China (2001) | Kyrgyzstan (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities** (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing**, Chongqing**, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi*, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai**, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin**, Xinjiang*, Xizang* (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang; note - China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau | 7 provinces (oblastlar, singular - oblasty) and 1 city* (shaar); Batken Oblasty, Bishkek Shaary*, Chuy Oblasty (Bishkek), Jalal-Abad Oblasty, Naryn Oblasty, Osh Oblasty, Talas Oblasty, Ysyk-Kol Oblasty (Karakol)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
25.01% (male 166,754,893; female 151,598,117) 15-64 years: 67.88% (male 445,222,858; female 418,959,646) 65 years and over: 7.11% (male 42,547,296; female 48,028,480) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.9% (male 821,976/female 789,687)
15-64 years: 62.9% (male 1,607,396/female 1,669,612) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 126,847/female 198,380) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish | tobacco, cotton, potatoes, vegetables, grapes, fruits and berries; sheep, goats, cattle, wool |
Airports | 489 (2000 est.) | 37 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
324 over 3,047 m: 27 2,438 to 3,047 m: 88 1,524 to 2,437 m: 147 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 32 (2000 est.) |
total: 18
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
165 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 29 914 to 1,523 m: 56 under 914 m: 78 (2000 est.) |
total: 19
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 16 (2006) |
Area | total:
9,596,960 sq km land: 9,326,410 sq km water: 270,550 sq km |
total: 198,500 sq km
land: 191,300 sq km water: 7,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than the US | slightly smaller than South Dakota |
Background | For centuries China has stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the first half of the 20th century, China was beset by major famines, civil unrest, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic decision making. Output quadrupled in the next 20 years and China now has the world's second largest GDP. Political controls remain tight even while economic controls continue to weaken. | A Central Asian country of incredible natural beauty and proud nomadic traditions, Kyrgyzstan was annexed by Russia in 1864; it achieved independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Nationwide demonstrations in the spring of 2005 resulted in the ouster of President Askar AKAYEV, who had run the country since 1990. Subsequent presidential elections in July 2005 were won overwhelmingly by former prime minister Kurmanbek BAKIYEV. Current concerns include: privatization of state-owned enterprises, expansion of democracy and political freedoms, reduction of corruption, improving interethnic relations, and combating terrorism. |
Birth rate | 15.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 22.8 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $516.3 million
expenditures: $539.9 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Beijing | name: Bishkek
geographic coordinates: 42 54 N, 74 36 E time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north | dry continental to polar in high Tien Shan; subtropical in southwest (Fergana Valley); temperate in northern foothill zone |
Coastline | 14,500 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 | adopted 5 May 1993; note - amendment proposed by President Askar AKAYEV and passed in a national referendum on 2 February 2003 significantly expands the powers of the president at the expense of the legislature; following the spring 2005 demonstrations, a new Constitutional Council was appointed and the reform process is ongoing |
Country name | conventional long form:
People's Republic of China conventional short form: China local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo local short form: Zhong Guo abbreviation: PRC |
conventional long form: Kyrgyz Republic
conventional short form: Kyrgyzstan local long form: Kyrgyz Respublikasy local short form: Kyrgyzstan former: Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | yuan (CNY) | - |
Death rate | 6.74 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.08 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $162 billion (2000 est.) | $2.428 billion (31 December 2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph W. PRUEHER embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3431 FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6422 consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang |
chief of mission: Ambassador Marie L. YOVANOVITCH
embassy: 171 Prospect Mira, Bishkek 720016 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [996] (312) 551-241, (517) 777-217 FAX: [996] (312) 551-264 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate YANG Jiechi chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador Zamira SYDYKOVA
chancery: 2360 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 338-5141 FAX: [1] (202) 386-7550 consulate(s): New York |
Disputes - international | most of boundary with India in dispute; dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with Russia remains to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement; portions of the boundary with Tajikistan are indefinite; 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan | delimitation with Kazakhstan is complete; disputes in Isfara Valley delay completion of delimitation with Tajikistan; delimitation of 130 km of border with Uzbekistan is hampered by serious disputes around enclaves and other areas |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $50 million from the US (2001) |
Economy - overview | In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state managers and enterprises has been steadily increasing. The authorities have switched to a system of household responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprise in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 2000, with its 1.26 billion people but a GDP of just $3,600 per capita, China stood as the second largest economy in the world after the US (measured on a purchasing power parity basis). Agricultural output doubled in the 1980s, and industry also posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. On the darker side, the leadership has often experienced in its hybrid system the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (windfall gains and stepped-up inflation). Beijing thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises many of which had been shielded from competition by subsides and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to continued rapid economic growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. Weakness in the global economy in 2001 could hamper growth in exports. Beijing will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure--such as water control and power grids--and poverty relief and through rural tax reform aimed at eliminating arbitrary local levies on farmers. | Kyrgyzstan is a poor, mountainous country with a predominantly agricultural economy. Cotton, tobacco, wool, and meat are the main agricultural products, although only tobacco and cotton are exported in any quantity. Industrial exports include gold, mercury, uranium, natural gas, and electricity. Kyrgyzstan has been progressive in carrying out market reforms, such as an improved regulatory system and land reform. Kyrgyzstan was the first CIS country to be accepted into the World Trade Organization. Much of the government's stock in enterprises has been sold. Drops in production had been severe after the breakup of the Soviet Union in December 1991, but by mid-1995, production began to recover and exports began to increase. Kyrgyzstan has distinguished itself by adopting relatively liberal economic policies. The drop in output at the Kumtor gold mine sparked a 0.5% decline in GDP in 2002, but GDP growth bounced back in 2003-05. The government has made steady strides in controlling its substantial fiscal deficit and reduced the deficit to 1% of GDP in 2005. The government and international financial institutions have been engaged in a comprehensive medium-term poverty reduction and economic growth strategy, and in 2005 agreed to pursue much-needed tax reform. Progress fighting corruption, further restructuring of domestic industry, and success in attracting foreign investment are keys to future growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.084 trillion kWh (1999) | 8.783 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 7.2 billion kWh (1999) | 4.13 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 90 million kWh (1999) | 108 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 1.173 trillion kWh (1999) | 13.77 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
79.82% hydro: 18.98% nuclear: 1.2% other: 0.01% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Turpan Pendi -154 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
lowest point: Kara-Daryya (Karadar'ya) 132 m
highest point: Jengish Chokusu (Pik Pobedy) 7,439 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal, produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species | water pollution; many people get their water directly from contaminated streams and wells; as a result, water-borne diseases are prevalent; increasing soil salinity from faulty irrigation practices |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1% | Kyrgyz 64.9%, Uzbek 13.8%, Russian 12.5%, Dungan 1.1%, Ukrainian 1%, Uygur 1%, other 5.7% (1999 census) |
Exchange rates | yuan per US dollar - 8.2776 (January 2001), 8.2785 (2000), 8.2783 (1999), 8.2790 (1998), 8.2898 (1997), 8.3142 (1996)
note: beginning 1 January 1994, the People's Bank of China quotes the midpoint rate against the US dollar based on the previous day's prevailing rate in the interbank foreign exchange market |
soms per US dollar - 41.012 (2005), 42.65 (2004), 43.648 (2003), 46.937 (2002), 48.378 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993) and Vice President HU Jintao (since 16 March 1998) head of government: Premier ZHU Rongji (since 18 March 1998); Vice Premiers QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993), LI Lanqing (29 March 1993), WU Bangguo (since 17 March 1995), and WEN Jiabao (since 18 March 1998) cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC) elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 16-18 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress election results: JIANG Zemin reelected president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,882 votes (36 delegates voted against him, 29 abstained, and 32 did not vote); HU Jintao elected vice president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,841 votes (67 delegates voted against him, 39 abstained, and 32 did not vote) |
chief of state: President Kurmanbek BAKIYEV (since 14 August 2005); note - former President Askar AKAYEV resigned effective 11 April 2005 following widespread protests that forced him to flee the country on 24 March 2005
head of government: Prime Minister Feliks KULOV (since 1 September 2005); First Deputy Prime Minister Daniyar USENOV (since 10 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister; note - the new constitution of November 2006 calls for the legislature to appoint the prime minister and members of the Cabinet after the elections of 2010 elections: Kurmanbek BAKIYEV elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 10 July 2005 (next scheduled for 2010); prime minister nominated by the president for approval by Parliament; note - the new constitution of November 2006 calls for the legislature to appoint the prime minister and members of the Cabinet after the elections of 2010 election results: Kurmanbek BAKIYEV elected president; percent of vote - Kurmanbek BAKIYEV 88.6%, Tursunbai BAKIR-UULU 3.9%, other candidates 7.5%; Feliks KULOV approved as prime minister 55-8 |
Exports | $232 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels | cotton, wool, meat, tobacco; gold, mercury, uranium, natural gas, hydropower; machinery; shoes |
Exports - partners | US 21%, Hong Kong 18%, Japan 17%, South Korea, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Singapore, Taiwan (2000) | UAE 35.6%, Russia 18.6%, China 13.4%, Kazakhstan 12.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner | red field with a yellow sun in the center having 40 rays representing the 40 Kyrgyz tribes; on the obverse side the rays run counterclockwise, on the reverse, clockwise; in the center of the sun is a red ring crossed by two sets of three lines, a stylized representation of the roof of the traditional Kyrgyz yurt |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.5 trillion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 50% services: 35% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 35.3%
industry: 20.8% services: 43.9% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | -0.6% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 35 00 N, 105 00 E | 41 00 N, 75 00 E |
Geography - note | world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US) | landlocked; entirely mountainous, dominated by the Tien Shan range; many tall peaks, glaciers, and high-altitude lakes |
Highways | total:
1.4 million km paved: 271,300 km (with at least 16,000 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,128,700 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.4% highest 10%: 30.4% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 3.9%
highest 10%: 23.3% (2001) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine | limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy for CIS markets; limited government eradication of illicit crops; transit point for Southwest Asian narcotics bound for Russia and the rest of Europe |
Imports | $197 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals | oil and gas, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Japan 18%, Taiwan 11%, US 10%, South Korea 10%, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Malaysia (2000) | China 43.2%, Russia 19.8%, Kazakhstan 11.9%, Turkey 4.5% (2005) |
Independence | 221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty 221 BC; Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic on 12 February 1912; People's Republic established 1 October 1949) | 31 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 10% (2000 est.) | 7.1% (2004 est.) |
Industries | iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications | small machinery, textiles, food processing, cement, shoes, sawn logs, refrigerators, furniture, electric motors, gold, rare earth metals |
Infant mortality rate | 28.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 34.49 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 39.72 deaths/1,000 live births female: 28.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.4% (2000 est.) | 5.2% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer), ZC | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, SCO, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 498,720 sq km (1993 est.) | 10,720 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed for 10-year terms by the Supreme Council on the recommendation of the president); Constitutional Court; Higher Court of Arbitration |
Labor force | 700 million (1998 est.) | 2.7 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 50%, industry 24%, services 26% (1998) | agriculture: 55%
industry: 15% services: 30% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
22,147.24 km border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,676.9 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km |
total: 3,878 km
border countries: China 858 km, Kazakhstan 1,051 km, Tajikistan 870 km, Uzbekistan 1,099 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 43% forests and woodland: 14% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 6.55%
permanent crops: 0.28% other: 93.17% note: Kyrgyzstan has the world's largest natural growth walnut forest (2005) |
Languages | Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry) | Kyrgyz (official), Russian (official) |
Legal system | a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,979 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held NA December 1997-NA February 1998 (next to be held late 2002-NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
unicameral Supreme Council or Jorgorku Kenesh (75 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five year terms)
elections: elections for the new unicameral body or Jorgorku Kenesh were held 27 February 2005, but the vast majority of positions remained undecided and were contested in a runoff election on 13 March 2005; election irregularities caused widespread protests that resulted in the president being forced to flee the country election results: Supreme Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.62 years male: 69.81 years female: 73.59 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 68.49 years
male: 64.48 years female: 72.7 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 81.5% male: 89.9% female: 72.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.7% male: 99.3% female: 98.1% (1999 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam | Central Asia, west of China |
Map references | Asia | Asia |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
1,745 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,533,521 GRT/24,746,859 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 324, cargo 825, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 11, combination ore/oil 1, container 132, liquefied gas 24, multi-functional large-load carrier 5, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 45, petroleum tanker 258, refrigerated cargo 22, roll on/roll off 23, short-sea passenger 41, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | People's Liberation Army (PLA) - which includes Ground Forces, Navy (includes Marines and Naval Aviation), Air Force, Second Artillery Corps (the strategic missile force), People's Armed Police (internal security troops, nominally subordinate to Ministry of Public Security, but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA in wartime) | Army, Air Force, National Guard (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $12.608 billion (FY99); note - China's real defense spending may be several times higher than the official figure because a number of significant items are funded elsewhere | $19.2 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY99) | 1.4% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
366,306,353 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
200,886,946 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
10,089,458 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949) | Independence Day, 31 August (1991) |
Nationality | noun:
Chinese (singular and plural) adjective: Chinese |
noun: Kyrgyzstani(s)
adjective: Kyrgyzstani |
Natural hazards | frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts | NA |
Natural resources | coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest) | abundant hydropower; significant deposits of gold and rare earth metals; locally exploitable coal, oil, and natural gas; other deposits of nepheline, mercury, bismuth, lead, and zinc |
Net migration rate | -0.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -2.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998) | gas 254 km; oil 16 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Chinese Communist Party or CCP [JIANG Zemin, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP | Adilet (Justice) Party [Toychubek KASYMOV]; Agrarian Labor Party of Kyrgyzstan [Uson SYDYKOV]; Agrarian Party of Kyrgyzstan [Erkin ALIYEV]; Alga, Kyrgyzstan (Forward, Kyrgyzstan) [Bolot BEGALIYEV]; Ar-Namys (Dignity) Party [Emil ALIYEV]; Asaba (Banner National Revival Party) [Azimbek BEKNAZAROV]; Ata-Meken (Fatherland) [Omurbek TEKEBAYEV]; Communist Party of Kyrgyzstan [Klara ADZHIBEKOVA]; Democratic Movement of Kyrgyzstan or DDK [Jypar JEKSHEYEV]; Erkin Kyrgyzstan Progressive and Democratic Party [Bektur ASANOV]; Erkindik (Freedom) Party [Topchubek TURGUNALIYEV]; Future of Kyrgyzstan [Balbak TULEBAYEV]; Jany Kyrgyzstan (New Kyrgyzstan) [Dosbol NUR UULU]; Kairan El [Dooronbek SADYKOV]; Kyrgyz National Party [Bakyt BESHIMOV]; Kyrgyzstan Kelechegi [Ruslan CHYNYBAYEV]; Manas El (Party of Spiritual Restoration) [Chingiz AITMATOV]; Moya Strana (My Country Party of Action) [Joomart OTORBAYEV]; Party of Communists of Kyrgyzstan or KCP [Bakytbek BEKBOYEV]; Party of Justice and Progress [Muratbek IMANALIEV]; Party of Peasants [Esengul ISAKOV] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals | Council of Free Trade Unions; Kyrgyz Committee on Human Rights [Ramazan DYRYLDAYEV]; National Unity Democratic Movement; Union of Entrepreneurs |
Population | 1,273,111,290 (July 2001 est.) | 5,213,898 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (1999 est.) | 40% (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.88% (2001 est.) | 1.32% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998) | AM 12 (plus 10 repeater stations), FM 14, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 417 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
67,524 km (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails) standard gauge: 63,924 km 1.435-m gauge (13,362 km electrified; 20,250 km double track) narrow gauge: 3,600 km 0.750-m and 1.000-m gauge local industrial lines (1998 est.) note: a new total of 68,000 km was estimated for early 1999 to take new construction programs into account (1999) |
total: 470 km
broad gauge: 470 km 1.520-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 2%-3%, Christian 1% (est.)
note: officially atheist |
Muslim 75%, Russian Orthodox 20%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.09 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000) |
general assessment: development of telecommunications infrastructure is slow; fixed line penetration remains low and concentrated in Bishkek
domestic: two wireless telephony service providers, but penetration remains low international: country code - 996; connections with other CIS countries by landline or microwave radio relay and with other countries by leased connections with Moscow international gateway switch and by satellite; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik and 1 Intelsat; connected internationally by the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line |
Telephones - main lines in use | 135 million (2000) | 438,200 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 65 million (January 2001) | 541,700 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997) | NA (repeater stations throughout the country relay programs from Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkey) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east | peaks of Tien Shan and associated valleys and basins encompass entire nation |
Total fertility rate | 1.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.69 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2000 est.) | 18% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | 110,000 km (1999) | 600 km (2006) |