Germany (2002) | Zambia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen | 9 provinces; Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Luapula, Lusaka, Northern, North-Western, Southern, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.4% (male 6,568,699; female 6,227,148)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 28,606,964; female 27,695,539) 65 years and over: 17% (male 5,546,140; female 8,607,361) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
47.36% (male 2,324,128; female 2,303,349) 15-64 years: 50.14% (male 2,433,250; female 2,465,747) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 105,694; female 138,031) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry | corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flowers, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca); cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, milk, eggs, hides; coffee |
Airports | 625 (2001) | 112 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 328
over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 54 1,524 to 2,437 m: 63 914 to 1,523 m: 69 under 914 m: 131 (2002) |
total:
13 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 223
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 189 (2002) |
total:
99 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 65 under 914 m: 31 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 357,021 sq km
land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
total:
752,614 sq km land: 740,724 sq km water: 11,890 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | slightly larger than Texas |
Background | As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed the country in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then Germany has expended considerable funds to bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards. In January 2002, Germany and 11 other EU countries introduced a common European currency, the euro. | The territory of Northern Rhodesia was administered by the South Africa Company from 1891 until takeover by the UK in 1923. During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development and immigration. The name was changed to Zambia upon independence in 1964. In the 1980s and 1990s, declining copper prices and a prolonged drought hurt the economy. Elections in 1991 brought an end to one-party rule, but the subsequent vote in 1996 saw blatant harassment of opposition parties. |
Birth rate | 8.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 41.46 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $802 billion
expenditures: $825 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Berlin | Lusaka |
Climate | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm foehn wind | tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April) |
Coastline | 2,389 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990 | 2 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich |
conventional long form:
Republic of Zambia conventional short form: Zambia former: Northern Rhodesia |
Currency | euro (EUR); deutsche mark (DEM)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
Zambian kwacha (ZMK) |
Death rate | 10.36 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 21.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $6.5 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel R. COATS
embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265 telephone: [49] (030) 8305-0 FAX: [49] (030) 238-6290 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich |
chief of mission:
Ambassador David B. DUNN embassy: corner of Independence and United Nations Avenues mailing address: P. O. Box 31617, Lusaka telephone: [260] (1) 250-955 FAX: [260] (1) 252-225 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Wolfgang Friedrich ISCHINGER
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-8140 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Atan SHANSONGA chancery: 2419 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-9717 through 9719 FAX: [1] (202) 332-0826 |
Disputes - international | none | - |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $1.99 billion (1995) |
Economy - overview | Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy turned in a relatively weak performance throughout much of the 1990s. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Business and income tax cuts introduced in 2001 did not spare Germany from the impact of the downturn in international trade, and domestic demand faltered as unemployment began to rise. Growth in 2002 again fell short of 1%. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are addressed. In the short run, however, the fall in government revenues and the rise in expenditures has brought the deficit close to the EU's 3% debt limit. | Despite progress in privatization and budgetary reform, Zambia's economy has a long way to go. Privatization of government-owned copper mines relieved the government from covering mammoth losses generated by the industry and greatly improved the chances for copper mining to return to profitability and spur economic growth. In late 2000, Zambia was determined to be eligible for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Inflation and unemployment rates remain high, but the GDP growth rate should rise in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 501.72 billion kWh (2000) | 5.926 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 42.5 billion kWh (2000) | 1.6 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 44.5 billion kWh (2000) | 419 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 537.33 billion kWh (2000) | 7.642 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 63%
hydro: 4% nuclear: 30% other: 3% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
0.55% hydro: 99.45% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
lowest point:
Zambezi river 329 m highest point: unnamed location in Mafinga Hills 2,301 m |
Environment - current issues | emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive | air pollution and resulting acid rain in the mineral extraction and refining region; chemical runoff into watersheds; poaching seriously threatens rhinoceros, elephant, antelope, and large cat populations; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; lack of adequate water treatment presents human health risks |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish, Spanish) | African 98.7%, European 1.1%, other 0.2% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); deutsche marks per US dollar - 1.69 (January 1999), 1.7597 (1998), 1.7341 (1997) | Zambian kwacha per US dollar - 4,024.53 (January 2001), 3,110.84 (2000), 2,388.02 (1999), 1,862.07 (1998), 1,314.50 (1997), 1,207.90 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Johannes RAU (since 1 July 1999)
head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 1999 (next to be held 23 May 2004); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006) election results: Johannes RAU elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - 57.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote NA% |
chief of state:
President Frederick CHILUBA (since 2 November 1991); Vice President Enoch KAVINDELE (since 4 May 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Frederick CHILUBA (since 2 November 1991); Vice President Enoch KAVINDELE (since 4 May 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 18 November 1996 (next to be held NA October 2001); vice president appointed by the president election results: Frederick CHILUBA reelected president; percent of vote - Frederick CHILUBA 72.5%, Dean MUNGO'MBA 12.6%, Humphrey MULEMBA 7%, Akashambatwa LEWANIKA 4.7%, Chama CHAKOMBOKA 3.2% |
Exports | $608 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $928 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles | copper, cobalt, electricity, tobacco |
Exports - partners | France 11.1%, US 10.6%, UK 8.4%, Netherlands 6.2%, Austria 5.1%; Belgium 4.9%, Spain 4.5%, Switzerland 4.3% (2001) (2001) | Japan, Saudi Arabia, India, Thailand, South Africa, US, Malaysia (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold | green with a panel of three vertical bands of red (hoist side), black, and orange below a soaring orange eagle, on the outer edge of the flag |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.184 trillion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8.5 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 31% services: 68% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
18% industry: 27% services: 55% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $26,600 (2002 est.); (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $880 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.4% (2002 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 51 00 N, 9 00 E | 15 00 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea | landlocked |
Heliports | 40 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 656,140 km
paved: 650,891 km (including 11,400 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,249 km (all-weather) (1998 est.) |
total:
66,781 km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1997 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 25% (1997) |
lowest 10%:
1.6% highest 10%: 39.2% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs | transshipment point for moderate amounts of methaqualone, small amounts of heroin, and cocaine bound for Southern Africa and possibly Europe; regional money-laundering center |
Imports | $487.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $1.05 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals | machinery, transportation equipment, fuels, petroleum products, electricity, fertilizer; foodstuffs, clothing |
Imports - partners | France 9.4%, Netherlands 8.4%, US 8.3%, UK 6.9%, Italy 6.5%, Belgium 5.2%, Japan 4.1%, Austria 3.8% (2001) | South Africa 48%, Saudi Arabia, UK, Zimbabwe (1997) |
Independence | 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991 | 24 October 1964 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2.1% (2002 est.) | 6.1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles | copper mining and processing, construction, foodstuffs, beverages, chemicals, textiles, fertilizer |
Infant mortality rate | 4.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 90.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.3% (2002 est.) | 27.3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 200 (2001) | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 4,850 sq km (1998 est.) | 460 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) | Supreme Court (the final court of appeal; justices are appointed by the president); High Court (has unlimited jurisdiction to hear civil and criminal cases) |
Labor force | 41.9 million (2001) | 3.4 million |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 33%, agriculture 3%, services 64% (1999) | agriculture 85%, industry 6%, services 9% |
Land boundaries | total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km |
total:
5,664 km border countries: Angola 1,110 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,930 km, Malawi 837 km, Mozambique 419 km, Namibia 233 km, Tanzania 338 km, Zimbabwe 797 km |
Land use | arable land: 33.88%
permanent crops: 0.65% other: 65.47% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 40% forests and woodland: 39% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
Languages | German | English (official), major vernaculars - Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga, and about 70 other indigenous languages |
Legal system | civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (603 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly - last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - SPD 38.5%, CDU/CSU 38.5%, Greens 8.6%, FDP 7.4%, PDS 4%; seats by party - SPD 251, CDU/CSU 248, Greens 55, FDP 47, PDS 2; Federal Council - current composition - NA |
unicameral National Assembly (150 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 18 November 1996 (next to be held NA December 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MMD 131, NP 5, Zadeco 2, AZ 2, independents 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.78 years
male: 74.64 years female: 81.09 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
37.29 years male: 37.06 years female: 37.53 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1977 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write English total population: 78.2% male: 85.6% female: 71.3% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark | Southern Africa, east of Angola |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 388 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,758,942 GRT/7,132,525 DWT
ships by type: cargo 132, chemical tanker 10, container 219, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 7, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 7 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Chile 1, Finland 5, Iceland 1, Netherlands 3, Switzerland 1 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, Medical Corps, Joint Support Service | Army, Air Force, National Service, police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $38.8 billion (2002) | $76 million (FY97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.38% (2002) | 1.8% (FY97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 20,854,329 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,246,640 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 17,734,977 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,193,047 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 482,318 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) | Independence Day, 24 October (1964) |
Nationality | noun: German(s)
adjective: German |
noun:
Zambian(s) adjective: Zambian |
Natural hazards | flooding | tropical storms (November to April) |
Natural resources | iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land | copper, cobalt, zinc, lead, coal, emeralds, gold, silver, uranium, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 3.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 2,240 km (2001) | crude oil 1,724 km |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; the Greens [leader NA]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Gabriele ZIMMER]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Gerhard SCHROEDER, chairman] | Agenda for Zambia or AZ [Akashambatwa LEWANIKA]; Labor Party or LP [Chibiza MFUNI]; Liberal Progressive Front or LPF [Roger CHONGWE, president]; Movement for Democratic Process or MDP [Chama CHAKOM BOKA]; Movement for Multiparty Democracy or MMD [Frederick CHILUBA]; National Party or NP [Daniel LISULO]; Republican Party or RP [Ben MWILA]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Gwendoline Konie]; United National Independence Party or UNIP [Tilyenji KAUNDA]; United Party for National Development or UPND [Anderson MAZOKA]; Zambia Democratic Congress or Zadeco [Eden JERRY, acting head] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups | NA |
Population | 83,251,851 (July 2002 est.) | 9,770,199
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 86% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.26% (2002 est.) | 1.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Luebeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart | Mpulungu |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 19, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 77.8 million (1997) | 1.03 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 44,000 km (including at least 20,300 km electrified); most routes are double- or multiple-track
note: since privatization in 1994, Deutsche Bahn AG (DBAG) no longer publishes details of the track it owns; in addition to the DBAG system there are 102 privately owned railway companies which own approximately 3,000 to 4,000 km of track (2001 est.) |
total:
2,164 km (1995) narrow gauge: 2,164 km 1.067-m gauge (13 km double track) note: the total includes 891 km of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA), which operates 1,860 km of 1.067-m narrow gauge track between Dar es Salaam and Kapiri Mposhi where it connects to the Zambia Railways system; TAZARA is not a part of the Zambia Railways system; Zambia Railways assets are scheduled for concessioning in 2001 |
Religions | Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3% | Christian 50%-75%, Muslim and Hindu 24%-49%, indigenous beliefs 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the INMARSAT, INTELSAT, EUTELSAT, and INTERSPUTNIK satellite systems (2001) |
general assessment:
facilities are among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa domestic: high-capacity microwave radio relay connects most larger towns and cities; several cellular telephone services in operation; Internet service is widely available; very small aperture terminal (VSAT) networks are operated by private firms international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 50.9 million (March 2001) | 77,935 (in addition there are about 40,000 fixed telephones in wireless local loop connections) (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 55.3 million (June 2001) | 6,000 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) | 9 (1997) |
Terrain | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south | mostly high plateau with some hills and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 5.53 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.8% (2002 est.) | 50% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 7,500 km
note: major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999) |
2,250 km
note: includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi and Luapula rivers |