Cambodia (2005) | Holy See (Vatican City) (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 20 provinces (khaitt, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities (krong, singular and plural)
provinces: Banteay Mean Chey, Batdambang, Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Spoe, Kampong Thum, Kampot, Kandal, Koh Kong, Kracheh, Mondol Kiri, Otdar Mean Chey, Pouthisat, Preah Vihear, Prey Veng, Rotanakir, Siem Reab, Stoeng Treng, Svay Rieng, Takao municipalities: Keb, Pailin, Phnom Penh, Preah Seihanu |
none |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.3% (male 2,559,734/female 2,510,235)
15-64 years: 59.7% (male 3,887,642/female 4,232,313) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 150,862/female 266,283) (2005 est.) |
- |
Agriculture - products | rice, rubber, corn, vegetables, cashews, tapioca | - |
Airports | 20 (2004 est.) | none (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 14
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 181,040 sq km
land: 176,520 sq km water: 4,520 sq km |
total: 0.44 sq km
land: 0.44 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oklahoma | about 0.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | Most Cambodians consider themselves to be Khmers, whose Angkor Empire extended over much of Southeast Asia and reached its zenith between the 10th and 13th centuries. Subsequently, attacks by the Thai and Cham (from present-day Vietnam) weakened the empire ushering in a long period of decline. In 1863, the king of Cambodia placed the country under French protection; it became part of French Indochina in 1887. Following Japanese occupation in World War II, Cambodia became independent within the French Union in 1949 and fully independent in 1953. After a five-year struggle, Communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in April 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns; at least 1.5 million Cambodians died from execution, enforced hardships, or starvation during the Khmer Rouge regime under POL POT. A December 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside, led to a 10-year Vietnamese occupation, and touched off almost 13 years of civil war. The 1991 Paris Peace Accords mandated democratic elections and a ceasefire, which was not fully respected by the Khmer Rouge. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy and the final elements of the Khmer Rouge surrendered in early 1999. Factional fighting in 1997 ended the first coalition government, but a second round of national elections in 1998 led to the formation of another coalition government and renewed political stability. The July 2003 elections were relatively peaceful, but it took one year of negotiations between contending political parties before a coalition government was formed. Nation-wide local elections are scheduled for 2007 and national elections for 2008. | Popes in their secular role ruled portions of the Italian peninsula for more than a thousand years until the mid 19th century, when many of the Papal States were seized by the newly united Kingdom of Italy. In 1870, the pope's holdings were further circumscribed when Rome itself was annexed. Disputes between a series of "prisoner" popes and Italy were resolved in 1929 by three Lateran Treaties, which established the independent state of Vatican City and granted Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. In 1984, a concordat between the Holy See and Italy modified certain of the earlier treaty provisions, including the primacy of Roman Catholicism as the Italian state religion. Present concerns of the Holy See include the failing health of Pope John Paul II, interreligious dialogue and reconciliation, and the application of church doctrine in an era of rapid change and globalization. About 1 billion people worldwide profess the Catholic faith. |
Birth rate | 27.08 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues: $548.2 million
expenditures: $836.7 million, including capital expenditures of $291 million of which 75% was financed by external assistance (2004 est.) |
revenues: $209.6 million
expenditures: $198.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
Capital | Phnom Penh | Vatican City |
Climate | tropical; rainy, monsoon season (May to November); dry season (December to April); little seasonal temperature variation | temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to mid-May) with hot, dry summers (May to September) |
Coastline | 443 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | promulgated 21 September 1993 | Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1 March 1968) |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Cambodia
conventional short form: Cambodia local long form: Preahreacheanacha Kampuchea (phonetic pronunciation) local short form: Kampuchea former: Kingdom of Cambodia, Khmer Republic, Democratic Kampuchea, People's Republic of Kampuchea, State of Cambodia |
conventional long form: The Holy See (State of the Vatican City)
conventional short form: Holy See (Vatican City) local long form: Santa Sede (Stato della Citta del Vaticano) local short form: Santa Sede (Citta del Vaticano) |
Currency | - | euro (EUR); Italian lira (ITL) |
Death rate | 8.97 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $2.4 billion (2002 est.) | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph A. MUSSOMELI
embassy: 27 EO Street 240, Phnom Penh mailing address: Box P, APO AP 96546 telephone: [855] (23) 216-436/438 FAX: [855] (23) 216-437/811 |
chief of mission: Ambassador R. James "Jim" NICHOLSON
embassy: Villa Domiziana, Via delle Terme Deciane 26, 00162 Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box F, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 4674-3428 FAX: [39] (06) 5758346 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador EK SEREYWATH
chancery: 4530 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7742 FAX: [1] (202) 726-8381 |
chief of mission: Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Gabriel MONTALVO
chancery: 3339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7121 FAX: [1] (202) 337-4036 |
Disputes - international | Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Thailand dispute sections of boundary with missing boundary markers and Thai encroachments into Cambodian territory; maritime boundary with Vietnam is hampered by unresolved dispute over offshore islands; Cambodia accuses Thailand of obstructing access to Preah Vihear temple ruins awarded to Cambodia by ICJ decision in 1962; in 2004 Cambodian-Laotian and Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commissions reerect missing markers completing most of their demarcations | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $504 million pledged in grants and concessional loans for 2005 by international donors | none |
Economy - overview | Cambodia's economy slowed dramatically in 1997 and 1998 due to the regional economic crisis, civil violence, and political infighting, and foreign investment and tourism decreased. In 1999, the first full year of peace in 30 years, the government made progress on economic reforms. Growth resumed and remained about 5% from 2000 to 2004. Economic growth has been largely driven by expansion in the garment sector and tourism, but is expected to fall in 2005 as growth in the garment sector stalls. Clothing exports were fostered by a US-Cambodian Bilateral Textile Agreement signed in 1999 which gave Cambodia a guaranteed quota of US textile imports and established a bonus for improving working conditions and enforcing Cambodian labor laws and international labor standards in the industry. With the January 2005 expiration of a WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, Cambodia-based textile producers are in direct competition with lower priced producing countries such as China and India. Faced with the possibility that over the next five years Cambodia may lose orders and some of the 250,000 well-paid jobs the industry provides, Cambodia has committed itself to a policy of continued support for high labor standards in an attempt to maintain favor with buyers. Tourism growth remains strong, with arrivals up 15% in 2004. The long-term development of the economy after decades of war remains a daunting challenge. The population lacks education and productive skills, particularly in the poverty-ridden countryside, which suffers from an almost total lack of basic infrastructure. Fully 75% of the population remains engaged in subsistence farming. Fear of renewed political instability and a dysfunctional legal system coupled with extensive government corruption discourage foreign investment. The Cambodian government continues to work with bilateral and multilateral donors to address the country's many pressing needs. In December 2004, official donors pledged $504 million in aid for 2005 on the condition that the Cambodian government begins taking steps to address rampant corruption. The next donor pledging session is scheduled for December 2005. The major economic challenge for Cambodia over the next decade will be fashioning an economic environment in which the private sector can create enough jobs to handle Cambodia's demographic imbalance. More than 50% of the population is 20 years or younger. | This unique, noncommercial economy is supported financially by contributions (known as Peter's Pence) from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The incomes and living standards of lay workers are comparable to, or somewhat better than, those of counterparts who work in the city of Rome. |
Electricity - consumption | 100.6 million kWh (2002) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Italy |
Electricity - production | 122 million kWh (2003) | - |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point: Phnum Aoral 1,810 m |
lowest point: unnamed location 19 m
highest point: unnamed location 75 m |
Environment - current issues | illegal logging activities throughout the country and strip mining for gems in the western region along the border with Thailand have resulted in habitat loss and declining biodiversity (in particular, destruction of mangrove swamps threatens natural fisheries); soil erosion; in rural areas, most of the population does not have access to potable water; declining fish stocks because of illegal fishing and overfishing | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution, Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Khmer 90%, Vietnamese 5%, Chinese 1%, other 4% | Italians, Swiss, other |
Exchange rates | riels per US dollar - 4,016.25 (2004), 3,973.33 (2003), 3,912.08 (2002), 3,916.33 (2001), 3,840.75 (2000) | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Vatican lire per US dollar - 2,099 (2000), 1817.2 (1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997); note - the Vatican lira is at par with the Italian lira; the Vatican started using euros in 2002 in conjunction with Italy at a fixed rate of 1,936.17 lire per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: King Norodom SIHAMONI (since 29 October 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister HUN SEN (since 14 January 1985) and Deputy Prime Ministers SAR KHENG (since 3 February 1992), Norodom SIRIVUDH, SOK AN, LU LAY SRENG, TEA BANH, HOR NAMHONG, NHEK BUNCHHAY (since 16 July 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers in theory appointed by the monarch; in practice named by the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is chosen by a Royal Throne Council; following legislative elections, a member of the majority party or majority coalition is named prime minister by the Chairman of the National Assembly and appointed by the king |
chief of state: Pope JOHN PAUL II (since 16 October 1978)
head of government: Secretary of State Cardinal Angelo SODANO (since 2 December 1990) cabinet: Pontifical Commission appointed by the pope elections: pope elected for life by the College of Cardinals; election last held 16 October 1978 (next to be held after the death of the current pope); secretary of state appointed by the pope election results: Karol WOJTYLA elected pope |
Exports | NA | - |
Exports - commodities | Clothing, timber, rubber, rice, fish, tobacco, footwear | - |
Exports - partners | US 55.9%, Germany 11.7%, UK 6.9%, Vietnam 4.4%, Canada 4.2% (2004) | - |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (double width), and blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Wat outlined in black in the center of the red band; only national flag to incorporate a building in its design | two vertical bands of yellow (hoist side) and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the papal miter centered in the white band |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 35%
industry: 30% services: 35% (2004 est.) |
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GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 105 00 E | 41 54 N, 12 27 E |
Geography - note | a land of paddies and forests dominated by the Mekong River and Tonle Sap | urban; landlocked; enclave in Rome, Italy; world's smallest state; outside the Vatican City, 13 buildings in Rome and Castel Gandolfo (the pope's summer residence) enjoy extraterritorial rights |
Heliports | 2 (2004 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 12,323 km
paved: 1,996 km unpaved: 10,327 km (2000 est) |
none; all city streets |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 33.8% (1997) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | narcotics-related corruption reportedly involving some in the government, military, and police; possible small-scale opium, heroin, and amphetamine production; large producer of cannabis for the international market; vulnerable to money laundering due to its cash-based economy and porous borders | - |
Imports | NA | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Italy |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, cigarettes, gold, construction materials, machinery, motor vehicles, pharmaceutical products | - |
Imports - partners | Thailand 22.5%, Hong Kong 14.1%, China 13.6%, Vietnam 10.9%, Singapore 10.8%, Taiwan 8.4% (2004) | - |
Independence | 9 November 1953 (from France) | 11 February 1929 (from Italy)
note: on 11 February 1929, three treaties were signed with Italy which, among other things, recognized the full sovereignty of the Vatican and established its territorial extent; however, the origin of the Papal States, which over the years have varied considerably in extent, may be traced back to the 8th century |
Industrial production growth rate | 22% (2002 est.) | - |
Industries | tourism, garments, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining, textiles | printing and production of a small amount of mosaics and staff uniforms; worldwide banking and financial activities |
Infant mortality rate | total: 71.48 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 80.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 62.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
- |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.1% (2004 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | CE (observer), IAEA, ICFTU, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM (guest), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNHCR, UPU, WHO (observer), WIPO, WToO (observer), WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | NA |
Irrigated land | 2,700 sq km (1998 est.) | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Council of the Magistracy (provided for in the constitution and formed in December 1997); Supreme Court (and lower courts) exercises judicial authority | there are three tribunals responsible for civil and criminal matters within Vatican City; three other tribunals rule on issues pertaining to the Holy See
note: judicial duties were established by the Motu Proprio of Pius XII on 1 May 1946 |
Labor force | 7 million (2003 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 75% (2004 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%; note - dignitaries, priests, nuns, guards, and 3,000 lay workers live outside the Vatican |
Land boundaries | total: 2,572 km
border countries: Laos 541 km, Thailand 803 km, Vietnam 1,228 km |
total: 3.2 km
border countries: Italy 3.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.96%
permanent crops: 0.61% other: 78.43% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (urban area) (1998 est.) |
Languages | Khmer (official) 95%, French, English | Italian, Latin, French, various other languages |
Legal system | primarily a civil law mixture of French-influenced codes from the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) period, royal decrees, and acts of the legislature, with influences of customary law and remnants of communist legal theory; increasing influence of common law in recent years | based on canon law and revisions to it |
Legislative branch | bicameral, consists of the National Assembly (123 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Senate (61 seats; two members appointed by the monarch, two elected by the National Assembly, and 57 elected by "functional constituencies"; members serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly - last held 27 July 2003 (next to be held in July 2008); Senate - last held 2 March 1999 (scheduled to be held in 2004 but delayed) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CPP 47%, SRP 22%, FUNCINPEC 21%, other 10%; seats by party - CPP 73, FUNCINPEC 26, SRP 24; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CPP 31, FUNCINPEC 21, SRP 7, other 2 (July 2003) |
unicameral Pontifical Commission |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.92 years
male: 56.98 years female: 60.95 years (2005 est.) |
- |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 73.6% male: 84.7% female: 64.1% (2004 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 100% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos | Southern Europe, an enclave of Rome (Italy) |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 479 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,913,910 GRT/2,713,967 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 34, cargo 396, chemical tanker 9, container 6, livestock carrier 3, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 11, refrigerated cargo 11, roll on/roll off 5, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 193 (Canada 4, China 39, China 2, Cyprus 4, Egypt 5, Estonia 2, France 1, Germany 1, Greece 6, Honduras 1, Hong Kong 3, Indonesia 1, Isle of Man 1, Israel 1, Italy 1, Japan 1, Lebanon 1, Nigeria 2, Norway 1, Russia 58, Singapore 5, South Korea 23, Syria 8, Turkey 7, Ukraine 6, UAE 1, United States 7, Yemen 1) (2005) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Italy; Swiss Papal Guards are posted at entrances to the Vatican City to provide security and protect the Pope |
Military branches | Royal Cambodian Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force | Swiss Guards Corps (Corpo della Guardia Svizzera) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $112 million (FY01 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3% (FY01 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 9 November (1953) | Coronation Day of Pope JOHN PAUL II, 22 October (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Cambodian(s)
adjective: Cambodian |
noun: none
adjective: none |
Natural hazards | monsoonal rains (June to November); flooding; occasional droughts | NA |
Natural resources | oil and gas, timber, gemstones, some iron ore, manganese, phosphates, hydropower potential | none |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Cambodian Pracheachon Party (Cambodian People's Party) or CPP [CHEA SIM]; National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia or FUNCINPEC [Prince NORODOM Ranariddh]; Sam Rangsi Party or SRP [SAM RANGSI] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none (exclusive of influence exercised by church officers) |
Population | 13,607,069
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 growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
900 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.81% (2005 est.) | 1.15% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Phnom Penh | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 17, (2003) | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | NA |
Railways | total: 602 km
narrow gauge: 602 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
total: 0.86 km
standard gauge: 0.86 km 1.435-m gauge note: a spur of the Italian Railways system, serving Rome's Saint Peter's station (2001 est.) |
Religions | Theravada Buddhist 95%, other 5% | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.57 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | limited to cardinals less than 80 years old |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate landline and/or cellular service in Phnom Penh and other provincial cities; mobile phone coverage is rapidly expanding in rural areas
domestic: NA international: country code - 855; adequate but expensive landline and cellular service available to all countries from Phnom Penh and major provincial cities; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
general assessment: automatic exchange
domestic: tied into Italian system international: uses Italian system |
Telephones - main lines in use | 35,400 (2002) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 380,000 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (2003) | 1 (1996) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat plains; mountains in southwest and north | low hill |
Total fertility rate | 3.44 children born/woman (2005 est.) | - |
Unemployment rate | 2.5% (2000 est.) | - |
Waterways | 2,400 km (mainly on Mekong River) (2004) | none |