Chapter XV: Front Matter (15)

Geography Clipperton Island

Location:
Middle America, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,120 km
southwest of Mexico

Geographic coordinates:
10 17 N, 109 13 W

Map references:
Political Map of the World

Area:
total: 6 sq km
land: 6 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:
about 12 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
11.1 km

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

Climate:
tropical; humid, average temperature 20-32 degrees C, rains
May-October

Terrain:
coral atoll

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Rocher Clipperton 29 m

Natural resources:
fish

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (all coral) (2001)

Irrigated land:
0 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
NA

Environment - current issues:
NA

Geography - note:
reef 12 km in circumference

People Clipperton Island

Population:
uninhabited (July 2005 est.)

Government Clipperton Island

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Clipperton Island
local long form: none
local short form: Ile Clipperton
former: sometimes called Ile de la Passion

Dependency status:
possession of France; administered by France from French Polynesia
by a high commissioner of the Republic

Legal system:
the laws of France, where applicable, apply

Flag description:
the flag of France is used

Economy Clipperton Island

Economy - overview:
Although 115 species of fish have been identified in the
territorial waters of Clipperton Island, the only economic activity
is tuna fishing.

Transportation Clipperton Island

Ports and harbors:
none; offshore anchorage only

Military Clipperton Island

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of France

Transnational Issues Clipperton Island

Disputes - international:
none

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Introduction Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Background:
There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING
discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until
the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred
to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two
inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on
West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island.

Geography Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Location:
Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest
of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka

Geographic coordinates:
12 30 S, 96 50 E

Map references:
Southeast Asia

Area:
total: 14 sq km
land: 14 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island

Area - comparative:
about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
26 km

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

Climate:
tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds
for about nine months of the year

Terrain:
flat, low-lying coral atolls

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m

Natural resources:
fish

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (2001)

Irrigated land:
NA sq km

Natural hazards:
cyclone season is October to April

Environment - current issues:
fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in
natural underground reservoirs

Geography - note:
islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation

People Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Population:
628 (July 2005 est.)

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

Population growth rate:
0% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
NA

Death rate:
NA

Net migration rate:
NA

Infant mortality rate:
total: NA
male: NA
female: NA

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA

Total fertility rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Cocos Islander(s)
adjective: Cocos Islander

Ethnic groups:
Europeans, Cocos Malays

Religions:
Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.)

Languages:
Malay (Cocos dialect), English

Government Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Country name:
conventional long form: Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands
conventional short form: Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Dependency status:
territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the
Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services

Government type:
NA

Capital:
West Island

Administrative divisions:
none (territory of Australia)

Independence:
none (territory of Australia)

National holiday:
Australia Day, 26 January (1788)

Constitution:
Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1953)

Legal system:
based upon the laws of Australia and local laws

Suffrage:
NA

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952),
represented by the Australian governor general
head of government: Administrator (nonresident) Evan WILLIAMS (since
1 November 2003)
cabinet: NA
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed
by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and
Australia

Legislative branch:
unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats)
elections: held every two years with half the members standing for
election; last held NA

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court

Political parties and leaders:
none

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

International organization participation:
none

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (territory of Australia)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (territory of Australia)

Flag description:
the flag of Australia is used

Economy Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Economy - overview:
Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop.
Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but
additional food and most other necessities must be imported from
Australia. There is a small tourist industry.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
NA

GDP - real growth rate:
NA%

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

Labor force:
NA

Labor force - by occupation:
the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction
workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others

Unemployment rate:
60% (2000 est.)

Budget:
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA

Agriculture - products:
vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts

Industries:
copra products and tourism

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: NA
hydro: NA
nuclear: NA
other: NA

Exports:
NA

Exports - commodities:
copra

Exports - partners:
Australia

Imports:
NA

Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs

Imports - partners:
Australia

Economic aid - recipient:
NA

Currency (code):
Australian dollar (AUD)

Currency code:
AUD

Exchange rates:
Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003),
1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000)

Fiscal year:
1 July - 30 June

Communications Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Telephones - main lines in use:
287 (1992)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
note - analog cellular service available

Telephone system:
general assessment: connected within Australia's telecommunication
system
domestic: NA
international: country code - 61-891; telephone, telex, and
facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite;
1 satellite earth station of NA type (2002)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004)

Radios:
300 (1992)

Television broadcast stations:
NA

Televisions:
NA

Internet country code:
.cc

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
2 (2000)

Internet users:
NA

Transportation Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Highways:
total: 15 km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km (2003)

Ports and harbors:
Port Refuge

Airports:
1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Military Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory does have
a five-person police force

Transnational Issues Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Disputes - international:
none

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Colombia

Introduction Colombia

Background:
Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the
collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Ecuador and
Venezuela). A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian
Government escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds
from the drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large
swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence, the
movement lacks the military strength or popular support necessary to
overthrow the government. An anti-insurgent army of paramilitaries
has grown to several thousand strong in recent years, challenging
the insurgents for control of territory and the drug trade, and also
the government's ability to exert its dominion over rural areas.
While Bogota steps up efforts to reassert government control
throughout the country, neighboring countries worry about the
violence spilling over their borders.

Geography Colombia

Location:
Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama
and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between
Ecuador and Panama

Geographic coordinates:
4 00 N, 72 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 1,138,910 sq km
land: 1,038,700 sq km
water: 100,210 sq km
note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, Serrana Bank, and
Serranilla Bank

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

Land boundaries:
total: 6,004 km
border countries: Brazil 1,643 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km,
Peru 1,496 km (est.), Venezuela 2,050 km

Coastline:
3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km)

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands

Terrain:
flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains,
eastern lowland plains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m
note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation

Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper,
emeralds, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 2.42%
permanent crops: 1.67%
other: 95.91% (2001)

Irrigated land:
8,500 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes;
periodic droughts

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of
pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle
emissions

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

Geography - note:
only South American country with coastlines on both the North
Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea

People Colombia

Population:
42,954,279 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 30.7% (male 6,670,950/female 6,516,371)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 13,424,433/female 14,142,825)
65 years and over: 5.1% (male 968,127/female 1,231,573) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 26.04 years
male: 25.14 years
female: 26.93 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
1.49% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
20.82 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
5.59 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 20.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.92 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 16.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.72 years
male: 67.88 years
female: 75.7 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
2.56 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.7% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
190,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
3,600 (2003 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Colombian(s)
adjective: Colombian

Ethnic groups:
mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed
black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%

Religions:
Roman Catholic 90%, other 10%

Languages:
Spanish

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.5%
male: 92.4%
female: 92.6% (2003 est.)

Government Colombia

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Colombia
conventional short form: Colombia
local long form: Republica de Colombia
local short form: Colombia

Government type:
republic; executive branch dominates government structure

Capital:
Bogota

Administrative divisions:
32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1
capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca,
Atlantico, Distrito Capital de Bogota*, Bolivar, Boyaca, Caldas,
Caqueta, Casanare, Cauca, Cesar, Choco, Cordoba, Cundinamarca,
Guainia, Guaviare, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Narino, Norte
de Santander, Putumayo, Quindio, Risaralda, San Andres y
Providencia, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes,
Vichada

Independence:
20 July 1810 (from Spain)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 20 July (1810)

Constitution:
5 July 1991

Legal system:
based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US
procedures was enacted into law in 2004; judicial review of
executive and legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction,
with reservations

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002);
Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the
president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August
2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note -
the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet consists of a coalition of the two dominant parties
- the PL and PSC - and independents
elections: president and vice president elected by popular vote for
a four-year term; election last held 26 May 2002 (next to be held
May 2006)
election results: President Alvaro URIBE Velez received 53% of the
vote; Vice President Francisco SANTOS was elected on the same ticket

Legislative branch:
bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Senate or Senado
(102 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year
terms) and the House of Representatives or Camara de Representantes
(166 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year
terms)
elections: Senate - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held March
2006); House of Representatives - last held 10 March 2002 (next to
be held March 2006)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by
party - PL 28, PSC 13, independents and smaller parties (many
aligned with conservatives) 61; House of Representatives - percent
of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PL 54, PSC 21, independents
and other parties 91

Judicial branch:
four roughly coequal, supreme judicial organs; Supreme Court of
Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (highest court of criminal law;
judges are selected by their peers from the nominees of the Superior
Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Council of State (highest
court of administrative law; judges are selected from the nominees
of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms);
Constitutional Court (guards integrity and supremacy of the
constitution; rules on constitutionality of laws, amendments to the
constitution, and international treaties); Superior Judicial Council
(administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; resolves
jurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members are
elected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms)

Political parties and leaders:
Colombian Communist Party or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; Conservative
Party or PSC [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Democratic Pole or PDI [Samuel
MORENO Rojas]; Liberal Party or PL [Juan Fernando CRISTO]
note: Colombia has about 60 formally recognized political parties,
most of which do not have a presence in either house of Congress

Political pressure groups and leaders:
two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - Revolutionary
Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and National Liberation Army or
ELN; largest anti-insurgent paramilitary group is United
Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC

International organization participation:
BCIE, CAN, CDB, CSN, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate),
MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Luis Alberto MORENO Mejia
chancery: 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 387-8338
FAX: [1] (202) 232-8643
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Beverly Hills, Boston, Chicago,
Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan
(Puerto Rico), and Washington, DC

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador William B. WOOD
embassy: Calle 22D-BIS, numbers 47-51, Apartado Aereo 3831
mailing address: Carrera 45 #22D-45, Bogota, D.C., APO AA 34038
telephone: [57] (1) 315-0811
FAX: [57] (1) 315-2197

Flag description:
three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and
red; similar to the flag of Ecuador, which is longer and bears the
Ecuadorian coat of arms superimposed in the center

Economy Colombia

Economy - overview:
Colombia's economy has been on a recovery trend during the past two
years despite a serious armed conflict. The economy continues to
improve thanks to austere government budgets, focused efforts to
reduce public debt levels, and an export-oriented growth focus.
Ongoing economic problems facing President URIBE range from
reforming the pension system to reducing high unemployment. New
exploration is needed to offset declining oil production. On the
positive side, several international financial institutions have
praised the economic reforms introduced by URIBE, which include
measures designed to reduce the public-sector deficit below 2.5% of
GDP. The government's economic policy and democratic security
strategy have engendered a growing sense of confidence in the
economy, particularly within the business sector. Coffee prices have
recovered from previous lows as the Colombian coffee industry
pursues greater market shares in developed countries such as the
United States.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$281.1 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.6% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $6,600 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 13.4%
industry: 32.1%
services: 54.5% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
20.7 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 30%, industry 24%, services 46% (1990)

Unemployment rate:
13.6% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:
55% (2001)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1999)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
57.1 (1996)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
5.9% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
15.8% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $15.33 billion
expenditures: $21.03 billion, including capital expenditures of NA
(2004 est.)

Public debt:
51.8% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:
coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa
beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp

Industries:
textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages,
chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds

Industrial production growth rate:
4% (2004 est.)

Electricity - production:
44.87 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 26%
hydro: 72.7%
nuclear: 0%
other: 1.3% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
41.14 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
618 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
23 million kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
531,100 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
252,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Oil - proved reserves:
1.7 billion bbl (2004 est.)

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

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

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

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

Natural gas - proved reserves:
132 billion cu m (2004)

Current account balance:
$-1.706 billion (2004 est.)

Exports:
$15.5 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers

Exports - partners:
US 42.1%, Venezuela 9.7%, Ecuador 6% (2004)

Imports:
$15.34 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods,
chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity

Imports - partners:
US 29.1%, Venezuela 6.5%, China 6.4%, Mexico 6.2%, Brazil 5.8%
(2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$11.94 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:
$38.7 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
NA

Currency (code):
Colombian peso (COP)

Currency code:
COP

Exchange rates:
Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,628.61 (2004), 2,877.65 (2003),
2,504.24 (2002), 2,299.63 (2001), 2,087.9 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Colombia

Telephones - main lines in use:
8,768,100 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
6,186,200 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: modern system in many respects
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system; domestic
satellite system with 41 earth stations; fiber-optic network linking
50 cities
international: country code - 57; satellite earth stations - 6
Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching
centers; 8 submarine cables

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999)

Radios:
21 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997)

Televisions:
4.59 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.co

Internet hosts:
115,158 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
18 (2000)

Internet users:
2,732,200 (2003)

Transportation Colombia

Railways:
total: 3,304 km
standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (2004)

Highways:
total: 112,998 km
paved: 26,000 km
unpaved: 84,000 km (2000)

Waterways:
9,187 km (2004)

Pipelines:
gas 4,360 km; oil 6,134 km; refined products 3,140 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Muelles El Bosque, Puerto
Bolivar, Santa Marta, Turbo

Merchant marine:
total: 15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 35,427 GRT/46,301 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 11, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker
2
registered in other countries: 7 (2005)

Airports:
980 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 101
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 39
914 to 1,523 m: 39
under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 879
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34
914 to 1,523 m: 272
under 914 m: 572 (2004 est.)

Heliports:
1 (2004 est.)

Military Colombia

Military branches:
Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, includes Naval
Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea
Colombiana)

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service;
conscript service obligation - 24 months (2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 10,212,456 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 6,986,228 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 389,735 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$3.3 billion (FY01)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3.4% (FY01)

Transnational Issues Colombia

Disputes - international:
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

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 2,730,000 - 3,100,000 (conflict between government and FARC;
drug wars) (2004)

Illicit drugs:
illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's
leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2002 was 144,450
hectares, a 15% decline since 2001); potential production of opium
between 2001 and 2002 declined by 25% to 91 metric tons; potential
production of heroin declined to 11.3 metric tons; the world's
largest processor of coca derivatives into cocaine; supplier of
about 90% of the cocaine to the US market and the great majority of
cocaine to other international drug markets; important supplier of
heroin to the US market; active aerial eradication program; a
significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either
laundered or invested in Colombia through the black market peso
exchange

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Comoros

Introduction Comoros

Background:
Unstable Comoros has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since
gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands of
Anjouan and Moheli declared their independence from Comoros. In
1999, military chief Col. AZALI seized power. He pledged to resolve
the secessionist crisis through a confederal arrangement named the
2000 Fomboni Accord. In December 2001, voters approved a new
constitution and presidential elections took place in the spring of
2002. Each island in the archipelago elected its own president and a
new union president took office in May of 2002.

Geography Comoros

Location:
Southern Africa, group of islands at the northern mouth of the
Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern
Madagascar and northern Mozambique

Geographic coordinates:
12 10 S, 44 15 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 2,170 sq km
land: 2,170 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
340 km

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

Climate:
tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)

Terrain:
volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m

Natural resources:
NEGL

Land use:
arable land: 35.87%
permanent crops: 23.32%
other: 40.81% (2001)

Irrigated land:
NA sq km

Natural hazards:
cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le
Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano

Environment - current issues:
soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on
slopes without proper terracing; deforestation

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

Geography - note:
important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel

People Comoros

Population:
671,247 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.8% (male 144,075/female 143,175)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 179,541/female 184,488)
65 years and over: 3% (male 9,407/female 10,561) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 18.61 years
male: 18.35 years
female: 18.87 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.91% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
37.52 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
8.4 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 74.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 83.48 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 66.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 61.96 years
male: 59.65 years
female: 64.33 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.09 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.12% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Comoran(s)
adjective: Comoran

Ethnic groups:
Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava

Religions:
Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%

Languages:
Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili
and Arabic)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 56.5%
male: 63.6%
female: 49.3% (2003 est.)

Government Comoros

Country name:
conventional long form: Union of the Comoros
conventional short form: Comoros
local long form: Union des Comores
local short form: Comores

Government type:
independent republic

Capital:
Moroni

Administrative divisions:
3 islands; Grande Comore (Njazidja), Anjouan (Nzwani), and Moheli
(Mwali); note - there are also four municipalities named Domoni,
Fomboni, Moroni, and Moutsamoudou

Independence:
6 July 1975 (from France)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 6 July (1975)

Constitution:
23 December 2001

Legal system:
French and Sharia (Islamic) law in a new consolidated code

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002); note
- following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in January
2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002
presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was
appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May
2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and
Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and
the head of government
head of government: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002);
note - following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in
January 2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002
presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was
appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May
2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and
Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and
the head of government
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: as defined by the 2001 constitution, the presidency
rotates every four years among the elected presidents from the three
main islands in the Union; election last held 14 April 2002 (next to
be held April 2007); prime minister appointed by the president; note
- AZALI has not appointed a Prime Minister since he was sworn into
office in May 2002
election results: President AZALI Assoumani elected president with
75% of the vote

Legislative branch:
unicameral Assembly of the Union (33 seats; 15 deputies are
selected by the individual islands' local assemblies and the 18 by
universal suffrage; deputies serve for five years);
elections: last held 18 and 25 April 2004 (next to be held NA 2009)
election results: NA

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supremes (two members appointed by the
president, two members elected by the Federal Assembly, one elected
by the Council of each island, and others are former presidents of
the republic)

Political parties and leaders:
Forces pour l'Action Republicaine or FAR [Col. Abdourazak
ABDULHAMID]; Forum pour la Redressement National or FRN (alliance of
12 parties); Front Democratique or FD [Moustoifa Said CHEIKH]; Front
National pour la Justice or FNJ (Islamic party in opposition) [Ahmed
RACHID]; Movement des Citoyens pour la Republique or MCR [Mahamoud
MRADABI]; Mouvement Populaire Anjouanais or MPA (Anjouan separatist
movement) [leader NA]; Mouvement pour la Democratie et le Progress
or MDP-NGDC [Abbas DJOUSSOUF]; Movement pour le Socialisme et la
Democratie or MSD (splinter group of FD) [Abdou SOEFOU]; Parti
Comorien pour la Democratie et le Progress or PCDP [Ali MROUDJAE];
Rassemblement National pour le Development or RND (party of the
government) [Omar TAMOU, Abdoulhamid AFFRAITANE]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AMF, AU, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt
(signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), ILO, IMF,
IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Mahmoud M. ABOUD (ambassador to the US
and Canada and permanent representative to the UN)
chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of the Union of
the Comoros to the United Nations, 420 East 50th Street, New York,
NY 10022
telephone: [1] (212) 972-8010 and 223-2711
FAX: [1] (212) 983-4712 and 715-0699

Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Comoros; the ambassador to
Mauritius is accredited to Comoros

Flag description:
four equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), white, red, and blue
with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist; centered within
the triangle is a white crescent with the convex side facing the
hoist and four white, five-pointed stars placed vertically in a line
between the points of the crescent; the horizontal bands and the
four stars represent the four main islands of the archipelago -
Mwali, Njazidja, Nzwani, and Mayotte (a territorial collectivity of
France, but claimed by Comoros); the crescent, stars, and color
green are traditional symbols of Islam

Economy Comoros

Economy - overview:
One of the world's poorest countries, Comoros is made up of three
islands that have inadequate transportation links, a young and
rapidly increasing population, and few natural resources. The low
educational level of the labor force contributes to a subsistence
level of economic activity, high unemployment, and a heavy
dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance. Agriculture,
including fishing, hunting, and forestry, contributes 40% to GDP,
employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports.
The country is not self-sufficient in food production; rice, the
main staple, accounts for the bulk of imports. The government -
which is hampered by internal political disputes - is struggling to
upgrade education and technical training, privatize commercial and
industrial enterprises, improve health services, diversify exports,
promote tourism, and reduce the high population growth rate.
Increased foreign support is essential if the goal of 4% annual GDP
growth is to be met. Remittances from 150,000 Comorans abroad help
supplement GDP.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$441 million (2002 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2% (2002 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 40%
industry: 4%
services: 56% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
144,500 (1996 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 80%

Unemployment rate:
20% (1996 est.)

Population below poverty line:
60% (2002 est.)

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.5% (2001 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $27.6 million
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA (2001 est.)

Agriculture - products:
vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas,
cassava (tapioca)

Industries:
tourism, perfume distillation

Industrial production growth rate:
-2% (1999 est.)

Electricity - production:
23.84 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 90.6%
hydro: 9.4%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
22.17 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

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

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

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$28 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra

Exports - partners:
US 43.8%, France 18.6%, Singapore 16.5%, Turkey 4.8%, Germany 4.5%
(2004)

Imports:
$88 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods; petroleum products,
cement, transport equipment

Imports - partners:
France 23.5%, South Africa 11.1%, Kenya 7.5%, UAE 7.2%, Italy 4.9%,
Pakistan 4.7%, Mauritius 4.2%, Singapore 4.1% (2004)

Debt - external:
$232 million (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$10 million (2001 est.)

Currency (code):
Comoran franc (KMF)

Currency code:
KMF

Exchange rates:
Comoran francs (KMF) per US dollar - 396.21 (2004), 435.9 (2003),
522.74 (2002), 549.78 (2001), 533.98 (2000)
note: the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677
Comoran francs per euro

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Comoros

Telephones - main lines in use:
13,200 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
2,000 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF
radiotelephone communication stations
domestic: HF radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay
international: country code - 269; HF radiotelephone communications
to Madagascar and Reunion

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)

Radios:
90,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
NA

Televisions:
1,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.km

Internet hosts:
11 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)

Internet users:
5,000 (2003)

Transportation Comoros

Highways:
total: 880 km
paved: 673 km
unpaved: 207 km (1999 est)

Ports and harbors:
Mayotte, Moutsamoudou

Merchant marine:
total: 79 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 452,801 GRT/681,343 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 55, chemical tanker 1, container 1,
livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 5,
refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 1
foreign-owned: 35 (Bulgaria 1, Germany 1, Greece 7, India 1, Jordan
1, Kenya 1, Lebanon 3, Nigeria 1, Norway 1, Pakistan 1, Philippines
1, Russia 2, Syria 3, Turkey 6, Ukraine 4, United Kingdom 1) (2005)

Airports:
4 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Military Comoros

Military branches:
Comoran Security Force

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 138,940 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 98,792 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$11.6 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3% (2004)

Transnational Issues Comoros

Disputes - international:
claims French-administered Mayotte

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Introduction Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Background:
Established as a Belgian colony in 1908, the Republic of the Congo
gained its independence in 1960, but its early years were marred by
political and social instability. Col. Joseph MOBUTU seized power
and declared himself president in a November 1965 coup. He
subsequently changed his name - to MOBUTU Sese Seko - as well as
that of the country - to Zaire. MOBUTU retained his position for 32
years through several subsequent sham elections as well as through
the use of brutal force. Ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by
a massive inflow of refugees in 1994 from fighting in Rwanda and
Burundi, led in May 1997 to the toppling of the MOBUTU regime by a
rebellion led by Laurent KABILA. He renamed the country the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC), but in August 1998 his
regime was itself challenged by an insurrection backed by Rwanda and
Uganda. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan
intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed
in July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda,
and Congolese armed rebel groups, but sporadic fighting continued.
Laurent KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and his son Joseph
KABILA was named head of state. In October 2002, the new president
was successful in negotiating the withdrawal of Rwandan forces
occupying eastern Congo; two months later, the Pretoria Accord was
signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and
establish a government of national unity. A transitional government
was set up in July 2003; Joseph KABILA remains as president and is
joined by four vice presidents representing the former government,
former rebel groups, and the political opposition.

Geography Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Location:
Central Africa, northeast of Angola

Geographic coordinates:
0 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 2,345,410 sq km
land: 2,267,600 sq km
water: 77,810 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 10,730 km
border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary
of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central
African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda
217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km

Coastline:
37 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors

Climate:
tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier
in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north
of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to
February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry
season April to October

Terrain:
vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110
m

Natural resources:
cobalt, copper, niobium, tantalum, petroleum, industrial and gem
diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, uranium, coal,
hydropower, timber

Land use:
arable land: 2.96%
permanent crops: 0.52%
other: 96.52% (2001)

Irrigated land:
110 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the
east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes

Environment - current issues:
poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution;
deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation,
soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a
mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing
environmental damage

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone
Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geography - note:
straddles equator; has very narrow strip of land that controls the
lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense
tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands

People Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Population:
60,085,804
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 48.1% (male 14,513,779/female 14,396,952)
15-64 years: 49.4% (male 14,579,101/female 15,121,297)
65 years and over: 2.5% (male 597,776/female 876,099) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 15.8 years
male: 15.4 years
female: 16.2 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.98% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
44.38 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
14.43 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
-0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: fighting between the Congolese Government and Uganda- and
Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in
August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese internally displaced
and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding
countries (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 92.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 101.25 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 84.23 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 51.1 years
male: 49.68 years
female: 52.56 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
6.54 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
4.2% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1.1 million (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
100,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria, plague, and African trypanosomiasis
(sleeping sickness) are high risks in some locations
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2004)

Nationality:
noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo

Ethnic groups:
over 200 African ethnic groups of which 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%, Muslim 10%,
other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10%

Languages:
French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language),
Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala,
Kingwana, or Tshiluba
total population: 65.5%
male: 76.2%
female: 55.1% (2003 est.)

Government Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: none
local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo
local short form: none
former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville,
Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire
abbreviation: DROC

Government type:
dictatorship; presumably undergoing a transition to representative
government

Capital:
Kinshasa

Administrative divisions:
10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and 1 city* (ville);
Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental,
Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu

Independence:
30 June 1960 (from Belgium)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 30 June (1960)

Constitution:
new constitution adopted 17 July 2003

Legal system:
based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001);
note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire
KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the
presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001);
note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire
KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the
presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president
elections: prior to the overthrow of MOBUTU Sese Seko, the president
was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last
held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997);
formerly, there was also a prime minister who was elected by the
High Council of the Republic; note - a Transitional Government is
drafting a new constitution with free elections scheduled to be held
in NA 2005
election results: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga
reelected president in 1984 without opposition
note: Joseph KABILA succeeded his father, Laurent Desire KABILA,
following the latter's assassination in January 2001, negotiations
with rebel leaders led to the establishment of a transitional
government in July 2003 with free elections scheduled to be held in
NA 2005

Legislative branch:
a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in
August 2000
elections: NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were
appointed by former President Laurent Desire KABILA

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Forces
for Renovation for Union and Solidarity or FONUS [Joseph
OLENGHANKOY]; National Congolese Lumumbist Movement or MNC [Francois
LUMUMBA]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR (three factions:
MPR-Fait Prive [Catherine NZUZI wa Mbombo]; MPR/Vunduawe [Felix
VUNDUAWE]; MPR/Mananga [MANANGA Dintoka Mpholo]); Unified Lumumbast
Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social
Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of
Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI (two factions:
UFERI [Lokambo OMOKOKO]; UFERI/OR [Adolph Kishwe MAYA])

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW
(signatory), PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Faida MITIFU
chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009: note -
Consular Office at 1726 M Street, NW, Wasington, DC, 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691
FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS
embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa
mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828
telephone: [243] (88) 43608
FAX: [243] (88) 43467

Flag description:
light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and
a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along
the hoist side

Economy Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Economy - overview:
The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation
endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since
the mid-1980s. The war, which began in August 1998, dramatically
reduced national output and government revenue, increased external
debt, and resulted in the deaths of perhaps 3.5 million people from
war, famine, and disease. Foreign businesses curtailed operations
due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of
infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. Conditions
improved in late 2002 with the withdrawal of a large portion of the
invading foreign troops. Several IMF and World Bank missions have
met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan,
and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms. Much economic
activity lies outside the GDP data. Economic stability, aided by
international donors, improved in 2003-04, although an uncertain
legal framework, corruption, and a lack of openness in government
policy continues to hamper growth. In 2005, renewed activity in the
mining sector, the source of most exports, could boost Kinshasa's
fiscal position and GDP growth.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$42.74 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
7.5% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $700 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 55%
industry: 11%
services: 34% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
14.51 million (1993 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
NA

Unemployment rate:
NA (2003 est.)

Population below poverty line:
NA

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
14% (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $269 million
expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24
million (1996 est.)

Agriculture - products:
coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca),
palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products

Industries:
mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer
products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods
and beverages), cement, commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate:
NA

Electricity - production:
6.086 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 1.8%
hydro: 98.2%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
4.168 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
1.5 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
8 million kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
24,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
14,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

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

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

Exports:
$1.417 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt

Exports - partners:
Belgium 47.8%, Finland 21%, US 10.9%, China 7.6% (2004)

Imports:
$933 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels

Imports - partners:
South Africa 18.5%, Belgium 15.5%, France 10.8%, Kenya 6.3%, US 6%,
Germany 5.8% (2004)

Debt - external:
$11.6 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$195.3 million (1995)

Currency (code):
Congolese franc (CDF)

Currency code:
CDF

Exchange rates:
Congolese francs per US dollar - 401.04 (2004), 405.34 (2003),
346.49 (2002), 206.62 (2001), 21.82 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Telephones - main lines in use:
10,000 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
1 million (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: poor
domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in
and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth
stations
international: country code - 243; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001)

Radios:
18.03 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
4 (2001)

Televisions:
6.478 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.cd

Internet hosts:
153 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2001)

Internet users:
50,000 (2002)

Transportation Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Railways:
total: 5,138 km
narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km
1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2004)

Highways:
total: 157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km (1999 est.)

Waterways:
15,000 km (navigation on the Congo curtailed by fighting) (2004)

Pipelines:
gas 54 km; oil 71 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa,
Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka

Merchant marine:
registered in other countries: 1

Airports:
230 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 24
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 206
1,524 to 2,437 m: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 92
under 914 m: 97 (2004 est.)

Military Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Military branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 11,052,696 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 5,851,292 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$93.5 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.5% (2004)

Transnational Issues Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Disputes - international:
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

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 45,060 (Sudan) 100,000 (Angola)
19,552 (Burundi) 6,626 (Republic of Congo) 19,743 (Rwanda) 18,953
(Uganda)
IDPs: 2.33 million (fighting between government forces and rebels
since mid-1990s; most IDPs are in eastern provinces) (2004)

Illicit drugs:
illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption;
while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the
banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a
well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a
money-laundering center

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Congo, Republic of the

Introduction Congo, Republic of the

Background:
Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo
became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of
experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a
democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil
war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO, but
ushered in a period of ethnic unrest. Southern-based rebel groups
agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is
tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The
Republic of Congo is one of Africa's largest petroleum producers
with significant potential for offshore development.

Geography Congo, Republic of the

Location:
Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola
and Gabon

Geographic coordinates:
1 00 S, 15 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 342,000 sq km
land: 341,500 sq km
water: 500 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Montana

Land boundaries:
total: 5,504 km
border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African
Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon
1,903 km

Coastline:
169 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to
October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly
enervating climate astride the Equator

Terrain:
coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates,
gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 0.51%
permanent crops: 0.13%
other: 99.36% (2001)

Irrigated land:
10 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
seasonal flooding

Environment - current issues:
air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the
dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber
94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note:
about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or
along the railroad between them

People Congo, Republic of the

Population:
3,039,126
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2005 est.)