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; the Y embraces
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 had three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue;
the miniature flags were 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 South Africa
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 high 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,
corruption, and HIV/AIDS. At the start of 2000, President MBEKI vowed to
promote economic growth and foreign investment, and to reduce poverty by
relaxing restrictive labor laws, stepping up the pace of privatization,
and cutting unneeded governmental spending. The economy slowed in 2001,
largely the result of the slowing of the international economy.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $412 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.6% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $9,400 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3% industry: 31% services: 66%
(2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 50% (2000 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 45.9% (1994)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 59.3 (1993-94)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.8% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 17 million economically active (2000)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45%
(1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 37% (2001 est.)
Budget: revenues: $22.6 billion expenditures: $24.7 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA billion (FY02/03)
Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold,
chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron
and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs
Industrial production growth rate: 7% (2001 est.)
Electricity - production: 194.383 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 92.62% hydro: 0.69%
other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 6.69%
Electricity - consumption: 181.521 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: 4.549 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: 5.294 billion kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables;
beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products
Exports: $32.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Exports - commodities: gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and
minerals, machinery and equipment
Exports - partners: EU 33%, US 20%, Japan 6%, Mozambique 2.5% (2001 est.)
Imports: $28.1 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals,
petroleum products, scientific instruments
Imports - partners: EU 41%, US 11.4%, Saudi Arabia 7.3%, Japan 7%
(2001 est.)
Debt - external: $25.5 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $539 million (1999)
Currency: rand (ZAR)
Currency code: ZAR
Exchange rates: rand per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918
(2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications South Africa
Telephones - main lines in use: more than 5 million (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 7.06 million (2001)
Telephone system: general assessment: the system is the best developed
and most modern in Africa domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire
lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable,
radiotelephone communication stations, and wireless local loops; key
centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth,
and Pretoria international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations -
3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1
(1998)
Radios: 17 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations: 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 6 million (2000)
Internet country code: .za
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 150 (2001)
Internet users: 2.4 million (2001)
Transportation South Africa
Railways: total: 20,384 km narrow gauge: 20,070 km 1.067-m gauge (9,090
km electrified); 314 km 0.610-m gauge note: in addition, South Africa has
an electrified 1.065-m gauge commuter rail system, with a total length
of 1,254 km, which serves Johannesburg-Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban,
East London, and Port Elizabeth (2001)
Highways: total: 358,596 km paved: 59,753 km (including 1,927 km of
expressways) unpaved: 298,843 km (1996)
Waterways: NA
Pipelines: crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas
322 km
Ports and harbors: Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mossel Bay, Port
Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha
Merchant marine: total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 271,650
GRT/268,604 DWT note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here
as a flag
Denmark 3, Netherlands 1 (2002 est.) ships by type:
Airports: 740 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 144 over 3,047 m: 9 2,438 to
3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 47 914 to 1,523 m: 72 under 914 m: 11 (2001)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 596 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914
to 1,523 m: 304 under 914 m: 258 (2001)
Military South Africa
Military branches: South African National Defense Force (including Army,
Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 11,557,242 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 7,031,337
(2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 466,399
(2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $1.79 billion (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.6% (FY01)
Military - note: the National Defense Force continues to integrate
former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces
Transnational Issues South Africa
Disputes - international: Swaziland continues to press South Africa into
ceding ethnic Swazi lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-Natal province,
that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom
Illicit drugs: transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana,
and possibly 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
This page was last updated on 1 January 2002
========================================================================
Senegal
Introduction
Senegal
Background: Independent from France in 1960, Senegal joined with The
Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. However,
the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out,
and the union was dissolved in 1989. Despite peace talks, a southern
separatist group sporadically has clashed with government forces since
1982. Senegal has a long history of participating in international
peacekeeping.
Geography Senegal
Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania
Geographic coordinates: 14 00 N, 14 00 W
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 196,190 sq km land: 192,000 sq km water: 4,190 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than South Dakota
Land boundaries: total: 2,640 km border countries: The Gambia 740 km,
Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau 338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km
Coastline: 531 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate: tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong
southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry,
harmattan wind
Terrain: generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point:
unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m
Natural resources: fish, phosphates, iron ore
Land use: arable land: 12% permanent crops: 0% other: 88% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 710 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues: wildlife populations threatened by
poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification;
overfishing
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands,
Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping
Geography - note: westernmost country on the African continent; The
Gambia is almost an enclave of Senegal
People Senegal
Population: 10,589,571 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 43.5% (male 2,321,789; female 2,290,105)
15-64 years: 53.4% (male 2,710,178; female 2,943,554) 65 years and over:
3.1% (male 159,445; female 164,500) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.91% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 36.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate: 8.14 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over:
0.97 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 55.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: 64.61 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 5.03 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.4% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 95,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 10,000 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Senegalese (singular and plural) adjective: Senegalese
Ethnic groups: Wolof 43.3%, Pular 23.8%, Serer 14.7%, Jola 3.7%,
Mandinka 3%, Soninke 1.1%, European and Lebanese 1%, other 9.4%
Religions: Muslim 94%, indigenous beliefs 1%, Christian 5% (mostly
Roman Catholic)
Languages: French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total
population: 39.1% male: 51.1% female: 28.9% (2001 est.)
Government Senegal
Country name: Republic of Senegal conventional short form: Government
type: republic under multiparty democratic rule
Capital: Dakar
Administrative divisions: 10 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar,
Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kolda, Louga, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thies,
Ziguinchor note: there may be another region called Matam
Independence: 4 April 1960 (from France); complete independence was
achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960
National holiday: Independence Day, 4 April (1960)
Constitution: a new constitution was adopted 7 January 2001
Legal system: based on French civil law system; judicial review of
legislative acts in Constitutional Court; the Council of State audits
the government's accounting office; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Abdoulaye WADE (since 1
April 2000) head of
Prime Minister Madior BOYE (since 3 March 2001) cabinet: with the
president election results: Abdoulaye WADE elected president;
percent of vote in the second round of voting - Abdoulaye WADE (PDS)
58.49%, Abdou DIOUF (PS) 41.51% elections: president elected by popular
vote for a five-year term under new constitution; election last held
27 February and 19 March 2000 (next to be held 27 February 2005); prime
minister appointed by the president
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale
(120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year
terms) elections: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party -
SOPI Coalition 89, AFP 11, PS 10, other 10 note: the former National
Assembly, dissolved in the spring of 2001, had 140 seats
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Council of State; Court of Final
Appeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals; note-the judicial system
was reformed in 1992
Political parties and leaders: African Party for Democracy and Socialism
or And Jef (also known as PADS/AJ) [Landing SAVANE, secretary general];
African Party of Independence [Majhemout DIOP]; Alliance of Forces of
Progress or AFP [Moustapha NIASSE]; Democratic and Patriotic Convention or
CDP (also known as Garab-Gi) [Dr. Iba Der THIAM]; Democratic League-Labor
Party Movement or LD-MPT [Dr. Abdoulaye BATHILY]; Front for Socialism and
Democracy or FSD [Cheikh Abdoulaye DIEYE]; Gainde Centrist Bloc or BGC
[Jean-Paul DIAS]; Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Amath DANSOKHO];
National Democratic Rally or RND [Madier DIOUF]; Senegalese Democratic
Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]; Socialist Party or PS [Ousmane Tanor
DIENG]; SOPI Coalition (a coalition led by the PDS) [Abdoulaye WADE];
Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]; other small parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: labor; Muslim brotherhoods;
students; teachers
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA,
ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIPONUH,
MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM,
UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Mamadou Mansour SECK FAX: [1] (202) 332-6315
[1] (202) 234-0540 chancery:
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Harriet L. ELAM-THOMAS embassy: Avenue Jean XXIII at the corner of Rue
Kleber, Dakar mailing address: B. P. 49, Dakar telephone: [221] 823-4296,
823-7384 FAX: [221] 822-2991
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side),
yellow, and red with a small green five-pointed star centered in the
yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
Economy Senegal
Economy - overview: In January 1994, Senegal undertook a bold and
ambitious economic reform program with the support of the international
donor community. This reform began with a 50% devaluation of Senegal's
currency, the CFA franc, which is linked at a fixed rate to the French
franc. Government price controls and subsidies have been steadily
dismantled. After seeing its economy contract by 2.1% in 1993, Senegal
made an important turnaround, thanks to the reform program, with real
growth in GDP averaging 5% annually during 1995-2001. Annual inflation had
been pushed down to less than 1%, but rose to an estimated 3.3% in 2001.
Investment rose steadily from 13.8% of GDP in 1993 to 16.5% in 1997. As a
member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), Senegal
is working toward greater regional integration with a unified external
tariff. Senegal also realized full Internet connectivity in 1996, creating
a miniboom in information technology-based services. Private activity now
accounts for 82% of GDP. On the negative side, Senegal faces deep-seated
urban problems of chronic unemployment, trade union militancy, juvenile
delinquency, and drug addiction.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $16.2 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 5.7% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,580 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 18.5% industry: 20.7% services:
60.8% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 54% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 42.8% (1991)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 41.3 (1995)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.3% (2001 est.)
Labor force: NA
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 70%
Unemployment rate: 48% (urban youth 40%) (2001 est.)
Budget: revenues: $1.373 billion expenditures: $1.373 billion, including
capital expenditures of $357 million (2002 est.)
Industries: agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining,
fertilizer production, petroleum refining, construction materials
Industrial production growth rate: 5.2% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production: 1.32 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% other: 0%
(2000) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 1.228 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: peanuts, millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton,
tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish
Exports: $1 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Exports - commodities: fish, groundnuts (peanuts), petroleum products,
phosphates, cotton
Exports - partners: France 19%, Italy 12%, Spain 6%, Cote d'Ivoire 2%
(2000)
Imports: $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Imports - commodities: foods and beverages, consumer goods, capital
goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners: France 27%, Nigeria 19%, Germany 4%, US 4%, Italy 3%
(2000)
Debt - external: $3.1 billion (2002 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $362.6 million (2002 est.)
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible
authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Currency code: XOF
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US
dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70
(1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the
XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Senegal
Telephones - main lines in use: 234,916 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 373,965 (2001)
Telephone system: general assessment: good system domestic: above-average
urban system; microwave radio relay, coaxial cable and fiber-optic
cable in trunk system international: 4 submarine cables; satellite earth
station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 10, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 1.24 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 361,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .sn
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 15 (2002)
Internet users: 40,000 (2001)
Transportation Senegal
Railways: total: 906 km narrow gauge: 906 km 1.000-meter gauge (70 km
double-tracked) (2001)
Highways: total: 14,576 km paved: 4,271 km unpaved: 10,305 km (1996)
Waterways: 897 km note: 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the
Saloum river
Ports and harbors: Dakar, Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll,
Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor
Airports: 20 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 9 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m:
6 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2001)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to
1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2001)
Military Senegal
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National
Police (Surete Nationale)
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,406,337 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 1,257,423
(2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 114,189
(2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $68.6 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.4% (FY02)
Transnational Issues Senegal
Disputes - international: Senegalese separatists disrupt legal border
trade with smuggling, cattle rustling, and other illegal activities
in Guinea-Bissau
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian
heroin moving to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis
This page was last updated on 1 January 2002
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Saint Helena
Introduction Saint Helena
Background: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502,
Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It
acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until
his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the
opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US
Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station.
Geography Saint Helena
Location: islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between
South America and Africa
Geographic coordinates: 15 56 S, 5 42 W
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 410 sq km note: includes St. Helena Island, Ascension,
and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da
Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale
Islands water: 0 sq km land: 410 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 60 km
Maritime claims: exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds;
Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds
(tends to be cooler than Saint Helena)
Terrain: Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus
and plains note: Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use: arable land: 13% permanent crops: 0% other: 87% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere
else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and
sooty terns
People Saint Helena
Population: 7,317 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 18.8% (male 698; female 678) 15-64 years:
71.9% (male 2,727; female 2,531) 65 years and over: 9.3% (male 296;
female 387) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.7% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 13.26 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate: 6.29 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over:
0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 21.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: 80.23 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 1.53 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Saint Helenian(s) adjective: Saint Helenian
Ethnic groups: African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25%
Religions: Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist,
Roman Catholic
Languages: English
Literacy: definition: age 20 and over can read and write total
population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.)
Government Saint Helena
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form:
Saint Helena
Dependency status: overseas territory of the UK
Government type: NA
Capital: Jamestown