Angola (2001) | Armenia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 18 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Bengo, Benguela, Bie, Cabinda, Cuando Cubango, Cuanza Norte, Cuanza Sul, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Luanda, Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe, Uige, Zaire | 10 provinces (marzer, singular - marz) and 1 city* (k'aghak'ner, singular - k'aghak'); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir, Geghark'unik', Kotayk', Lorri, Shirak, Syunik', Tavush, Vayots' Dzor, Yerevan* |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
43.31% (male 2,266,870; female 2,222,262) 15-64 years: 53.98% (male 2,847,089; female 2,748,091) 65 years and over: 2.71% (male 127,798; female 153,921) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
23.23% (male 394,194; female 380,911) 15-64 years: 67.04% (male 1,094,646; female 1,141,760) 65 years and over: 9.73% (male 135,477; female 189,112) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish | fruit (especially grapes), vegetables; livestock |
Airports | 247 (2000 est.) | 7 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
31 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
216 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 30 914 to 1,523 m: 96 under 914 m: 83 (2000 est.) |
total:
7 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
1,246,700 sq km land: 1,246,700 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
29,800 sq km land: 28,400 sq km water: 1,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Civil war has been the norm in Angola since independence from Portugal in 1975. A 1994 peace accord between the government and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) provided for the integration of former UNITA insurgents into the government and armed forces. A national unity government was installed in April of 1997, but serious fighting resumed in late 1998, rendering hundreds of thousands of people homeless. Up to 1.5 million lives may have been lost in fighting over the past quarter century. | An Orthodox Christian country, Armenia was incorporated into Russia in 1828 and the USSR in 1920. Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated exclave, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began fighting over the exclave in 1988; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. By May 1994, when a cease-fire took hold, Armenian forces held not only Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper. The economies of both sides have been hurt by their inability to make substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution. |
Birth rate | 46.54 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.47 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$928 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $963 million (1992 est.) |
revenues:
$360 million expenditures: $566 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | Luanda | Yerevan |
Climate | semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April) | highland continental, hot summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 1,600 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992 | adopted by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Angola conventional short form: Angola local long form: Republica de Angola local short form: Angola former: People's Republic of Angola |
conventional long form:
Republic of Armenia conventional short form: Armenia local long form: Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun local short form: Hayastan former: Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic; Armenian Republic |
Currency | kwanza (AOA) | dram (AMD) |
Death rate | 24.68 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.74 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.8 billion (2000 est.) | $836 million (January 2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph G. SULLIVAN embassy: number 32 Rua Houari Boumeddienne, Luanda mailing address: international mail: Caixa Postal 6484, Luanda; pouch: American Embassy Luanda, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2550 telephone: [244] (2) 345-481, 346-418 FAX: [244] (2) 346-924 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael C. LEMMON embassy: 18 Marshal Bagramian Avenue, Yerevan mailing address: American Embassy Yerevan, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7020 telephone: [374] (2) 52-16-11 FAX: [374] (2) 151-550 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Josefina Perpetua Pitra DIAKIDI chancery: 1615 M Street, NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 785-1156 FAX: [1] (202) 785-1258 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Arman KIRAKOSIAN chancery: 2225 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-1976 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2982 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles |
Disputes - international | none | Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; traditional demands regarding former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided |
Economic aid - recipient | $493.1 million (1995) | $245.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Angola is an economy in disarray because of a quarter century of nearly continuous warfare. Despite its abundant natural resources, output per capita is among the world's lowest. Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for 85% of the population. Oil production and the supporting activities are vital to the economy, contributing about 45% to GDP and 90% of exports. Violence continues, millions of land mines remain, and many farmers are reluctant to return to their fields. As a result, much of the country's food must still be imported. To fully take advantage of its rich resources - gold, diamonds, extensive forests, Atlantic fisheries, and large oil deposits - Angola will need to end its conflict and continue reforming government policies. Despite the increase in the pace of civil warfare in late 1998, the economy grew by an estimated 5% in 2000. The government introduced new currency denominations in 1999, including 1 and 5 kwanza notes. Internal strife discourages investment outside of the petroleum sector, which is producing roughly 800,000 barrels of oil per day. Angola has entered into a Staff Monitored Program (SMP) with the IMF. Continued growth depends on sharp cuts in inflation, further economic reform, and a lessening of fighting. | Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in exchange for raw materials and energy. Since the implosion of the USSR in December 1991, Armenia has switched to small-scale agriculture away from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet era. The agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and updated technology. The privatization of industry has been at a slower pace, but has been given renewed emphasis by the current administration. Armenia is a food importer, and its mineral deposits (gold, bauxite) are small. The ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan over the ethnic Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the breakup of the centrally directed economic system of the former Soviet Union contributed to a severe economic decline in the early 1990s. By 1994, however, the Armenian Government had launched an ambitious IMF-sponsored economic program that has resulted in positive growth rates in 1995-2000. Armenia also managed to slash inflation and to privatize most small- and medium-sized enterprises. The chronic energy shortages Armenia suffered in recent years have been largely offset by the energy supplied by one of its nuclear power plants at Metsamor. Armenia's severe trade imbalance, importing three times its exports, has been offset somewhat by international aid, domestic restructuring of the economy, and foreign direct investment. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.372 billion kWh (1999) | 6.201 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.475 billion kWh (1999) | 6.668 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
32.2% hydro: 67.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
45.56% hydro: 23.25% nuclear: 31.19% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Morro de Moco 2,620 m |
lowest point:
Debed River 400 m highest point: Aragats Lerr 4,095 m |
Environment - current issues | overuse of pastures and subsequent soil erosion attributable to population pressures; desertification; deforestation of tropical rain forest, in response to both international demand for tropical timber and to domestic use as fuel, resulting in loss of biodiversity; soil erosion contributing to water pollution and siltation of rivers and dams; inadequate supplies of potable water | soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT; energy blockade, the result of conflict with Azerbaijan, has led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood; pollution of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers; the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan), a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water supplies; restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant without adequate (IAEA-recommended) safety and backup systems |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22% | Armenian 93%, Azeri 3%, Russian 2%, other (mostly Yezidi Kurds) 2% (1989)
note: as of the end of 1993, virtually all Azeris had emigrated from Armenia |
Exchange rates | kwanza per US dollar - 17,910,800 (January 2001), 10,041,000 (2000), 2,790,706 (1999), 392,824 (1998), 229,040 (1997), 128,029 (1996); note - in December 1999 the kwanza was revalued with six zeroes dropped off the old value | drams per US dollar - 554.29 (1 February 2001), 539.53 (2000), 535.06 (1999), 504.92 (1998), 490.85 (1997), 414.04 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS (since 21 September 1979); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: President DOS SANTOS originally elected (in 1979) without opposition under a one-party system and stood for reelection in Angola's first multiparty elections 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA) election results: DOS SANTOS 49.6%, Jonas SAVIMBI 40.1%, making a run-off election necessary; the run-off was not held and SAVIMBI's National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) repudiated the results of the first election; the civil war resumed |
chief of state:
President Robert KOCHARIAN (since 30 March 1998) head of government: Prime Minister Andranik MARKARYAN (since 12 May 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; special election last held 30 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Robert KOCHARIAN elected president; percent of vote - Robert KOCHARIAN 59.5%, Karen DEMIRCHYAN 40.5% |
Exports | $7.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $284 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil 90%, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton | diamonds, scrap metal, machinery and equipment, brandy, copper ore |
Exports - partners | US 54%, South Korea 14%, Benelux 11%, China 7%, Taiwan 6% (1999) | Belgium 36%, Iran 15%, Russia 14%, US 7%, Turkmenistan, Georgia (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and black with a centered yellow emblem consisting of a five-pointed star within half a cogwheel crossed by a machete (in the style of a hammer and sickle) | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, and orange |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
7% industry: 60% services: 33% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
40% industry: 25% services: 35% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2000 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 S, 18 30 E | 40 00 N, 45 00 E |
Geography - note | Cabinda is separated from rest of country by the Democratic Republic of the Congo | landlocked |
Highways | total:
76,626 km paved: 19,156 km unpaved: 57,470 km (1997) |
total:
8,431 km () paved: NA unpaved: NA (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | increasingly used as a transshipment point for cocaine and heroin destined for Western Europe and other African states | illicit cultivator of cannabis mostly for domestic consumption; increasingly used as a transshipment point for illicit drugs - mostly opium and hashish - to Western Europe and the US via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia |
Imports | $2.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $913 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods | natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds |
Imports - partners | South Korea 16%, Portugal 15%, US 13%, South Africa 10%, France 8% (1999) | Russia 17%, US 11%, Belgium 11%, Iran 10%, UK, Turkey (1999) |
Independence | 11 November 1975 (from Portugal) | 21 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5% (2000 est.) |
Industries | petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles | metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines, electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric, chemicals, trucks, instruments, microelectronics, gem cutting, jewelry manufacturing, software development, brandy |
Infant mortality rate | 193.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 41.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 325% (2000 est.) | 1% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (1999) |
Irrigated land | 750 sq km (1993 est.) | 2,870 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Tribunal da Relacao (judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court |
Labor force | 5 million (1997 est.) | 1.5 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 85%, industry and services 15% (1997 est.) | agriculture 55%, services 25%, industry 20% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
5,198 km border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,511 km (of which 220 km is the boundary of discontiguous Cabinda Province), Republic of the Congo 201 km, Namibia 1,376 km, Zambia 1,110 km |
total:
1,254 km border countries: Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 23% forests and woodland: 43% other: 32% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
17% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 15% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages | Armenian 96%, Russian 2%, other 2% |
Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law; recently modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of free markets | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (220 seats; members elected by proportional vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 29-30 September 1992 (next to be held NA) election results: percent of vote by party - MPLA 54%, UNITA 34%, others 12%; seats by party - MPLA 129, UNITA 70, PRS 6, FNLA 5, PLD 3, others 7 |
unicameral National Assembly (Parliament) or Azgayin Zhoghov (131 seats; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 30 May 1999 (next to be held in the spring of 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - unity bloc 61 (Republican Party 41, People's Party of Armenia 20), Stability Group (independent Armenian deputies who have formed a bloc) 21, ACP 10, ARF (Dashnak) 8, Law and Unity Party 7, NDU 6, Law-Governed Party 6, independents 10, unfilled 2; note - seats by party change frequently |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.59 years male: 37.36 years female: 39.87 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
66.49 years male: 62.12 years female: 71.08 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 42% male: 56% female: 28% (1998 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 98% (1989 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo | Southwestern Asia, east of Turkey |
Map references | Africa | Commonwealth of Independent States |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 39,305 GRT/63,067 DWT ships by type: cargo 8, petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Police Force | Army, Air Force and Air Defense Aviation, Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.2 billion (FY97) | $75 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 22% (1999) | 4% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,480,016 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
905,154 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,246,224 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
715,734 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
103,807 (2001 est.) |
males:
34,998 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 11 November (1975) | Independence Day, 21 September (1991) |
Nationality | noun:
Angolan(s) adjective: Angolan |
noun:
Armenian(s) adjective: Armenian |
Natural hazards | locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on the plateau | occasionally severe earthquakes; droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium | small deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, alumina |
Net migration rate | -0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -3.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 179 km | natural gas 900 km (1991) |
Political parties and leaders | Liberal Democratic Party or PLD [Analia de Victoria PEREIRA]; National Front for the Liberation of Angola or FNLA [disputed leadership: Lucas NGONDA, Holden ROBERTO]; National Union for the Total Independence of Angola or UNITA [Jonas SAVIMBI], largest opposition party has engaged in years of armed resistance; Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola or MPLA [Jose Eduardo DOS SANTOS] ruling party in power since 1975; Social Renewal Party or PRS [disputed leadership: Eduardo KUANGANA, Antonio MUACHICUNGO]; UNITA-Renovada [Eugenio NGOLO "Manuvakola", leader]
note: about a dozen minor parties participated in the 1992 elections but won few seats and have little influence in the National Assembly |
Armenia Party [Myasnik ALKHASYAN]; Armenian Communist Party or ACP [Vladimir DARBINYAN]; Armenian Revolutionary Federation ("Dashnak" Party) or ARF [Hrant MARKARYAN]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Azat ARSHAKYN, chairman]; Democratic Liberal Party [Ramkavar AZATAKAN, chairman]; Free Armenian's Mission [Ruben MNATSANIAN, chairman]; Law and Unity Party [Artashes GEGAMIAN, chairman]; Law-Governed Party [Artur BAGDASARIAN, chairman]; Mission Party [Artush PAPOIAN, chairman]; National Democratic Union or NDU [Vazgen MANUKIAN]; National State Party [Samvel SHAGINIAN]; Pan-Armenian National Movement or PANM [Vano SIRADEGHYAN]; People's Party of Armenia [Stepan DEMIRCHYAN]; Republican Party or RPA [Andranik MARKARYAN]; Shamiram Women's Movement or SWM [Gayane SARUKHYAN]; Social Democratic (Hnchakian) Party [Ernst SOGOMONYAN]; Stability Group [Vartan AYVAZIAN, chairman]; Union of National Self-Determination or NSDU [Paruir HAIRIKIAN, chairman]; Unity Bloc [Stepan DEMIRCHIAN and Andranik MARKARYAN] (a coalition of the Republican Party and People's Party of Armenia) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda or FLEC [N'zita Henriques TIAGO; Antonio Bento BEMBE]
note: FLEC is waging a small-scale, highly factionalized, armed struggle for the independence of Cabinda Province |
NA |
Population | 10,366,031 (July 2001 est.) | 3,336,100 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 45% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.15% (2001 est.) | -0.21% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Mocamedes, Namibe, Porto Amboim, Soyo | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 34, FM 7, shortwave 9 (1999) | AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 630,000 (1997) | 850,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
2,771 km (inland, much of the track is unusable because of land mines still in place from the civil war) narrow gauge: 2,648 km 1.067-m gauge; 123 km 0.600-m gauge (2000) |
total:
852 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines broad gauge: 852 km 1.520-m gauge (779 km electrified) (2001) |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.) | Armenian Orthodox 94% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telephone service limited mostly to government and business use; HF radiotelephone used extensively for military links domestic: limited system of wire, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
system inadequate; now 90% privately owned and undergoing modernization and expansion domestic: the majority of subscribers and the most modern equipment are in Yerevan (this includes paging and mobile cellular service) international: Yerevan is connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe fiber-optic cable through Iran; additional international service is available by microwave radio relay and landline connections to the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and through the Moscow international switch and by satellite to the rest of the world; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 62,000 (1997) | 568,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,052 (1997) | 6,220 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1999) | 4 (1998) |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau | Armenian Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast flowing rivers; good soil in Aras River valley |
Total fertility rate | 6.48 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.5 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | extensive unemployment and underemployment affecting more than half the population (2000 est.) | 20% (1998 est.)
note: official rate is 9.3% for 1998 |
Waterways | 1,295 km | NA km |