Chapter M: Major infectious diseases (138)

Turkmenistan
general assessment: telecommunications network remains
underdeveloped and progress toward improvement is slow; strict
government control and censorship inhibits liberalization and
modernization
domestic: Turkmentelekom, in cooperation with foreign partners, has
installed high speed fiber-optic lines and has upgraded most of the
country's telephone exchanges and switching centers with new digital
technology; mobile telephone usage is expanding with Russia's Mobile
Telesystems (MTS) the primary service provider
international: country code - 993; linked by fiber-optic cable and
microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and to other countries
by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; an
exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic through Turkey
via Intelsat; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1 Intelsat
(2008)

Turks and Caicos Islands
general assessment: fully digital system
with international direct dialing
domestic: full range of services available; GSM wireless service
available
international: country code - 1-649; the Americas Region Caribbean
Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber optic telecommunications submarine cable
provides connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the
Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat
(Atlantic Ocean)

Tuvalu
general assessment: serves particular needs for internal
communications
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands
international: country code - 688; international calls can be made
by satellite

Uganda
general assessment: seriously inadequate; mobile cellular
service is increasing rapidly, but the number of main lines is still
deficient; e-mail and Internet services are available
domestic: intercity traffic by wire, microwave radio relay, and
radiotelephone communication stations, fixed and mobile-cellular
systems for short-range traffic
international: country code - 256; satellite earth stations - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat; analog links to Kenya and
Tanzania

Ukraine
general assessment: Ukraine's telecommunication development
plan emphasizes improving domestic trunk lines, international
connections, and the mobile-cellular system
domestic: at independence in December 1991, Ukraine inherited a
telephone system that was antiquated, inefficient, and in disrepair;
more than 3.5 million applications for telephones could not be
satisfied; telephone density is rising and the domestic trunk system
is being improved; about one-third of Ukraine's networks are digital
and a majority of regional centers now have digital switching
stations; improvements in local networks and local exchanges
continue to lag; the mobile-cellular telephone system's expansion
has slowed, largely due to saturation of the market which had
reached 120 mobile phones per 100 people by 2008
international: country code - 380; 2 new domestic trunk lines are a
part of the fiber-optic Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) system and 3
Ukrainian links have been installed in the fiber-optic
Trans-European Lines (TEL) project that connects 18 countries;
additional international service is provided by the
Italy-Turkey-Ukraine-Russia (ITUR) fiber-optic submarine cable and
by an unknown number of earth stations in the Intelsat, Inmarsat,
and Intersputnik satellite systems

United Arab Emirates
general assessment: modern fiber-optic
integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of
mobile-cellular telephones; key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai
domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber optic and coaxial cable
international: country code - 971; linked to the international
submarine cable FLAG (Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe); landing
point for both the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable
networks; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean
and 2 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain;
microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia

United Kingdom
general assessment: technologically advanced domestic
and international system
domestic: equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and
fiber-optic systems
international: country code - 44; numerous submarine cables provide
links throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and US;
satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3
Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat;
at least 8 large international switching centers

United States
general assessment: a large, technologically advanced,
multipurpose communications system
domestic: a large system of fiber-optic cable, microwave radio
relay, coaxial cable, and domestic satellites carries every form of
telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile
telephone traffic throughout the country
international: country code - 1; multiple ocean cable systems
provide international connectivity; satellite earth stations - 61
Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Intersputnik
(Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean
regions) (2000)

Uruguay
general assessment: fully digitalized
domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new
nationwide microwave radio relay network; overall fixed-line and
mobile-cellular teledensity is 130 telephones per 100 persons
international: country code - 598; the UNISOR submarine cable system
provides direct connectivity to Brazil and Argentina; satellite
earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2002)

Uzbekistan
general assessment: antiquated and inadequate; in serious
need of modernization
domestic: the main line telecommunications system is dilapidated and
telephone density is low; the state-owned telecommunications
company, Uzbektelecom, is using loans from the Japanese government
and the China Development Bank to improve mainline services;
completion of conversion to digital exchanges planned for 2010;
mobile services are growing rapidly, with the subscriber base
reaching 12.7 million in 2008
international: country code - 998; linked by fiber-optic cable or
microwave radio relay with CIS member states and to other countries
by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway switch;
after the completion of the Uzbek link to the Trans-Asia-Europe
(TAE) fiber-optic cable, Uzbekistan plans to establish a fiber-optic
connection to Afghanistan (2008)

Vanuatu
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 678; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)

Venezuela
general assessment: modern and expanding
domestic: domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations; recent
substantial improvement in telephone service in rural areas;
substantial increase in digitalization of exchanges and trunk lines;
installation of a national interurban fiber-optic network capable of
digital multimedia services; combined fixed and mobile-cellular
telephone subscribership 125 per 100 persons
international: country code - 58; submarine cable systems provide
connectivity to the Caribbean, Central and South America, and US;
satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1
PanAmSat; participating with Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia in
the construction of an international fiber-optic network (2007)

Vietnam
general assessment: Vietnam is putting considerable effort
into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system
domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to
Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or
microwave radio relay networks; main lines have been substantially
increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly
international: country code - 84; a landing point for the
SEA-ME-WE-3, the C2C, and Thailand-Vietnam-Hong Kong submarine cable
systems; the Asia-America Gateway submarine cable system, scheduled
for completion by the end of 2008, will provide new access links to
Asia and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian
Ocean region)

Virgin Islands
general assessment: modern system with total digital
switching, uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: full range of services available
international: country code - 1-340; submarine cable connections to
US, the Caribbean, Central and South America; satellite earth
stations - NA

Wake Island
general assessment: satellite communications; 2 DSN
circuits off the Overseas Telephone System (OTS)
domestic: NA
international: NA

Wallis and Futuna
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: country code - 681

West Bank
general assessment: NA
domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL
are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL
company provides cellular services
international: country code - 970 (2004)

Western Sahara
general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA
international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by
microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite;
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to
Rabat, Morocco

World
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: NA

Yemen
general assessment: since unification in 1990, efforts have
been made to create a national telecommunications network
domestic: the national network consists of microwave radio relay,
cable, tropospheric scatter, GSM and CDMA mobile-cellular telephone
systems; fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity remains low by
regional standards
international: country code - 967; landing point for the
international submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe
(FLAG); satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Indian Ocean and 1
Atlantic Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 2
Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and Djibouti

Zambia
general assessment: facilities are aging but still among the
best in Sub-Saharan Africa
domestic: high-capacity microwave radio relay connects most larger
towns and cities; several cellular telephone services in operation
and network coverage is improving; Internet service is widely
available; very small aperture terminal (VSAT) networks are operated
by private firms
international: country code - 260; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean)

Zimbabwe
general assessment: system was once one of the best in
Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100,000
outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number
of installed but unused main lines
domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines,
radiotelephone communication stations, fixed wireless local loop
installations, and a substantial mobile-cellular network; Internet
connection is available in Harare and planned for all major towns
and for some of the smaller ones
international: country code - 263; satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat; 2 international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and
Gweru)

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

@2125

Field Listing :: Terrain

This entry contains a brief description of the topography.
Country

Terrain

Afghanistan
mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest

Albania
mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast

Algeria
mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow,
discontinuous coastal plain

American Samoa
five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited
coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island)

Andorra
rugged mountains dissected by narrow valleys

Angola
narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau

Anguilla
flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone

Antarctica
about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock,
with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain
ranges up to nearly 5,000 meters; ice-free coastal areas include
parts of southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic
Peninsula area, and parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers
form ice shelves along about half of the coastline, and floating ice
shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent

Antigua and Barbuda
mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands,
with some higher volcanic areas

Arctic Ocean
central surface covered by a perennial drifting polar
icepack that, on average, is about 3 meters thick, although pressure
ridges may be three times that thickness; clockwise drift pattern in
the Beaufort Gyral Stream, but nearly straight-line movement from
the New Siberian Islands (Russia) to Denmark Strait (between
Greenland and Iceland); the icepack is surrounded by open seas
during the summer, but more than doubles in size during the winter
and extends to the encircling landmasses; the ocean floor is about
50% continental shelf (highest percentage of any ocean) with the
remainder a central basin interrupted by three submarine ridges
(Alpha Cordillera, Nansen Cordillera, and Lomonosov Ridge)

Argentina
rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to
rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western
border

Armenia
Armenian Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast
flowing rivers; good soil in Aras River valley

Aruba
flat with a few hills; scant vegetation

Ashmore and Cartier Islands
low with sand and coral

Atlantic Ocean
surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea,
Denmark Strait, and coastal portions of the Baltic Sea from October
to June; clockwise warm-water gyre (broad, circular system of
currents) in the northern Atlantic, counterclockwise warm-water gyre
in the southern Atlantic; the ocean floor is dominated by the
Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south centerline for the entire
Atlantic basin

Australia
mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast

Austria
in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the
eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping

Azerbaijan
large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland) (much
of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north,
Qarabag Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) in west; Baku lies on Abseron
Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea

Bahamas, The
long, flat coral formations with some low rounded hills

Bahrain
mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central
escarpment

Bangladesh
mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast

Barbados
relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region

Belarus
generally flat and contains much marshland

Belgium
flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills,
rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast

Belize
flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south

Benin
mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains

Bermuda
low hills separated by fertile depressions

Bhutan
mostly mountainous with some fertile valleys and savanna

Bolivia
rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano),
hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin

Bosnia and Herzegovina
mountains and valleys

Botswana
predominantly flat to gently rolling tableland; Kalahari
Desert in southwest

Bouvet Island
volcanic; coast is mostly inaccessible

Brazil
mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills,
mountains, and narrow coastal belt

British Indian Ocean Territory
flat and low (most areas do not
exceed two meters in elevation)

British Virgin Islands
coral islands relatively flat; volcanic
islands steep, hilly

Brunei
flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland
in west

Bulgaria
mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast

Burkina Faso
mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in
west and southeast

Burma
central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands

Burundi
hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some
plains

Cambodia
mostly low, flat plains; mountains in southwest and north

Cameroon
diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau
in center, mountains in west, plains in north

Canada
mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast

Cape Verde
steep, rugged, rocky, volcanic

Cayman Islands
low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs

Central African Republic
vast, flat to rolling, monotonous plateau;
scattered hills in northeast and southwest

Chad
broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in
northwest, lowlands in south

Chile
low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in
east

China
mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains,
deltas, and hills in east

Christmas Island
steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central
plateau

Clipperton Island
coral atoll

Cocos (Keeling) Islands
flat, low-lying coral atolls

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

Comoros
volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low
hills

Congo, Democratic Republic of the
vast central basin is a low-lying
plateau; mountains in east

Congo, Republic of the
coastal plain, southern basin, central
plateau, northern basin

Cook Islands
low coral atolls in north; volcanic, hilly islands in
south

Coral Sea Islands
sand and coral reefs and islands (or cays)

Costa Rica
coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including
over 100 volcanic cones, of which several are major volcanoes

Cote d'Ivoire
mostly flat to undulating plains; mountains in
northwest

Croatia
geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border,
low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands

Cuba
mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains
in the southeast

Cyprus
central plain with mountains to north and south; scattered
but significant plains along southern coast

Czech Republic
Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains,
hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east
consists of very hilly country

Denmark
low and flat to gently rolling plains

Djibouti
coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains

Dominica
rugged mountains of volcanic origin

Dominican Republic
rugged highlands and mountains with fertile
valleys interspersed

Ecuador
coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands
(sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente)

Egypt
vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta

El Salvador
mostly mountains with narrow coastal belt and central
plateau

Equatorial Guinea
coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are
volcanic

Eritrea
dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending
highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the
northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling
plains

Estonia
marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south

Ethiopia
high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great
Rift Valley

European Union
fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast;
mountainous in the central and southern areas

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)
rocky, hilly, mountainous with
some boggy, undulating plains

Faroe Islands
rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of
coast

Fiji
mostly mountains of volcanic origin

Finland
mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes
and low hills

France
metropolitan France: mostly flat plains or gently rolling
hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially
Pyrenees in south, Alps in east
French Guiana: low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small
mountains
Guadeloupe: Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior
mountains; Grande-Terre is low limestone formation; most of the
seven other islands are volcanic in origin
Martinique: mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano
Reunion: mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast

French Polynesia
mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with
reefs

French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Ile Amsterdam (Ile Amsterdam et
Ile Saint-Paul): a volcanic island with steep coastal cliffs; the
center floor of the volcano is a large plateau
Ile Saint-Paul (Ile Amsterdam et Ile Saint-Paul): triangular in
shape, the island is the top of a volcano, rocky with steep cliffs
on the eastern side; has active thermal springs
Iles Crozet: a large archipelago formed from the Crozet Plateau is
divided into two groups of islands
Iles Kerguelen: the interior of the large island of Ile Kerguelen is
composed of rugged terrain of high mountains, hills, valleys, and
plains with a number of peninsulas stretching off its coasts
Bassas da India (Iles Eparses): atoll, awash at high tide; shallow
(15 m) lagoon
Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island: low, flat, and
sandy
Tromelin Island (Iles Eparses): low, flat, sandy; likely volcanic
seamount

Gabon
narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south

Gambia, The
flood plain of the Gambia River flanked by some low hills

Gaza Strip
flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain

Georgia
largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the
north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhet'is Dablobi
(Kolkhida Lowland) opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River
Basin in the east; good soils in river valley flood plains,
foothills of Kolkhida Lowland

Germany
lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south

Ghana
mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area

Gibraltar
a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar

Greece
mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as
peninsulas or chains of islands

Greenland
flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow,
mountainous, barren, rocky coast

Grenada
volcanic in origin with central mountains

Guam
volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat
coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep
coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in
center, mountains in south

Guatemala
mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling
limestone plateau

Guernsey
mostly level with low hills in southwest

Guinea
generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior

Guinea-Bissau
mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east

Guyana
mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south

Haiti
mostly rough and mountainous

Heard Island and McDonald Islands
Heard Island - 80% ice-covered,
bleak and mountainous, dominated by a large massif (Big Ben) and an
active volcano (Mawson Peak); McDonald Islands - small and rocky

Holy See (Vatican City)
urban; low hill

Honduras
mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains

Hong Kong
hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north

Hungary
mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on
the Slovakian border

Iceland
mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields;
coast deeply indented by bays and fiords

India
upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain
along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north

Indian Ocean
surface dominated by counterclockwise gyre (broad,
circular system of currents) in the southern Indian Ocean; unique
reversal of surface currents in the northern Indian Ocean; low
atmospheric pressure over southwest Asia from hot, rising, summer
air results in the southwest monsoon and southwest-to-northeast
winds and currents, while high pressure over northern Asia from
cold, falling, winter air results in the northeast monsoon and
northeast-to-southwest winds and currents; ocean floor is dominated
by the Mid-Indian Ocean Ridge and subdivided by the Southeast Indian
Ocean Ridge, Southwest Indian Ocean Ridge, and Ninetyeast Ridge

Indonesia
mostly coastal lowlands; larger islands have interior
mountains

Iran
rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts,
mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Iraq
mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in
south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran
and Turkey

Ireland
mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged
hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast

Isle of Man
hills in north and south bisected by central valley

Israel
Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central
mountains; Jordan Rift Valley

Italy
mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands

Jamaica
mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain

Jan Mayen
volcanic island, partly covered by glaciers

Japan
mostly rugged and mountainous

Jersey
gently rolling plain with low, rugged hills along north coast

Jordan
mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great
Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River

Kazakhstan
vast flat steppe extending from the Volga in the west to
the Altai Mountains in the east and from the plains of western
Siberia in the north to oases and deserts of Central Asia in the
south

Kenya
low plains rise to central highlands bisected by Great Rift
Valley; fertile plateau in west

Kiribati
mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs

Korea, North
mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow
valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east

Korea, South
mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west
and south

Kosovo
flat fluvial basin with an elevation of 400-700 m above sea
level surrounded by several high mountain ranges with elevations of
2,000 to 2,500 m

Kuwait
flat to slightly undulating desert plain

Kyrgyzstan
peaks of Tien Shan and associated valleys and basins
encompass entire nation

Laos
mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus

Latvia
low plain

Lebanon
narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates
Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains

Lesotho
mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains

Liberia
mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling
plateau and low mountains in northeast

Libya
mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions

Liechtenstein
mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western
third

Lithuania
lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil

Luxembourg
mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow
valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope
down to Moselle flood plain in the southeast

Macau
generally flat

Macedonia
mountainous territory covered with deep basins and
valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country
bisected by the Vardar River

Madagascar
narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center

Malawi
narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills,
some mountains

Malaysia
coastal plains rising to hills and mountains

Maldives
flat, with white sandy beaches

Mali
mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna
in south, rugged hills in northeast

Malta
mostly low, rocky, flat to dissected plains; many coastal
cliffs

Marshall Islands
low coral limestone and sand islands

Mauritania
mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central
hills

Mauritius
small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains
encircling central plateau

Mayotte
generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic
peaks

Mexico
high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus;
desert

Micronesia, Federated States of
islands vary geologically from high
mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on
Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Chuuk

Moldova
rolling steppe, gradual slope south to Black Sea

Monaco
hilly, rugged, rocky

Mongolia
vast semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains
in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in south-central

Montenegro
highly indented coastline with narrow coastal plain
backed by rugged high limestone mountains and plateaus

Montserrat
volcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal
lowland

Morocco
northern coast and interior are mountainous with large areas
of bordering plateaus, intermontane valleys, and rich coastal plains

Mozambique
mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus
in northwest, mountains in west

Namibia
mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari
Desert in east

Nauru
sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs
with phosphate plateau in center

Navassa Island
raised coral and limestone plateau, flat to
undulating; ringed by vertical white cliffs (9 to 15 m high)

Nepal
Tarai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill
region, rugged Himalayas in north

Netherlands
mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders);
some hills in southeast

Netherlands Antilles
generally hilly, volcanic interiors

New Caledonia
coastal plains with interior mountains

New Zealand
predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains

Nicaragua
extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central
interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by
volcanoes

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

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

Niue
steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau

Norfolk Island
volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains

Northern Mariana Islands
southern islands are limestone with level
terraces and fringing coral reefs; northern islands are volcanic

Norway
glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains broken
by fertile valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply
indented by fjords; arctic tundra in north

Oman
central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south

Pacific Ocean
surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated
by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents)
and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre;
in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of
Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica
reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the
eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the
western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana
Trench, which is the world's deepest

Pakistan
flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest;
Balochistan plateau in west

Palau
varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of
Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier
reefs

Panama
interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland
plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills

Papua New Guinea
mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling
foothills

Paracel Islands
mostly low and flat

Paraguay
grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay; Gran
Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near the
river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere

Peru
western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center
(sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva)

Philippines
mostly mountains with narrow to extensive coastal
lowlands

Pitcairn Islands
rugged volcanic formation; rocky coastline with
cliffs

Poland
mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border

Portugal
mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in
south

Puerto Rico
mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north;
mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most
coastal areas

Qatar
mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and
gravel

Romania
central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Moldavian
Plateau on the east by the Eastern Carpathian Mountains and
separated from the Walachian Plain on the south by the Transylvanian
Alps

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

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

Saint Barthelemy
hilly, almost completely surrounded by
shallow-water reefs, with 20 beaches

Saint Helena
the islands of this group result from volcanic activity
associated with the Atlantic Mid-Ocean Ridge
Saint Helena: rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
Ascension: surface covered by lava flows and cinder cones of 44
dormant volcanoes; ground rises to the east
Tristan da Cunha: sheer cliffs line the coastline of the nearly
circular island; the flanks of the central volcanic peak are deeply
dissected; narrow coastal plain lies between The Peak and the
coastal cliffs

Saint Kitts and Nevis
volcanic with mountainous interiors

Saint Lucia
volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys

Saint Pierre and Miquelon
mostly barren rock

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
volcanic, mountainous

Samoa
two main islands (Savaii, Upolu) and several smaller islands
and uninhabited islets; narrow coastal plain with volcanic, rocky,
rugged mountains in interior

San Marino
rugged mountains

Sao Tome and Principe
volcanic, mountainous

Saudi Arabia
mostly uninhabited, sandy desert

Senegal
generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in
southeast

Serbia
extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the
east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient
mountains and hills

Seychelles
Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky,
hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs

Sierra Leone
coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country,
upland plateau, mountains in east

Singapore
lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water
catchment area and nature preserve

Slovakia
rugged mountains in the central and northern part and
lowlands in the south

Slovenia
a short coastal strip on the Adriatic, an alpine mountain
region adjacent to Italy and Austria, mixed mountains and valleys
with numerous rivers to the east

Solomon Islands
mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls

Somalia
mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north

South Africa
vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow
coastal plain

South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
most of the islands, rising
steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is
largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South
Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes

Southern Ocean
the Southern Ocean is deep, 4,000 to 5,000 m over
most of its extent with only limited areas of shallow water; the
Antarctic continental shelf is generally narrow and unusually deep,
its edge lying at depths of 400 to 800 m (the global mean is 133 m);
the Antarctic icepack grows from an average minimum of 2.6 million
sq km in March to about 18.8 million sq km in September, better than
a sixfold increase in area; the Antarctic Circumpolar Current
(21,000 km in length) moves perpetually eastward; it is the world's
largest ocean current, transporting 130 million cubic meters of
water per second - 100 times the flow of all the world's rivers

Spain
large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills;
Pyrenees in north

Spratly Islands
flat

Sri Lanka
mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in
south-central interior

Sudan
generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in far south,
northeast and west; desert dominates the north

Suriname
mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps

Svalbard
wild, rugged mountains; much of high land ice covered; west
coast clear of ice about one-half of the year; fjords along west and
north coasts

Swaziland
mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains

Sweden
mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west

Switzerland
mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with
a central plateau of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes

Syria
primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain;
mountains in west

Taiwan
eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently
rolling plains in west

Tajikistan
Pamir and Alay Mountains dominate landscape; western
Fergana Valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest

Tanzania
plains along coast; central plateau; highlands in north,
south

Thailand
central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains
elsewhere

Timor-Leste
mountainous

Togo
gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern
plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes

Tokelau
low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons

Tonga
most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral
formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base

Trinidad and Tobago
mostly plains with some hills and low mountains

Tunisia
mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south
merges into the Sahara

Turkey
high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain;
several mountain ranges

Turkmenistan
flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to
mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran;
borders Caspian Sea in west

Turks and Caicos Islands
low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and
mangrove swamps

Tuvalu
low-lying and narrow coral atolls

Uganda
mostly plateau with rim of mountains

Ukraine
most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and
plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians),
and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south

United Arab Emirates
flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling
sand dunes of vast desert wasteland; mountains in east

United Kingdom
mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to
rolling plains in east and southeast

United States
vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low
mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in
Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii

United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges
low and nearly level
sandy coral islands with narrow fringing reefs that have developed
at the top of submerged volcanic mountains, which in most cases rise
steeply from the ocean floor

Uruguay
mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland

Uzbekistan
mostly flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad,
flat intensely irrigated river valleys along course of Amu Darya,
Syr Darya (Sirdaryo), and Zarafshon; Fergana Valley in east
surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; shrinking Aral
Sea in west

Vanuatu
mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow
coastal plains

Venezuela
Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest;
central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast

Vietnam
low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands;
hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest

Virgin Islands
mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little
level land

Wake Island
atoll of three low coral islands, Peale, Wake, and
Wilkes, built up on an underwater volcano; central lagoon is former
crater, islands are part of the rim

Wallis and Futuna
volcanic origin; low hills

West Bank
mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west,
but barren in east

Western Sahara
mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or
sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast

World
the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in
the Pacific Ocean

Yemen
narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged
mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the
desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula

Zambia
mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains

Zimbabwe
mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high
veld); mountains in east

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

@2127

Field Listing :: Total fertility rate

This entry gives a figure for the average number of children that
would be born per woman if all women lived to the end of their
childbearing years and bore children according to a given fertility
rate at each age. The total fertility rate (TFR) is a more direct
measure of the level of fertility than the crude birth rate, since
it refers to births per woman. This indicator shows the potential
for population change in the country. A rate of two children per
woman is considered the replacement rate for a population, resulting
in relative stability in terms of total numbers. Rates above two
children indicate populations growing in size and whose median age
is declining. Higher rates may also indicate difficulties for
families, in some situations, to feed and educate their children and
for women to enter the labor force. Rates below two children
indicate populations decreasing in size and growing older. Global
fertility rates are in general decline and this trend is most
pronounced in industrialized countries, especially Western Europe,
where populations are projected to decline dramatically over the
next 50 years.
Country Comparison to the World
Country

Total fertility rate(children born/woman)

Afghanistan
6.53 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Albania
2.01 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Algeria
1.79 children born/woman (2009 est.)

American Samoa
3.29 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Andorra
1.33 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Angola
6.12 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Anguilla
1.75 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Antigua and Barbuda
2.07 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Argentina
2.35 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Armenia
1.36 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Aruba
1.85 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Australia
1.78 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Austria
1.39 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Azerbaijan
2.04 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bahamas, The
2.1 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bahrain
2.5 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bangladesh
2.74 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Barbados
1.68 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Belarus
1.24 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Belgium
1.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Belize
3.36 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Benin
5.49 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bermuda
1.99 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bhutan
2.38 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bolivia
3.17 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bosnia and Herzegovina
1.25 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Botswana
2.6 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Brazil
2.21 children born/woman (2009 est.)

British Virgin Islands
1.71 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Brunei
1.91 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Bulgaria
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Burkina Faso
6.28 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Burma
1.89 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Burundi
6.33 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cambodia
3.04 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cameroon
4.33 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Canada
1.58 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cape Verde
3.07 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cayman Islands
1.88 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Central African Republic
4.14 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Chad
5.31 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Chile
1.92 children born/woman (2009 est.)

China
1.79 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Christmas Island
NA

Cocos (Keeling) Islands
NA

Colombia
2.46 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Comoros
4.84 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Congo, Democratic Republic of the
6.2 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Congo, Republic of the
5.84 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cook Islands
2.49 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Costa Rica
2.14 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cote d'Ivoire
4.12 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Croatia
1.42 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cuba
1.61 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Cyprus
1.77 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Czech Republic
1.24 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Denmark
1.74 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Djibouti
5.06 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Dominica
2.09 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Dominican Republic
2.76 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Ecuador
2.51 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Egypt
2.66 children born/woman (2009 est.)

El Salvador
3 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Equatorial Guinea
5.08 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Eritrea
4.72 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Estonia
1.42 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Ethiopia
6.12 children born/woman (2009 est.)

European Union
1.51 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)
NA

Faroe Islands
2.44 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Fiji
2.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Finland
1.73 children born/woman (2009 est.)

France
1.98 children born/woman (2009 est.)

French Polynesia
1.92 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Gabon
4.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Gambia, The
5.04 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Gaza Strip
5.03 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Georgia
1.44 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Germany
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Ghana
3.68 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Gibraltar
1.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Greece
1.37 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Greenland
2.19 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Grenada
2.23 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guam
2.54 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guatemala
3.47 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guernsey
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guinea
5.2 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guinea-Bissau
4.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Guyana
2.03 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Haiti
3.81 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Honduras
3.27 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Hong Kong
1.02 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Hungary
1.35 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Iceland
1.9 children born/woman (2009 est.)

India
2.72 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Indonesia
2.31 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Iran
1.71 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Iraq
3.86 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Ireland
1.85 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Isle of Man
1.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Israel
2.75 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Italy
1.31 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Jamaica
2.25 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Japan
1.21 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Jersey
1.57 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Jordan
2.39 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Kazakhstan
1.88 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Kenya
4.56 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Kiribati
4.04 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Korea, North
1.96 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Korea, South
1.21 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Kuwait
2.76 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Kyrgyzstan
2.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Laos
4.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Latvia
1.3 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Lebanon
1.85 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Lesotho
3.06 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Liberia
5.79 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Libya
3.08 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Liechtenstein
1.52 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Lithuania
1.23 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Luxembourg
1.78 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Macau
0.91 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Macedonia
1.58 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Madagascar
5.14 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Malawi
5.59 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Malaysia
2.95 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Maldives
1.9 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mali
7.29 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Malta
1.51 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Marshall Islands
3.59 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mauritania
4.45 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mauritius
1.81 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mayotte
5.5 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mexico
2.34 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Micronesia, Federated States of
2.89 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Moldova
1.27 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Monaco
1.75 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mongolia
2.23 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Montserrat
1.23 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Morocco
2.51 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Mozambique
5.18 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Namibia
2.69 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Nauru
2.85 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Nepal
2.64 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Netherlands
1.66 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Netherlands Antilles
1.97 children born/woman (2009 est.)

New Caledonia
2.18 children born/woman (2009 est.)

New Zealand
2.1 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Nicaragua
2.57 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Niger
7.75 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Nigeria
4.91 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Niue
NA (2008 est.)

Norfolk Island
NA

Northern Mariana Islands
1.15 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Norway
1.78 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Oman
5.53 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Pakistan
3.6 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Palau
1.82 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Panama
2.53 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Papua New Guinea
3.62 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Paraguay
3.75 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Peru
2.37 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Philippines
3.27 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Pitcairn Islands
NA (2008 est.)

Poland
1.28 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Portugal
1.49 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Puerto Rico
1.71 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Qatar
2.45 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Romania
1.39 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Russia
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Rwanda
5.25 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saint Helena
1.56 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saint Kitts and Nevis
2.26 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saint Lucia
1.84 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saint Pierre and Miquelon
1.97 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
1.98 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Samoa
4.16 children born/woman (2009 est.)

San Marino
1.36 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Sao Tome and Principe
5.33 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Saudi Arabia
3.83 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Senegal
4.95 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Serbia
1.38 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Seychelles
1.93 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Sierra Leone
5.88 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Singapore
1.09 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Slovakia
1.35 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Slovenia
1.28 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Solomon Islands
3.52 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Somalia
6.52 children born/woman (2009 est.)

South Africa
2.38 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Spain
1.31 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Sri Lanka
1.99 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Sudan
4.48 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Suriname
1.99 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Svalbard
NA (2008 est.)

Swaziland
3.24 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Sweden
1.67 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Switzerland
1.45 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Syria
3.12 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Taiwan
1.14 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Tajikistan
2.99 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Tanzania
4.46 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Thailand
1.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Timor-Leste
3.28 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Togo
4.79 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Tokelau
NA (2008 est.)

Tonga
2.25 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Trinidad and Tobago
1.72 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Tunisia
1.72 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Turkey
2.21 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Turkmenistan
2.22 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Turks and Caicos Islands
2.95 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Tuvalu
2.91 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Uganda
6.77 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Ukraine
1.26 children born/woman (2009 est.)

United Arab Emirates
2.42 children born/woman (2009 est.)

United Kingdom
1.66 children born/woman (2009 est.)

United States
2.05 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Uruguay
1.92 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Uzbekistan
1.95 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Vanuatu
2.5 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Venezuela
2.48 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Vietnam
1.83 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Virgin Islands
1.85 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Wallis and Futuna
1.87 children born/woman (2009 est.)

West Bank
3.22 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Western Sahara
NA 5.61 children born/woman (2009 est.)

World
2.58 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Yemen
6.32 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Zambia
5.15 children born/woman (2009 est.)

Zimbabwe
3.69 children born/woman (2009 est.)

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

@2128

Field Listing :: Government type

This entry gives the basic form of government. Definitions of the
major governmental terms are as follows. (Note that for some
countries more than one definition applies.):
Absolute monarchy - a form of government where the monarch rules
unhindered, i.e., without any laws, constitution, or legally
organized opposition.
Anarchy - a condition of lawlessness or political disorder brought
about by the absence of governmental authority.
Authoritarian - a form of government in which state authority is
imposed onto many aspects of citizens' lives.
Commonwealth - a nation, state, or other political entity founded on
law and united by a compact of the people for the common good.
Communist - a system of government in which the state plans and
controls the economy and a single - often authoritarian - party
holds power; state controls are imposed with the elimination of
private ownership of property or capital while claiming to make
progress toward a higher social order in which all goods are equally
shared by the people (i.e., a classless society).
Confederacy (Confederation) - a union by compact or treaty between
states, provinces, or territories, that creates a central government
with limited powers; the constituent entities retain supreme
authority over all matters except those delegated to the central
government.
Constitutional - a government by or operating under an authoritative
document (constitution) that sets forth the system of fundamental
laws and principles that determines the nature, functions, and
limits of that government.
Constitutional democracy - a form of government in which the
sovereign power of the people is spelled out in a governing
constitution.
Constitutional monarchy - a system of government in which a monarch
is guided by a constitution whereby his/her rights, duties, and
responsibilities are spelled out in written law or by custom.
Democracy - a form of government in which the supreme power is
retained by the people, but which is usually exercised indirectly
through a system of representation and delegated authority
periodically renewed.
Democratic republic - a state in which the supreme power rests in
the body of citizens entitled to vote for officers and
representatives responsible to them.
Dictatorship - a form of government in which a ruler or small clique
wield absolute power (not restricted by a constitution or laws).
Ecclesiastical - a government administrated by a church.
Emirate - similar to a monarchy or sultanate, but a government in
which the supreme power is in the hands of an emir (the ruler of a
Muslim state); the emir may be an absolute overlord or a sovereign
with constitutionally limited authority.
Federal (Federation) - a form of government in which sovereign power
is formally divided - usually by means of a constitution - between a
central authority and a number of constituent regions (states,
colonies, or provinces) so that each region retains some management
of its internal affairs; differs from a confederacy in that the
central government exerts influence directly upon both individuals
as well as upon the regional units.
Federal republic - a state in which the powers of the central
government are restricted and in which the component parts (states,
colonies, or provinces) retain a degree of self-government; ultimate
sovereign power rests with the voters who chose their governmental
representatives.
Islamic republic - a particular form of government adopted by some
Muslim states; although such a state is, in theory, a theocracy, it
remains a republic, but its laws are required to be compatible with
the laws of Islam.
Maoism - the theory and practice of Marxism-Leninism developed in
China by Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung), which states that a continuous
revolution is necessary if the leaders of a communist state are to
keep in touch with the people.
Marxism - the political, economic, and social principles espoused by
19th century economist Karl Marx; he viewed the struggle of workers
as a progression of historical forces that would proceed from a
class struggle of the proletariat (workers) exploited by capitalists
(business owners), to a socialist "dictatorship of the proletariat,"
to, finally, a classless society - Communism.
Marxism-Leninism - an expanded form of communism developed by Lenin
from doctrines of Karl Marx; Lenin saw imperialism as the final
stage of capitalism and shifted the focus of workers' struggle from
developed to underdeveloped countries.
Monarchy - a government in which the supreme power is lodged in the
hands of a monarch who reigns over a state or territory, usually for
life and by hereditary right; the monarch may be either a sole
absolute ruler or a sovereign - such as a king, queen, or prince -
with constitutionally limited authority.
Oligarchy - a government in which control is exercised by a small
group of individuals whose authority generally is based on wealth or
power.
Parliamentary democracy - a political system in which the
legislature (parliament) selects the government - a prime minister,
premier, or chancellor along with the cabinet ministers - according
to party strength as expressed in elections; by this system, the
government acquires a dual responsibility: to the people as well as
to the parliament.
Parliamentary government (Cabinet-Parliamentary government) - a
government in which members of an executive branch (the cabinet and
its leader - a prime minister, premier, or chancellor) are nominated
to their positions by a legislature or parliament, and are directly
responsible to it; this type of government can be dissolved at will
by the parliament (legislature) by means of a no confidence vote or
the leader of the cabinet may dissolve the parliament if it can no
longer function.
Parliamentary monarchy - a state headed by a monarch who is not
actively involved in policy formation or implementation (i.e., the
exercise of sovereign powers by a monarch in a ceremonial capacity);
true governmental leadership is carried out by a cabinet and its
head - a prime minister, premier, or chancellor - who are drawn from
a legislature (parliament).
Presidential - a system of government where the executive branch
exists separately from a legislature (to which it is generally not
accountable).
Republic - a representative democracy in which the people's elected
deputies (representatives), not the people themselves, vote on
legislation.
Socialism - a government in which the means of planning, producing,
and distributing goods is controlled by a central government that
theoretically seeks a more just and equitable distribution of
property and labor; in actuality, most socialist governments have
ended up being no more than dictatorships over workers by a ruling
elite.
Sultanate - similar to a monarchy, but a government in which the
supreme power is in the hands of a sultan (the head of a Muslim
state); the sultan may be an absolute ruler or a sovereign with
constitutionally limited authority.
Theocracy - a form of government in which a Deity is recognized as
the supreme civil ruler, but the Deity's laws are interpreted by
ecclesiastical authorities (bishops, mullahs, etc.); a government
subject to religious authority.
Totalitarian - a government that seeks to subordinate the individual
to the state by controlling not only all political and economic
matters, but also the attitudes, values, and beliefs of its
population.
Country

Government type

Afghanistan
Islamic republic

Albania
emerging democracy

Algeria
republic

American Samoa
NA

Andorra
parliamentary democracy (since March 1993) that retains as
its chiefs of state a coprincipality; the two princes are the
president of France and bishop of Seo de Urgel, Spain, who are
represented locally by coprinces' representatives

Angola
republic; multiparty presidential regime

Anguilla
NA