Burma (2003) | Tuvalu (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 7 divisions* (taing-myar, singular - taing) and 7 states (pyi ne-myar, singular - pyi ne); Chin State, Ayeyarwady*, Bago*, Kachin State, Kayin State, Kayah State, Magway*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Rakhine State, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tanintharyi*, Yangon* | none |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.1% (male 6,091,220; female 5,840,968)
15-64 years: 67% (male 14,162,190; female 14,347,751) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 916,702; female 1,151,706) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
33.28% (male 1,862; female 1,796) 15-64 years: 61.6% (male 3,241; female 3,529) 65 years and over: 5.12% (male 236; female 327) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products | coconuts; fish |
Airports | 80 (2002) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2002) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 72
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 34 (2002) |
total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 678,500 sq km
land: 657,740 sq km water: 20,760 sq km |
total:
26 sq km land: 26 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Texas | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence outside of the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as president, and later as political kingmaker. Despite multiparty elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party winning a decisive victory, the ruling military junta refused to hand over power. Key opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, under house arrest from 1989 to 1995, was again placed under house detention from September 2000 to May 2002 and again in May 2003; her supporters are routinely harassed or jailed. | In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over the next dozen years. |
Birth rate | 19.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 21.56 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $7.9 billion
expenditures: $12.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (FY96/97) |
revenues:
$6.2 million expenditures: $6.1 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Rangoon (regime refers to the capital as Yangon) | Funafuti |
Climate | tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April) | tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) |
Coastline | 1,930 km | 24 km |
Constitution | 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); national convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft a new constitution; progress has since been stalled | 1 October 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: Union of Burma
conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma note: since 1989 the military authorities in Burma have promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name for their state; this decision was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma, and the US Government did not adopt the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands |
Currency | kyat (MMK) | Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar |
Death rate | 12.17 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.55 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $6.1 billion (2002 est.) | $NA |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Permanent Charge d'Affaires Carmen M. MARTINEZ
embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (GPO 521) mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 379 880, 379 881 FAX: [95] (1) 256 018 |
the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador LINN MYAING
chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-9044 FAX: [1] (202) 332-9046 consulate(s) general: New York |
Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US |
Disputes - international | despite continuing border committee talks, significant differences remain with Thailand over boundary alignment and the handling of ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $99 million (FY98/99) | $13 million (1999 est.); note - major donors are Japan and Australia |
Economy - overview | Burma is a resource-rich country that suffers from abject rural poverty. The military regime took steps in the early 1990s to liberalize the economy after decades of failure under the "Burmese Way to Socialism", but those efforts have since stalled. Burma has been unable to achieve monetary or fiscal stability, resulting in an economy that suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including a steep inflation rate and an official exchange rate that overvalues the Burmese kyat by more than 100 times the market rate. In addition, most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta suppressed the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently ignored the results of the 1990 election. Burma is data poor, and official statistics are often dated and inaccurate. Published estimates of Burma's foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and border trade - often estimated to be one to two times the official economy. | Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals, this Fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu, with 1999 payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries at about $9 million, a total which is expected to rise annually. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%. In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and in 2000, from the sale of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could raise GDP three or more times over the next decade. In 1999, with merchandise exports falling and financing reaching less than 5% of imports, continued reliance was placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and investment income from overseas assets to cover the trade deficit. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.709 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production | 6.139 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 44.4%
hydro: 55.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease | since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is very concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground water table |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5% | Polynesian 96% |
Exchange rates | kyats per US dollar - 6.64 (2002), 6.75 (2001), 6.52 (2000), 6.29 (1999), 6.34 (1998) | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)
head of government: Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992); note - the appointed Prime Minister, Gen. KNIN NYUNT (since 25 August 2003), is not the head of government cabinet: State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); military junta, so named 15 November 1997, which initially assumed power 18 September 1988 under the name State Law and Order Restoration Council; the SPDC oversees the cabinet elections: none |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Tomasi PUAPUA (since 26 June 1998) head of government: Acting Prime Minister Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU (since 8 December 2000); note - TUILIMU took over after Prime Minister Ionatana IONATANA died suddenly of a heart attack on 8 December 2000 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament; election last held 27 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: results of the last election for prime minister - Ionatana IONATANA elected prime minister; percent of Parliament vote - NA%; Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU elected deputy prime minister; percent of Parliament vote - NA%; note - Deputy Prime Minister Lagitupu (of Nanumea) TUILIMU became acting prime minister following the death of Prime Minister Ionatana IONATANA on 8 December 2000 |
Exports | NA (2001) | $165,000 (f.o.b., 1989) |
Exports - commodities | gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice | copra |
Exports - partners | Thailand 31.4%, US 13%, India 7.4%, China 4.7% (2002) | Fiji, Australia, NZ |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $73.69 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11.6 million (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 60%
industry: 9% services: 31% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.3% (2002 est.) | 3% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 22 00 N, 98 00 E | 8 00 S, 178 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes | - |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 28,200 km
paved: 3,440 km unpaved: 24,760 km (1996 est.) |
total:
8 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | world's second largest producer of illicit opium (potential production in 2002 - 630 metric tons, down 27% due to drought and, to a lesser extent, eradication; cultivation in 2002 - 77,000 hectares, a 27% decline from 2001); surrender of drug warlord KHUN SA's Mong Tai Army in January 1996 was hailed by Rangoon as a major counternarcotics success, but lack of government will and ability to take on major narcotrafficking groups and lack of serious commitment against money laundering continues to hinder the overall antidrug effort; major source of methamphetamine and heroin for regional consumption | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $4.4 million (c.i.f., 1989) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transport equipment, construction materials, crude oil; food products | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | China 27%, Singapore 19.5%, Thailand 12%, Malaysia 9.1%, Taiwan 6.3%, South Korea 5.3%, Japan 4.3% (2002) | Fiji, Australia, NZ |
Independence | 4 January 1948 (from UK) | 1 October 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | agricultural processing; knit and woven apparel; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer | fishing, tourism, copra |
Infant mortality rate | total: 70.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 63.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
22.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 53.7% (2002 est.) | 7% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, IFRCS (associate), Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1
note: as of September 2000, Internet connections were legal only for the government, tourist offices, and a few large businesses (2000) |
1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 15,920 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | remnants of the British-era legal system are in place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive | High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 23.7 million (1999 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 70%, industry 7%, services 23% (2001 est.) | people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and atolls and from wages sent home by those working abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) |
Land boundaries | total: 5,876 km
border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.53%
permanent crops: 0.9% other: 84.57% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages | Tuvaluan, English |
Legal system | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NLD 392, SNLD 23, NUP 10, other 60 |
unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (12 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 26-27 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2002) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 12 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 55.79 years
male: 54.12 years female: 57.56 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
66.65 years male: 64.52 years female: 68.88 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83.1% male: 88.7% female: 77.7% (1995 est.) note: these are official statistics; estimates of functional literacy are likely closer to 30% (1999 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand | Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 33 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 352,765 GRT/536,396 DWT
ships by type: bulk 7, cargo 21, container 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 5, Japan 4 (2002 est.) |
total:
9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 52,135 GRT/68,300 DWT ships by type: cargo 5, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | no regular military forces; Police Force includes Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $39 million (FY97) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.1% (FY97) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 12,349,921
females age 15-49: 12,358,507 note: both sexes liable for military service (2003 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 6,566,122
females age 15-49: 6,553,458 (2003 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 453,420
females: 455,422 (2003 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 January (1948) | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
adjective: Burmese |
noun:
Tuvaluan(s) adjective: Tuvaluan |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts | severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three cyclones; low level of islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level |
Natural resources | petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower | fish |
Net migration rate | -1.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,056 km; oil 558 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, chairman, AUNG SAN SUU KYI, general secretary]; National Unity Party or NUP (proregime) [THA KYAW]; Shan Nationalities League for Democracy or SNLD [KHUN TUN OO]; Union Solidarity and Development Association or USDA (proregime, a social and political organization) [THAN AUNG, general secretary]; and other smaller parties | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings |
Political pressure groups and leaders | All Burma Student Democratic Front or ABSDF; Kachin Independence Army or KIA; Karen National Union or KNU; National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma or NCGUB [Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals legitimately elected to the People's Assembly but not recognized by the military regime (the group fled to a border area and joined with insurgents in December 1990 to form a parallel government); several Shan factions; United Wa State Army or UWSA | none |
Population | 42,510,537
note: estimates for this country 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 2003 est.) |
10,991 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.52% (2003 est.) | 1.4% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bassein, Bhamo, Chauk, Mandalay, Moulmein, Myitkyina, Rangoon, Akyab (Sittwe), Tavoy | Funafuti, Nukufetau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 4,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 3,955 km
narrow gauge: 3,955 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
0 km |
Religions | Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2% | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government; international service is good
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
serves particular needs for internal communications domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 250,000 (2000) | 1,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,492 (1997) | 0 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1998) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls |
Total fertility rate | 2.15 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.09 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.1% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 12,800 km
note: 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels |
none |