Chapter XLIII: Front Matter (43)

Political parties and leaders:
Alliance for the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon, Oscar
WENDOLYN Vargas, Karla WHITE]; Central American Unionist Party or
PUCA [leader NA]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando
TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Mario
RAPPACCIOLI]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ
Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Independent Liberal Party for National
Unity or PLIUN [leader NA]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC
[Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo
NUNEZ Hernandez]; New Liberal Party or PALI [leader NA]; Nicaraguan
Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO Molina];
Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista
National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra];
Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [leader NA]; Unity Alliance or
AU [leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
National Workers Front or FNT is a Sandinista umbrella group of
eight labor unions including - Farm Workers Association or ATC,
Health Workers Federation or FETASALUD, Heroes and Martyrs
Confederation of Professional Associations or CONAPRO, National
Association of Educators of Nicaragua or ANDEN, National Union of
Employees or UNE, National Union of Farmers and Ranchers or UNAG,
Sandinista Workers Central or CST, and Union of Journalists of
Nicaragua or UPN; Permanent Congress of Workers or CPT is an
umbrella group of four non-Sandinista labor unions including -
Autonomous Nicaraguan Workers Central or CTN-A, Confederation of
Labor Unification or CUS, Independent General Confederation of Labor
or CGT-I, and Labor Action and Unity Central or CAUS; Nicaraguan
Workers' Central or CTN is an independent labor union; Superior
Council of Private Enterprise or COSEP is a confederation of
business groups

International organization participation:
BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO
(correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL,
OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Salvador STADTHAGEN (since 5 December
2003)
chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 939-6570, [1] (202) 939-6573
FAX: [1] (202) 939-6545
consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San
Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Barbara Calandra MOORE
embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua
mailing address: APO AA 34021
telephone: [505] 266-6010
FAX: [505] 266-9074

Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with
the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of
arms features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE
NICARAGUA on the top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; similar to
the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by
the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in
the white band; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five
blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band

Economy Nicaragua

Economy - overview:
Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per
capita income, massive unemployment, and huge external debt.
Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe.
While the country has made progress toward macroeconomic stability
over the past few years, GDP annual growth has been far too low to
meet the country's needs. As a result of successful performance
under its International Monetary Fund policy program and other
efforts, Nicaragua qualified in early 2004 for some $4 billion in
foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries
(HIPC) initiative. Even after this reduction, however, the
government continues to bear a significant foreign and domestic debt
burden. If ratified, the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement
(CAFTA) will provide an opportunity for Nicaragua to attract
investment, create jobs, and deepen economic development. While
President BOLANOS enjoys the support of the international financial
bodies, his internal political base is meager.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$12.34 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
4% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 20.7%
industry: 24.7%
services: 54.6% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
1.93 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 30.5%, industry 17.3%, services 52.2% (2003 est.)

Unemployment rate:
7.8% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2003 est.)

Population below poverty line:
50% (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 45% (2001)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
55.1 (2001)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9.3% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
28% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $725.5 million
expenditures: $1.039 billion, including capital expenditures of NA
(2004 est.)

Public debt:
69.5% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:
coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame,
soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products

Industries:
food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles,
clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear,
wood

Industrial production growth rate:
4.4% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production:
2.553 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 83.9%
hydro: 7.7%
nuclear: 0%
other: 8.4% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
2.318 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
6.8 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
15.3 million kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
25,770 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
738 bbl/day (2003)

Oil - imports:
27,950 bbl/day (2003)

Current account balance:
$-843.1 million (2004 est.)

Exports:
$750 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts

Exports - partners:
US 64.8%, El Salvador 7%, Mexico 3.6% (2004)

Imports:
$2.02 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum
products

Imports - partners:
US 22.6%, Costa Rica 8.5%, Venezuela 8.4%, Guatemala 6.8%, Mexico
5.8%, El Salvador 4.9%, South Korea 4.5% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$670 million (2004 est.)

Debt - external:
$4.573 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$541.8 million (2003)

Currency (code):
gold cordoba (NIO)

Currency code:
NIO

Exchange rates:
gold cordobas per US dollar - 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003), 14.251
(2002), 13.372 (2001), 12.684 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Nicaragua

Telephones - main lines in use:
171,600 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
202,800 (2002)

Telephone system:
general assessment: inadequate system being upgraded by foreign
investment
domestic: low-capacity microwave radio relay and wire system being
expanded; connected to Central American Microwave System
international: country code - 505; satellite earth stations - 1
Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998)

Radios:
1.24 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997)

Televisions:
320,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.ni

Internet hosts:
7,094 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
3 (2000)

Internet users:
90,000 (2002)

Transportation Nicaragua

Railways:
total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2004)

Highways:
total: 18,712 km
paved: 2,126 km
unpaved: 16,586 km (2002)

Waterways:
2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (1997)

Pipelines:
oil 54 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff

Airports:
176 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 165
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 23
under 914 m: 141 (2004 est.)

Military Nicaragua

Military branches:
Army (includes Navy, Air Force)

Military service age and obligation:
17 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 17-49: 1,309,970 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 17-49: 1,051,425 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 65,170 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$32.8 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
0.7% (2004)

Transnational Issues Nicaragua

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; the
1992 ICJ ruling for El Salvador and Honduras advised a tripartite
resolution to establish a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca,
which considers Honduran access to the Pacific; legal dispute over
navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica

Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and
transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Niger

Introduction Niger

Background:
Not until 1993, 33 years after independence from France, did Niger
hold its first free and open elections. A 1995 peace accord ended a
five-year Tuareg insurgency in the north. Coups in 1996 and 1999
were followed by the creation of a National Reconciliation Council
that effected a transition to civilian rule by December 1999. Niger
is one of the poorest countries in the world with minimal government
services and insufficient funds to develop its resource base. The
largely agrarian and subsistence-based economy is frequently
disrupted by extended droughts common to the Sahel region of Africa.

Geography Niger

Location:
Western Africa, southeast of Algeria

Geographic coordinates:
16 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km
water: 300 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries:
total: 5,697 km
border countries: Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina Faso 628 km,
Chad 1,175 km, Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km

Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)

Climate:
desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south

Terrain:
predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains
in south; hills in north

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m

Natural resources:
uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum,
salt, petroleum

Land use:
arable land: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01%
other: 96.45% (2001)

Irrigated land:
660 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
recurring droughts

Environment - current issues:
overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation; desertification; wildlife
populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion)
threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction

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

Geography - note:
landlocked; one of the hottest countries in the world: northern
four-fifths is desert, southern one-fifth is savanna, suitable for
livestock and limited agriculture

People Niger

Population:
11,665,937 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 47.3% (male 2,811,539/female 2,704,498)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 2,890,119/female 3,009,281)
65 years and over: 2.1% (male 130,953/female 119,547) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 16.25 years
male: 15.8 years
female: 16.72 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.63% (2005 est.)

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

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

Net migration rate:
-0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 121.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 125.93 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 117.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 43.5 years
male: 43.54 years
female: 43.45 years (2005 est.)

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

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.2% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
70,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
4,800 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria is a high risk in some locations
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2004)

Nationality:
noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien

Ethnic groups:
Hausa 56%, Djerma 22%, Fula 8.5%, Tuareg 8%, Beri Beri (Kanouri)
4.3%, Arab, Toubou, and Gourmantche 1.2%, about 1,200 French
expatriates

Religions:
Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian

Languages:
French (official), Hausa, Djerma

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 17.6%
male: 25.8%
female: 9.7% (2003 est.)

Government Niger

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Niger
conventional short form: Niger
local long form: Republique du Niger
local short form: Niger

Government type:
republic

Capital:
Niamey

Administrative divisions:
8 regions (regions, singular - region) includes 1 capital district*
(commune urbaine); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua,
Tillaberi, Zinder

Independence:
3 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday:
Republic Day, 18 December (1958)

Constitution:
new constitution adopted 18 July 1999

Legal system:
based on French civil law system and customary law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President TANDJA Mamadou (since 22 December 1999);
note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President TANDJA Mamadou (since 22 December
1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of
government; Prime Minister Hama AMADOU (since 31 December 1999) was
appointed by the president and shares some executive
responsibilities with the president
cabinet: 27-member Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
second round last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December
2009); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: TANDJA Mamadou reelected president; percent of
vote - TANDJA Mamadou 65.5%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 34.5%

Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly (113 seats; note - expanded from 83
seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party -
MNSD 47, CDS 22, PNDS 17, RSD 7, RDP 6, ANDP 5, Party for Socialism
and Democracy in Niger 1, other 8

Judicial branch:
State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel

Political parties and leaders:
Alliance for Democracy and Progress or ANDP [leader NA]; Democratic
Rally of the People-Jama'a or RDP-Jama'a [Hamid ALGABID]; Democratic
and Social Convention-Rahama or CDS-Rahama [Mahamane OUSMANE];
National Movement for a Developing Society-Nassara or MNSD-Nassara
[TANDJA Mamadou, chairman]; Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and
Social Progress-Zaman Lahiya or ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya [Moumouni Adamou
DJERMAKOYE]; Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism-Tarayya or
PNDS-Tarayya [Mahamadou ISSOUFOU]; Party for Socialism and Democracy
in Niger [leader NA]; Rally for Social Democracy or RSD [Cheiffou
AMADOU]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or
UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB,
OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional),
WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph DIATTA
chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227
FAX: [1] (202)483-3169

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Gail Dennise Thomas MATHIEU
embassy: Rue Des Ambassades, Niamey
mailing address: B. P. 11201, Niamey
telephone: [227] 72 26 61 through 72 26 64
FAX: [227] 73 31 67, 72-31-46

Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with
a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered in the white
band; similar to the flag of India, which has a blue spoked wheel
centered in the white band

Economy Niger

Economy - overview:
Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, a landlocked
Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence crops,
livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought
cycles, desertification, a 3.3% population growth rate, and the drop
in world demand for uranium have undercut the economy. Niger shares
a common currency, the CFA franc, and a common central bank, the
Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), with seven other
members of the West African Monetary Union. In December 2000, Niger
qualified for enhanced debt relief under the International Monetary
Fund program for Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and concluded
an agreement with the Fund on a Poverty Reduction and Growth
Facility (PRGF). Debt relief provided under the enhanced HIPC
initiative significantly reduces Niger's annual debt service
obligations, freeing funds for expenditures on basic health care,
primary education, HIV/AIDS prevention, rural infrastructure, and
other programs geared at poverty reduction. Nearly half of the
government's budget is derived from foreign donor resources. Future
growth may be sustained by exploitation of oil, gold, coal, and
other mineral resources.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$9.716 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.5% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $900 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17%
services: 44% (2001)

Labor force:
70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4%

Unemployment rate:
NA (2002 est.)

Population below poverty line:
63% (1993 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
50.5 (1995)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3% (2002 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178
million (2002 est.)

Agriculture - products:
cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice;
cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry

Industries:
uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing,
chemicals, slaughterhouses

Industrial production growth rate:
NA (2001 est.)

Electricity - production:
266.2 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
327.6 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
80 million kWh (2002)

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

Oil - consumption:
5,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$280 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions

Exports - partners:
France 41%, Nigeria 22.4%, Japan 15.3%, Switzerland 6%, Spain 4.1%,
Ghana 4% (2004)

Imports:
$400 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals

Imports - partners:
France 14.4%, US 10.3%, French Polynesia 9.4%, Nigeria 7.8%, Cote
d'Ivoire 7.5%, Japan 5.2%, China 5.1%, Thailand 4.1% (2004)

Debt - external:
$1.6 billion (1999 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$341 million (1997)

Currency (code):
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible
authority is the Central Bank of the West African States

Currency code:
XOF

Exchange rates:
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29
(2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Niger

Telephones - main lines in use:
22,400 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
24,000 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: small system of wire, radio telephone
communications, and microwave radio relay links concentrated in the
southwestern area of Niger
domestic: wire, radiotelephone communications, and microwave radio
relay; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations and 1 planned
international: country code - 227; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001)

Radios:
680,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002)

Televisions:
125,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.ne

Internet hosts:
134 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)

Internet users:
15,000 (2002)

Transportation Niger

Highways:
total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km
unpaved: 9,302 km (1999 est.)

Waterways:
300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March
(2004)

Ports and harbors:
none

Airports:
27 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 14
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)

Military Niger

Military branches:
Niger Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, National
Air Force (2005)

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service
obligation - 2 years (2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 2,135,680 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,180,027 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 126,719 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$33.3 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.1% (2004)

Transnational Issues Niger

Disputes - international:
Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute;
much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria,
remains undemarcated, and states expect a ruling in 2005 from the
ICJ over the disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; only Nigeria
and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to
ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Nigeria

Introduction Nigeria

Background:
Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was
adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government
was completed. The president faces the daunting task of rebuilding a
petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through
corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In
addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding
ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation
for economic growth and political stability. Despite some
irregularities, the April 2003 elections marked the first civilian
transfer of power in Nigeria's history.

Geography Nigeria

Location:
Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and
Cameroon

Geographic coordinates:
10 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 923,768 sq km
land: 910,768 sq km
water: 13,000 sq km

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

Land boundaries:
total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger
1,497 km

Coastline:
853 km

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

Climate:
varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north

Terrain:
southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains
in southeast, plains in north

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chappal Waddi 2,419 m

Natural resources:
natural gas, petroleum, tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, niobium,
lead, zinc, arable land

Land use:
arable land: 31.29%
permanent crops: 2.96%
other: 65.75% (2001)

Irrigated land:
2,330 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; flooding

Environment - current issues:
soil degradation; rapid deforestation; urban air and water
pollution; desertification; oil pollution - water, air, and soil;
has suffered serious damage from oil spills; loss of arable land;
rapid urbanization

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
the Niger enters the country in the northwest and flows southward
through tropical rain forests and swamps to its delta in the Gulf of
Guinea

People Nigeria

Population:
128,771,988
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: 42.3% (male 27,466,766/female 27,045,092)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 35,770,593/female 34,559,414)
65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,874,157/female 2,055,966) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 18.63 years
male: 18.71 years
female: 18.55 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.37% (2005 est.)

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

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

Net migration rate:
0.27 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: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 98.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 105.69 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 91.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 46.74 years
male: 46.21 years
female: 47.29 years (2005 est.)

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

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
5.4% (2003 est.)

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

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
310,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: one of the most highly
endemic areas for Lassa fever (2004)

Nationality:
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian

Ethnic groups:
Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than
250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and
politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo
(Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5%

Religions:
Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10%

Languages:
English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68%
male: 75.7%
female: 60.6% (2003 est.)

Government Nigeria

Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria

Government type:
federal republic

Capital:
Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially
transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices
have now moved to Abuja

Administrative divisions:
36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra,
Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo,
Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa,
Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger,
Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara

Independence:
1 October 1960 (from UK)

National holiday:
Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960)

Constitution:
new constitution adopted May 1999

Legal system:
based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (in 12 northern
states), and traditional law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Federal Executive Council
elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two
four-year terms; election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held
NA 2007)
election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of
vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%,
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6%

Legislative branch:
bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats - 3 from
each state plus one from Abuja, members elected by popular vote to
serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (346 seats,
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA
2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to
be held NA 2007)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.7%,
ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27, AD 6; House
of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP
27.4%, AD 8.8%, other 9.3%; seats by party - PDP 223, ANPP 96, AD
34, other 6; note - one seat is vacant

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of
Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice
of the Advisory Judicial Committee)

Political parties and leaders:
Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; All Nigeria
Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand
Alliance or APGA [Chekwas OKORIE]; National Democratic Party or NDP
[Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Dr. Ahmadu ALI];
Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples
Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples
Party or UNPP [Saleh JAMBO]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force or NDPVF [Mujahid Dokubo
ASARI]; Nigerian Labor Congress or NLC [Adams OSHIOMOLE]

International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB,
OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Professor George A. OBIOZOR
chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400
FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385
consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador John CAMPBELL
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja
mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos
telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205
FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353

Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green

Economy Nigeria

Economy - overview:
Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability,
corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic
management, is undertaking some reforms under the new civilian
administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify
the economy away from overdependence on the capital-intensive oil
sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings,
and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence
agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population
growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the
country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food.
Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000,
Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a
$1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms.
Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing
to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for
additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. In the last year
the government has begun showing the political will to implement the
market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the
banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage
demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of
earnings from the oil industry. During 2003 the government began
deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the
country's four oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic
Empowerment Development Strategy, a domestically designed and run
program modeled on the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility
for fiscal and monetary management. GDP rose strongly in 2004.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$125.7 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
6.2% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 36.3%
industry: 30.5%
services: 33.3% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
55.67 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 70%, industry 10%, services 20% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate:
NA

Population below poverty line:
60% (2000 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
50.6 (1996-97)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
16.5% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
18% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $11.78 billion
expenditures: $11.47 billion, including capital expenditures of NA
(2004 est.)

Public debt:
20% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:
cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava
(tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish

Industries:
crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber,
wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction
materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing,
ceramics, steel, small commercial ship construction and repair

Industrial production growth rate:
1.8% (2004 est.)

Electricity - production:
19.85 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 61.9%
hydro: 38.1%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
18.43 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
30 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
2.356 million bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
275,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

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

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

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

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

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

Natural gas - proved reserves:
4.007 trillion cu m (2004)

Current account balance:
$5.228 billion (2004 est.)

Exports:
$33.99 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber

Exports - partners:
US 47.5%, Brazil 10.7%, Spain 7.1% (2004)

Imports:
$17.14 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food
and live animals

Imports - partners:
China 9.4%, US 8.4%, UK 7.8%, Netherlands 5.9%, France 5.4%,
Germany 4.9%, Italy 4% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$14.71 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:
$30.55 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
IMF $250 million (1998)

Currency (code):
naira (NGN)

Currency code:
NGN

Exchange rates:
nairas per US dollar - 132.89 (2004), 129.22 (2003), 120.58 (2002),
111.23 (2001), 101.7 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Nigeria

Telephones - main lines in use:
853,100 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
3,149,500 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: an inadequate system, further limited by poor
maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made
domestic: intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave
radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19
earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular
facilities and the Internet are available
international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3
Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic
submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001)

Radios:
23.5 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15
repeater stations) (2002)

Televisions:
6.9 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.ng

Internet hosts:
1,142 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
11 (2000)

Internet users:
750,000 (2003)

Transportation Nigeria

Railways:
total: 3,557 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge
standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)

Highways:
total: 194,394 km
paved: 60,068 km (including 1,194 km of expressways)
unpaved: 134,326 km (1999 est.)

Waterways:
8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks)
(2004)

Pipelines:
condensate 105 km; gas 1,896 km; oil 3,638 km; refined products
3,626 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt

Merchant marine:
total: 46 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 327,808 GRT/608,076 DWT
by type: cargo 5, chemical tanker 6, combination ore/oil 1,
liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 31,
refrigerated cargo 1
foreign-owned: 3 (Norway 2, Pakistan 1)
registered in other countries: 25 (2005)

Airports:
70 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 6
under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 13
under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.)

Heliports:
1 (2004 est.)

Military Nigeria

Military branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 26,804,314 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 15,053,936 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 1,353,161 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$544.6 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
0.8% (2004)

Transnational Issues Nigeria

Disputes - international:
ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime
boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve
differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in
less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in
the north; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakassi
Peninsula, then agreed, but has yet to withdraw its forces while
much of the indigenous population opposes cession; in 2004, some
17,000 Nigerian refugees fleeing ethnic conflicts between
pastoralists and farmers in 2002 still reside in Cameroon; the ICJ
ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial
Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but
imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, the unresolved
Bakasi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial
Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River
all contribute to the delay in implementation; a joint task force
was established in 2004 that resolved disputes over and redrew the
maritime and the 870-km land boundary with Benin on the Okpara
River; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad
Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also
includes Chad and Niger

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 250,000 (communal violence between Christians and Muslims
since President OBASANJO's election in 1999) (2004)

Illicit drugs:
a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East
Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian
narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center;
massive corruption and criminal activity; remains on Financial
Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for
continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering
control regime

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Niue

Introduction Niue

Background:
Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences
between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook
Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The
population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in
1966 to about 2,150 in 2005), with substantial emigration to New
Zealand, 2,400 km to the southwest.

Geography Niue

Location:
Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga

Geographic coordinates:
19 02 S, 169 52 W

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 260 sq km
land: 260 sq km
water: 0 sq km

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

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
64 km

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

Climate:
tropical; modified by southeast trade winds

Terrain:
steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m

Natural resources:
fish, arable land

Land use:
arable land: 15.38%
permanent crops: 11.54%
other: 73.08% (2001)

Irrigated land:
NA

Natural hazards:
typhoons

Environment - current issues:
increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss
of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note:
one of world's largest coral islands

People Niue

Population:
2,166 (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 births/1,000 population

Death rate:
NA deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate:
NA migrant(s)/1,000 population

Sex ratio:
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: Niuean(s)
adjective: Niuean

Ethnic groups:
Niuen 78.2%, Pacific islander 10.2%, European 4.5%, mixed 3.9%,
Asian 0.2%, unspecified 3% (2001 census)

Religions:
Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related
to the London Missionary Society) 61.1%, Latter-Day Saints 8.8%,
Roman Catholic 7.2%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2.4%, Seventh-Day Adventist
1.4%, other 8.4%, unspecified 8.7%, none 1.9% (2001 census)

Languages:
Niuean, a Polynesian language closely related to Tongan and Samoan;
English

Literacy:
definition: NA
total population: 95%
male: NA%
female: NA%

Government Niue

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Niue
former: Savage Island

Dependency status:
self-governing in free association with New Zealand since 1974;
Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains
responsibility for external affairs and defense; however, these
responsibilities confer no rights of control and are only exercised
at the request of the Government of Niue

Government type:
self-governing parliamentary democracy

Capital:
Alofi

Administrative divisions:
none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as
defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages at the
second order

Independence:
on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary
government in free association with New Zealand

National holiday:
Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty
over New Zealand), 6 February (1840)

Constitution:
19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act)

Legal system:
English common law
note: Niue is self-governing, with the power to make its own laws

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK
and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner
John BRYAN (since NA May 2000)
head of government: Premier Young VIVIAN (since 1 May 2002)
cabinet: Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers
elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the
Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 12
May 2005 (next to be held May 2008)
election results: Young VIVIAN reelected premier; percent of
Legislative Assembly vote - Young VIVIAN (NPP) 85%, O'Love JACOBSEN
(independent) 15%

Legislative branch:
unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common
roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 30 April 2005 (next to be held April 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue

Political parties and leaders:
Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Young VIVIAN]; Alliance of
Independents or AI [leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
ACP, FAO, PIF, Sparteca, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)

Flag description:
yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant;
the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large
one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of
the bold red cross

Economy Niue

Economy - overview:
The economy suffers from the typical Pacific island problems of
geographic isolation, few resources, and a small population.
Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall
is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are
used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government
expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The
agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening,
although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists
primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil,
honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign
collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent
years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration
of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the
promotion of tourism and a financial services industry, although
former Premier LAKATANI announced in February 2002 that Niue will
shut down the offshore banking industry. Economic aid from New
Zealand in 2002 was about $2.6 million. Niue suffered a devastating
hurricane in January 2004, which decimated nascent economic
programs. While in the process of rebuilding, Niue has been
dependent on foreign aid.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$7.6 million (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
-0.3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA
industry: NA
services: 55%

Labor force:
NA

Labor force - by occupation:
most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in
government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board

Unemployment rate:
NA

Population below poverty line:
NA

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1% (1995)

Budget:
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA

Agriculture - products:
coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava
(tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle

Industries:
tourism, handicrafts, food processing

Industrial production growth rate:
NA

Electricity - production:
3 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
2.79 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

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

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

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$137,200 (1999)

Exports - commodities:
canned coconut cream, copra, honey, vanilla, passion fruit
products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts

Exports - partners:
New Zealand mainly, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia (2000)

Imports:
$2.38 million (1999)

Imports - commodities:
food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels,
lubricants, chemicals, drugs

Imports - partners:
New Zealand mainly, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Australia, US (2000)

Debt - external:
$418,000 (2002 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$2.6 million from New Zealand (2002)

Currency (code):
New Zealand dollar (NZD)

Currency code:
NZD

Exchange rates:
New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003),
2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001), 2.2012 (2000)

Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March

Communications Niue

Telephones - main lines in use:
1,100 est (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
400 (2002)

Telephone system:
domestic: single-line telephone system connects all villages on
island
international: country code - 683

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios:
1,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
1 (1997)

Televisions:
NA

Internet country code:
.nu

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)

Internet users:
NA

Transportation Niue

Highways:
total: 234 km
paved: 86 km
unpaved: 148 km (2001)

Ports and harbors:
none; offshore anchorage only

Airports:
1 (2004 est.)

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

Military Niue

Military branches:
no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of New Zealand

Transnational Issues Niue

Disputes - international:
none

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Norfolk Island

Introduction Norfolk Island

Background:
Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony
(1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the
island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the
Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions.

Geography Norfolk Island

Location:
Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia

Geographic coordinates:
29 02 S, 167 57 E

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:
about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
32 km

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

Climate:
subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation

Terrain:
volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m

Natural resources:
fish

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

Irrigated land:
NA

Natural hazards:
typhoons (especially May to July)

Environment - current issues:
NA

Geography - note:
most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs,
but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on
Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated

People Norfolk Island

Population:
1,828 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9%
65 years and over: 15.9% (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.01% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
NA

Death rate:
NA

Net migration rate:
NA

Sex ratio:
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: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s)

Ethnic groups:
descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander,
Polynesians

Religions:
Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia
11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%,
Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.3%, none 18.1%
(2001 census)

Languages:
English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and
ancient Tahitian

Literacy:
NA

Government Norfolk Island

Country name:
conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island

Dependency status:
territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth
responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of
Environment, Sport, and Territories

Government type:
NA

Capital:
Kingston

Administrative divisions:
none (territory of Australia)

Independence:
none (territory of Australia)

National holiday:
Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June
(1856)

Constitution:
Norfolk Island Act of 1979

Legal system:
based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English
common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or
Norfolk Island law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK
and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since
1 November 2003)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey
Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001)
cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of
the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and
acts as an advisor to the administrator
elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the
governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the
Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years;
election last held 20 Ocotber 2004 (next to be held by December 2007)
election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister;
percent of Legislative Assembly vote - 17.2%

Legislative branch:
unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by
electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be
given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December
2007)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9
(note - no political parties)

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions

Political parties and leaders:
none

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

International organization participation:
UPU

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

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

Flag description:
three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a
large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider
white band

Economy Norfolk Island

Economy - overview:
Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over
the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among
inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has
become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
NA

GDP - real growth rate:
NA

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - NA

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

Labor force:
1,345

Labor force - by occupation:
tourism 90%, subsistence agriculture 10%

Unemployment rate:
0%

Population below poverty line:
NA

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA

Budget:
revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $20 million, including capital expenditures of $2
million (FY99/00)

Agriculture - products:
Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables,
fruit; cattle, poultry

Industries:
tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete

Industrial production growth rate:
NA

Electricity - production:
NA kWh

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2002)

Electricity - consumption:
NA kWh

Exports:
$1.5 million f.o.b. (FY99/00)

Exports - commodities:
postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm,
small quantities of avocados

Exports - partners:
Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe

Imports:
$17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92)

Imports - commodities:
NA

Imports - partners:
Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe

Debt - external:
NA

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 Norfolk Island

Telephones - main lines in use:
2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits
(2004)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island
referendum) (2002)

Telephone system:
general assessment: adequate
domestic: free local calls
international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with
Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite earth station

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005)

Radios:
2,500 (1996)

Television broadcast stations:
1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in
Australian programs by satellite) (2005)

Televisions:
1,200 (1996)

Internet country code:
.nf

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
2 (2000)

Internet users:
700

Transportation Norfolk Island

Highways:
total: 80 km
paved: 53 km
unpaved: 27 km (2001)

Ports and harbors:
none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade

Airports:
1 (2004 est.)

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

Military Norfolk Island

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of Australia

Transnational Issues Norfolk Island

Disputes - international:
none

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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

@Northern Mariana Islands

Introduction Northern Mariana Islands

Background:
Under US administration as part of the UN Trust Territory of the
Pacific, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands decided in the
1970s not to seek independence but instead to forge closer links
with the US. Negotiations for territorial status began in 1972. A
covenant to establish a commonwealth in political union with the US
was approved in 1975. A new government and constitution went into
effect in 1978.

Geography Northern Mariana Islands

Location:
Oceania, islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters
of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines

Geographic coordinates:
15 12 N, 145 45 E

Map references:
Oceania

Area:
total: 477 sq km
land: 477 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes 14 islands including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian

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

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
1,482 km

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