Azerbaijan (2002) | Dominica (2005) | |
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 | 10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.3% (male 1,122,340; female 1,082,355)
15-64 years: 64.3% (male 2,441,830; female 2,577,109) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 228,735; female 346,128) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.7% (male 9,328/female 9,125)
15-64 years: 65.4% (male 23,225/female 21,900) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 2,193/female 3,258) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain, rice, grapes, fruit, vegetables, tea, tobacco; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats | bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited |
Airports | 52 (2001) | 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (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 (2002) |
- |
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: 754 sq km
land: 754 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maine | slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Azerbaijan - a nation with a Turkic and majority-Muslim population - regained its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Despite a 1994 cease-fire, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh enclave (largely Armenian populated). Azerbaijan has lost 16% of its territory and must support some 800,000 refugees and internally displaced persons as a result of the conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous and the promise of widespread wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources remains largely unfulfilled. | Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763, which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining in the eastern Caribbean. |
Birth rate | 18.84 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15.73 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $786 million
expenditures: $807 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
revenues: $73.9 million
expenditures: $84.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2001) |
Capital | Baku (Baki) | Roseau |
Climate | dry, semiarid steppe | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km, est.) | 148 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 November 1995 | 3 November 1978 |
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: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica |
Currency | Azerbaijani manat (AZM) | - |
Death rate | 9.61 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.81 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2002) | $161.5 million (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ross L. WILSON
embassy: 83 Azadliq Avenue, 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Dominica |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Elmar MAMEDYAROV
chancery: 2741 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 337-3500 FAX: [1] (202) 337-5911 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Swinburne LESTRADE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in Nagorno-Karabakh and militarily occupies about one-sixth of Azerbaijan - Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues to mediate dispute; Azerbaijan signed bilateral agreements with Russia delimiting the Caspian seabed, but littoral states are far from multilateral agreement on dividing the waters and seabed regimes - Iran insists on division of Caspian Sea into five equal sectors while Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan have generally agreed upon equidistant seabed boundaries; Iran threatens to conduct oil exploration in Azerbaijani-claimed waters, while interdicting Azerbaijani activities; Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan await ICJ decision to resolve sovereignty dispute over oilfields in the Caspian Sea | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA, $140 million (1996) (2000 est.) | $22.8 million (2003 est.) |
Economy - overview | Azerbaijan's number one export is oil. Azerbaijan's oil production declined through 1997 but has registered an increase every year since. Negotiation of production-sharing arrangements (PSAs) with foreign firms, which have thus far committed $60 billion to oilfield 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 in the non-energy sector, 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 with Turkey 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 Dominican economy depends on agriculture, primarily bananas, and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions and international economic developments. Production of bananas dropped precipitously in 2003, a major reason for the 1% decline in GDP. Tourism increased in 2003 as the government sought to promote Dominica as an "ecotourism" destination. Development of the tourism industry remains difficult, however, because of the rugged coastline, lack of beaches, and the absence of an international airport. The government began a comprehensive restructuring of the economy in 2003 - including elimination of price controls, privatization of the state banana company, and tax increases - to address Dominica's economic crisis and to meet IMF targets. In order to diversify the island's production base the government is attempting to develop an offshore financial sector and is planning to construct an oil refinery on the eastern part of the island. |
Electricity - consumption | 16.7 billion kWh (2000) | 63.62 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 900 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 1.25 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 17.6 billion kWh (2000) | 68.41 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 91%
hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Bazarduzu Dagi 4,485 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 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, soil, and water pollution; soil pollution results from oil spills, from the use of DDT as a pesticide, and from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
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, Whaling
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 |
black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | Azerbaijani manats per US dollar - 4,804 (11 February 2002), 4,656.58 (2001), 4,474.15 (2000), 4,120.17 (1999), 3,869 (1998), 3,985.38 (1997) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000) |
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 Nicholas J. O. LIVERPOOL (since October 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Roosevelt SKERRIT (since 8 January 2004); note - assumed post after death of Prime Minister Pierre CHARLES cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by the House of Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 1 October 2003 (next to be held October 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Nicholas LIVERPOOL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
Exports | $2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | oil and gas 90%, machinery, cotton, foodstuffs | bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges |
Exports - partners | Italy 57.2%, Israel 7.1%, Georgia 4.5%, Russia 3.4%, Turkey 2.9% (2001) | UK 21.6%, Jamaica 14.8%, Antigua and Barbuda 8.8%, Guyana 7.5%, Japan 5.4%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.8%, US 4.3%, Saint Lucia 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - the vertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and the horizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed in the center of the cross is a red disk bearing a sisserou parrot encircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10 stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $27 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20%
industry: 33% services: 47% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 24% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,300 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,500 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.1% (2002 est.) | -1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 30 N, 47 30 E | 15 25 N, 61 20 W |
Geography - note | both the main area of the country and the Naxcivan exclave are landlocked | known as "The Nature Island of the Caribbean" due to its spectacular, lush, and varied flora and fauna, which are protected by an extensive natural park system; the most mountainous of the Lesser Antilles, its volcanic peaks are cones of lava craters and include Boiling Lake, the second-largest, thermally active lake in the world |
Highways | total: 36,700 km
paved: 31,800 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 4,900 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
total: 780 km
paved: 393 km unpaved: 387 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 28% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; small government eradication program; transit point for Southwest Asian opiates bound for Russia and to a lesser extent the rest of Europe | transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor cannabis producer; anti-money-laundering enforcement is weak, making the country particularly vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $1.8 billion f.o.b. (2002) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, oil products, foodstuffs, metals, chemicals | manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 16.1%, Russia 10.7%, Turkey 10.4%, Kazakhstan 7.0%, Germany 5.1% (2001) | China 20.4%, US 16.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 12.3%, UK 6.9%, South Korea 4.6%, Japan 4.3% (2004) |
Independence | 30 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 3 November 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (2002 est.) | -10% (1997 est.) |
Industries | petroleum and natural gas, petroleum products, oilfield equipment; steel, iron ore, cement; chemicals and petrochemicals; textiles | soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes |
Infant mortality rate | 82.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 14.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.6% (2002 est.) | 1% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 14,550 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court of Appeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the six judges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 3.7 million (1997) (2001) | 25,000 (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and forestry 41%, industry 7%, services 53% (1997) (2001) | agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28% |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 19.31%
permanent crops: 3.04% other: 77.65% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 6.67%
permanent crops: 20% other: 73.33% (2001) |
Languages | Azerbaijani (Azeri) 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% (1995 est.) | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on English common law |
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) note: 100 members of the curent parliament were elected on the basis of single mandate constituencies, while 25 were elected based on proportional balloting; as a result of a 24 August 2002 national referendum on changes to the constitution, all 125 members of the next parliament will be elected from single mandate constituencies election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NAP and allies 108, APF "Reform" 6, CSP 3, PNIA 2, Musavat Party 2, CPA 2, APF "Classic" 1, Compatriot Party 1 note: PNIA, Musavat, and APF "Classic" parties refused to take their seats |
unicameral House of Assembly (30 seats, 9 appointed senators, 21 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 5 May 2005 (next to be held by 5 August 2010); note - tradition dictates that the election will be held within five years of the last election, but technically it is five years from the first seating of parliament (12 May 2005) plus a 90-day grace period election results: percent of vote by party - DLP 52.08%, UWP 43.6%, DFP 3.15%; seats by party - DLP 12, UWP 8, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 63.06 years
male: 58.8 years female: 67.53 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 74.65 years
male: 71.73 years female: 77.71 years (2005 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 has ever attended school
total population: 94% male: 94% female: 94% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 54 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 246,051 GRT/306,756 DWT
ships by type: cargo 12, petroleum tanker 40, roll on/roll off 2 (2002 est.) |
total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 13,771 GRT/19,736 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 19, chemical tanker 2, container 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 21 (Estonia 6, Greece 3, Pakistan 1, Russia 2, Singapore 6, Syria 2, UAE 1) (2005) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces | no regular military forces; Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force (includes Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $121 million (FY99) | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (FY99) | NA |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,131,331 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,706,325 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 77,099 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaidzhan, 28 May (1918) | Independence Day, 3 November (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Azerbaijani(s)
adjective: Azerbaijani |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | droughts | flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the late summer months |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina | timber, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | -5.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -11.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,130 km; petroleum products 630 km; natural gas 1,240 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Azerbaijan Popular Front or APF [Ali KARIMLI, leader of "Reform faction"; Mirmahmud MIRALI-OGLU, leader of "Classic" faction]; Civic Solidarity Party or CSP [Sabir RUSTAMKHANLY]; Civic Union Party [Ayaz MUTALIBOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA [Ramiz AHMADOV]; Compatriot Party [Mais SAFARLI]; Democratic Party for Azerbaijan or DPA [Rasul QULIYEV, chairman]; Justice Party [Ilyas ISMAILOV]; Liberal Party of Azerbaijan [Lala Shvkat HACIYEVA]; Musavat [Isa GAMBAR, chairman]; New Azerbaijan Party or NAP [Heydar ALIYEV, chairman]; Party for National Independence of Azerbaijan or PNIA [Etibar MAMMADLIV, chairman]; Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or SDP [Zardust ALIZADE]
note: opposition parties regularly factionalize and form new parties |
Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP [Roosevelt SKERRIT]; United Workers Party or UWP [Edison JAMES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Sadval, Lezgin movement; self-proclaimed Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Republic; Talysh independence movement | Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party) |
Population | 7,798,497 (July 2002 est.) | 69,029 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 49% (2002) | 30% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.38% (2002 est.) | -0.27% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Baku (Baki) | Portsmouth, Roseau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (2004) |
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 est.) |
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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 |
Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), other 6%, none 2% |
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 (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate; requires considerable expansion and modernization; teledensity of 10 main lines per 100 persons is low (2002)
domestic: the majority of telephones are in Baku and other industrial centers - about 700 villages still without 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: fully automatic network international: country code - 1-767; microwave radio relay and SHF radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 865,000 (2002) | 23,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 800,000 (2002) | 9,400 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (2004) |
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 | rugged mountains of volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 2.29 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (official rate is 1.1% for 2002) (2001 est.) | 23% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |