various business and environmental groups
note: debate on Taiwan independence has become acceptable within the
mainstream of domestic politics on Taiwan; political liberalization
and the increased representation of opposition parties in Taiwan's
legislature have opened public debate on the island's national
identity; advocates of Taiwan independence oppose the ruling party's
traditional stand that the island will eventually reunify with
mainland China; goals of the Taiwan independence movement include
establishing a sovereign nation on Taiwan and entering the UN; other
organizations supporting Taiwan independence include the World United
Formosans for Independence and the Organization for Taiwan Nation
Building
International organization participation: APEC, AsDB, BCIE, ICC, IOC,
WCL, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US: none; unofficial commercial and
cultural relations with the people of the US are maintained through a
private instrumentality, the Taipei Economic and Cultural
Representative Office (TECRO) in the US with headquarters in Taipei
and field offices in Washington and 12 other US cities
Diplomatic representation from the US: none; unofficial commercial and
cultural relations with the people on Taiwan are maintained through a
private corporation, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), which has
its headquarters in Rosslyn, Virginia (telephone: (703) 525-8474
and FAX: (703) 841-1385) and offices in Taipei at #7 Lane 134,
Hsin Yi Road, Section 3, telephone (2) 2709-2000, FAX (2)
2702-7675, and in Kao-hsiung at #2 Chung Cheng 3d Road, telephone
(7) 224-0154 through 0157, FAX (7) 223-8237, and the
American Trade Center at Room 3207 International Trade Building,
Taipei World Trade Center, 333 Keelung Road Section 1, Taipei 10548,
telephone (2) 2720-1550, FAX (2) 2757-7162
Flag description: red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper
hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays
@Taiwan:Economy
Economy - overview: Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with
gradually decreasing guidance of investment and foreign trade by
government authorities. In keeping with this trend, some large
government-owned banks and industrial firms are being privatized. Real
growth in GDP has averaged about 8% during the past three decades.
Exports have grown even faster and have provided the primary impetus
for industrialization. Inflation and unemployment are low; the trade
surplus is substantial; and foreign reserves are the world's third
largest. Agriculture contributes 3% to GDP, down from 35% in 1952.
Traditional labor-intensive industries are steadily being moved
off-shore and replaced with more capital- and technology-intensive
industries. Taiwan has become a major investor in China, Thailand,
Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam. The tightening of
labor markets has led to an influx of foreign workers, both legal and
illegal. Because of its conservative financial approach and its
entrepreneurial strengths, Taiwan suffered little compared with many
of its neighbors from the Asian financial crisis in 1998-99. Growth in
2000 should pick up a bit from 1999, backed by expansion in domestic
consumption, exports, and private investment.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $357 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 5.5% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $16,100 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3%
industry: 33%
services: 64% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 1% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.4% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 9.7 million (1999 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: services 55%, industry 37%, agriculture
8% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 2.9% (1999 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $36.82 billion
expenditures: $40.53 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1999 est.)
Industries: electronics, petroleum refining, chemicals, textiles, iron
and steel, machinery, cement, food processing
Industrial production growth rate: 7.5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 133.586 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 65.91%
hydro: 7.84%
nuclear: 26.25%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 124.235 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs,
poultry, beef, milk; fish
Exports: $121.6 billion (f.o.b., 1999)
Exports - commodities: electronics, electric and machinery equipment
52%, metals, textiles, plastics, chemicals
Exports - partners: US 26%, Hong Kong 21%, Europe 18%, Japan 10%,
Singapore 3% (1999)
Imports: $101.7 billion (c.i.f., 1999)
Imports - commodities: electronics, electric and machinery equipment
45%, minerals, precision instruments
Imports - partners: Japan 27%, US 18%, Europe 16%, South Korea 6%,
Malaysia 4% (1999)
Debt - external: $35 billion (September 1999)
Economic aid - recipient: $NA
Currency: 1 New Taiwan dollar (NT$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: New Taiwan dollars per US$1 - 31.395 (yearend 1999),
32.216 (1998), 32.052 (1997), 27.5 (1996), 27.5 (1995)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June (up to FY98/99); 1 July 1999 - 31
December 2000 for FY00; calendar year (after FY00)
@Taiwan:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 12 million (October 1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 10.2 million (October 1999)
Telephone system:
domestic: provides modern telecommunications service for every
business and private need; completely digitalized
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean
and 1 Indian Ocean); submarine cables to Japan (Okinawa), Philippines,
Guam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, Middle East, and
Western Europe (1999)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 218, FM 333, shortwave 50 (1999)
Radios: 16 million (1994)
Television broadcast stations: 29 (plus two repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 8.8 million (1998)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 15 (1999)
@Taiwan:Transportation
Railways:
total: 2,481 km (519 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 2,481 km 1.067-m (1999)
Highways:
total: 34,901 km
paved: 31,271 km (including 538 km of expressways)
unpaved: 3,630 km (1998 est.)
Pipelines: petroleum products 3,400 km; natural gas 1,800 km (1999)
Ports and harbors: Chi-lung (Keelung), Hua-lien, Kao-hsiung, Su-ao,
T'ai-chung
Merchant marine:
total: 175 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,944,166 GRT/7,710,891
DWT
ships by type: bulk 45, cargo 33, combination bulk 1, container 69,
petroleum tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 8, roll-on/roll-off 2 (1999
est.)
Airports: 38 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 35
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1999 est.)
@Taiwan:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, Coastal
Patrol and Defense Command, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined
Service Forces
Military manpower - military age: 19 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 6,554,373 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 5,017,643 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 201,413 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $8.042 billion (FY98/99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.8% (FY98/99)
@Taiwan:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: involved in complex dispute over the Spratly
Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, and possibly
Brunei; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and
Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku
Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does China
Illicit drugs: considered an important heroin transit point; major
problem with domestic consumption of methamphetamines and heroin
______________________________________________________________________
TAJIKISTAN
@Tajikistan:Introduction
Background: Tajikistan has experienced three changes in government and
a civil war since it gained independence in 1991 when the USSR
collapsed. A peace agreement among rival factions was signed in 1997,
but implementation has progressed slowly. Nevertheless, a number of
opposition political parties have been legalized and are participating
in elections, suggesting that the country may be stabilizing
politically. Russian-led peacekeeping troops are based throughout the
country, and Russian-commanded border guards are stationed along the
border with Afghanistan.
@Tajikistan:Geography
Location: Central Asia, west of China
Geographic coordinates: 39 00 N, 71 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area:
total: 143,100 sq km
land: 142,700 sq km
water: 400 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Wisconsin
Land boundaries:
total: 3,651 km
border countries: Afghanistan 1,206 km, China 414 km, Kyrgyzstan 870
km, Uzbekistan 1,161 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid
to polar in Pamir Mountains
Terrain: Pamir and Alay mountains dominate landscape; western Fergana
Valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Syrdariya 300 m
highest point: Pik Imeni Ismail Samani 7,495 m
Natural resources: hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, mercury, brown
coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten
Land use:
arable land: 6%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 25%
forests and woodland: 4%
other: 65% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 6,390 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: inadequate sanitation facilities;
increasing levels of soil salinity; industrial pollution; excessive
pesticides; part of the basin of the shrinking Aral Sea suffers from
severe overutilization of available water for irrigation and
associated pollution
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental
Modification, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: landlocked
@Tajikistan:People
Population: 6,440,732 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42% (male 1,362,521; female 1,336,205)
15-64 years: 54% (male 1,714,545; female 1,734,430)
65 years and over: 4% (male 126,170; female 166,861) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.12% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 33.56 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 8.64 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -3.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 117.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 64.08 years
male: 60.95 years
female: 67.38 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.35 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Tajikistani(s)
adjective: Tajikistani
Ethnic groups: Tajik 64.9%, Uzbek 25%, Russian 3.5% (declining because
of emigration), other 6.6%
Religions: Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 5%
Languages: Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and
business
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 99%
female: 97% (1989 est.)
@Tajikistan:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Tajikistan
conventional short form: Tajikistan
local long form: Jumhurii Tojikiston
local short form: none
former: Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic
Data code: TI
Government type: republic
Capital: Dushanbe
Administrative divisions: 2 oblasts (viloyatho, singular - viloyat)
and one autonomous oblast* (viloyati mukhtori); Viloyati Mukhtori
Kuhistoni Badakhshoni* (Khorugh - formerly Khorog), Viloyati Khatlon
(Qurghonteppa - formerly Kurgan-Tyube), Viloyati Leninobod (Khujand -
formerly Leninabad)
note: the administrative center name follows in parentheses
Independence: 9 September 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: National Day, 9 September (1991)
Constitution: 6 November 1994
Legal system: based on civil law system; no judicial review of
legislative acts
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Emomali RAHMONOV (since 6 November 1994;
head of state and Supreme Assembly chairman since 19 November 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Ogil OQILOV (since 20 January 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by
the Supreme Assembly
elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term;
election last held 6 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); prime
minister appointed by the president
election results: Emomali RAHMONOV elected president; percent of vote
- Emomali RAHMONOV 96%, Davlat USMONOV 4%
Legislative branch: bicameral Supreme Assembly or Majlisi Oli (181
seats; next election 96 seats; members are elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 February and 12 March 1995 (next to be held 27
February and 23 March 2000)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; estimated seats by
party - Communist Party and affiliates 100, People's Party 10, Party
of People's Unity 6, Party of Economic and Political Renewal 1, other
64
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party or TDP [Mahmadruzi
ISKANDDAROV, chairman]; Islamic Rebirth Party [Muhammadsharif
HIMMAT-ZODA, chairman]; Lali Badakhshan Movement ;
National Unity Party - evolved from the People's Party and Party of
People's Unity; Party of Justice and Development ;
People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan or PDPT ;
Rastokhez (Rebirth) Movement ; Tajik Communist
Party or CPT ; Tajikistan Party of Economic and
Political Renewal or TPEPR ; United Tajik Opposition or UTO
- an umbrella group including; Adolatho "Justice"
Party
International organization participation: AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD,
ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, Intelsat, IOC, IOM, ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: Tajikistan does not have an
embassy in the US, but does have a permanent mission to the UN:
address - 136 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10021, telephone -
(212) 472-7645, FAX - (212) 628-0252; permanent representative to
the UN is Rashid ALIMOV
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert FINN
embassy: temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in Almaty
(Kazakhstan)
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: NA
FAX: NA
Flag description: three horizontal stripes of red (top), a wider
stripe of white, and green; a gold crown surmounted by seven gold,
five-pointed stars is located in the center of the white stripe
@Tajikistan:Economy
Economy - overview: Tajikistan has the lowest per capita GDP among the
15 former Soviet republics. Cotton is the most important crop. Mineral
resources, varied but limited in amount, include silver, gold,
uranium, and tungsten. Industry consists only of a large aluminum
plant, hydropower facilities, and small obsolete factories mostly in
light industry and food processing. The Tajikistani economy has been
gravely weakened by six years of civil conflict and by the loss of
subsidies from Moscow and of markets for its products. Tajikistan thus
depends on aid from Russia and Uzbekistan and on international
humanitarian assistance for much of its basic subsistence needs. Even
if the peace agreement of June 1997 is honored, the country faces
major problems in integrating refugees and former combatants into the
economy. The future of Tajikistan's economy and the potential for
attracting foreign investment depend upon stability and continued
progress in the peace process.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $6.2 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,020 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 34%
industry: 24%
services: 42% (1997)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 22% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 1.9 million (1996)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture and forestry 50%, industry
20%, services 30% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 5.7% includes only officially registered
unemployed; also large numbers of underemployed workers and
unregistered unemployed people (December 1998)
Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Industries: aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement,
vegetable oil, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers
Industrial production growth rate: 5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 13.27 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 1.51%
hydro: 98.49%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 12.561 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 3.33 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 3.55 billion kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables;
cattle, sheep, goats
Exports: $634 million (1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: aluminum, electricity, cotton, fruits,
vegetable oil, textiles
Exports - partners: Uzbekistan 37%, Liechtenstein 26%, Russia 16%,
Kazakhstan 6% (1997)
Imports: $770 million (1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: electricity, petroleum products, aluminum
oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs
Imports - partners: Netherlands 32%, Uzbekistan 29%, Switzerland 20%,
Russia 9% (1997)
Debt - external: $1.3 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $64.7 million (1995)
Currency: Tajikistani ruble (TJR) = 100 tanga
Exchange rates: Tajikistani rubles (TJR) per US$1 - 1550 (January
2000), 998 (January 1999), 350 (January 1997), 284 (January 1996)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Tajikistan:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 263,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: poorly developed and not well maintained; many towns
are not reached by the national network
domestic: cable and microwave radio relay
international: linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS
republics, and by leased connections to the Moscow international
gateway switch; Dushanbe linked by Intelsat to international gateway
switch in Ankara (Turkey); satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 2
Intelsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 5 (1998)
Radios: 1.291 million (1991)
Television broadcast stations: 0 (there are, however, repeaters that
relay programs from Russia, Iran, and Turkey) (1997)
Televisions: 860,000 (1991)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Tajikistan:Transportation
Railways:
total: 480 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial
lines (1990)
Highways:
total: 13,700 km
paved: 11,330 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, meaning
that some are paved and some are all-weather gravel surfaced)
unpaved: 2,370 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: natural gas 400 km (1992)
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: 59 (1994 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1994 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 45
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 36 (1994 est.)
@Tajikistan:Military
Military branches: Army, Air Force, Air Defense Forces, Presidential
National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border troops)
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 1,529,832 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,253,427 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 68,262 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $17 million (FY97)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.8% (FY97)
@Tajikistan:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: portions of the boundary with China are
indefinite; territorial dispute with Kyrgyzstan on northern boundary
in Isfara Valley area
Illicit drugs: limited illicit cultivation of cannabis, mostly for
domestic consumption; opium poppy cultivation negligible in 1998
because of government eradication program; major transshipment point
for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia to Russia and Western Europe
______________________________________________________________________
TANZANIA
@Tanzania:Introduction
Background: Shortly after independence, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged
to form the nation of Tanzania in 1964. One-party rule came to an end
in 1995 with the first democratic elections held in the country since
the 1970s.
@Tanzania:Geography
Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Kenya
and Mozambique
Geographic coordinates: 6 00 S, 35 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 945,087 sq km
land: 886,037 sq km
water: 59,050 sq km
note: includes the islands of Mafia, Pemba, and Zanzibar
Area - comparative: slightly larger than twice the size of California
Land boundaries:
total: 3,402 km
border countries: Burundi 451 km, Kenya 769 km, Malawi 475 km,
Mozambique 756 km, Rwanda 217 km, Uganda 396 km, Zambia 338 km
Coastline: 1,424 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands
Terrain: plains along coast; central plateau; highlands in north,
south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Kilimanjaro 5,895 m
Natural resources: hydropower, tin, phosphates, iron ore, coal,
diamonds, gemstones, gold, natural gas, nickel
Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 40%
forests and woodland: 38%
other: 18% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 1,500 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: the tsetse fly; flooding on the central plateau
during the rainy season; drought
Environment - current issues: soil degradation; deforestation;
desertification; destruction of coral reefs threatens marine habitats;
recent droughts affected marginal agriculture
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: Kilimanjaro is highest point in Africa
@Tanzania:People
Population: 35,306,126
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life
expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population
and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age
and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (male 7,970,453; female 7,883,442)
15-64 years: 52% (male 9,110,501; female 9,325,726)
65 years and over: 3% (male 463,889; female 552,115) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.57% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 40.17 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 12.88 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 80.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 52.26 years
male: 51.32 years
female: 53.23 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 5.51 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Tanzanian(s)
adjective: Tanzanian