Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2006) - Nepal (2008)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2006) z Nepal (2008)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)	Nepal (2008)

Administrative divisions	-	14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 38.3% (male 5,721,720/female 5,360,391) 15-64 years: 57.9% (male 8,597,037/female 8,134,115) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 528,113/female 560,414) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, jute, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat
Airports	1 (2006)	47 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)	total: 10 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 30 (2007)
Area	total: 54,400 sq km land: 60 sq km; Diego Garcia 44 sq km water: 54,340 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago of 55 islands	total: 147,181 sq km land: 143,181 sq km water: 4,000 sq km
Area - comparative	land area is about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly larger than Arkansas
Background	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.	In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. A Maoist insurgency, launched in 1996, gained traction and threatened to bring down the regime, especially after a negotiated cease-fire between the Maoists and government forces broke down in August 2003. In 2001, the crown prince massacred ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, and then took his own life. In October 2002, the new king dismissed the prime minister and his cabinet for "incompetence" after they dissolved the parliament and were subsequently unable to hold elections because of the ongoing insurgency. While stopping short of reestablishing parliament, the king in June 2004 reinstated the most recently elected prime minister who formed a four-party coalition government. Citing dissatisfaction with the government's lack of progress in addressing the Maoist insurgency and corruption, the king in February 2005 dissolved the government, declared a state of emergency, imprisoned party leaders, and assumed power. The king's government subsequently released party leaders and officially ended the state of emergency in May 2005, but the monarch retained absolute power until April 2006. After nearly three weeks of mass protests organized by the seven-party opposition and the Maoists, the king allowed parliament to reconvene in April 2006. Following a November 2006 peace accord between the government and the Maoists, an interim constitution was promulgated and the Maoists were allowed to enter parliament in January 2007. The peace accord calls for the creation of a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution. The Constituent Assembly elections, already twice delayed, are set for April 2008.
Birth rate	-	30.46 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	-	revenues: $1.153 billion expenditures: $1.927 billion (FY06/07)
Capital	-	name: Kathmandu geographic coordinates: 27 43 N, 85 19 E time difference: UTC+5.75 (10.75 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south
Coastline	698 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	-	9 November 1990; note - a new interim constitution was promulgated in January 2007; the November 2006 peace agreement calls for the election of a constituent assembly to draft a new permanent constitution
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long and short form: Nepal local long and short form: Nepal
Death rate	-	9.14 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	-	$3.07 billion (March 2006)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	chief of mission: Ambassador Nancy J. POWELL embassy: Maharajgunj, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 400-7200 FAX: [977] (1) 400-7272
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	chief of mission: Ambassador Suresh Chandra CHALISE chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York:
Disputes - international	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia; in 2001 the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago, evicted in 1965 and now residing chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation; the UK resists the Chagossians' demand for an immediate return to the islands; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricts access to the largest island in the chain;	joint border commission continues to work on contested sections of boundary with India, including the 400 square kilometer dispute over the source of the Kalapani River; India has instituted a stricter border regime to restrict transit of Maoist insurgents and illegal cross-border activities; approximately 106,000 Bhutanese Lhotshampas (Hindus) have been confined in refugee camps in southeastern Nepal since 1990
Economic aid - recipient	-	$427.9 million (2005)
Economy - overview	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing. The country makes money by selling fishing licenses and postage stamps.	Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with almost one-third of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for three-fourths of the population and accounting for 38% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Security concerns relating to the Maoist conflict have led to a decrease in tourism, a key source of foreign exchange. Nepal has considerable scope for exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, its civil strife, and its susceptibility to natural disaster.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	1.96 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - exports	-	101 million kWh (2006)
Electricity - imports	-	266 million kWh (2006)
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	2.511 billion kWh (2006)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m	lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m
Environment - current issues	NA	deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions
Environment - international agreements	-	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	-	Chhettri 15.5%, Brahman-Hill 12.5%, Magar 7%, Tharu 6.6%, Tamang 5.5%, Newar 5.4%, Muslim 4.2%, Kami 3.9%, Yadav 3.9%, other 32.7%, unspecified 2.8% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	-	Nepalese rupees per US dollar - NA (2007), 72.446 (2006), 72.16 (2005), 73.674 (2004), 76.141 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Tony HUMPHRIES (since February 2005); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch	chief of state: Girija Prasad KOIRALA (since 30 April 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Girija Prasad KOIRALA (since 30 April 2006) cabinet: Cabinet historically appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; note - the prime minister selected the Cabinet in May 2006 in consultation with the political parties elections: following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition historically has been appointed prime minister by the monarch
Exports	-	0 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	-	carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain
Exports - partners	-	India 67.9%, US 11.7%, Germany 4.7% (2006)
Fiscal year	-	16 July - 15 July
Flag description	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag	red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 38% industry: 20% services: 42% (FY05/06 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	2.5% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E; note - Diego Garcia 7 20 S, 72 25 E	28 00 N, 84 00 E
Geography - note	archipelago of 55 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility	landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest and Kanchenjunga - the world's tallest and third tallest - on the borders with China and India respectively
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 40.6% (2004)
Illicit drugs	-	illicit producer of cannabis and hashish for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West
Imports	-	11,530 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities	-	gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer
Imports - partners	-	India 61.8%, China 3.8%, Indonesia 3.3% (2006)
Independence	-	1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan SHAH)
Industrial production growth rate	-	2.2% (FY05/06)
Industries	-	tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick production
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 63.66 deaths/1,000 live births male: 61.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 65.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	8.6% (November 2006 est.)
International organization participation	-	ADB, BIMSTEC, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land	0 sq km	11,700 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	-	Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Judicial Council)
Labor force	-	11.11 million note: severe lack of skilled labor (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 76% industry: 6% services: 18% (2004 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 2,926 km border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)	arable land: 16.07% permanent crops: 0.85% other: 83.08% (2005)
Languages	-	Nepali 47.8%, Maithali 12.1%, Bhojpuri 7.4%, Tharu (Dagaura/Rana) 5.8%, Tamang 5.1%, Newar 3.6%, Magar 3.3%, Awadhi 2.4%, other 10%, unspecified 2.5% (2001 census) note: many in government and business also speak English (2001 est.)
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	-	a 330 seat Interim Parliament was formed on 15 January 2007 following the promulgation of an interim constitution elections: Constituent Assembly elections orginally scheduled for June 2007 are expected to be held on 10 April 2008 election results: Interim Parliament seats by party - NC 85, CPN/M 83, CPN/UML 83, NC/D 48, RPP 9, NSP/AD 5, NWPP 4, People's Front Nepal (Amik Sherchan Group) 4, People's Front Nepal (Chitra Bahadur K.C. Group) 3, UFL 3, People's Front Nepal (Chitra Bahadur Ale Group) 2, NSP 1
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 60.56 years male: 60.78 years female: 60.33 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	-	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 48.6% male: 62.7% female: 34.9% (2001 census)
Location	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	Southern Asia, between China and India
Map references	Political Map of the World	Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	none (landlocked)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016	-
Military branches	-	Nepalese Army, Armed Police Force (2008)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	1.6% (2006)
National holiday	-	in 2006, Parliament abolished the birthday of King GYANENDRA (7 July) and Constitution Day (9 November) as national holidays
Nationality	-	noun: Nepalese (singular and plural) adjective: Nepalese
Natural hazards	NA	severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore
Net migration rate	-	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Pashupati Shumsher RANA] (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP); Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP - Mandal [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL]; Nepal Sadbhavana Party - Ananda Devi [Ananda DEVI]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE]; People's Front Nepal (Amik Sherchan Group); People's Front Nepal (Chitra Bahadur Ale Group); People's Front Nepal (Chitra Bahadur K.C. Group); Rastriya Janashakti Party or RJP [Surya Bahadur THAPA] (split from RPP in March 2005); Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal (merged with People's Front Nepal or PFN in 2002); United Leftist Front or UFL [C.P. MAINALI]
Political pressure groups and leaders	-	Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency [Pushpa Kamal DAHAL, also known as PRACHANDA, chairman; Dr. Baburam BHATTARAI]; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s; in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; in November 2004, there were approximately 4,000 UK and US military personnel and civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2006 est.)	28,901,790 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	30.9% (2004)
Population growth rate	-	2.132% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2000)
Railways	-	total: 59 km narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2006)
Religions	-	Hindu 80.6%, Buddhist 10.7%, Muslim 4.2%, Kirant 3.6%, other 0.9% (2001 census) note: only official Hindu state in the world
Sex ratio	-	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.067 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.942 male(s)/female total population: 1.056 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)	general assessment: poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network domestic: NA international: country code - 977; radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	595,800 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	1.042 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998)
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed two meters in elevation)	Tarai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north
Total fertility rate	-	4.01 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	42% (2004 est.)

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