Belize (2005) | Turkey (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 6 districts; Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek, Toledo | 80 provinces (iller, singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Icel, Igdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak; note - there may be another province called Duzce |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 40.1% (male 57,114/female 54,877)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 79,694/female 77,881) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 4,768/female 5,123) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
28.42% (male 9,620,291; female 9,276,347) 15-64 years: 65.45% (male 22,116,599; female 21,401,165) 65 years and over: 6.13% (male 1,878,571; female 2,200,997) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coca, citrus, sugar; fish, cultured shrimp; lumber; garments | tobacco, cotton, grain, olives, sugar beets, pulse, citrus; livestock |
Airports | 43 (2004 est.) | 121 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
86 over 3,047 m: 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 29 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.) |
total:
35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 26 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 22,966 sq km
land: 22,806 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total:
780,580 sq km land: 770,760 sq km water: 9,820 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly larger than Texas |
Background | Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize (formerly British Honduras) until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. The country remains plagued by high unemployment, growing involvement in the South American drug trade, and increasing urban crime. | Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN and in 1952 it became a member of NATO. Turkey occupied the northern portion of Cyprus in 1974 to prevent a Greek takeover of the island; relations between the two countries remain strained. Periodic military offensives against Kurdish separatists have dislocated part of the population in southeast Turkey and have drawn international condemnation. |
Birth rate | 29.34 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 18.31 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $244.5 million
expenditures: $300 million, including capital expenditures of $70 million (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$54.5 billion expenditures: $75.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.3 billion (2000) |
Capital | Belmopan | Ankara |
Climate | tropical; very hot and humid; rainy season (May to November); dry season (February to May) | temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior |
Coastline | 386 km | 7,200 km |
Constitution | 21 September 1981 | 7 November 1982 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Belize former: British Honduras |
conventional long form:
Republic of Turkey conventional short form: Turkey local long form: Turkiye Cumhuriyeti local short form: Turkiye |
Currency | - | Turkish lira (TRL) |
Death rate | 6.04 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.95 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.362 billion (June 2004 est.) | $109 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Russell F. FREEMAN
embassy: 29 Gabourel Lane, Belize City mailing address: P. O. Box 286, Belize City telephone: [501] 227-7161 through 7163 FAX: [501] 2-30802 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Robert PEARSON embassy: Ataturk Bulvarii 110, Ankara mailing address: PSC 93, Box 5000, APO AE 09823 telephone: [90] (312) 468-6110 FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019 consulate(s) general: Istanbul (closed as of December 2000 for security review) consulate(s): Adana (closed as of December 2000 for security review) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Lisa M. SHOMAN
chancery: 2535 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-9636 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6888 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Baki ILKIN chancery: 2525 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 612-6744 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | Guatemalan squatters continue to settle in the largely uninhabited rain forests of Belize's border region; OAS is attempting to revive the 2002 failed Differendum that created a small adjustment to land boundary, a Guatemalan maritime corridor in Caribbean, joint ecological park for disputed Sapodilla Cays, and substantial US-UK financial package | complex maritime, air, and territorial disputes with Greece in Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Greece; dispute with downstream riparian states (Syria and Iraq) over water development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers; traditional demands regarding former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | ODA, $195 million (1993) |
Economy - overview | In this small, essentially private enterprise economy the tourism industry is the number one foreign exchange earner followed by marine products, citrus, cane sugar, bananas, and garments. The government's expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, initiated in September 1998, led to sturdy GDP growth averaging nearly 6% in 1999-2004. Major concerns continue to be the sizable trade deficit and foreign debt. A key short-term objective remains the reduction of poverty with the help of international donors. | Turkey's dynamic economy is a complex mix of modern industry and commerce along with traditional agriculture that still accounts for nearly 40% of employment. It has a strong and rapidly growing private sector, yet the state still plays a major role in basic industry, banking, transport, and communication. The most important industry - and largest exporter - is textiles and clothing, which is almost entirely in private hands. In recent years the economic situation has been marked by erratic economic growth and serious imbalances. Real GNP growth has exceeded 6% in most years, but this strong expansion was interrupted by sharp declines in output in 1994 and 1999. Meanwhile the public sector fiscal deficit has regularly exceeded 10% of GDP - due in large part to the huge burden of interest payments, which now account for more than 40% of central government spending - while inflation has remained in the high double digit range. Perhaps because of these problems, foreign direct investment in Turkey remains low - less than $1 billion annually. Prospects for the future are improving, however, because the ECEVIT government since June 1999 has been implementing an IMF-backed reform program, including a tighter budget, social security reform, banking reorganization, and accelerated privatization. As a result, the fiscal situation is greatly improved and inflation has dropped below 40% - the lowest rate since 1987. The country experienced a financial crisis in late 2000, including sharp drops in the stock market and foreign exchange reserves, but is recovering rapidly, thanks to additional IMF support and the government's commitment to a specific timetable of economic reforms. |
Electricity - consumption | 108.8 million kWh (2002) | 119.5 billion kWh (2000 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 350 million kWh (2000 est.) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 3.35 billion kWh (2000 est.) |
Electricity - production | 117 million kWh (2002) | 125.3 billion kWh (2000 est.) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
71% hydro: 29% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000 est.) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Victoria Peak 1,160 m |
lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; water pollution from sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff; solid and sewage waste disposal | water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 48.7%, Creole 24.9%, Maya 10.6%, Garifuna 6.1%, other 9.7% | Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20% |
Exchange rates | Belizean dollars per US dollar - 2 (2004), 2 (2003), 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000) | Turkish liras per US dollar - 677,621 (December 2000), 625,219 (2000), 418,783 (1999), 260,724 (1998), 151,865 (1997), 81,405 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG, Sr. (since 17 November 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Said Wilbert MUSA (since 28 August 1998); Deputy Prime Minister John BRICENO (since 1 September 1998) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
chief of state:
President Ahmed Necdet SEZER (since 16 May 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Bulent ECEVIT (since 11 January 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister note: there is also a National Security Council that serves as an advisory body to the president and the cabinet elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a seven-year term; election last held 5 May 2000 (next scheduled to be held NA May 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president election results: Ahmed Necdet SEZER elected president on the third ballot; percent of National Assembly vote - 60% note: president must have a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly on the first two ballots and a simple majority on the third ballot |
Exports | NA | $26.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood | apparel 25.6%, foodstuffs 15.4%, textiles 12.3%, metal manufactures 8.6%, transport equipment 8.1% (1998) |
Exports - partners | US 37.2%, UK 26.8%, Jamaica 4.6% (2004) | Germany 18.7%, US 11.4%, UK 7.4%, Italy 6.3%, France 6.0% (2000 est.) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with a narrow red stripe along the top and the bottom edges; centered is a large white disk bearing the coat of arms; the coat of arms features a shield flanked by two workers in front of a mahogany tree with the related motto SUB UMBRA FLOREO (I Flourish in the Shade) on a scroll at the bottom, all encircled by a green garland | red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $444 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17.7%
industry: 15% services: 67.3% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
15% industry: 29% services: 56% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2004 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 15 N, 88 45 W | 39 00 N, 35 00 E |
Geography - note | only country in Central America without a coastline on the North Pacific Ocean | strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas |
Heliports | - | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 2,872 km
paved: 488 km unpaved: 2,384 km (1999 est.) |
total:
382,059 km paved: 106,976 km (including 1,726 km of expressways) unpaved: 275,083 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 32.3% (1994) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for cocaine; small-scale illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trafficking and offshore sector | key transit route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe and - to a far lesser extent the US - via air, land, and sea routes; major Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate |
Imports | NA | $55.7 billion (c.i.f., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods; fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; food, beverages, tobacco | machinery 28.3%, chemicals 15.2%, semi-finished goods 14.5%, fuels 11%, transport equipment 9.5% (1999) |
Imports - partners | US 30.1%, Mexico 12%, Guatemala 7.4%, Cuba 7.2%, China 4.2%, Japan 4.1% (2004) | Germany 13.1%, Italy 7.9%, US 7.2%, Russia 7.0%, France 6.6%, UK 5.0% (2000 est.) |
Independence | 21 September 1981 (from UK) | 29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.6% (1999) | 6.2% (2000 est.) |
Industries | garment production, food processing, tourism, construction | textiles, food processing, autos, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 28.97 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
47.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.9% (2004 est.) | 39% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTAET, UPU, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 22 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1998 est.) | 36,740 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister) | Constitutional Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of Appeals (judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors) |
Labor force | 90,000
note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel (2001 est.) |
23 million (2000 est.)
note: about 1.2 million Turks work abroad (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 27%, industry 18%, services 55% (2001 est.) | agriculture 38%, services 38%, industry 24% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total: 516 km
border countries: Guatemala 266 km, Mexico 250 km |
total:
2,627 km border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 331 km, Syria 822 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.85%
permanent crops: 1.71% other: 95.44% (2001) |
arable land:
32% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 16% forests and woodland: 26% other: 22% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole | Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek |
Legal system | English law | derived from various European continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly consists of the Senate (12 members appointed by the governor general - six on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and one each on the advice of the Belize Council of Churches and Evangelical Association of Churches, the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Belize Better Business Bureau, and the National Trade Union Congress and the Civil Society Steering Committee; members are appointed for five-year terms) and the House of Representatives (29 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 5 March 2003 (next to be held March 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PUP 21, UDP 8 |
unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi (550 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 18 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - DSP 136, MHP 130, FP 110, DYP 86, ANAP 88; note - as of 7 March 2000 seating was DSP 136, MHP 127, FP 103, DYP 85, ANAP 88 independents 6, vacancies 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.44 years
male: 66.54 years female: 70.44 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
71.24 years male: 68.89 years female: 73.71 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.1% male: 94.1% female: 94.1% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85% male: 94% female: 77% (2000) |
Location | Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Mexico | southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm in the north, 3 nm in the south; note - from the mouth of the Sarstoon River to Ranguana Cay, Belize's territorial sea is 3 nm; according to Belize's Maritime Areas Act, 1992, the purpose of this limitation is to provide a framework for negotiating a definitive agreement on territorial differences with Guatemala
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
in Black Sea only: to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the former USSR territorial sea: 6 NM in the Aegean Sea; 12 NM in Black Sea and in Mediterranean Sea |
Merchant marine | total: 295 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,015,270 GRT/1,336,890 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 25, cargo 207, chemical tanker 9, container 6, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 20, refrigerated cargo 17, roll on/roll off 5 foreign-owned: 142 (Australia 2, Belgium 1, China 50, Cuba 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 9, Germany 4, Hong Kong 6, Indonesia 3, Italy 2, Japan 5, Latvia 4, Malaysia 1, Nigeria 1, Pakistan 1, Poland 2, Russia 23, Singapore 5, South Korea 6, Spain 3, Switzerland 1, Turkey 2, Ukraine 4, UAE 3, United States 2) (2005) |
total:
548 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,617,302 GRT/9,088,451 DWT ships by type: bulk 140, cargo 242, chemical tanker 41, combination bulk 5, combination ore/oil 6, container 21, liquefied gas 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 43, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 25, short-sea passenger 10, specialized tanker 5 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Belize Defense Force (BDF): Army, Maritime Wing, Air Wing, and Volunteer Guard | Land Force, Navy (includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force, Coast Guard, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $18 million (2003) | $10.6 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (2003) | 5.6% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
18,882,272 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
11,432,438 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
674,805 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 21 September (1981) | Independence Day, 29 October (1923) |
Nationality | noun: Belizean(s)
adjective: Belizean |
noun:
Turk(s) adjective: Turkish |
Natural hazards | frequent, devastating hurricanes (June to November) and coastal flooding (especially in south) | very severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van |
Natural resources | arable land potential, timber, fish, hydropower | antimony, coal, chromium, mercury, copper, borate, sulfur, iron ore, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,738 km; petroleum products 2,321 km; natural gas 708 km |
Political parties and leaders | People's United Party or PUP [Said MUSA]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Dean BARROW, party leader; Douglas SINGH, party chairman] | Democratic Left Party or DSP [Bulent ECEVIT]; Motherland Party or ANAP [Mesut YILMAZ]; Nationalist Action Party or MHP [Devlet BAHCELI]; True Path Party or DYP [Tansu CILLER]; Virtue Party or FP [Recai KUTAN]; note - in June 2001, Turkey's Constitutional Court banned the party; its representatives (except for two) can stay on in the Grand National Assembly as independents
note: Welfare Party or RP [Necmettin ERBAKAN] was officially outlawed on 22 February 1998 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Society for the Promotion of Education and Research or SPEAR [Adele CATZIM] | Confederation of Revolutionary Workers Unions or DISK [Ridvan BUDAK]; Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association or MUSIAD [Erol YARAR]; Moral Rights Workers Union or Hak-Is [Salim USLU]; Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TUSIAD [Muharrem KAYHAN]; Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions or TISK [Refik BAYDUR]; Turkish Confederation of Labor or Turk-Is [Bayram MERAL]; Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity Exchanges or TOBB [Fuat MIRAS] |
Population | 279,457 (July 2005 est.) | 66,493,970 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 33% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.33% (2005 est.) | 1.24% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Belize City | Gemlik, Hopa, Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Kocaeli (Izmit), Icel (Mersin), Samsun, Trabzon |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 16, FM 72, shortwave 6 (1998) |
Radios | - | 11.3 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
8,607 km standard gauge: 8,607 km 1.435-m gauge (1,524 km electrified) (1999) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 49.6%, Protestant 27% (Pentecostal 7.4%, Anglican 5.3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 5.2%, Mennonite 4.1%, Methodist 3.5%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.5%), other 14%, none 9.4% (2000) | Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (Christian and Jews) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: above-average system
domestic: trunk network depends primarily on microwave radio relay international: country code - 501; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
undergoing rapid modernization and expansion, especially cellular telephones domestic: additional digital exchanges are permitting a rapid increase in subscribers; the construction of a network of technologically advanced intercity trunk lines, using both fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay is facilitating communication between urban centers; remote areas are reached by a domestic satellite system; the number of subscribers to mobile cellular telephone service is growing rapidly international: international service is provided by three submarine fiber-optic cables in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, linking Turkey with Italy, Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, Romania, and Russia, by 12 Intelsat earth stations, and by 328 mobile satellite terminals in the Inmarsat and Eutelsat systems |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,300 (2003) | 19.5 million (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 60,400 (2003) | 12.1 million (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 635 (plus 2,934 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | flat, swampy coastal plain; low mountains in south | mostly mountains; narrow coastal plain; high central plateau (Anatolia) |
Total fertility rate | 3.68 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12.9% (2003) | 5.6% (plus underemployment of 5.6%) (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 825 km (navigable only by small craft) (2004) | 1,200 km (approximately) |