current issues: desertification
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: NA
Geographic note: there are 24 Israeli settlements and civilian
land use sites in the Gaza Strip (August 1995 est.)
People
------
Population: 923,940 (July 1996 est.)
note: in addition, there are 5,000 Israeli settlers in the Gaza
Strip (August 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 52% (male 244,026; female 231,976)
15-64 years: 46% (male 210,706; female 210,764)
65 years and over: 2% (male 11,553; female 14,915) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 6.79% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 50.67 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 4.4 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 21.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
all ages: 1.02 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 27.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.98 years
male: 70.69 years
female: 73.34 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 7.79 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: NA
adjective: NA
Ethnic divisions: Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%
Religions: Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%,
Jewish 0.6%
Languages: Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers), English
(widely understood)
Literacy: NA
Government
----------
Government note: Under the Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles
on Interim Self-Government Arrangements ("the DOP"), Israel agreed
to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian
Authority, which includes a Palestinian Legislative Council elected
in January 1996, as part of interim self-governing arrangements in
the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and
responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho has taken place
pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza
Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank
pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement. The
DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the
transitional period for external security and for internal security
and public order of settlements and Israelis. Permanent status is to
be determined through direct negotiations within five years.
Name of country:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gaza Strip
local long form: none
local short form: Qita Ghazzah
Data code: GZ
Economy
-------
Economic overview: In 1991 roughly 40% of Gaza Strip workers were
employed across the border by Israeli industrial, construction, and
agricultural enterprises, with worker remittances supplementing GDP
by roughly 50%. Gaza has depended upon Israel for nearly 90% of its
external trade. Aggravating the impact of Israeli military
administration, unrest in the territory from 1988 to 1993
(intifadah) raised unemployment and lowered the standard of living
of Gazans. The Persian Gulf crisis and its aftershocks also dealt
blows to Gaza since August 1990. Worker remittances from the Gulf
states have dropped, unemployment has increased, and exports have
fallen. The withdrawal of Israel from the Gaza Strip in May 1994 has
brought a new set of adjustment problems. The stringent border
restrictions have held back economic growth in 1995 and 1996.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 3%-4% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $1,200 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 33%
industry: 7%
services: 60% (1995 est., includes West Bank)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 14% (1995 est.)
Labor force: NA
by occupation: construction 33.4%, agriculture 20.0%, commerce,
restaurants, and hotels 14.9%, industry 10.0%, other services 21.7%
(1991)
note: excluding Israeli settlers
Unemployment rate: 30%-45% (1995 est.)
Budget: $NA
Industries: generally small family businesses that produce
textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs;
the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in
an industrial center
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity: power supplied by Israel
Agriculture: olives, citrus, other fruits, vegetables; beef, dairy
products
Exports: $49 million (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: citrus
partners: Israel, Egypt
Imports: $339 million (c.i.f., 1994 est.)
commodities: food, consumer goods, construction materials
partners: Israel, Egypt
External debt: $NA
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
note: $410 million (est.) disbursed from international aid pledges
in 1995 (includes aid to West Bank)
Currency: 1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot
Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1 - 3.1295
(January 1996), 3.0113 (1995), 3.0111 (1994), 2.8301 (1993), 2.4591
(1992), 2.2791 (1991)
Fiscal year: calendar year (since 1 January 1992)
Transportation
--------------
Railways:
total: NA km; note - one line, abandoned and in disrepair, little
trackage remains
Highways:
total: NA km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km
note: small, poorly developed road network
Ports: Gaza
Airports:
total: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 1 (1995 est.)
Communications
--------------
Telephones: NA
note: 10% of Palestinian households have telephones (1992 est.)
Telephone system:
domestic: NA
international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0
Radios: NA; note - 95% of Palestinian households have radios (1992
est.)
Television broadcast stations: 0
Televisions: NA; note - 59% of Palestinian households have
televisions (1992 est.)
Defense
-------
Branches: NA
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49: NA
males fit for military service: NA
Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP
======================================================================
@Georgia
-------
Beset by ethnic and civil strife since independence in 1991, Georgia
began to stabilize in 1994. Separatist conflicts in Abkhazia and
South Ossetia have been dormant for more than two years, although
political settlements remain elusive. Russian peacekeepers are
deployed in both regions and a UN Observer Mission is operating in
Abkhazia. As a result of these conflicts, Georgia still has about
250,000 internally displaced people. In November 1995, Georgia held
peaceful, generally free and fair nationwide presidential and
parliamentary elections. Although the country continues to suffer
from a crippling economic crisis, aggravated by a severe energy
shortage, some progress has been made and the Georgian Government
remains committed to economic reform in cooperation with the IMF and
the World Bank. Violence and organized crime were sharply curtailed
in 1995.
Map
---
Location: 42 00 N, 43 30 E -- Southwestern Asia, bordering the
Black Sea, between Turkey and Russia
Flag
----
Description: maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist side
corner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below
Geography
---------
Location: Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between
Turkey and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 42 00 N, 43 30 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area:
total area: 69,700 sq km
land area: 69,700 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than South Carolina
Land boundaries:
total: 1,461 km
border countries: Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km, Russia 723 km,
Turkey 252 km
Coastline: 310 km
Maritime claims: NA
International disputes: none
Climate: warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast
Terrain: largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the
north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; 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
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Mt'a Mqinvartsveri (Gora Kazbek) 5,048 m
Natural resources: forests, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron
ore, copper, minor coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils
allow for important tea and citrus growth
Land use:
arable land: 11%
permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 29%
forest and woodland: 38%
other: 18%
Irrigated land: 4,660 sq km (1990)
Environment:
current issues: air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy
pollution of Mtkvari River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies of
potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Desertification
People
------
Population: 5,219,810 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 22% (male 595,524; female 571,207)
15-64 years: 66% (male 1,643,506; female 1,784,286)
65 years and over: 12% (male 229,910; female 395,377) (July 1996
est.)
Population growth rate: -1.02% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 12.81 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 12.21 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -10.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.58 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.9 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 22.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 68.09 years
male: 63.43 years
female: 72.98 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.69 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Georgian(s)
adjective: Georgian
Ethnic divisions: Georgian 70.1%, Armenian 8.1%, Russian 6.3%,
Azeri 5.7%, Ossetian 3%, Abkhaz 1.8%, other 5%
Religions: Christian Orthodox 75% (Georgian Orthodox 65%, Russian
Orthodox 10%), Muslim 11%, Armenian Apostolic 8%, unknown 6%
Languages: Armenian 7%, Azeri 6%, Georgian 71% (official), Russian
9%, other 7%
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1989 est.)
total population: 99%
male: 100%
female: 98%
Government
----------
Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of Georgia
conventional short form: Georgia
local long form: Sak'art'velos Respublika
local short form: Sak'art'velo
former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic
Data code: GG
Type of government: republic
Capital: T'bilisi
Administrative divisions: 2 autonomous republics (avtomnoy
respubliki, singular - avtom respublika); Abkhazia (Sokhumi), Ajaria
(Bat'umi)
note: the administrative centers of the autonomous republics are
included in parentheses; there are no oblasts - the rayons around
T'bilisi are under direct republic jurisdiction
Independence: 9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 26 May (1991)
Constitution: adopted 17 October 1995
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Eduard
Amvrosiyevich SHEVARDNADZE (previously elected Chairman of the
Government Council 10 March 1992, Council has since been disbanded;
previously elected Chairman of Parliament 11 October 1992);
presidential election last held 5 November 1995 (next to be held NA
April 2001); results - Eduard SHEVARDNADZE 74%; president's term to
last five years
cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers
Legislative branch: unicameral
Georgian Parliament: elections last held 5 November 1995 (next to be
held NA November 2000); results - CUG 24%, NDP 8%, All Georgia
Revival Union 7%, all other parties received less than 5% each;
seats - (235 total) number of seats by party NA
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders: Citizens Union of Georgia (CUG),
Eduard SHEVARDNADZE, Zurab ZHVANIA, general secretary; National
Democratic Party (NDP), Irina SARISHVILI-CHANTARIA; United
Republican Party, umbrella organization for parties including the
GPF and the Charter 1991 Party, Notar NATADZE, chairman; Georgian
Popular Front (GPF), Nodar NATADZE, chairman; Charter 1991 Party,
Tedo PAATASHVILI; Georgian Social Democratic Party (GSDP), Guram
MUCHAIDZE, secretary general; All Georgia Union for Revival, Alsan
ABASHIDZE; Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Irakli SHENGELAYA;
Democratic Georgia Union (DGU), Avtandil MARGIANI; National
Independence Party (NIP), Irakliy TSERETELI, chairman; Georgian
Monarchists' Party (GMP), Temur ZHORZHOLIANI; Greens Party; Agrarian
Party of Georgia (APG), Roin LIPARTELIANI; United Communist Party of
Georgia (UCP), Panteleimon GIORGADZE, chairman
Other political or pressure groups: supporters of ousted President
Zviad GAMSAKHURDIA (deceased 1 January 1994) remain a source of
opposition; separatist elements in the breakaway region of Abkhazia
International organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CIS, EBRD,
ECE, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat,
Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Tedo JAPARIDZE
chancery: (temporary) Suite 424, 1511 K Street NW, Washington, DC
20005
telephone: [1] (202) 393-5959
FAX: [1] (202) 393-6060
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador William H. COURTNEY
embassy: #25 Antoneli Street, T'bilisi 380026
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [7] (8832) 98-99-67, 93-38-03
FAX: [7] (8832) 93-37-59
Flag: maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist side
corner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below
Economy
-------
Economic overview: Georgia's economy has traditionally revolved
around Black Sea tourism; cultivation of citrus fruits, tea, and
grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and a small industrial
sector producing wine, metals, machinery, chemicals, and textiles.
The country imports the bulk of its energy needs, including natural
gas and oil products. Its only sizable internal energy resource is
hydropower. Since 1991 the economy has sustained severe damage from
civil strife. Georgia has been suffering from acute energy
shortages, as it is having problems paying for even minimal imports.
Georgia is pinning its hopes for long-term recovery largely on
reestablishing trade ties with Russia and on developing
international transportation through the key Black Sea ports of
P'ot'i and Bat'umi. Statistical estimates on Georgia are subject to
a particularly wide margin of error, even compared with other FSU
countries. The GDP estimate below probably does not reflect much of
its grass roots economic activity. GDP is supplemented by
considerable EU and US humanitarian aid.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $6.2 billion (1995 estimate as
extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)
GDP real growth rate: -11% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $1,080 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 70.4%
industry: 10.2%
services: 19.4% (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.2% monthly average (first half
1995 est.)
Labor force: 2.763 million
by occupation: industry and construction 31%, agriculture and
forestry 25%, other 44% (1990)
Unemployment rate: officially less than 5% but real unemployment
may be more than 20%, with even larger numbers of underemployed
workers
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Industries: steel, aircraft, machine tools, foundry equipment,
electric locomotives, tower cranes, electric welding equipment,
machinery for food preparation and meat packing, electric motors,
process control equipment, trucks, tractors, textiles, shoes,
chemicals, wood products, wine
Industrial production growth rate: -10% (1995)
Electricity:
capacity: 4,410,000 kW
production: 9.1 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 1,526 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: citrus, grapes, tea, vegetables, potatoes; small
livestock sector
Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy;
mostly for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for
illicit drugs to Western Europe
Exports: $140 million (c.i.f., 1995)
commodities: citrus fruits, tea, wine, other agricultural products;
diverse types of machinery; ferrous and nonferrous metals; textiles;
chemicals; fuel re-exports
partners: Russia, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan
Imports: $250 million (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: fuel, grain and other foods, machinery and parts,
transport equipment
partners: Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey; note - EU and US send
humanitarian food shipments
External debt: $1.2 billion (of which $135 million to Russia)
(1995 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $28 million (1993)
note: commitments, 1992-95, $1,200 million ($675 million
disbursements)
Currency: lari introduced September 1995 replacing the coupon
Exchange rates: laris per US$1 - 1.24 (end December 1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Transportation
--------------
Railways:
total: 1,570 km in common carrier service; does not include
industrial lines
broad gauge: 1,570 km 1.520-m gauge (1990)
Highways:
total: 35,100 km
paved: 31,200 km
unpaved: 3,900 km (1990 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 370 km; refined products 300 km; natural gas
440 km (1992)
Ports: Bat'umi, P'ot'i, Sokhumi
Merchant marine:
total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 307,765 GRT/483,567 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 2, oil tanker 12, short-sea passenger 1
(1995 est.)
Airports:
total: 28
with paved runways over 3 047 m: 1
with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 7
with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 4
with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 1
with unpaved runways over 3 047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 5
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 6 (1994 est.)
Transportation note: transportation network is in poor condition
and disrupted by ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel
shortages; network lacks maintenance and repair
Communications
--------------
Telephones: 672,000 (1993 est.)
Telephone system: poor service; 339,000 unsatisfied applications
for telephones (December 1990 est.)
domestic: NA
international: landline to CIS members and Turkey; satellite earth
station - 1 Eutelsat; leased connections with other countries via
the Moscow international gateway switch; international electronic
mail and telex service available
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 3
Televisions: NA
Defense
-------
Branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces,
Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49: 1,288,291
males fit for military service: 1,021,632
males reach military age (18) annually: 40,654 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $60 million to
$65 million, NA% of GDP (1995)
======================================================================
@Germany
-------
Map
---
Location: 51 00 N, 9 00 E -- Central Europe, bordering the Baltic
Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of
Denmark
Flag
----
Description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and
yellow
Geography
---------
Location: Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North
Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Geographic coordinates: 51 00 N, 9 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total area: 356,910 sq km
land area: 349,520 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Montana
note: includes the formerly separate Federal Republic of Germany,
the German Democratic Republic, and Berlin, following formal
unification on 3 October 1990
Land boundaries:
total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646
km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577
km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Coastline: 2,389 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and
summers; occasional warm, tropical foehn wind; high relative humidity
Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in
south
lowest point: Freepsum Lake -2 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,962 m
Natural resources: iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite,
uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel
Land use:
arable land: 34%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 16%
forest and woodland: 30%
other: 19%
Irrigated land: 4,800 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries
and lead emissions from vehicle exhausts (the result of continued
use of leaded fuels) contribute to air pollution; acid rain,
resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; heavy
pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents
from rivers in eastern Germany
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified -
Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Desertification, Tropical Timber 94
Geographic note: strategic location on North European Plain and
along the entrance to the Baltic Sea
People
------
Population: 83,536,115 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.15% (male 6,928,750; female 6,563,026)
15-64 years: 68.52% (male 29,339,780; female 27,902,549)
65 years and over: 15.33% (male 4,658,014; female 8,143,996) (July
1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.67% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 9.66 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 12.21 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 8.25 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.57 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.96 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.95 years
male: 72.8 years
female: 79.27 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.3 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: German(s)
adjective: German
Ethnic divisions: German 95.1%, Turkish 2.3%, Italians 0.7%,
Greeks 0.4%, Poles 0.4%, other 1.1% (made up largely of people
fleeing the war in the former Yugoslavia)
Religions: Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 37%, unaffiliated or
other 18%
Languages: German
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1977 est.)
total population: 99%
male: NA%
female: NA%
Government
----------
Name of country:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany
local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland
local short form: Deutschland
Data code: GM
Type of government: federal republic
Capital: Berlin
note: the shift from Bonn to Berlin will take place over a period of
years, with Bonn retaining many administrative functions and several
ministries
Administrative divisions: 16 states (laender, singular - land);
Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg,
Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen,
Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt,
Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen