Algeria (2004) | Vietnam (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 48 provinces (wilayas, singular - wilaya); Adrar, Ain Defla, Ain Temouchent, Alger, Annaba, Batna, Bechar, Bejaia, Biskra, Blida, Bordj Bou Arreridj, Bouira, Boumerdes, Chlef, Constantine, Djelfa, El Bayadh, El Oued, El Tarf, Ghardaia, Guelma, Illizi, Jijel, Khenchela, Laghouat, Mascara, Medea, Mila, Mostaganem, M'Sila, Naama, Oran, Ouargla, Oum el Bouaghi, Relizane, Saida, Setif, Sidi Bel Abbes, Skikda, Souk Ahras, Tamanghasset, Tebessa, Tiaret, Tindouf, Tipaza, Tissemsilt, Tizi Ouzou, Tlemcen | 59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thu do, singular and plural)
provinces: An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Dac Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hau Giang, Hoa Binh, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai municipalities: Can Tho, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 29.9% (male 4,893,971; female 4,705,933)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 10,593,840; female 10,443,300) 65 years and over: 4.6% (male 703,420; female 788,860) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.9% (male 12,065,777/female 11,212,299)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 27,406,456/female 28,024,250) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,889,585/female 2,937,209) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, oats, grapes, olives, citrus, fruits; sheep, cattle | paddy rice, coffee, fish and seafood, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas, poultry |
Airports | 137 (2003 est.) | 24 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 52
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 27 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 21
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 85
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 26 914 to 1,523 m: 38 under 914 m: 19 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 2,381,740 sq km
land: 2,381,740 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 329,560 sq km
land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Texas | slightly larger than New Mexico |
Background | After more than a century of rule by France, Algerians fought through much of the 1950s to achieve independence in 1962. Algeria's primary political party, the National Liberation Front (FLN), has dominated politics ever since. Many Algerians in the subsequent generation were not satisfied, however, and moved to counter the FLN's centrality in Algerian politics. The surprising first round success of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in the December 1991 balloting spurred the Algerian army to intervene and postpone the second round of elections to prevent what the secular elite feared would be an extremist-led government from assuming power. The army began a crack down on the FIS that spurred FIS supporters to begin attacking government targets. The government later allowed elections featuring pro-government and moderate religious-based parties, but did not appease the activists who progressively widened their attacks. The fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw intense fighting between 1992-1998 and which resulted in over 100,000 deaths - many attributed to indiscriminate massacres of villagers by extremists. The government gained the upper hand by the late-1990s and FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, disbanded in January 2000. However, small numbers of armed militants persist in confronting government forces and conducting ambushes and occasional attacks on villages. The army placed Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA in the presidency in 1999 in a fraudulent election but claimed neutrality in his 2004 landslide reelection victory. A number of longstanding problems continue to face BOUTEFLIKA in his second term, including the ethnic minority Berbers' ongoing autonomy campaign, large-scale unemployment, a shortage of housing, unreliable electrical and water supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption, and the continuing - although significantly degraded - activities of extremist militants. Algeria must also diversify its petroleum-based economy, which has yielded a large cash reserve but which has not been used to redress Algeria's many social and infrastructure problems. Algeria assumed a two-year seat on the UN Security Council in January 2004. | The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH, who took control of the North. US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South. Despite the return of peace, for over two decades the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. Since 2001, Vietnamese authorities have committed to economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from the Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands over loss of land to Vietnamese settlers and religious persecution. |
Birth rate | 17.76 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 17.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $25.49 billion
expenditures: $22.87 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.8 billion (2003 est.) |
revenues: $10.66 billion
expenditures: $13.09 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2004 est.) |
Capital | Algiers | Hanoi |
Climate | arid to semiarid; mild, wet winters with hot, dry summers along coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on high plateau; sirocco is a hot, dust/sand-laden wind especially common in summer | tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March) |
Coastline | 998 km | 3,444 km (excludes islands) |
Constitution | 19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976; revised 3 November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996 | 15 April 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
conventional short form: Algeria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Jaza'iriyah ad Dimuqratiyah ash Sha'biyah local short form: Al Jaza'ir |
conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form: Vietnam local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam local short form: Viet Nam abbreviation: SRV |
Currency | Algerian dinar (DZD) | - |
Death rate | 4.61 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.2 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $22.71 billion (2003 est.) | $16.55 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Richard W. ERDMAN
embassy: 4 Chemin Cheikh Bachir El-Ibrahimi, Algiers mailing address: B. P. 408, Alger-Gare, 16030 Algiers telephone: [213] (21) 691-425/255/186 FAX: [213] (21) 69-39-79 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500 FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510 consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 2137 Wyoming Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2174 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam CHIEN
chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737 FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
Disputes - international | Algeria supports the exiled Sahrawi Polisario Front and rejects Moroccan administration of Western Sahara; Algeria's border with Morocco remains an irritant to bilateral relations; each nation has accused the other of harboring militants and arms smuggling; in an attempt to improve relations afer unilaterally imposing a visa requirement on Algerians in the early 1990s, Morocco lifted the requirement in mid-2004 - a gesture not reciprocated by Algeria; Algeria remains concerned about armed bandits operating throughout the Sahel who sometimes destabilize southern Algerian towns; dormant disputes include Libyan claims of about 32,000 sq km still reflected on its maps of southeastern Algeria and the FLN's assertions of a claim to Chirac Pastures in southeastern Morocco | southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; in 2004 Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commission agrees to erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Vietnam continues to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly Islands; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands |
Economic aid - recipient | $182 million (2001 est.) | $2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004) |
Economy - overview | The hydrocarbons sector is the backbone of the economy, accounting for roughly 60% of budget revenues, 30% of GDP, and over 95% of export earnings. Algeria has the seventh-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and is the second-largest gas exporter; it ranks 14th in oil reserves. Economic policy reforms supported by the IMF and debt rescheduling from the Paris Club in the past decade have helped improve Algeria's financial and macroeconomic indicators. Because of sustained high oil prices in the past three years, Algeria's finances have further benefited from substantial trade surpluses and record foreign exchange reserves. Real GDP has risen due to higher oil output and increased government spending. The government's continued efforts to diversify the economy by attracting foreign and domestic investment outside the energy sector, however, has had little success in reducing high unemployment and improving living standards. Structural reform within the economy moves ahead slowly. | Vietnam is a densely-populated, developing country that in the last 30 years has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1997 in moving forward from an extremely low level of development and significantly reducing poverty. Growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy and temporarily allowed opponents of reform to slow progress towards a market oriented economy. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 7% in 2000-04 even against the background of global recession. Since 2001, however, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and international integration. They have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. However, equitization of state-owned enterprises and reduction in the proportion of non-performing loans has fallen behind schedule. Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade in December 2001 have led to even more rapid changes in Vietnam's trade and economic regime. Vietnam's exports to the US doubled in 2002 and again in 2003. Vietnam is working toward accession to the WTO in 2005. Among other benefits, accession will allow Vietnam to take advantage of the phase out of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which eliminated quotas on textiles and clothing for WTO partners on 1 January 2005. Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, in 2004, high levels of inflation prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 22.9 billion kWh (2001) | 32.06 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 340 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 275 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 24.69 billion kWh (2001) | 34.48 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Chott Melrhir -40 m
highest point: Tahat 3,003 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m |
Environment - current issues | soil erosion from overgrazing and other poor farming practices; desertification; dumping of raw sewage, petroleum refining wastes, and other industrial effluents is leading to the pollution of rivers and coastal waters; Mediterranean Sea, in particular, becoming polluted from oil wastes, soil erosion, and fertilizer runoff; inadequate supplies of potable water | logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1%
note: almost all Algerians are Berber in origin, not Arab; the minority who identify themselves as Berber live mostly in the mountainous region of Kabylie east of Algeirs; the Berbers are also Muslim but identify with their Berber rather than Arab cultural heritage; Berbers have long agitated, sometimes violently, for autonomy; the government is unlikely to grant autonomy but has offered to begin sponsoring teaching Berber language in schools |
Kinh (Viet) 86.2%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.7%, Muong 1.5%, Khome 1.4%, Hoa 1.1%, Nun 1.1%, Hmong 1%, others 4.1% (1999 census) |
Exchange rates | Algerian dinars per US dollar - 77.395 (2003), 79.6819 (2002), 77.215 (2001), 75.2598 (2000), 66.5739 (1999) | dong per US dollar - 15,746 (2004), 15,510 (2003), 15,280 (2002), 14,725 (2001), 14,168 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA (since 28 April 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Ahmed OUYAHIA (since 9 May 2003) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 8 April 2004 (next to be held NA April 2009); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA reelected president for second term; percent of vote - Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA 85%, Ali BENFLIS 6.4%, Abdallah DJABALLAH 5% |
chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Vu KHOAN (8 August 2002) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and ratification of National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products 97% | crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes |
Exports - partners | Italy 19.5%, US 18.5%, France 13.6%, Spain 11.2%, Canada 6.2%, Belgium 5.1%, Brazil 4.9% (2003) | US 20.2%, Japan 13.6%, China 9%, Australia 7%, Germany 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, UK 4.6% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and white; a red, five-pointed star within a red crescent centered over the two-color boundary; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam (the state religion) | red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $196 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10.2%
industry: 56.5% services: 33.4% (2003) |
agriculture: 21.8%
industry: 40.1% services: 38.1% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7.4% (2003 est.) | 7.7% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 28 00 N, 3 00 E | 16 00 N, 106 00 E |
Geography - note | second-largest country in Africa (after Sudan) | extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 104,000 km
paved: 71,656 km (including 640 km of expressways) unpaved: 32,344 km (1999) |
total: 93,300 km
paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 26.8% (1995) |
lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 29.9% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles |
Imports - partners | France 30.9%, Italy 9.6%, Spain 6.1%, Germany 5.5%, China 4.6%, Turkey 4.1% (2003) | China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.3%, South Korea 10.8%, Japan 10.5%, Singapore 10.5%, Thailand 6.2%, Hong Kong 4% (2004) |
Independence | 5 July 1962 (from France) | 2 September 1945 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (2003 est.) | 16% (2004 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, natural gas, light industries, mining, electrical, petrochemical, food processing | food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper |
Infant mortality rate | total: 32.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 36.06 deaths/1,000 live births female: 28.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 25.95 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2003 est.) | 9.5% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, BIS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, OSCE (partner), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT (observer), APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 5,600 sq km (1998 est.) | 30,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Court Supreme | Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president) |
Labor force | 9.6 million (2003) | 42.98 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 14%, industry 13.4%, construction and public works 10%, trade 14.6%, government 32%, other 16% (2003 est.) | agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 6,343 km
border countries: Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km, Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km, Western Sahara 42 km |
total: 4,639 km
border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.22%
permanent crops: 0.25% other: 96.53% (2001) |
arable land: 19.97%
permanent crops: 5.95% other: 74.08% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects | Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) |
Legal system | socialist, based on French and Islamic law; judicial review of legislative acts in ad hoc Constitutional Council composed of various public officials, including several Supreme Court justices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on communist legal theory and French civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the National People's Assembly or Al-Majlis Ech-Chaabi Al-Watani (389 seats - changed from 380 seats in the 2002 elections; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Council of Nations (Senate) (144 seats; one-third of the members appointed by the president, two-thirds elected by indirect vote; members serve six-year terms; the constitution requires half the council to be renewed every three years)
elections: National People's Assembly - last held 30 May 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); Council of Nations (Senate) - last held 30 December 2003 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: National People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FLN 199, RND 48, Islah 43, MSP 38, PT 21, FNA 8, EnNahda 1, PRA 1, MEN 1, independents 29; Council of Nations - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party NA |
unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the 10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.74 years
male: 71.22 years female: 74.34 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 70.61 years
male: 67.82 years female: 73.6 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70% male: 78.8% female: 61% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.3% male: 93.9% female: 86.9% (2002) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Morocco and Tunisia | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 32-52 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 59 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 837,676 GRT/929,847 DWT
by type: bulk 9, cargo 16, chemical tanker 6, liquefied gas 10, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea/passenger 4, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: United Kingdom 4 registered in other countries: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,170,621 GRT/1,798,376 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 18, cargo 142, chemical tanker 3, container 2, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 22, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2005) |
Military branches | People's National Army (ANP; includes Ground Forces), Algerian National Navy (ANN), Air Force (QJA), Territorial Air Defense | People's Army of Vietnam: Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (includes Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2,196.6 million (2003) | $650 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.5% (2003) | 2.5% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 9,311,747 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 5,675,739 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 373,235 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 1 November (1954) | Independence Day, 2 September (1945) |
Nationality | noun: Algerian(s)
adjective: Algerian |
noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective: Vietnamese |
Natural hazards | mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy season | occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc | phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 1,344 km; gas 85,946 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,213 km; oil 6,496 km (2004) | condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Algerian National Front or FNA [Moussa TOUATI]; Democratic National Rally or RND [Ahmed OUYAHIA, chairman]; Islamic Salvation Front or FIS (outlawed April 1992) [Ali BELHADJ and Dr. Abassi MADANI, Rabeh KEBIR (self-exiled in Germany)]; National Entente Movement or MEN [Ali BOUKHAZNA]; National Liberation Front or FLN [Abdelaziz BELKHADEM, secretary general (also serves as Foreign Minister)]; National Reform Movement or Islah (formerly MRN) [Abdellah DJABALLAH]; National Renewal Party or PRA [Yacine TERKMANE]; Progressive Republican Party [Khadir DRISS]; Rally for Culture and Democracy or RCD [Said SAADI, secretary general]; Renaissance Movement or EnNahda Movement [Fatah RABEI]; Social Liberal Party or PSL [Ahmed KHELIL]; Socialist Forces Front or FFS [Hocine Ait AHMED, secretary general (self-exiled in Switzerland)]; Society of Peace Movement or MSP [Boujerra SOLTANI]; Workers Party or PT [Louisa HANOUN]
note: a law banning political parties based on religion was enacted in March 1997 |
only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH, general secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | The Algerian Human Rights League or LADH or LADDH [Yahia Ali ABDENOUR]; SOS Disparus [Nacera DUTOUR]; Somoud [Ali MERABET] | none |
Population | 32,129,324 (July 2004 est.) | 83,535,576 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 23% (1999 est.) | 28.9% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.28% (2004 est.) | 1.04% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Bejaia, Beni Saf, Dellys, Djendjene, Ghazaouet, Jijel, Mostaganem, Oran, Skikda, Tenes | Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 25, FM 1, shortwave 8 (1999) | AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999) |
Railways | total: 3,973 km
standard gauge: 2,888 km 1.435-m gauge (283 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,085 km 1.055-m gauge (2003) |
total: 2,600 km
standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 253 km three-rail track combining 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (2004) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim (state religion) 99%, Christian and Jewish 1% | Buddhist 9.3%, Catholic 6.7%, Hoa Hao 1.5%, Cao Dai 1.1%, Protestant 0.5%, Muslim 0.1%, none 80.8% (1999 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: telephone density in Algeria is very low, not exceeding five telephones per 100 persons; the number of fixed main lines increased in the last few years to a little more than 2,000,000, but only about two-thirds of these have subscribers; much of the infrastructure is outdated and inefficient
domestic: good service in north but sparse in south; domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations (20 additional domestic earth stations are planned) international: country code - 213; 5 submarine cables; microwave radio relay to Italy, France, Spain, Morocco, and Tunisia; coaxial cable to Morocco and Tunisia; participant in Medarabtel; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik, and 1 Arabsat (1998) |
general assessment: Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system, but its performance continues to lag behind that of its more modern neighbors
domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay networks; main lines have been substantially increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly international: country code - 84; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,199,600 (2003) | 4.402 million (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,447,310 (2003) | 2.742 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 46 (plus 216 repeaters) (1995) | at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly high plateau and desert; some mountains; narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.94 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 26.2% (2003 est.) | 1.9% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | - | 17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004) |