Angola (2001) | Iraq (2003) | |
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 | 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:
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: 40.7% (male 5,103,669; female 4,946,443)
15-64 years: 56.3% (male 7,033,268; female 6,855,644) 65 years and over: 3% (male 348,790; female 395,499) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, sugarcane, coffee, sisal, corn, cotton, manioc (tapioca), tobacco, vegetables, plantains; livestock; forest products; fish | wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep |
Airports | 247 (2000 est.) | 150 (2002); note - unknown number were damaged during the March-April 2003 war |
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.) |
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:
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: 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:
1,246,700 sq km land: 1,246,700 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 437,072 sq km
land: 432,162 sq km water: 4,910 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly more than twice the size of Idaho |
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. | Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq was occupied by Britain during the course of World War I; in 1920, it was declared a League of Nations mandate under UK administration. In stages over the next dozen years, Iraq attained its independence as a 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 the Gulf War of January-February 1991. 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. Continued Iraqi noncompliance with UNSC resolutions over a period of 12 years resulted in the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and the ouster of the SADDAM Husayn regime. Coalition forces remain in Iraq, helping to restore degraded infrastructure and facilitating the establishment of a freely elected government. |
Birth rate | 46.54 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 33.66 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$928 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $963 million (1992 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | Luanda | Baghdad |
Climate | semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April) | 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 | 1,600 km | 58 km |
Constitution | 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992 | in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
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 Iraq
conventional short form: Iraq local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah local short form: Al Iraq |
Currency | kwanza (AOA) | Iraqi dinar (IQD) |
Death rate | 24.68 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.84 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.8 billion (2000 est.) | $120 billion (2002 est.) |
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 |
in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
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 |
in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
Disputes - international | none | despite restored diplomatic relations in 1990, disputes with Iran over maritime and land boundaries, navigation channel, and other issues from eight-year war persist; land and Shatt al Arab boundary demarcation put an end to claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands, but no maritime boundary exists with Kuwait in the Persian Gulf; Iraq protests Turkey's hydrological projects to regulate the Tigris and Euphrates rivers upstream |
Economic aid - recipient | $493.1 million (1995) | $327.5 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. | 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 beginning in December 1996 helped improve conditions for the average Iraqi citizen. 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 have recently been more than three-quarters prewar level. However, 28% of Iraq's export revenues under the program have been deducted to meet UN Compensation Fund and UN administrative expenses. The drop in GDP in 2001-02 was largely the result of the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices. Per capita food imports increased significantly, while medical supplies and health care services steadily improved. Per capita output and living standards were still well below the prewar level, but any estimates have a wide range of error. The military victory of the US-led coalition in March-April 2003 resulted in the shutdown of much of the central economic administrative structure and the loss of a comparatively small amount of capital plant. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.372 billion kWh (1999) | 33.49 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.475 billion kWh (1999) | 36.01 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
32.2% hydro: 67.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 98.4%
hydro: 1.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Morro de Moco 2,620 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unamed peak 3,611 m; note - this peak is not Gundah Zhur 3,607 m or Kuh-e Hajji-Ebrahim 3,595 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 | 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 Marsh Arabs, who 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 the Tigris and 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:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and Native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22% | Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5% |
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 | Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 0.31 (2002), 0.31 (2001), 0.31 (2000), 0.31 (1999), 0.31 (1998), note: fixed official rate since 1982; market rate subject to wide fluctuations |
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: in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
Exports | $7.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil 90%, diamonds, refined petroleum products, gas, coffee, sisal, fish and fish products, timber, cotton | crude oil |
Exports - partners | US 54%, South Korea 14%, Benelux 11%, China 7%, Taiwan 6% (1999) | US 40.9%, Canada 8.2%, France 8.2%, Jordan 7.5%, Netherlands 6.4%, Italy 5.4%, Morocco 4.7%, Spain 4.4% (2002) |
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), 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 - $10.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $58 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
7% industry: 60% services: 33% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 13% services: 81% (1993 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2000 est.) | -3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 S, 18 30 E | 33 00 N, 44 00 E |
Geography - note | Cabinda is separated from rest of country by the Democratic Republic of the Congo | strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf |
Heliports | - | 5 (2002) |
Highways | total:
76,626 km paved: 19,156 km unpaved: 57,470 km (1997) |
total: 45,550 km
paved: 38,399 km unpaved: 7,151 km (2000 est.) |
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 | - |
Imports | $2.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, vehicles and spare parts; medicines, food, textiles, military goods | food, medicine, manufactures |
Imports - partners | South Korea 16%, Portugal 15%, US 13%, South Africa 10%, France 8% (1999) | Jordan 11%, France 8.8%, China 8.4%, Germany 7.6%, Russia 7.3%, Australia 7.2%, Vietnam 6.6%, Italy 6.4%, Japan 5.6% (2002) |
Independence | 11 November 1975 (from Portugal) | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | petroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing; brewing; tobacco products; sugar; textiles | petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing |
Infant mortality rate | 193.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 55.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 61.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 325% (2000 est.) | 70% (2002 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 | ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, 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, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 750 sq km (1993 est.) | 35,250 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Tribunal da Relacao (judges are appointed by the president) | in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
Labor force | 5 million (1997 est.) | 6.5 million (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 85%, industry and services 15% (1997 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
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: 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:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 23% forests and woodland: 43% other: 32% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 11.89%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 87.33% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages | Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian |
Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law; recently modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of free markets | in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
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 |
in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.59 years male: 37.36 years female: 39.87 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 67.81 years
male: 66.7 years female: 68.99 years (2003 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: 40.4% male: 55.9% female: 24.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: not specified
territorial sea: 12 NM |
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.) |
total: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 119,433 GRT/170,221 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 6, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Police Force | Army, Republican Guard, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Border Guard Force, Fedayeen Saddam; note - with the defeat of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, the data listed in the following entries for Iraq is invalid, but is retained here for historical purposes and until replaced by valid information related to the future Iraqi Government (April 2003) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.2 billion (FY97) | $1.3 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 22% (1999) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,480,016 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 6,339,458 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,246,224 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 3,541,467 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
103,807 (2001 est.) |
males: 292,930 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 11 November (1975) | Revolution Day, 17 July (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Angolan(s) adjective: Angolan |
noun: Iraqi(s)
adjective: Iraqi |
Natural hazards | locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on the plateau | dust storms, sandstorms, floods |
Natural resources | petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium | petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur |
Net migration rate | -0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 179 km | gas 1,739 km; oil 5,418 km; refined products 1,343 km (2003) |
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 |
in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
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 |
in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
Population | 10,366,031 (July 2001 est.) | 24,683,313 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.15% (2001 est.) | 2.78% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ambriz, Cabinda, Lobito, Luanda, Malongo, Mocamedes, Namibe, Porto Amboim, Soyo | Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, and Al Basrah have limited functionality |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 34, FM 7, shortwave 9 (1999) | AM 19 (5 are inactive), FM 51, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 630,000 (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: 1,963 km
standard gauge: 1,963 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.) | Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | formerly 18 years of age; universal; note - in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition |
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: an unknown number of telecommunication facilities were damaged during the March-April 2003 war
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 | 62,000 (1997) | 675,000 (1997); note - an unknown number of telephone lines were damaged or destroyed during the March-April war |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,052 (1997) | NA; service available in northern Iraq (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1999) | 13 (1997); note - unknown number were destroyed during the March-April 2003 war |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau | mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey |
Total fertility rate | 6.48 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.52 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | extensive unemployment and underemployment affecting more than half the population (2000 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 1,295 km | 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 |