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Compare China (2001) - Mauritania (2003)

Compare China (2001) z Mauritania (2003)

 China (2001)Mauritania (2003)
 ChinaMauritania
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 12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district*; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott*, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza
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: 46% (male 671,080; female 668,408)


15-64 years: 51.8% (male 743,573; female 764,358)


65 years and over: 2.2% (male 26,669; female 38,496) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, dates; cattle, sheep
Airports 489 (2000 est.) 26 (2002)
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: 10


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 (2002)
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: 16


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 6


under 914 m: 3 (2002)
Area total:
9,596,960 sq km

land:
9,326,410 sq km

water:
270,550 sq km
total: 1,030,700 sq km


land: 1,030,400 sq km


water: 300 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the US slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico
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. Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as flawed, but October 2001 legislative and municipal elections were generally free and open. Mauritania remains, in reality, a one-party state. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions between its black minority population and the dominant Maur (Arab-Berber) populace.
Birth rate 15.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 42.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues:
$NA

expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
revenues: $421 million


expenditures: $378 million, including capital expenditures of $154 million (2002 est.)
Capital Beijing Nouakchott
Climate extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty
Coastline 14,500 km 754 km
Constitution most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 12 July 1991
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: Islamic Republic of Mauritania


conventional short form: Mauritania


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah


local short form: Muritaniyah
Currency yuan (CNY) ouguiya (MRO)
Death rate 6.74 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 13.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $162 billion (2000 est.) $2.5 billion (2000)
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 Joseph E. LEBARON


embassy: Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott


mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott


telephone: [222] 25-26-60, 25-26-63, 25-11-41, 25-11-45


FAX: [222] 25-25-92
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 Mohamedou Ould MICHEL


chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700


FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623
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 Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara have been dormant in recent years
Economic aid - recipient $NA $220 million (2000)
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. Half the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though many of the nomads and subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for nearly 40% of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In the past, drought and economic mismanagement resulted in a buildup of foreign debt. In February 2000, Mauritania qualified for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in December 2001 received strong support from donor and lending countries at a triennial Consultative Group review. In 2001, exploratory oil wells in tracts 80 km offshore indicated potential extraction at current world oil prices. A new investment code approved in December 2001 improved the opportunities for direct foreign investment. Ongoing negotiations with the IMF involve problems of economic reforms and fiscal discipline. Substantial oil production and exports probably will not begin until 2005.
Electricity - consumption 1.084 trillion kWh (1999) 146.3 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 7.2 billion kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 90 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 1.173 trillion kWh (1999) 157.4 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
79.82%

hydro:
18.98%

nuclear:
1.2%

other:
0.01% (1999)
fossil fuel: 85.9%


hydro: 14.1%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Turpan Pendi -154 m

highest point:
Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
lowest point: Sebkha de Ndrhamcha -3 m


highest point: Kediet Ijill 910 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 overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal, which is the only perennial river
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


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% mixed Maur/black 40%, Maur 30%, black 30%
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
ouguiyas per US dollar - ouguiyas per US dollar - 254.350 (December 2001), 238.923 (2000), 209.514 (1999), 188.476 (1998), 151.853 (1997), 137.222 (1996)
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 Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA (since 12 December 1984)


head of government: Prime Minister Sghair Ould M'BARECK (since 6 July 2003)


cabinet: Council of Ministers


elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 7 November 2003 (next to be held NA 2009); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected for a third term with 60.8% of the vote
Exports $232 billion (f.o.b., 2000) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels iron ore, fish and fish products, gold
Exports - partners US 21%, Hong Kong 18%, Japan 17%, South Korea, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Singapore, Taiwan (2000) Italy 14.3%, France 14%, Spain 11.7%, Germany 10.9%, Belgium 9.9%, Japan 7.1% (2002)
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 green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam
GDP purchasing power parity - $4.5 trillion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $4.891 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
15%

industry:
50%

services:
35% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 25%


industry: 29%


services: 46% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 8% (2000 est.) 3.3% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 35 00 N, 105 00 E 20 00 N, 12 00 W
Geography - note world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US) most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country
Highways total:
1.4 million km

paved:
271,300 km (with at least 16,000 km of expressways)

unpaved:
1,128,700 km (1999)
total: 7,720 km


paved: 830 km


unpaved: 6,890 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
2.4%

highest 10%:
30.4% (1998)
lowest 10%: 2.5%


highest 10%: 30.2% (2000)
Illicit drugs major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine -
Imports $197 billion (f.o.b., 2000) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods
Imports - partners Japan 18%, Taiwan 11%, US 10%, South Korea 10%, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Malaysia (2000) France 18.5%, Belgium 7.8%, China 7%, Spain 5.9%, Germany 5.2% (2002)
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) 28 November 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate 10% (2000 est.) 2% (2000 est.)
Industries iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum
Infant mortality rate 28.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 73.8 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 76.62 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 70.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 0.4% (2000 est.) 3% (2002 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 ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 3 (2000) 5 (2001)
Irrigated land 498,720 sq km (1993 est.) 490 sq km (1998 est.)
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 or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts
Labor force 700 million (1998 est.) 786,000 (2001)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 50%, industry 24%, services 26% (1998) agriculture 50%, services 40%, industry 10% (2001 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: 5,074 km


border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km
Land use arable land:
10%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
43%

forests and woodland:
14%

other:
33% (1993 est.)
arable land: 0.48%


permanent crops: 0.01%


other: 99.51% (1998 est.)
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) Hassaniya Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, Wolof (official), French
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 a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law
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
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats, a part of the seats up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (81 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2004); National Assembly - last held 19 and 26 October 2001 (next to be held NA 2006)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRDS 54, RFD 1, UNDD 1; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - PRDS 79%, RDU 3.5%, UDP 3.5%, AC 5%, UFP 3.5%, FP 1.5%; seats by party - PRDS 64, UDP 3, RDU 3, AC 4, RFD 3, UFP 3, and FP 1
Life expectancy at birth total population:
71.62 years

male:
69.81 years

female:
73.59 years (2001 est.)
total population: 51.93 years


male: 49.78 years


female: 54.13 years (2003 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: 41.7%


male: 51.8%


female: 31.9% (2003 est.)
Location Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara
Map references Asia Africa
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
24 NM

continental shelf:
200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin

territorial sea:
12 NM
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
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.)
none (2002)
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, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Guard, National Police, Presidential Guard
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 $37.11 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.2% (FY99) 3.7% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
366,306,353 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 665,112 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
200,886,946 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 322,288 (2003 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, 28 November (1960)
Nationality noun:
Chinese (singular and plural)

adjective:
Chinese
noun: Mauritanian(s)


adjective: Mauritanian
Natural hazards frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts
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) iron ore, gypsum, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish
Net migration rate -0.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998) -
Political parties and leaders Chinese Communist Party or CCP [JIANG Zemin, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP Action for Change or AC [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Alliance for Justice and Democracy or AJD [Kebe ABDOULAYE]; Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS (ruling party) [President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA]; Mauritanian Party for Renewal and Concorde or PMRC [Molaye El Hassen Ould JIYID]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality and Justice or PLEJ [Daouda M'BAGNIGA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progress Alliance or APP [Mohamed El Hafed Ould ISMAEL]; Popular Social and Democratic Union or UPSD [Mohamed Mahmoud Ould MAH]; Progress Force Union or UFP [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD]; Rally of Democratic Forces or RFD [Ahmed Ould DADDAH]; Rally for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Union for Democracy and Progress or UDP [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]


note: the Action for Change party was banned in January 2002; parties legalized by constitution ratified 12 July 1991, however, politics continue to be tribally based
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 Arab nationalists; Ba'athists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general]
Population 1,273,111,290 (July 2001 est.) 2,912,584 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 10% (1999 est.) 50% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 0.88% (2001 est.) 2.91% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang Bogue, Kaedi, Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Rosso
Radio broadcast stations AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998) AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001)
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)
717 km


standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2002)
Religions Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 2%-3%, Christian 1% (est.)

note:
officially atheist
Muslim 100%
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: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 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: limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made)


domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals


international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat
Telephones - main lines in use 135 million (2000) 26,500 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 65 million (January 2001) 35,000 (2001)
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) 1 (2002)
Terrain mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills
Total fertility rate 1.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) 6.08 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2000 est.) 21% (1999 est.)
Waterways 110,000 km (1999) note: ferry traffic on the Senegal River
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