American Samoa (2001) | Nepal (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three districts and two islands* at the second order; Eastern, Manu'a, Rose Island*, Swains Island*, Western | 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
38.44% (male 13,278; female 12,512) 15-64 years: 56.57% (male 18,784; female 19,163) 65 years and over: 4.99% (male 1,779; female 1,568) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 40% (male 5,346,422; female 5,007,416)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 7,476,202; female 7,125,471) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 453,263; female 465,143) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock | rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat |
Airports | 4 (2000 est.) | 45 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
2 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 28 (2002) |
Area | total:
199 sq km land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
total: 140,800 sq km
land: 136,800 sq km water: 4,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly larger than Arkansas |
Background | Settled as early as 1000 B. C., Samoa was "discovered" by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 treaty in which Germany and the US divided the Samoan archipelago. The US formally occupied its portion - a smaller group of eastern islands with the excellent harbor of Pago Pago - the following year. | In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. A maoist insugency, launched in 1996, has gained traction and is threatening to bring down the regime. Ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, were massacred in a family dispute in 2001. In October 2002, the new king dismissed the prime minister and his cabinet for "incompetence" after they dissolved the parliament and were subsequently unable to hold elections because of the ongoing insurgency. The country is now governed by the king and his appointed cabinet until elections can be held at some unspecified future date. |
Birth rate | 24.88 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 32.94 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants) expenditures: $127 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY96/97) |
revenues: $665 million
expenditures: $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | Pago Pago | Kathmandu |
Climate | tropical marine, moderated by southeast trade winds; annual rainfall averages about 3 m; rainy season from November to April, dry season from May to October; little seasonal temperature variation | varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south |
Coastline | 116 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | ratified 1966, in effect 1967 | 9 November 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Territory of American Samoa conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Nepal
conventional short form: Nepal |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | Nepalese rupee (NPR) |
Death rate | 4.31 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.03 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $2.55 billion (FY00/01) |
Dependency status | unincorporated and unorganized territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael E. MALINOWSKI
embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Jai Pratap RANA
chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | formed Joint Border committee with India in 2001 to resolve 53 disputed sections of boundary covering an area of 720 sq km; approximately 100,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal, 90% of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees camps, place decades-long strains on Nepal |
Economic aid - recipient | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 | $424 million (FY00/01) |
Economy - overview | This is a traditional Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned. Economic activity is strongly linked to the US, with which American Samoa conducts the great bulk of its foreign trade. Tuna fishing and tuna processing plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna the primary export. Transfers from the US Government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes. Tourism, a developing sector, has been held back by the recurring financial difficulties in East Asia. | Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with nearly half of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for over 80% of the population and accounting for 41% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Textile and carpet production, accounteing for about 80% of foreign exchange earnings in recent years, contracted significantly in 2001 due to the overall slowdown in the world economy and pressures by Maoist insurgents on factory owners and workers. Security concerns in the wake of Maoist activity, the June massacre of many members of the royal family, and the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US led to a decrease in tourism, another key source of foreign exchange. Agricultural production is growing by about 5% on average as compared with annual population growth of 2.3%. Since May 1991, the government has been moving forward with economic reforms, particularly those that encourage trade and foreign investment, e.g., by reducing business licenses and registration requirements to simplify investment procedures. The government has also been cutting expenditures by reducing subsidies, privatizing state industries, and laying off civil servants. More recently, however, political instability - five different governments over the past few years - has hampered Kathmandu's ability to forge consensus to implement key economic reforms. Nepal has considerable scope for accelerating economic growth by exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, and its susceptibility to natural disaster. The international community's role of funding more than 60% of Nepal's development budget and more than 28% of total budgetary expenditures will likely continue as a major ingredient of growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 120.9 million kWh (1999) | 1.431 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 95 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 174 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 130 million kWh (1999) | 1.454 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 10%
hydro: 90% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Lata 966 m |
lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources; the water division of the government has spent substantial funds in the past few years to improve water catchments and pipelines | deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Samoan (Polynesian) 89%, Caucasian 2%, Tongan 4%, other 5% | Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995) |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.675 (January 2002), 74.961 (2001), 71.094 (2000), 68.239 (1999), 65.976 (1998), 58.010 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001) head of government: Governor Tauese P. SUNIA (since 3 January 1997) and Lieutenant Governor Togiola TULAFONO (since 3 January 1997) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: Tauese P. SUNIA reelected governor; percent of vote - Tauese P. SUNIA (Democrat) 50.7%, Lealaifuaneva Peter REID (independent) 47.8% |
chief of state: King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the throne 4 June 2001 following the death of his nephew, King DIPENDRA Bir Bikram Shah)
head of government: Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur CHAND (since 11 October 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody shooting at the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is believed to have been responsible for the shootings before fatally wounding himself; immediately following the shootings and while still clinging to life, DIPENDRA was crowned king; he died three days later and was succeeded by his uncle |
Exports | $500 million (1998) | $757 million f.o.b., but does not include unrecorded border trade with India (FY00/01 est.) |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna 93% | carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain |
Exports - partners | US 99.6% | India 48%, US 26%, Germany 11% (FY00/01) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 16 July - 15 July |
Flag description | blue, with a white triangle edged in red that is based on the outer side and extends to the hoist side; a brown and white American bald eagle flying toward the hoist side is carrying two traditional Samoan symbols of authority, a staff and a war club | red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $500 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $35.6 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 41%
industry: 22% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2.6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 20 S, 170 00 W | 28 00 N, 84 00 E |
Geography - note | Pago Pago has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds; strategic location in the South Pacific Ocean | landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest - the world's tallest - on the border with China |
Highways | total:
350 km paved: 150 km unpaved: 200 km |
total: 13,223 km
paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (April 1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 30% (1995-96) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West |
Imports | $471 million (1996) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (FY00/01 est.) |
Imports - commodities | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% | gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer |
Imports - partners | US 62%, Japan 9%, NZ 7%, Australia 11%, Fiji 4%, other 7% | India 39%, Singapore 10%, China/Hong Kong 9%, (FY00/01) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 8.7% (FY99/00) |
Industries | tuna canneries (largely dependent on foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts | tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production |
Infant mortality rate | 10.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 72.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 2.1% |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC | AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 6 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 11,350 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) | Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Judicial Council) |
Labor force | 14,000 (1996) | 10 million
note: severe lack of skilled labor (1996 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | government 33%, tuna canneries 34%, other 33% (1990) | agriculture 81%, services 16%, industry 3% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,926 km
border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km |
Land use | arable land:
5% permanent crops: 10% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 70% other: 15% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 20.27%
permanent crops: 0.49% other: 79.24% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages), English
note: most people are bilingual |
Nepali (official; spoken by 90% of the population), about a dozen other languages and about 30 major dialects; note - many in government and business also speak English (1995) |
Legal system | NA | based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Fono or Legislative Assembly consists of the House of Representatives (21 seats - 20 of which are elected by popular vote and 1 is an appointed, nonvoting delegate from Swains Island; members serve two-year terms) and the Senate (18 seats; members are elected from local chiefs and serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002); Senate - last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - only independents elected note: American Samoa elects one delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 7 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002); results - Eni F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA (Democrat) reelected as delegate for a sixth term |
note: Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 2002 and elections are scheduled for 13 November 2002
bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 May 1999 (next to be held 13 November 2002) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%, NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%, others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.32 years male: 70.89 years female: 80.02 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 58.61 years
male: 59.01 years female: 58.2 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 98% female: 97% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 27.5% male: 40.9% female: 14% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Southern Asia, between China and India |
Map references | Oceania | Asia |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | - |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $51.5 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 6,484,343 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 3,369,454 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 292,589 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) | Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946) |
Nationality | noun:
American Samoan(s) adjective: American Samoan |
noun: Nepalese (singular and plural)
adjective: Nepalese |
Natural hazards | typhoons common from December to March | severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons |
Natural resources | pumice, pumicite | quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore |
Net migration rate | 3.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [leader NA]; Republican Party [leader NA] | Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National Democratic Party or NDP (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya Bahadur THAPA, chairman]; National People's Front (Rastriya Jana Morcha) [Chitra Bahadur, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL, acting party president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE, party chair]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party president, Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [Lila Mani POKHAREL, general secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups |
Population | 67,084 (July 2001 est.) | 25,873,917 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 42% (FY95/96 est. ) |
Population growth rate | 2.42% (2001 est.) | 2.29% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aunu'u (new construction), Auasi, Faleosao, Ofu, Pago Pago, Ta'u | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | 840,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 59 km
narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge note: all in Kosi close to Indian border (2001) |
Religions | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% | Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: good telex, telegraph, facsimile and cellular telephone services; domestic satellite system with 1 Comsat earth station international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
general assessment: poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network
domestic: NA international: radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 13,000 (1997) | 236,816 (January 2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,550 (1997) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) | Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north |
Total fertility rate | 3.5 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.48 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1993) | 47% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |