American Samoa (2002) | Iraq (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 | 18 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Anbar, Al Basrah, Al Muthanna, Al Qadisiyah, An Najaf, Arbil, As Sulaymaniyah, At Ta'mim, Babil, Baghdad, Dahuk, Dhi Qar, Diyala, Karbala', Maysan, Ninawa, Salah ad Din, Wasit |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.1% (male 13,445; female 12,688)
15-64 years: 56.7% (male 19,228; female 19,741) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 1,931; female 1,655) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.1% (male 5,003,755; female 4,849,238)
15-64 years: 55.9% (male 6,794,265; female 6,624,662) 65 years and over: 3% (male 341,520; female 388,376) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, taro, breadfruit, yams, copra, pineapples, papayas; dairy products, livestock | wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep |
Airports | 4 (2001) | 108 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 77
over 3,047 m: 21 2,438 to 3,047 m: 36 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 73
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
Area | total: 199 sq km
land: 199 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Rose Island and Swains Island |
total: 437,072 sq km
land: 432,162 sq km water: 4,910 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly more than twice the size of Idaho |
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. | Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq became an independent kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of military strongmen have ruled the country since then, the latest being SADDAM Husayn. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-88). In August 1990 Iraq seized Kuwait, but was expelled by US-led, UN coalition forces during January-February 1991. The victors did not occupy Iraq, however, thus allowing the regime to stay in control. Following Kuwait's liberation, the UN Security Council (UNSC) required Iraq to scrap all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles and to allow UN verification inspections. UN trade sanctions remain in effect due to incomplete Iraqi compliance with relevant UNSC resolutions. |
Birth rate | 24.04 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 34.2 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: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | Pago Pago | Baghdad |
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 | mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq |
Coastline | 116 km | 58 km |
Constitution | ratified 1966, in effect 1967 | 22 September 1968, effective 16 July 1970 (provisional constitution); new constitution drafted in 1990 but not adopted |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of American Samoa
conventional short form: American Samoa abbreviation: AS |
conventional long form: Republic of Iraq
conventional short form: Iraq local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah local short form: Al Iraq |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | Iraqi dinar (IQD) |
Death rate | 4.34 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.02 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $62.2 billion (2001 est.) |
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) | none; note - the US has an Interests Section in the Polish Embassy in Baghdad; address: P. O. Box 2051 Hay Babel, Baghdad; telephone: [964] (1) 718-9267; FAX: [964] (1) 718-9297 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | none; note - Iraq has an Interest Section in the Algerian Embassy headed by Akram AL DOURI; address: Iraqi Interests Section, Algerian Embassy, 1801 P Street NW, Washington, DC 20036; telephone: [1] (202) 483-7500; FAX: [1] (202) 462-5066 |
Disputes - international | none | despite restored diplomatic relations in 1990, lacks maritime boundary with Iran and disputes land boundary, navigation channels, and other issues from eight-year war; in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993); this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands although the government continues periodic rhetorical challenges; dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers |
Economic aid - recipient | important financial support from the US, more than $40 million in 1994 | $327.5 million (1995) (1995) |
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 most 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. | Iraq's economy is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and damage to oil export facilities by Iran led the government to implement austerity measures, borrow heavily, and later reschedule foreign debt payments; Iraq suffered economic losses from the war of at least $100 billion. After hostilities ended in 1988, oil exports gradually increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged facilities. Iraq's seizure of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international economic sanctions, and damage from military action by an international coalition beginning in January 1991 drastically reduced economic activity. Although government policies supporting large military and internal security forces and allocating resources to key supporters of the regime have hurt the economy, implementation of the UN's oil-for-food program in December 1996 has helped improve conditions for the average Iraqi citizen. For the first six, six-month phases of the program, Iraq was allowed to export limited amounts of oil in exchange for food, medicine, and some infrastructure spare parts. In December 1999 the UN Security Council authorized Iraq to export under the program as much oil as required to meet humanitarian needs. Oil exports are now more than three-quarters prewar level. However, 28% of Iraq's export revenues under the program are deducted to meet UN Compensation Fund and UN administrative expenses. The drop in GDP in 2001 was largely the result of the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices. Per capita food imports have increased significantly, while medical supplies and health care services are steadily improving. Per capita output and living standards are still well below the prewar level, but any estimates have a wide range of error. |
Electricity - consumption | 120.9 million kWh (2000) | 25.389 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 130 million kWh (2000) | 27.3 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 98%
hydro: 2% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Lata 966 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Haji Ibrahim 3,600 m |
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 | government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Shi'a Muslims, who have inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of Tigris-Euphrates Rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Samoan (Polynesian) 89%, Caucasian 2%, Tongan 4%, other 5% | Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 0.3109 (fixed official rate since 1982); black market rate - Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 2,000 (December 2001), 1,910 (December 1999), 1,815 (December 1998), 1,530 (December 1997), 910 (December 1996); note - subject to wide fluctuations |
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: President SADDAM Husayn (since 16 July 1979); Vice Presidents Taha Muhyi al-Din MARUF (since 21 April 1974) and Taha Yasin RAMADAN (since 23 March 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister SADDAM Husayn (since 29 May 1994); Deputy Prime Ministers Tariq Mikhail AZIZ (since NA 1979), Hikmat Mizban Ibrahim al-AZZAWI (since 30 July 1999), Ahmad Husayn al-KHUDAYIR (since NA July 2001), and Abd al-Tawab Mullah al-HUWAYSH (since NA July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers; note - there is also a Revolutionary Command Council or RCC with eight members as of 2001 (Chairman SADDAM Husayn, Vice Chairman Izzat IBRAHIM al-Duri) which controls the ruling Ba'th Party; the RCC is the highest executive and legislative body and the most powerful political entity in the country; new RCC members must come from the Regional Command Leadership of the Ba'th Party elections: president and vice presidents elected by a two-thirds majority of the Revolutionary Command Council; regular election last held 17 October 1995 (next scheduled for 2002); note - in place of the 2002 election, a presidential referendum was held on 15 October 2002 in which the presidency of SADDAM Husayn was extended for a fifth consecutive seven-year term election results: SADDAM Husayn reelected president; percent of vote - 99%; Taha Muhyi al-Din MARUF and Taha Yasin RAMADAN elected vice presidents; percent of vote - NA%; note - in a presidential referendum held 15 October 2002, SADDAM Husayn's term was extended for another seven years |
Exports | $345 million (1999) | $15.8 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna 93% | crude oil |
Exports - partners | US 99.6% | US 46.2%, Italy 12.2%, France 9.6%, Spain 8.6% (2000) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with three green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; the phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in green Arabic script - Allahu to the right of the middle star and Akbar to the left of the middle star - was added in January 1991 during the Persian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of Syria which has two stars but no script and the flag of Yemen which has a plain white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $500 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $59 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 13% services: 81% (1993 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | -5.7% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 20 S, 170 00 W | 33 00 N, 44 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 | strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf |
Heliports | - | 5 (2002) |
Highways | total: 350 km
paved: 150 km unpaved: 200 km |
total: 45,550 km
paved: 38,400 km unpaved: 7,150 km (1996 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $452 million (1999) | $11 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% | food, medicine, manufactures |
Imports - partners | US 62%, Australia 11%, Japan 9%, NZ 7%, Fiji 4%, other 7% | France 22.5%, Australia 22%, China 5.8%, Russia 5.8% (2000) |
Independence | none (territory of the US) | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tuna canneries (largely supplied by foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts | petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing |
Infant mortality rate | 10.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 57.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 60% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ESCAP (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, SPC | ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, EAPC, ESCWA, FAO, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 35,250 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice and associate justices are appointed by the US Secretary of the Interior) | Court of Cassation |
Labor force | 14,000 (1996) | 4.4 million (1989) (1989) |
Labor force - by occupation | government 33%, tuna canneries 34%, other 33% (1990) (1990) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 3,650 km
border countries: Iran 1,458 km, Jordan 181 km, Kuwait 240 km, Saudi Arabia 814 km, Syria 605 km, Turkey 352 km |
Land use | arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 10% other: 85% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 11.89%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 87.33% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Samoan (closely related to Hawaiian and other Polynesian languages), English
note: most people are bilingual |
Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian |
Legal system | NA | based on Islamic law in special religious courts, civil law system elsewhere; 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 - independents 18 note: American Samoa elects one nonvoting representative 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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (250 seats; 30 appointed by the president to represent the three northern provinces of Dahuk, Arbil, and As Sulaymaniyah; 220 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.53 years
male: 71.12 years female: 80.21 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 67.38 years
male: 66.31 years female: 68.5 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: 58% male: 70.7% female: 45% (1995 est.) |
Location | Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and New Zealand | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: not specified
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 25 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 186,709 GRT/278,575 DWT
ships by type: cargo 14, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Republican Guard, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Border Guard Force, Fedayeen Saddam |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1.3 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 6,135,847 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 3,430,819 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 274,035 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Flag Day, 17 April (1900) | Revolution Day, 17 July (1968) |
Nationality | noun: American Samoan(s)
adjective: American Samoan |
noun: Iraqi(s)
adjective: Iraqi |
Natural hazards | typhoons common from December to March | dust storms, sandstorms, floods |
Natural resources | pumice, pumicite | petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur |
Net migration rate | 3.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 4,350 km; petroleum products 725 km; natural gas 1,360 km |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [leader NA]; Republican Party [leader NA] | Ba'th Party [SADDAM Husayn, central party leader] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | any formal political activity must be sanctioned by the government; opposition to regime from Kurdish groups and southern Shi'a dissidents |
Population | 68,688 (July 2002 est.) | 24,001,816 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.31% (2002 est.) | 2.82% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aunu'u (new construction), Auasi, Faleosao, Ofu, Pago Pago, Ta'u | Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, and Al Basrah have limited functionality |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 19 (5 are inactive), FM 51, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 57,000 (1997) | 4.85 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 2,339 km
standard gauge: 2,339 km 1.435-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Christian Congregationalist 50%, Roman Catholic 20%, Protestant and other 30% | Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 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: reconstitution of damaged telecommunication facilities began after the Gulf war; most damaged facilities have been rebuilt
domestic: the network consists of coaxial cables and microwave radio relay links international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Arabsat (inoperative); coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey; Kuwait line is probably nonoperational |
Telephones - main lines in use | 13,000 (1997) | 675,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,550 (1997) | NA; service available in northern Iraq (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 13 (1997) |
Terrain | five volcanic islands with rugged peaks and limited coastal plains, two coral atolls (Rose Island, Swains Island) | mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey |
Total fertility rate | 3.4 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.63 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 6% (2000) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 1,015 km
note: Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use; Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft boats; Shatt al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991 because of the Gulf war |