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Compare Azerbaijan (2001) - Benin (2004)

Compare Azerbaijan (2001) z Benin (2004)

 Azerbaijan (2001)Benin (2004)
 AzerbaijanBenin
Administrative divisions 59 rayons (rayonlar; rayon - singular), 11 cities* (saharlar; sahar - singular), 1 autonomous republic** (muxtar respublika); Abseron Rayonu, Agcabadi Rayonu, Agdam Rayonu, Agdas Rayonu, Agstafa Rayonu, Agsu Rayonu, Ali Bayramli Sahari*, Astara Rayonu, Baki Sahari*, Balakan Rayonu, Barda Rayonu, Beylaqan Rayonu, Bilasuvar Rayonu, Cabrayil Rayonu, Calilabad Rayonu, Daskasan Rayonu, Davaci Rayonu, Fuzuli Rayonu, Gadabay Rayonu, Ganca Sahari*, Goranboy Rayonu, Goycay Rayonu, Haciqabul Rayonu, Imisli Rayonu, Ismayilli Rayonu, Kalbacar Rayonu, Kurdamir Rayonu, Lacin Rayonu, Lankaran Rayonu, Lankaran Sahari*, Lerik Rayonu, Masalli Rayonu, Mingacevir Sahari*, Naftalan Sahari*, Naxcivan Muxtar Respublikasi**, Neftcala Rayonu, Oguz Rayonu, Qabala Rayonu, Qax Rayonu, Qazax Rayonu, Qobustan Rayonu, Quba Rayonu, Qubadli Rayonu, Qusar Rayonu, Saatli Rayonu, Sabirabad Rayonu, Saki Rayonu, Saki Sahari*, Salyan Rayonu, Samaxi Rayonu, Samkir Rayonu, Samux Rayonu, Siyazan Rayonu, Sumqayit Sahari*, Susa Rayonu, Susa Sahari*, Tartar Rayonu, Tovuz Rayonu, Ucar Rayonu, Xacmaz Rayonu, Xankandi Sahari*, Xanlar Rayonu, Xizi Rayonu, Xocali Rayonu, Xocavand Rayonu, Yardimli Rayonu, Yevlax Rayonu, Yevlax Sahari*, Zangilan Rayonu, Zaqatala Rayonu, Zardab Rayonu 12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou
Age structure 0-14 years:
28.95% (male 1,146,315; female 1,103,393)

15-64 years:
63.93% (male 2,415,678; female 2,552,759)

65 years and over:
7.12% (male 219,549; female 333,398) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 46.8% (male 1,711,075; female 1,679,439)


15-64 years: 51% (male 1,802,990; female 1,890,915)


65 years and over: 2.3% (male 68,890; female 96,724) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products cotton, grain, rice, grapes, fruit, vegetables, tea, tobacco; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001)
Airports 52 (2000 est.) 5 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total:
9

2,438 to 3,047 m:
5

1,524 to 2,437 m:
4 (2000 est.)
total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
43

1,524 to 2,437 m:
7

914 to 1,523 m:
8

under 914 m:
28 (2000 est.)
total: 4


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area total:
86,600 sq km

land:
86,100 sq km

water:
500 sq km

note:
includes the exclave of Naxcivan Autonomous Republic and the Nagorno-Karabakh region; the region's autonomy was abolished by Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on 26 November 1991
total: 112,620 sq km


land: 110,620 sq km


water: 2,000 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maine slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Background Azerbaijan - a nation of Turkic Muslims - has been an independent republic since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Despite a cease-fire, in place since 1994, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh enclave (largely Armenian populated). Azerbaijan has lost almost 20% of its territory and must support some 750,000 refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a result of the conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous and the promise of widespread wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources remains largely unfulfilled. Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged.
Birth rate 18.44 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 42.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues:
$777 million

expenditures:
$995 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
revenues: $698.9 million


expenditures: $613.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital Baku (Baki) Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government
Climate dry, semiarid steppe tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline 0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km, est.) 121 km
Constitution adopted 12 November 1995 December 1990
Country name conventional long form:
Republic of Azerbaijan

conventional short form:
Azerbaijan

local long form:
Azarbaycan Respublikasi

local short form:
none

former:
Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic
conventional long form: Republic of Benin


conventional short form: Benin


local long form: Republique du Benin


local short form: Benin


former: Dahomey
Currency Azerbaijani manat (AZM) Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Death rate 9.55 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 13.69 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $1 billion (2000) $1.6 billion (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Ross WILSON

embassy:
Azadliq Prospekt 83, Baku 370007

mailing address:
American Embassy Baku, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7050

telephone:
[9] (9412) 98-03-35, 36, 37

FAX:
[9] (9412) 90-66-71
chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL


embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou


mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou


telephone: [229] 30-06-50


FAX: [229] 30-06-70
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Hafiz Mir Jalal PASHAYEV

chancery:
(temporary) Suite 700, 927 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 or P. O. Box 28790, Washington, DC 20038-8790

telephone:
[1] (202) 842-0001

FAX:
[1] (202) 842-0004
chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN


chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656


FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996
Disputes - international Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan two villages remain in dispute along the border with Burkina Faso; accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and ICJ ad hoc judges have been selected to rule on disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Nigeria; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones
Economic aid - recipient ODA, $113 million (1996) $342.6 million (2000)
Economy - overview Azerbaijan's most prominent products are oil, cotton, and natural gas. Azerbaijan's oil production declined through 1997 but has registered an increase every year since. Negotiation of 19 production-sharing arrangements (PSAs) with foreign firms, which have thus far committed $60 billion to oil field development, should generate the funds needed to spur future industrial development. Oil production under the first of these PSAs, with the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, began in November 1997. Azerbaijan shares all the formidable problems of the former Soviet republics in making the transition from a command to a market economy, but its considerable energy resources brighten its long-term prospects. Baku has only recently begun making progress on economic reform, and old economic ties and structures are slowly being replaced. An obstacle to economic progress, including stepped up foreign investment, is the continuing conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Trade with Russia and the other former Soviet republics is declining in importance while trade is building up with Turkey, Iran, UAE, and the nations of Europe. Long-term prospects will depend on world oil prices, the location of new pipelines in the region, and Azerbaijan's ability to manage its oil wealth. The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged a stable 5% in the past six years, but rapid population rise has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. The 2001 privatization policy should continue in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of initial government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, while pressing for speeded-up structural reforms.
Electricity - consumption 15.432 billion kWh (1999) 631.1 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 600 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 800 million kWh (1999) 376 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 16.378 billion kWh (1999) 274.3 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
86.46%

hydro:
13.54%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Caspian Sea -28 m

highest point:
Bazarduzu Dagi 4,485 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m
Environment - current issues local scientists consider the Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the Caspian Sea to be the ecologically most devastated area in the world because of severe air, water, and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of DDT as a pesticide and also from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Azeri 90%, Dagestani 3.2%, Russian 2.5%, Armenian 2%, other 2.3% (1998 est.)

note:
almost all Armenians live in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region
African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500
Exchange rates Azerbaijani manats per US dollar - 4,579 (1 February 2001), 4,342 (October 1999), 4,373 (1999), 3,869 (1998), 3,985.38 (1997), 4,301.26 (1996) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)
Executive branch chief of state:
President Heydar ALIYEV (since 18 June 1993)

head of government:
Prime Minister Artur RASIZADE (since 26 November 1996)

cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly

elections:
president elected by popular vote to a five-year term; election last held 11 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2003); prime minister and first deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly

election results:
Heydar ALIYEV reelected president; percent of vote - Heydar ALIYEV 77.6%, Etibar MAMEDOV 11.8%, Nizami SULEYMANOV 8.2%
chief of state: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Mathieu KEREKOU (since 4 April 1996); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; runoff election held 22 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006)


election results: Mathieu KEREKOU reelected president; percent of vote - Mathieu KEREKOU 84.1%, Bruno AMOUSSOU 15.9%


note: the four top-ranking contenders following the first-round presidential elections were: Mathieu KEREKOU (incumbent) 45.4%, Nicephore SOGOLO (former president) 27.1%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI (National Assembly Speaker) 12.6%, and Bruno AMOUSSOU (Minister of State) 8.6%; the second-round balloting, originally scheduled for 18 March 2001, was postponed four days because both SOGOLO and HOUNGBEDJI withdrew alleging electoral fraud; this left KEREKOU to run against his own Minister of State, AMOUSSOU, in what was termed a "friendly match"
Exports $1.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities oil and gas 75%, machinery, cotton, foodstuffs cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa
Exports - partners Italy, Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Iran China 21.1%, India 18%, Thailand 6.8%, Ghana 5.8%, Niger 4.4%, Indonesia 4.1% (2003)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), red, and green; a crescent and eight-pointed star in white are centered in red band two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red with a vertical green band on the hoist side
GDP purchasing power parity - $23.5 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $7.742 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
22%

industry:
33%

services:
45% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 36.4%


industry: 14.5%


services: 49.1% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 11.4% (2000 est.) 5.5% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 40 30 N, 47 30 E 9 30 N, 2 15 E
Geography - note landlocked sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands
Highways total:
24,981 km

paved:
23,057 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather)

unpaved:
1,924 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998)
total: 6,787 km


paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways)


unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; transshipment point for opiates via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia to Western Europe transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure
Imports $1.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, metals, chemicals foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, UAE, Iran China 29.5%, France 14.9%, UK 4.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.7%, Thailand 4.6% (2003)
Independence 30 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) 1 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate 6.9% (2000 est.) 8.3% (2001 est.)
Industries petroleum and natural gas, petroleum products, oilfield equipment; steel, iron ore, cement; chemicals and petrochemicals; textiles textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction materials (2001)
Infant mortality rate 83.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 85.88 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 90.89 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 80.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.8% (2000 est.) 1.5% (2003 est.)
International organization participation AsDB, BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 2 (2000) -
Irrigated land 10,000 sq km (1993 est.) 120 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
Labor force 2.9 million (1997) NA (1996)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture and forestry 32%, industry 15%, services 53% (1997) -
Land boundaries total:
2,013 km

border countries:
Armenia (with Azerbaijan-proper) 566 km, Armenia (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 221 km, Georgia 322 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-proper) 432 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 179 km, Russia 284 km, Turkey 9 km
total: 1,989 km


border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km
Land use arable land:
18%

permanent crops:
5%

permanent pastures:
25%

forests and woodland:
11%

other:
41% (1993 est.)
arable land: 18.08%


permanent crops: 2.4%


other: 79.52% (2001)
Languages Azerbaijani (Azeri) 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% (1995 est.) French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)
Legal system based on civil law system based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly or Milli Mejlis (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 4 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2005)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NAP and allies 108, APF 6, CSP 3, PNIA 2, Musavat Party 2, CPA 2, APF "traditionalist" 1, Compatriot Party 1
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 30 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Presidential Movement 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31
Life expectancy at birth total population:
62.96 years

male:
58.65 years

female:
67.49 years (2001 est.)
total population: 50.81 years


male: 50.25 years


female: 51.39 years (2004 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
97%

male:
99%

female:
96% (1989 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 40.9%


male: 56.2%


female: 26.5% (2000)
Location Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo
Map references Commonwealth of Independent States Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 200 nm
Merchant marine total:
56 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 253,882 GRT/313,252 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 1, cargo 12, petroleum tanker 40, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.)
none
Military branches Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guards Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $121 million (FY99) $98.3 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.6% (FY99) 2.7% (2003)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
2,102,780 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 1,638,010


females age 15-49: 1,647,850 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
1,684,673 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 835,561


females age 15-49: 835,633 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
77,099 (2001 est.)
males: 77,552


females: 81,841 (2004 est.)
National holiday Founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaidzhan, 28 May (1918) National Day, 1 August (1960)
Nationality noun:
Azerbaijani(s)

adjective:
Azerbaijani
noun: Beninese (singular and plural)


adjective: Beninese
Natural hazards droughts; some lowland areas threatened by rising levels of the Caspian Sea hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March
Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber
Net migration rate -5.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 1,130 km; petroleum products 630 km; natural gas 1,240 km -
Political parties and leaders Alliance for Azerbaijan Party [Abutalyb SAMADOV]; Azerbaijani Democratic Party or ADP [Sardar JALAL]; Azerbaijani Independent Democratic Party or AMDP [Leyla YUNUSOVA]; Azerbaijan Popular Front or APF [Ali KERIMOV, leader of "reform faction"; Mirmahmud FATTAYEV, leader of "traditionalist" faction]; Civic Solidarity Party or CSP [Sabir RUSTAMKHANLY]; Civic Union Party [Ayaz MUTALIBOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA [Ramiz AHMADOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA-2 [Firudin HASANOV]; Compatriot Party [Mais SAFARLI]; Democratic Enlightenment Party [Mammadhanifu MUSAYEV]; Democratic Party for Azerbaijan or DPA [Ilyus ISMAILOV and Rasul QULIYEV, co-chairman]; Democratic World Party of Azerbaijan [Mamnad ALIZADE]; Liberal Party of Azerbaijan [Lala Shvkat HAJIYEVA]; Motherland Party [Fazail AGAMALI]; National Congress Party of Azerbaijan [Ihtiyar SHIRIN]; National Movement Party [Samir JAFAROV]; National Statehood Party [Sabir TARIVERDIYEV]; Musavat [Isa GAMBAR, chairman]; New Azerbaijan Party or NAP [Heydar ALIYEV, chairman]; Party for National Independence of Azerbaijan or PNIA [Etibar MAMMADOV, chairman]; People's Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or PDPA [Rafig TURABKHANOGLU]; Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or SDP [Zardusht ALIZADE, chairman]

note:
opposition parties regularly factionalize and form new parties
African Congress for Renewal or DUNYA [Saka SALEY]; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Alliance of the Social Democratic Party or PSD [Bruno AMOUSSOU]; Coalition of Democratic Forces [Gatien HOUNGBEDJI]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Front for Renewal and Development or FARD-ALAFIA [Jerome Sakia KINA]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD [Bertin BORNA]; Key Force or FC [leader NA]; Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, IDP, and 4 other small parties); Renaissance Party du Benin or PRB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU]


note: approximately 20 additional minor parties
Political pressure groups and leaders Sadval, Lezgin movement; self-proclaimed Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Republic; Talysh independence movement NA
Population 7,771,092 (July 2001 est.) 7,250,033


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 60% (2000 est.) 37% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 0.32% (2001 est.) 2.89% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors Baku (Baki) Cotonou, Porto-Novo
Radio broadcast stations AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)
Radios 175,000 (1997) -
Railways total:
2,125 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines

broad gauge:
2,125 km 1.520-m gauge (1,278 km electrified) (1993)
total: 578 km


narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)
Religions Muslim 93.4%, Russian Orthodox 2.5%, Armenian Orthodox 2.3%, other 1.8% (1995 est.)

note:
religious affiliation is still nominal in Azerbaijan; percentages for actual practicing adherents are much lower
indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.66 male(s)/female

total population:
0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
inadequate; requires considerable expansion and modernization; teledensity of 8.6 main lines per 100 persons is very low

domestic:
the majority of telephones are in Baku and other industrial centers - about 700 villages still do not have public telephone service; satellite service connects Baku to a modern switch in its exclave of Naxcivan

international:
the old Soviet system of cable and microwave is still serviceable; a satellite connection to Turkey enables Baku to reach about 200 additional countries, some of which are directly connected to Baku by satellite providers other than Turkey (1997)
general assessment: NA


domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections


international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use 663,000 (1997) 66,500 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 40,000 (1997) 236,200 (2003)
Television broadcast stations 2 (1997) 1 (2001)
Terrain large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland) (much of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) in west; Baku lies on Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains
Total fertility rate 2.24 children born/woman (2001 est.) 5.95 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 20% (1999 est.) NA
Waterways none 150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2004)
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