Exports--partners: Saudi Arabia 55%, Yemen 19%, Italy 11%, UAE, US
(1996 est.)
Imports: $60 million (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
Imports--commodities: manufactures, petroleum products,
foodstuffs, construction materials (1995)
Imports--partners: Kenya 28%, Djibouti 21%, Brazil 6%, Pakistan
(1996 est.)
Debt--external: $2.6 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid--recipient: $191.5 million (1995)
Currency: 1 Somali shilling (So. Sh.) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Somali shillings (So. Sh.) per US$1--2,620
(January 1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996
est.), 5,000 (1 January 1995), 2,616 (1 July 1993), 4,200 (December
1992)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent
country not recognized by any government, issues its own currency,
the Somaliland shilling (So. Sh.)
Fiscal year: NA
Communications
Telephones: 9,000 (1991 est.)
Telephone system: the public telecommunications system was
completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; all
relief organizations depend on their own private systems
domestic: recently, local cellular telephone systems have been
established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers
international: international connections are available from
Mogadishu by satellite
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave 5
Radios: 300,000
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 118,000 (1993 est.)
Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 22,100 km
paved: 2,608 km
unpaved: 19,492 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 15 km
Ports and harbors: Bender Cassim (Boosaaso), Berbera, Chisimayu
(Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu
Merchant marine: none
Airports: 61 (1998 est.)
Airports--with paved runways:
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1998 est.)
Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 54
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 28
under 914 m: 10 (1998 est.)
Military
Military branches: NA; note--no functioning central government
military forces; clan militias continue to battle for control of key
economic or political prizes
Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 1,730,450 (1999 est.)
Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 962,545 (1999 est.)
Military expenditures--dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures--percent of GDP: NA%
Transnational Issues
Disputes--international: most of the southern half of the boundary
with Ethiopia is a Provisional Administrative Line; territorial
dispute with Ethiopia over the Ogaden
======================================================================
@South Africa
------------
Geography
Location: Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent
of Africa
Geographic coordinates: 29 00 S, 24 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince
Edward Island)
Area--comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 4,750 km
border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491
km, Namibia 855 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km
Coastline: 2,798 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny
days, cool nights
Terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow
coastal plain
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
Natural resources: gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore,
manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum,
copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 67%
forests and woodland: 7%
other: 15% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 12,700 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: prolonged droughts
Environment--current issues: lack of important arterial rivers or
lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures;
growth in water usage threatens to outpace supply; pollution of
rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution
resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification
Environment--international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography--note: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and
almost completely surrounds Swaziland
People
Population: 43,426,386 (July 1999 est.)
note: South Africa took a census 10 October 1996 which showed a
population of 37,859,000 (after a 6.8% adjustment for
underenumeration based on a post-enumeration survey); this figure is
still about 10% below projections from earlier censuses; since the
full results of that census have not been released for analysis, the
numbers shown for South Africa do not take into consideration the
results of this 1996 census
Age structure:
0-14 years: 34% (male 7,541,840; female 7,403,235)
15-64 years: 61% (male 13,180,925; female 13,312,917)
65 years and over: 5% (male 798,825; female 1,188,644) (1999 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.32% (1999 est.)
Birth rate: 25.94 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate: 12.81 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 51.99 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 54.76 years
male: 52.68 years
female: 56.9 years (1999 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.09 children born/woman (1999 est.)
Nationality:
noun: South African(s)
adjective: South African
Ethnic groups: black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6%
Religions: Christian 68% (includes most whites and Coloreds,
about 60% of blacks and about 40% of Indians), Muslim 2%, Hindu 1.5%
(60% of Indians), traditional and animistic 28.5%
Languages: 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English,
Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.8%
male: 81.9%
female: 81.7% (1995 est.)
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa
abbreviation: RSA
Data code: SF
Government type: republic
Capital: Pretoria (administrative); Cape Town (legislative);
Bloemfontein (judicial)
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State,
Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape,
Northern Province, Western Cape
Independence: 31 May 1910 (from UK)
National holiday: Freedom Day, 27 April (1994)
Constitution: 10 December 1996; this new constitution was
certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed
by President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on
3 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases
Legal system: based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994);
Executive Deputy President Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994); note--the
president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Nelson MANDELA (since 10 May 1994);
Executive Deputy President Thabo MBEKI (since 10 May 1994); note--the
president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and executive deputy presidents elected by the
National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 9 May 1994
(next scheduled for sometime between May and July 1999)
election results: Nelson MANDELA elected president; percent of
National Assembly vote--100% (by acclamation); Thabo MBEKI and
Frederik W. DE KLERK elected executive deputy presidents; percent of
National Assembly vote--100% (by acclamation)
note: the initial governing coalition, made up of the ANC, the IFP,
and the NP, which constituted a Government of National Unity or GNU,
no longer includes the NP which was withdrawn by DE KLERK on 30 June
1996 when he voluntarily gave up his position as executive deputy
president and distanced himself from the programs of the ANC
Legislative branch: bicameral parliament consisting of the
National Assembly (400 seats; members are elected by popular vote
under a system of proportional representation to serve five-year
terms) and the National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members
elected by each of the nine provincial legislatures for five-year
terms; has special powers to protect regional interests, including
the safeguarding of cultural and linguistic traditions among ethnic
minorities); note--following the implementation of the new
constitution on 3 February 1997 the former Senate was disbanded and
replaced by the National Council of Provinces with essentially no
change in membership and party affiliations, although the new
institution's responsibilities have been changed somewhat by the new
constitution
elections: National Assembly and Senate--last held 26-29 April 1994
(next to be held 2 June 1999); note--the Senate was disbanded and
replaced by the National Council of Provinces on 6 February 1997
election results: National Assembly--percent of vote by party--ANC
62.6%, NP 20.4%, IFP 10.5%, FF 2.2%, DP 1.7%, PAC 1.2%, ACDP 0.5%,
other 0.9%; seats by party--ANC 252, NP 82, IFP 43, FF 9, DP 7, PAC
5, ACDP 2; Senate--percent of vote by party--NA; seats by party--ANC
61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals;
High Courts; Magistrate Courts
Political parties and leaders: African Christian Democratic Party
SCHALKWYK, executive director]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC
note: 11 other parties won votes in the April 1994 elections but not
enough to gain seats in the National Assembly
Political pressure groups and leaders: Congress of South African
secretary]; South African National Civics Organization or SANCO
in a formal alliance with the ANC
International organization participation: AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA,
FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MTCR, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
consulate(s) general: Beverly Hills (California), Chicago, and New
York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador James A. JOSEPH
embassy: 877 Pretorius St., Arcadia 0083
mailing address: P.O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001
consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg
Flag description: two equal width horizontal bands of red (top)
and blue separated by a central green band which splits into a
horizontal Y, the arms of which end at the corners of the hoist
side, embracing a black isosceles triangle from which the arms are
separated by narrow yellow bands; the red and blue bands are
separated from the green band and its arms by narrow white stripes
note: prior to 26 April 1994, the flag was actually four flags in
one--three miniature flags reproduced in the center of the white band
of the former flag of the Netherlands, which has three equal
horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature
flags are a vertically hanging flag of the old Orange Free State
with a horizontal flag of the UK adjoining on the hoist side and a
horizontal flag of the old Transvaal Republic adjoining on the other
side
Economy
Economy--overview: South Africa is a middle-income, developing
country with an abundant supply of resources, well-developed
financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a
stock exchange that ranks among the 10 largest in the world, and a
modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods
to major urban centers throughout the region. However, growth has
not been strong enough to cut into the 30% unemployment, and
daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era, especially
the problems of poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the
disadvantaged groups. Other problems are crime and corruption. The
new government demonstrated its commitment to open markets,
privatization, and a favorable investment climate with the release
of its macroeconomic strategy in June 1996. Called "Growth,
Employment and Redistribution," this policy framework includes the
introduction of tax incentives to stimulate new investment in
labor-intensive projects, expansion of basic infrastructure
services, the restructuring and partial privatization of state
assets, continued reduction of tariffs, subsidies to promote
economic efficiency, improved services to the disadvantaged, and
integration into the global economy. Serious structural rigidities
remain, including a complicated and relatively protectionist trade
regime, and concentration of wealth and economic control.
GDP: purchasing power parity--$290.6 billion (1998 est.)
GDP--real growth rate: 0.3% (1998 est.)
GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$6,800 (1998 est.)
GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 39%
services: 56% (1996 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 47.3% (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9% (1998 est.)
Labor force: 15 million economically active (1997)
Labor force--by occupation: services 35%, agriculture 30%,
industry 20%, mining 9%, other 6%
Unemployment rate: 30% (1998 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $30.5 billion
expenditures: $38 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6
billion (FY94/95 est.)
Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold,
chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile,
iron and steel, chemical, fertilizer, foodstuffs
Industrial production growth rate: -1% (1998 est.)
Electricity--production: 186.949 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 93%
hydro: 0.7%
nuclear: 6.3%
other: NA% (1996)
Electricity--consumption: 181.404 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--exports: 5.575 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--imports: 30 million kWh (1996)
Agriculture--products: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables;
beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Exports: $28.7 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Exports--commodities: gold 20%, other minerals and metals 20%-25%,
food 5%, chemicals 3% (1997)
Exports--partners: UK, Italy, Japan, US, Germany (1997)
Imports: $27.2 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Imports--commodities: machinery, transport equipment, chemicals,
petroleum products, textiles, scientific instruments (1997)
Imports--partners: Germany, US, UK, Japan (1997)
Debt--external: $23.5 billion (1997 est.)
Economic aid--recipient: $676.3 million
Currency: 1 rand (R) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: rand (R) per US$1--5.98380 (January 1999), 5.52828
(1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996), 3.62709 (1995), 3.55080
(1994)
Fiscal year: 1 April--31 March
Communications
Telephones: 4.2 million (1997)
Telephone system: the system is the best developed, most modern,
and has the highest capacity in Africa
domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial
cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable, and
radiotelephone communication stations; key centers are Bloemfontein,
Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, and Pretoria
international: 1 submarine cable; satellite earth stations--3
Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 15, FM 164, shortwave 1
Radios: 7.5 million (1999 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 556 (includes 156 network stations
and 400 privately-owned low-power stations; in addition, there are
144 network repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 7.5 million
Transportation
Railways:
total: 21,431 km
narrow gauge: 20,995 km 1.067-m gauge (9,087 km electrified); 436 km
0.610-m gauge (1995)
Highways:
total: 331,265 km
paved: 137,475 km (including 1,142 km of expressways)
unpaved: 193,790 km (1995 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural
gas 322 km
Ports and harbors: Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mosselbaai,
Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha
Merchant marine:
total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 274,797 GRT/270,837 DWT
ships by type: container 6, oil tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1
(1998 est.)
Airports: 749 (1998 est.)
Airports--with paved runways:
total: 144
over 3,047 m: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 45
914 to 1,523 m: 75
under 914 m: 10 (1998 est.)
Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 605
1,524 to 2,437 m: 35
914 to 1,523 m: 304
under 914 m: 266 (1998 est.)
Military
Military branches: South African National Defense Force or SANDF
(includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South
African Police Service or SAPS
Military manpower--military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 11,330,692 (1999 est.)
Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 6,889,631 (1999 est.)
Military manpower--reaching military age annually:
males: 453,610 (1999 est.)
Military expenditures--dollar figure: $2 billion (FY99/00)
Military expenditures--percent of GDP: 2.2% (FY95/96)
Military--note: the National Defense Force continues to integrate
former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
Transnational Issues
Disputes--international: Swaziland has asked South Africa to open
negotiations on reincorporating some nearby South African
territories that are populated by ethnic Swazis or that were long
ago part of the Swazi Kingdom
Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin and cocaine;
cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit
methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various
east African countries; illicit cultivation of marijuana
======================================================================
@South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
--------------------------------------------
Geography
Location: Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic
Ocean, east of the tip of South America
Geographic coordinates: 54 30 S, 37 00 W
Map references: Antarctic Region
Area:
total: 4,066 sq km
land: 4,066 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Shag Rocks, Clerke Rocks, Bird Island
Area--comparative: slightly larger than Rhode Island
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: NA km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year
interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as
snow
Terrain: 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
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Paget 2,915 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some
sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing
weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by
ship; they are also subject to active volcanism
Environment--current issues: NA
Environment--international agreements:
party to: NA
signed, but not ratified: NA
Geography--note: the north coast of South Georgia has several
large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early
in this century, live on South Georgia
People
Population: no indigenous inhabitants
note: there is a small military garrison on South Georgia, and the
British Antarctic Survey has a biological station on Bird Island;
the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
conventional short form: none
Data code: SX
Dependency status: overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by
Argentina; administered from the Falkland Island by a UK civil
commissioner; Grytviken on South Georgia is the garrison town
Capital: none; Grytviken on South Georgia is the garrison town
Legal system: NA
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (overseas territory of
the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (overseas territory
of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Flag description: the flag of the UK is used
Economy
Economy--overview: Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters.
There is a potential source of income from harvesting fin fish and
krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in
the UK.
Budget:
revenues: $291,777
expenditures: $451,000, including capital expenditures of $NA (1988
est.)
Communications
Telephone system:
domestic: NA
international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken
Transportation
Ports and harbors: Grytviken
Airports: none
Military
Military--note: defense is the responsibility of the UK
Transnational Issues
Disputes--international: claimed by Argentina
======================================================================
@Spain
-----
Introduction
Background: A powerful world empire in the 16th and 17th
centuries, Spain ultimately yielded command of the seas to England,
beginning with the defeat of the Armada in 1588. Spain subsequently
failed to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions and fell
behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power.
Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II. In the second half of
the 20th century Spain played a catch-up role in the western
international community. Continuing problems are large-scale
unemployment and the Basque separatist movement.
Geography
Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay,
Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains,
southwest of France
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 4 00 W
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 504,750 sq km
land: 499,400 sq km
water: 5,350 sq km
note: includes Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, and five places of
sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of
Morocco--Ceuta, Melilla, Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and
Penon de Velez de la Gomera
Area--comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Oregon
Land boundaries:
total: 1,919.1 km
border countries: Andorra 65 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km,
Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km
Coastline: 4,964 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean)
territorial sea: 12 nm