, Intersputnik, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and
Orbita

Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA; note--there
are about 1,050 (including AM, FM, and shortwave) radio broadcast
stations throughout the country

Radios: 50 million (1993 est.) (74.3 million radio receivers with
multiple speaker systems for program diffusion)

Television broadcast stations: 11,000 (1996 est.)

Televisions: 54.85 million (1992 est.)

Transportation

Railways:
total: 150,000 km; note--87,000 km in common carrier service; 63,000
km serve specific industries and are not available for common
carrier use
broad gauge: 150,000 km 1.520-m gauge (January 1997 est.)

Highways:
total: 948,000 km (including 416,000 km which serve specific
industries or farms and are not maintained by governmental highway
maintenance departments)
paved: 336,000 km
unpaved: 612,000 km (including 411,000 km of graveled or some other
form of surfacing and 201,000 km of unstabilized earth) (1995 est.)

Waterways: total navigable routes in general use 101,000 km;
routes with navigation guides serving the Russian River Fleet 95,900
km; routes with night navigational aids 60,400 km; man-made
navigable routes 16,900 km (January 1994 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 48,000 km; petroleum products 15,000 km;
natural gas 140,000 km (June 1993 est.)

Ports and harbors: Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan', Kaliningrad, Kazan',
Khabarovsk, Kholmsk, Krasnoyarsk, Moscow, Murmansk, Nakhodka,
Nevel'sk, Novorossiysk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, St. Petersburg,
Rostov, Sochi, Tuapse, Vladivostok, Volgograd, Vostochnyy, Vyborg

Merchant marine:
total: 617 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,146,329
GRT/5,278,909 DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 19, cargo 309, combination bulk
21, combination ore/oil 6, container 25, multifunction large-load
carrier 1, oil tanker 149, passenger 35, passenger-cargo 3,
refrigerated cargo 16, roll-on/roll-off cargo 25, short-sea
passenger 7 (1998 est.)

Airports: 2,517 (1994 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 630
over 3,047 m: 54
2,438 to 3,047 m: 202
1,524 to 2,437 m: 108
914 to 1,523 m: 115
under 914 m: 151 (1994 est.)

Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 1,887
over 3,047 m: 25
2,438 to 3,047 m: 45
1,524 to 2,437 m: 134
914 to 1,523 m: 291
under 914 m: 1,392 (1994 est.)

Military

Military branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Forces, Strategic
Rocket Forces
note: the Air Defense Force merged into the Air Force in March 1998

Military manpower--military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 38,665,138 (1999 est.)

Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 30,173,495 (1999 est.)

Military manpower--reaching military age annually:
males: 1,149,536 (1999 est.)

Military expenditures--dollar figure: $NA
note: the Intelligence Community estimates that defense spending in
Russia fell by about 10% in real terms in 1996, reducing Russian
defense outlays to about one-sixth of peak Soviet levels in the late
1980s (1997 est.)

Military expenditures--percent of GDP: NA%

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: dispute over at least two small sections
of the boundary with China remain to be settled, despite 1997
boundary agreement; islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan and
the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now
administered by Russia, claimed by Japan; Caspian Sea boundaries are
not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and
Turkmenistan; Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical
border agreement in December 1996 which has not been ratified; draft
treaty delimiting the boundary with Latvia has not been signed; has
made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right
to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation;
1997 border agreement with Lithuania not yet ratified; Svalbard is
the focus of a maritime boundary dispute in the Barents Sea between
Norway and Russia

Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of illicit cannabis and opium
poppy and producer of amphetamines, mostly for domestic consumption;
government has active eradication program; increasingly used as
transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian opiates and
cannabis and Latin American cocaine to Western Europe, possibly to
the US, and growing domestic market

======================================================================

@Rwanda ------

Introduction

Background: Throughout their colonial rule, first Germany and
then Belgium favored Rwanda's minority Tutsi ethnic group in
education and employment. In 1959, the majority ethnic group, the
Hutus, overthrew the ruling Tutsi monarch. The Hutus killed hundreds
of Tutsis and drove tens of thousands into exile in neighboring
countries. The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group,
the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), and began a civil war in October
1990. The war, along with several political and economic upheavals,
exasperated ethnic tensions culminating in April 1994 in a genocide
in which roughly 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed. The
Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutu regime and ended the genocide in July
1994, but approximately 2 million Hutu refugees--many fearing Tutsi
retribution--fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and
Zaire, now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC).
According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees, in
1996 and early 1997 nearly 1.3 million Hutus returned to Rwanda.
Even with substantial international aid, these civil dislocations
have hindered efforts to foster reconciliation and to boost
investment and agricultural output. Although much of the country is
now at peace, members of the former regime continue to destabilize
the northwest area of the country through a low-intensity
insurgency. Rwandan troops are currently involved in a crisis
engulfing neighboring DROC.

Geography

Location: Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geographic coordinates: 2 00 S, 30 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 26,340 sq km
land: 24,950 sq km
water: 1,390 sq km

Area--comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo
217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April,
November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible

Terrain: mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous
with altitude declining from west to east

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m

Natural resources: gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite
(tungsten ore), methane, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 35%
permanent crops: 13%
permanent pastures: 18%
forests and woodland: 22%
other: 12% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts; the volcanic Birunga
mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic
Republic of the Congo

Environment--current issues: deforestation results from
uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil
exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography--note: landlocked; predominantly rural population

People

Population: 8,154,933 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 44% (male 1,807,695; female 1,793,590)
15-64 years: 53% (male 2,148,477; female 2,179,119)
65 years and over: 3% (male 92,490; female 133,562) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.43% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 38.97 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 19.53 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 4.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)
note: following the outbreak of genocidal strife in Rwanda in April
1994 between Tutsi and Hutu factions, more than 2 million refugees
fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Democratic
Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire); according to the UN High
Commission on Refugees, in 1996 and early 1997 nearly 1.3 million
Hutus returned to Rwanda--of these 720,000 returned from Democratic
Republic of the Congo, 480,000 from Tanzania, 88,000 from Burundi,
and 10,000 from Uganda; probably fewer than 100,000 Rwandans
remained outside of Rwanda by the end of 1997

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 112.86 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 41.31 years
male: 40.84 years
female: 41.8 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5.8 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan

Ethnic groups: Hutu 80%, Tutsi 19%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 65%, Protestant 9%, Muslim 1%,
indigenous beliefs and other 25%

Languages: Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular,
French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in
commercial centers

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 60.5%
male: 69.8%
female: 51.6% (1995 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Rwandese Republic
conventional short form: Rwanda
local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda
local short form: Rwanda

Data code: RW

Government type: republic; presidential, multiparty system

Capital: Kigali

Administrative divisions: 12 prefectures (in French--prefectures,
singular--prefecture; in Kinyarwanda--plural--NA,
singular--prefegitura); Butare, Byumba, Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Gisenyi,
Gitarama, Kibungo, Kibuye, Kigali, Kigaliville, Umutara, Ruhengeri

Independence: 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN
trusteeship)

National holiday: Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

Constitution: on 5 May 1995, the Transitional National Assembly
adopted a new constitution which included elements of the
constitution of 18 June 1991 as well as provisions of the 1993
Arusha peace accord and the November 1994 multi-party protocol of
understanding

Legal system: based on German and Belgian civil law systems and
customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme
Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: NA years of age; universal adult

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Pasteur BIZIMUNGU (since 19 July 1994);
Vice President Maj. Gen. Paul KAGAME (since 19 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Celestin RWIGEMA (since 1
September 1995)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: normally the president is elected by popular vote for a
five-year term; election last held in December 1988 (next to be held
NA); prime minister is appointed by the president
election results: Juvenal HABYARIMANA elected president; percent of
vote--99.98% (HABYARIMANA was the sole candidate)
note: President HABYARIMANA was killed in a plane crash on 6 April
1994 which ignited the genocide and was replaced by President
BIZIMUNGU who was installed by the military forces of the ruling
Rwandan Patriotic Front on 19 July 1994

Legislative branch: unicameral Transitional National Assembly or
Assemblee Nationale de Transition (a power-sharing body with 70
seats established on 12 December 1994 following a multi-party
protocol understanding; members were predetermined by the Arusha
peace accord)
elections: the last national legislative elections were held 16
December 1988 for the National Development Council (the legislature
prior to the advent of the Transitional National Assembly); no
elections have been held for the Transitional National Assembly as
the distribution of seats was predetermined by the Arusha peace
accord
election results: percent of vote by party--NA; seats by party--RPF
19, MDR 13, PSD 13, PL 13, PDC 6, PSR 2, PDI 2, other 2; note--the
distribution of seats was predetermined

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court, consists of the Court of
Cassation and the Council of State in joint session

Political parties and leaders: significant parties include:

Political pressure groups and leaders: Rwanda Patriotic Army or
Return (RDR)

International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC,
CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD,
IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU,
NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Theogene N. RUDASINGWA
chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador George M. STAPLES
embassy: Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali
mailing address: B. P. 28, Kigali

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side),
yellow, and green with a large black letter R centered in the yellow
band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to
the flag of Guinea, which has a plain yellow band

Economy

Economy--overview: Rwanda is a rural country with about 90% of the
population engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture. It is the
most densely populated country in Africa; is landlocked, and has few
natural resources and minimal industry. Primary exports are coffee
and tea. The 1994 genocide decimated Rwanda's fragile economic base,
severely impoverished the population, particularly women, and eroded
the country's ability to attract private and external investment.
However, Rwanda has made significant progress in stabilizing and
rehabilitating its economy. GDP has rebounded, and inflation has
been curbed. In June 1998, Rwanda signed an Enhanced Structural
Adjustment Facility (ESAF) with the IMF. Rwanda has also embarked
upon an ambitious privatization program with the World Bank.

GDP: purchasing power parity--$5.5 billion (1998 est.)

GDP--real growth rate: 10.5% (1998 est.)

GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$690 (1998 est.)

GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 36%
industry: 24%
services: 40% (1997 est.)

Population below poverty line: 51.2% (1993 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 4.2%
highest 10%: 24.2% (1983-85)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10% (1998)

Labor force: 3.6 million

Labor force--by occupation: agriculture 90%, government and
services, industry and commerce

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $231 million
expenditures: $319 million, including capital expenditures of $13
million (1996 est.)

Industries: production of cement, processing of agricultural
products, small-scale beverage production, manufacture of soap,
furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes

Industrial production growth rate: 4.9% (1995 est.)

Electricity--production: 164 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 2.44%
hydro: 97.56%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 177 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 2 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 15 million kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made
from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock

Exports: $82.1 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.)

Exports--commodities: coffee 55%, tea 21%, hides, tin ore (1997)

Exports--partners: Brazil 49%, Germany 16%, US, Netherlands, UK
(1996)

Imports: $326 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.)

Imports--commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel,
petroleum products, cement and construction material (1997)

Imports--partners: Italy, Kenya, Tanzania, US, Belgium-Luxembourg
(1997)

Debt--external: $1.2 billion (1998)

Economic aid--recipient: $711.2 million (1995); note?since 1994,
World Bank financing to Rwanda has totaled more than $120 million;
in June 1998, Rwanda signed an Enhanced Structural Adjustment
Facility (ESAF) with the IMF; in summer 1998, Rwanda presented its
policy objectives and development priorities to donor governments
resulting in multi-year pledges in the amount of $250 million

Currency: 1 Rwandan franc (RF) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates: Rwandan francs (RF) per US$1--320.63 (February
1999), 312.31 (1998), 301.53 (1997), 306.82 (1996), 262.20 (1995)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Telephones: 6,400 (1983 est.)

Telephone system: telephone system primarily serves business and
government
domestic: the capital, Kigali, is connected to the centers of the
prefectures by microwave radio relay; the remainder of the network
depends on wire and HF radiotelephone
international: international connections employ microwave radio
relay to neighboring countries and satellite communications to more
distant countries; satellite earth stations--1 Intelsat (Indian
Ocean) in Kigali (includes telex and telefax service)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0

Radios: 630,000 (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997)

Televisions: NA

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: 12,000 km
paved: 1,000 km
unpaved: 11,000 km (1997 est.)

Waterways: Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native
craft

Ports and harbors: Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye

Airports: 7 (1998 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (1998 est.)

Military

Military branches: Army, Gendarmerie

Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 1,964,118 (1999 est.)

Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,000,204 (1999 est.)

Military expenditures--dollar figure: $92 million (1999)

Military expenditures--percent of GDP: 3.8% (1999)

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: Rwandan military forces are supporting
the rebel forces in the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo

======================================================================

@Saint Helena ------------

Geography

Location: islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about mid-way
between South America and Africa

Geographic coordinates: 15 56 S, 5 42 W

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Ascension, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island,
Nightingale Island, and Tristan da Cunha Island

Area--comparative: slightly more than two times the size of
Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 60 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: Saint Helena--tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade
winds; Tristan da Cunha--temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade
winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena)

Terrain: Saint Helena--rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus
and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m

Natural resources: fish

Land use:
arable land: 6%
permanent crops: NA%
permanent pastures: 6%
forests and woodland: 6%
other: 82% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha

Environment--current issues: NA

Environment--international agreements:
party to: NA
signed, but not ratified: NA

Geography--note: Napoleon Bonaparte's place of exile and burial
(his remains were taken to Paris in 1840); harbors at least 40
species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a
breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns

People

Population: 7,145 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 20% (male 713; female 690)
15-64 years: 72% (male 2,664; female 2,449)
65 years and over: 8% (male 259; female 370) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.74% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 13.86 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 6.44 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 27.98 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.88 years
male: 72.78 years
female: 79.13 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.5 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian

Ethnic groups: African descent, white

Religions: Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist,
Roman Catholic

Languages: English

Literacy:
definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 97%
female: 98% (1987 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena

Data code: SH

Dependency status: overseas territory of the UK

Government type: NA

Capital: Jamestown

Administrative divisions: 1 administrative area and 2
dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha*

Independence: none (overseas territory of the UK)

National holiday: Celebration of the Birthday of the Queen
(second Saturday in June)

Constitution: 1 January 1989

Legal system: NA

Suffrage: NA years of age

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief David Leslie
SMALLMAN (since NA 1995)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio
officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by
the monarch

Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Council (15 seats,
including the governor, 2 ex officio and 12 elected members; members
are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 July 1997 (next to be held NA July 2001)
election results: percent of vote--NA; seats--independents 15

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: none

International organization participation: ICFTU

Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas territory of
the UK)

Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas territory
of the UK)

Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper
hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the
outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and
three-masted sailing ship

Economy

Economy--overview: The economy depends largely on financial
assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1998.
The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of
livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, a
large proportion of the work force has left to seek employment
overseas.

GDP: purchasing power parity--$13.9 million (FY94/95 est.)

GDP--real growth rate: NA%

GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$2,000 (FY94/95 est.)

GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%

Labor force: 2,416 (1991 est.)
note: a large proportion of the work force has left to seek
employment overseas

Labor force--by occupation: professional, technical, and related
workers 8.7%, managerial, administrative, and clerical 12.8%, sales
people 8.1%, farmers, fishermen 5.4%, craftspersons, production
process workers 14.7%, others 50.3% (1987)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(FY92/93)

Industries: crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity--production: 6 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 6 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 0 kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 0 kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: maize, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish,
crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha)

Exports: $704,000 (f.o.b., 1995)

Exports--commodities: fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried
skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts

Exports--partners: South Africa, UK

Imports: $14.434 million (c.i.f., 1995)

Imports--commodities: food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal
feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and
parts

Imports--partners: UK, South Africa

Debt--external: $NA

Economic aid--recipient: $12.6 million (1995); note?$5.3 million
from UK (1997)

Currency: 1 Saint Helenian pound (LS) = 100 pence

Exchange rates: Saint Helenian pounds (LS) per US$1--0.6057
(January 1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6047 (1997), 0.6403 (1996), 0.6335
(1995), 0.6529 (1994); note--the Saint Helenian pound is at par with
the British pound

Fiscal year: 1 April--31 March

Communications

Telephones: 550

Telephone system:
domestic: automatic network; HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to
Ascension, then into worldwide submarine cable and satellite networks
international: major coaxial submarine cable relay point between
South Africa, Portugal, and UK at Ascension; satellite earth
stations--2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0

Radios: 2,500 (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 0 (1997)

Televisions: NA

Communications--note: Gough Island has a meteorological station

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: NA km (Saint Helena 118 km, Ascension NA km, Tristan da Cunha
NA km)
paved: 180.7 km (Saint Helena 98 km, Ascension 80 km, Tristan da
Cunha 2.70 km)
unpaved: NA km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension NA km, Tristan da
Cunha NA km)

Ports and harbors: Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 1 (1998 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Military

Military--note: defense is the responsibility of the UK

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: none

======================================================================

@Saint Kitts and Nevis ---------------------

Geography

Location: Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, about
one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago

Geographic coordinates: 17 20 N, 62 45 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 269 sq km
land: 269 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area--comparative: 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 135 km

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

Climate: subtropical tempered by constant sea breezes; little
seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Terrain: volcanic with mountainous interiors

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Liamuiga 1,156 m

Natural resources: NEGL

Land use:
arable land: 22%
permanent crops: 17%
permanent pastures: 3%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 41% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: hurricanes (July to October)

Environment--current issues: NA

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

People

Population: 42,838 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 33% (male 7,178; female 6,826)
15-64 years: 61% (male 13,226; female 13,083)
65 years and over: 6% (male 1,020; female 1,505) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.34% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 22.6 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 8.15 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 17.39 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 67.94 years
male: 64.87 years
female: 71.21 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.42 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Kittitian(s), Nevisian(s)
adjective: Kittitian, Nevisian

Ethnic groups: black

Religions: Anglican, other Protestant sects, Roman Catholic

Languages: English

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97%
male: 97%
female: 98% (1980 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis
conventional short form: Saint Kitts and Nevis
former: Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis

Data code: SC

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital: Basseterre

Administrative divisions: 14 parishes; Christ Church Nichola
Town, Saint Anne Sandy Point, Saint George Basseterre, Saint George
Gingerland, Saint James Windward, Saint John Capisterre, Saint John
Figtree, Saint Mary Cayon, Saint Paul Capisterre, Saint Paul
Charlestown, Saint Peter Basseterre, Saint Thomas Lowland, Saint
Thomas Middle Island, Trinity Palmetto Point

Independence: 19 September 1983 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 19 September (1983)

Constitution: 19 September 1983

Legal system: based on English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Dr. Cuthbert Montraville SEBASTIAN
(since 1 January 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Denzil DOUGLAS (since 6 July
1995) and Deputy Prime Minister Sam CONDOR (since 6 July 1995)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general in consultation
with the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is
appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the
leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is
usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy
prime minister appointed by the governor general

Legislative branch: unicameral House of Assembly (14 seats, 11
popularly elected from single-member constituencies; members serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 July 1995 (next to be held by July 2000)
election results: percent of vote by party--SKLNP 58%, PAM 41%; seats
by party--SKNLP 7, PAM 1, NRP 1, CCM 2

Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based on Saint
Lucia) (one judge of the Supreme Court resides in Saint Kitts)

Political parties and leaders: People's Action Movement or PAM

International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB,
ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO,
IMF, Interpol, IOC, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Edwards ERSTEIN
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016

Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an
embassy in Saint Kitts and Nevis; US interests are monitored by the
embassy in Bridgetown (Barbados)

Flag description: divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by
a broad black band bearing two white, five-pointed stars; the black
band is edged in yellow; the upper triangle is green, the lower
triangle is red

Economy

Economy--overview: The economy has traditionally depended on the
growing and processing of sugarcane; decreasing world prices have
hurt the industry in recent years. Tourism, export-oriented
manufacturing, and offshore banking activity have assumed larger
roles. Most food is imported. The government has undertaken a
program designed to revitalize the faltering sugar sector. It is
also working to improve revenue collection in order to better fund
social programs. In 1997 some leaders in Nevis were urging
separation from Saint Kitts on the basis that Nevis was paying far
more in taxes than it was receiving in government services, but the
vote on cessation failed in August 1998. In late September 1998,
Hurricane Georges caused approximately $445 million in damages.

GDP: purchasing power parity--$235 million (1997 est.)

GDP--real growth rate: 6.3% (1997 est.)

GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$6,000 (1997 est.)

GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 5.5%
industry: 22.5%
services: 72% (1996)

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 11.3% (1997)

Labor force: 18,172 (June 1995)

Labor force--by occupation: services 69%, manufacturing 31%

Unemployment rate: 4% (1997 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $64.1 million
expenditures: $73.3 million, including capital expenditures of $10.4
million (1997 est.)

Industries: sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra,
clothing, footwear, beverages

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity--production: 81 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 81 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 0 kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 0 kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: sugarcane, rice, yams, vegetables, bananas;
fish

Exports: $43.7 million (1997)

Exports--commodities: machinery, food, electronics, beverages and
tobacco

Exports--partners: US 68.5%, UK 22.3%, Caricom nations 5.5% (1995
est.)

Imports: $129.6 million (1997)

Imports--commodities: machinery, manufactures, food, fuels

Imports--partners: US 42.4%, Caricom nations 17.2%, UK 11.3% (1995
est.)

Debt--external: $56 million (1995 est.)

Economic aid--recipient: $5.5 million (1995)

Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1--2.7000
(fixed rate since 1976)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Telephones: 3,800 (1986 est.)

Telephone system: good interisland VHF/UHF/SHF radiotelephone
connections and international link via Antigua and Barbuda and Saint
Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles)
domestic: interisland links are handled by VHF/UHF/SHF radiotelephone
international: international calls are carried by radiotelephone to
Antigua and Barbuda and from there switched to submarine cable or to
Intelsat, or carried to Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands
Antilles) by radiotelephone and switched to Intelsat

Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0

Radios: 25,000 (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (in addition, there are three
repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 9,500 (1993 est.)

Transportation

Railways:
total: 58 km
narrow gauge: 58 km 0.762-m gauge on Saint Kitts to serve sugarcane
plantations (1995)

Highways:
total: 320 km
paved: 136 km
unpaved: 184 km (1996 est.)

Ports and harbors: Basseterre, Charlestown

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 2 (1998 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Military

Military branches: Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Defense Force,
Royal Saint Kitts and Nevis Police Force, Coast Guard

Military expenditures--dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures--percent of GDP: NA%

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: none

Illicit drugs: transshipment points for South American drugs
destined for the US

======================================================================

@Saint Lucia -----------

Geography

Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North
Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago

Geographic coordinates: 13 53 N, 60 68 W

Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 620 sq km
land: 610 sq km
water: 10 sq km

Area--comparative: 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 158 km

Maritime claims: 200 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season
from January to April, rainy season from May to August

Terrain: volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m

Natural resources: forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice),
mineral springs, geothermal potential

Land use:
arable land: 8%
permanent crops: 21%
permanent pastures: 5%
forests and woodland: 13%
other: 53% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 10 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: hurricanes and volcanic activity

Environment--current issues: deforestation; soil erosion,
particularly in the northern region

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

People

Population: 154,020 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 33% (male 26,068; female 25,359)
15-64 years: 61% (male 46,265; female 48,100)
65 years and over: 6% (male 3,097; female 5,131) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.09% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 21.63 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 5.58 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -5.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 16.55 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.81 years
male: 68.14 years
female: 75.74 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.27 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Saint Lucian(s)
adjective: Saint Lucian

Ethnic groups: black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3%

Languages: English (official), French patois

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 67%
male: 65%
female: 69% (1980 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Lucia

Data code: ST

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital: Castries

Administrative divisions: 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries,
Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin,
Soufriere, Vieux Fort

Independence: 22 February 1979 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 22 February (1979)

Constitution: 22 February 1979

Legal system: based on English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by Governor General Dr. Perlette LOUISY (since September
1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Kenny ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997)
and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of
the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is
appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the
leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is
usually appointed prime minister by the governor general

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate
(an 11-member body, six appointed on the advice of the prime
minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and
two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups)
and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular
vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly--last held 23 May 1997 (next to be held
NA 2002)
election results: House of Assembly--percent of vote by party--NA;
seats by party--SLP 16, UWP 1

Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction
extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin
Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint
Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)

Political parties and leaders: United Workers Party or UWP

International organization participation: ACCT (associate), ACP,
C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user),
Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Juliet
Elaine MALLET PHILLIP
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an
embassy in Saint Lucia; the Ambassador to Saint Lucia resides in
Bridgetown (Barbados)

Flag description: blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a
black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border

Economy

Economy--overview: The economy remains vulnerable due to its heavy
dependence on banana production, which is subject to periodic
droughts and tropical storms. Increased competition from Latin
American bananas will probably further reduce market prices,
exacerbating Saint Lucia's need to diversify its economy in coming
years, e.g., by further expanding tourism, manufacturing, and
construction. In 1997, strong activity in tourism and other service
sectors offset the contraction in agriculture, manufacturing, and
construction sectors. Improvement in the construction sector and
growth of the tourism industry was expected to expand GDP in 1998.
The agriculture sector registered its fifth year of decline in 1997
primarily because of a severe decline in banana production.

GDP: purchasing power parity--$625 million (1997 est.)

GDP--real growth rate: 2.2% (1997)

GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$4,100 (1997 est.)

GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 32.3%
services: 57% (1996 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.9% (1997)

Labor force: 43,800

Labor force--by occupation: agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%,
industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.)

Unemployment rate: 15% (1996 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $141.2 million
expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of
$25.1 million (FY97/98 est.)

Industries: clothing, assembly of electronic components,
beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing,
coconut processing

Industrial production growth rate: -8.9% (1997 est.)

Electricity--production: 110 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 110 million kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 0 kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 0 kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root
crops, cocoa

Exports: $70.1 million (1997)

Exports--commodities: bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables,
fruits, coconut oil

Exports--partners: UK 50%, US 24%, Caricom countries 16% (1995)

Imports: $292.4 million (1997)

Imports--commodities: food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery
and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels

Imports--partners: US 36%, Caricom countries 22%, UK 11%, Japan
5%, Canada 4% (1995)

Debt--external: $159 million (1997)

Economic aid--recipient: $51.8 million (1995)

Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1--2.7000
(fixed rate since 1976)

Fiscal year: 1 April--31 March

Communications

Telephones: 26,000 (1992 est.)

Telephone system:
domestic: system is automatically switched
international: direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados;
international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat
from Martinique

Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 1, shortwave 0

Radios: 104,000 (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 3 (of which two are commercial
(1997)

Televisions: 26,000 (1992 est.)

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: 1,210 km
paved: 63 km
unpaved: 1,147 km (1996 est.)

Ports and harbors: Castries, Vieux Fort

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 2 (1998 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Military

Military branches: Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes
Special Service Unit), Coast Guard

Military expenditures--dollar figure: $5 million (1991); note?for
police force

Military expenditures--percent of GDP: 2% (1991)

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: none

Illicit drugs: transit point for South American drugs destined
for the US and Europe

======================================================================

@Saint Pierre and Miquelon -------------------------

Geography

Location: Northern North America, islands in the North Atlantic
Ocean, south of Newfoundland (Canada)

Geographic coordinates: 46 50 N, 56 20 W

Map references: North America

Area:
total: 242 sq km
land: 242 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes eight small islands in the Saint Pierre and the
Miquelon groups

Area--comparative: 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 120 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: cold and wet, with much mist and fog; spring and autumn
are windy

Terrain: mostly barren rock

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne de la Grande Montagne 240 m

Natural resources: fish, deepwater ports

Land use:
arable land: 13%
permanent crops: NA%
permanent pastures: NA%
forests and woodland: 4%
other: 83% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: persistent fog throughout the year can be a
maritime hazard

Environment--current issues: NA

Environment--international agreements:
party to: NA
signed, but not ratified: NA

Geography--note: vegetation scanty

People

Population: 6,966 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA
65 years and over: NA

Population growth rate: 0.75% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 12.27 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 5.41 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 8.12 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.13 years
male: 75.58 years
female: 79 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.58 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)
adjective: French

Ethnic groups: Basques and Bretons (French fishermen)

Religions: Roman Catholic 99%

Languages: French

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (1982 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and
Miquelon
conventional short form: Saint Pierre and Miquelon
local long form: Departement de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon
local short form: Saint-Pierre et Miquelon

Data code: SB

Dependency status: self-governing territorial collectivity of
France

Government type: NA

Capital: Saint-Pierre

Administrative divisions: none (territorial collectivity of
France)
note: there are no first-order administrative divisions approved by
the US Government, but there are two communes--Saint Pierre, Miquelon

Independence: none (territorial collectivity of France; has been
under French control since 1763)

National holiday: National Day, Taking of the Bastille, 14 July
(1789)

Constitution: 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system: French law with special adaptations for local
conditions, such as housing and taxation

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May
1995), represented by Prefect Remi THUAU (since NA)
head of government: President of the General Council Bernard LE
SOAVEC (since NA 1996)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year
term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the
French Ministry of Interior; president of the General Council is
elected by the members of the council