Djibouti (2001) | Nepal (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih, Dikhil, Djibouti, Obock, Tadjoura | 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.58% (male 98,314; female 97,859) 15-64 years: 54.58% (male 132,619; female 118,841) 65 years and over: 2.84% (male 6,787; female 6,280) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 40% (male 5,346,422; female 5,007,416)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 7,476,202; female 7,125,471) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 453,263; female 465,143) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels | rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat |
Airports | 12 (2000 est.) | 45 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 28 (2002) |
Area | total:
22,000 sq km land: 21,980 sq km water: 20 sq km |
total: 140,800 sq km
land: 136,800 sq km water: 4,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Massachusetts | slightly larger than Arkansas |
Background | The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became Djibouti in 1977. A peace accord in 1994 ended a three-year uprising by Afars rebels. | In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. A maoist insugency, launched in 1996, has gained traction and is threatening to bring down the regime. Ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, were massacred in a family dispute in 2001. In October 2002, the new king dismissed the prime minister and his cabinet for "incompetence" after they dissolved the parliament and were subsequently unable to hold elections because of the ongoing insurgency. The country is now governed by the king and his appointed cabinet until elections can be held at some unspecified future date. |
Birth rate | 40.66 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 32.94 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$133 million expenditures: $187 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $665 million
expenditures: $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | Djibouti | Kathmandu |
Climate | desert; torrid, dry | varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south |
Coastline | 314 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992 | 9 November 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Djibouti conventional short form: Djibouti former: French Territory of the Afars and Issas, French Somaliland |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Nepal
conventional short form: Nepal |
Currency | Djiboutian franc (DJF) | Nepalese rupee (NPR) |
Death rate | 14.66 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.03 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $356 million (1999 est.) | $2.55 billion (FY00/01) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Donald YAMAMOTO embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal Joffre, Djibouti mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti telephone: [253] 35 39 95 FAX: [253] 35 39 40 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael E. MALINOWSKI
embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador ROBLE Olhaye Oudine chancery: Suite 515, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270 FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302 |
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Jai Pratap RANA
chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | formed Joint Border committee with India in 2001 to resolve 53 disputed sections of boundary covering an area of 720 sq km; approximately 100,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal, 90% of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees camps, place decades-long strains on Nepal |
Economic aid - recipient | $106.3 million (1995) | $424 million (FY00/01) |
Economy - overview | The economy is based on service activities connected with the country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in northeast Africa. Two-thirds of the inhabitants live in the capital city, the remainder being mostly nomadic herders. Scanty rainfall limits crop production to fruits and vegetables, and most food must be imported. Djibouti provides services as both a transit port for the region and an international transshipment and refueling center. It has few natural resources and little industry. The nation is, therefore, heavily dependent on foreign assistance to help support its balance of payments and to finance development projects. An unemployment rate of 40% to 50% continues to be a major problem. Inflation is not a concern, however, because of the fixed tie of the franc to the US dollar. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35% over the last seven years because of recession, civil war, and a high population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Faced with a multitude of economic difficulties, the government has fallen in arrears on long-term external debt and has been struggling to meet the stipulations of foreign aid donors. The year 2001 will see only small growth as port activity should decrease now that Ethiopia has more trade route options. | Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with nearly half of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for over 80% of the population and accounting for 41% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Textile and carpet production, accounteing for about 80% of foreign exchange earnings in recent years, contracted significantly in 2001 due to the overall slowdown in the world economy and pressures by Maoist insurgents on factory owners and workers. Security concerns in the wake of Maoist activity, the June massacre of many members of the royal family, and the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US led to a decrease in tourism, another key source of foreign exchange. Agricultural production is growing by about 5% on average as compared with annual population growth of 2.3%. Since May 1991, the government has been moving forward with economic reforms, particularly those that encourage trade and foreign investment, e.g., by reducing business licenses and registration requirements to simplify investment procedures. The government has also been cutting expenditures by reducing subsidies, privatizing state industries, and laying off civil servants. More recently, however, political instability - five different governments over the past few years - has hampered Kathmandu's ability to forge consensus to implement key economic reforms. Nepal has considerable scope for accelerating economic growth by exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, and its susceptibility to natural disaster. The international community's role of funding more than 60% of Nepal's development budget and more than 28% of total budgetary expenditures will likely continue as a major ingredient of growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 167.4 million kWh (1999) | 1.431 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 95 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 174 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 180 million kWh (1999) | 1.454 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 10%
hydro: 90% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Lac Assal -155 m highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m |
lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification | deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5% | Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995) |
Exchange rates | Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.721 (fixed rate since 1973) | Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.675 (January 2002), 74.961 (2001), 71.094 (2000), 68.239 (1999), 65.976 (1998), 58.010 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President GUELLEH Ismail Omar (since 8 May 1999); head of government: Prime Minister DILLEITA Mohamed Dilleita (since 4 March 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 9 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: GUELLEH Ismail Omar elected president; percent of vote - GUELLEH Ismail Omar 74.4%, IDRIS Moussa Ahmed 25.6% |
chief of state: King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the throne 4 June 2001 following the death of his nephew, King DIPENDRA Bir Bikram Shah)
head of government: Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur CHAND (since 11 October 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody shooting at the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is believed to have been responsible for the shootings before fatally wounding himself; immediately following the shootings and while still clinging to life, DIPENDRA was crowned king; he died three days later and was succeeded by his uncle |
Exports | $260 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $757 million f.o.b., but does not include unrecorded border trade with India (FY00/01 est.) |
Exports - commodities | reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit) | carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain |
Exports - partners | Somalia 53%, Yemen 23%, Ethiopia 5%, (1998) | India 48%, US 26%, Germany 11% (FY00/01) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 16 July - 15 July |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and light green with a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a red five-pointed star in the center | red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $574 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $35.6 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3% industry: 22% services: 75% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 41%
industry: 22% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 30 N, 43 00 E | 28 00 N, 84 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location near world's busiest shipping lanes and close to Arabian oilfields; terminus of rail traffic into Ethiopia; mostly wasteland | landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest - the world's tallest - on the border with China |
Highways | total:
2,890 km paved: 364 km unpaved: 2,526 km (1996) |
total: 13,223 km
paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (April 1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 30% (1995-96) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West |
Imports | $440 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (FY00/01 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products | gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer |
Imports - partners | France 13%, Ethiopia 12%, Italy 9%, Saudi Arabia 6%, UK 6% (1998) | India 39%, Singapore 10%, China/Hong Kong 9%, (FY00/01) |
Independence | 27 June 1977 (from France) | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (1996 est.) | 8.7% (FY99/00) |
Industries | limited to a few small-scale enterprises, such as dairy products and mineral-water bottling | tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production |
Infant mortality rate | 101.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 72.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2000 est.) | 2.1% |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 6 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 11,350 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Judicial Council) |
Labor force | 282,000 | 10 million
note: severe lack of skilled labor (1996 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 75%, industry 11%, services 14% (1991 est.) | agriculture 81%, services 16%, industry 3% |
Land boundaries | total:
508 km border countries: Eritrea 113 km, Ethiopia 337 km, Somalia 58 km |
total: 2,926 km
border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 0% other: 91% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 20.27%
permanent crops: 0.49% other: 79.24% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar | Nepali (official; spoken by 90% of the population), about a dozen other languages and about 30 major dialects; note - many in government and business also speak English (1995) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, traditional practices, and Islamic law | based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (65 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - RPP 65; note - RPP (the ruling party) dominated the election |
note: Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 2002 and elections are scheduled for 13 November 2002
bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 May 1999 (next to be held 13 November 2002) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%, NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%, others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
51.21 years male: 49.37 years female: 53.1 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 58.61 years
male: 59.01 years female: 58.2 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 46.2% male: 60.3% female: 32.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 27.5% male: 40.9% female: 14% (1995 est.) |
Location | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between Eritrea and Somalia | Southern Asia, between China and India |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Djibouti National Army (includes Navy and Air Force) | Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $23 million (FY97) | $51.5 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.5% (FY97) | 1% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
108,038 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 6,484,343 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
63,589 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 3,369,454 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 292,589 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 June (1977) | Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946) |
Nationality | noun:
Djiboutian(s) adjective: Djiboutian |
noun: Nepalese (singular and plural)
adjective: Nepalese |
Natural hazards | earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods | severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons |
Natural resources | geothermal areas | quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic National Party or PND [ADEN Robleh Awaleh]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH]; People's Progress Assembly or RPP (governing party) [Ismail Omar GELLEH] | Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National Democratic Party or NDP (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya Bahadur THAPA, chairman]; National People's Front (Rastriya Jana Morcha) [Chitra Bahadur, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL, acting party president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE, party chair]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party president, Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [Lila Mani POKHAREL, general secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy or FRUD and affiliates; Movement for Unity and Democracy or MUD | Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups |
Population | 460,700 (July 2001 est.) | 25,873,917 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 42% (FY95/96 est. ) |
Population growth rate | 2.6% (2001 est.) | 2.29% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Djibouti | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000) |
Radios | 52,000 (1997) | 840,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
100 km (Djibouti segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) narrow gauge: 100 km 1.000-m gauge note: Djibouti and Ethiopia plan to revitalize the century-old railroad that links their capitals by 2003 |
total: 59 km
narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge note: all in Kosi close to Indian border (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 94%, Christian 6% | Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.08 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | NA years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telephone facilities in the city of Djibouti are adequate as are the microwave radio relay connections to outlying areas of the country domestic: microwave radio relay network international: submarine cable to Jiddah, Suez, Sicily, Marseilles, Colombo, and Singapore; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; Medarabtel regional microwave radio relay telephone network |
general assessment: poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network
domestic: NA international: radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 8,000 (1997) | 236,816 (January 2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 203 (1997) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 5 low-power repeaters) (1998) | 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains | Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north |
Total fertility rate | 5.72 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.48 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | 47% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |