Iran (2001) | Croatia (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 28 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan | 20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
32.97% (male 11,150,053; female 10,654,884) 15-64 years: 62.38% (male 20,765,001; female 20,488,672) 65 years and over: 4.65% (male 1,617,045; female 1,453,310) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 411,847; female 390,797)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,461,305; female 1,448,973) 65 years and over: 15.4% (male 252,970; female 424,859) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
Airports | 317 (2000 est.) | 67 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
117 over 3,047 m: 38 2,438 to 3,047 m: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
200 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 122 under 914 m: 60 (2000 est.) |
total: 45
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 37 (2002) |
Area | total:
1.648 million sq km land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km |
total: 56,542 sq km
land: 56,414 sq km water: 128 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Alaska | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
Background | Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq over disputed territory. The key current issue is how rapidly the country should open up to the modernizing influences of the outside world. | In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became an independent communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. |
Birth rate | 17.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.8 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$27 billion expenditures: $27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
revenues: $8.6 billion
expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Tehran | Zagreb |
Climate | mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast | Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast |
Coastline | 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km) | 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km) |
Constitution | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership | adopted on 22 December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Islamic Republic of Iran conventional short form: Iran local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia |
conventional long form: Republic of Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia local long form: Republika Hrvatska local short form: Hrvatska |
Currency | Iranian rial (IRR) | kuna (HRK) |
Death rate | 5.41 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.31 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.5 billion (2000 est.) | $16.5 billion (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland | chief of mission: Ambassador Lawrence G. ROSSIN
embassy: Andrije Hebranga 2, Zagreb 10000 mailing address: use street address telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200 FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990 | chief of mission: Ambassador Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899 FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway; Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE: Lesser Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); Iran jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island; the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in protesting these Iranian actions; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan | Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue discussions on the disputed boundary in the Una River near Kostajnica, Hrvatska Dubica, and Zeljava; Bosnia and Herzegovina also protests Croatian claim to the tip of the Klek Peninsula and several islands near Neum; Hungary opposes Croatian plan to build a hydropower dam on the boundary stream Drava; Slovenia and Croatia have not obtained parliamentary ratification of 2001 land and maritime boundary treaty which cedes villages on the Dragonja River and Sveta Gera (Trdinov Peak) to Croatia, and most of Pirin Bay to Slovenia, but restricts Slovenian access to the open sea; Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro continue to discuss disputed Prevlaka Peninsula and control over the Gulf of Kotor despite imminent UN intention to withdraw observer mission (UNMOP); Croatia and Italy are still trying to resolve bilateral property and ethnic minority rights dating from World War II |
Economic aid - recipient | $116.5 million (1995) | ODA $66 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI and has indicated that he will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy although he has made little progress toward that goal. The strong oil market in 1996 helped ease financial pressures on Iran and allowed for Tehran's timely debt service payments. Iran's financial situation tightened in 1997 and deteriorated further in 1998 because of lower oil prices. The subsequent zoom in oil prices in 1999-2000 afforded Iran fiscal breathing room but does not solve Iran's structural economic problems, including the encouragement of foreign investment. | Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions, to measures that would cut jobs, wages, or social benefits. As a result, the country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform. |
Electricity - consumption | 95.84 billion kWh (1999) | 12.638 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 900 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 3.7 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 103.054 billion kWh (1999) | 10.578 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
93.16% hydro: 6.84% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 45%
hydro: 55% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Qolleh-ye Damavand 5,671 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; inadequate supplies of potable water | air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1% | Croat 78.1%, Serb 12.2%, Bosniak 0.9%, Hungarian 0.5%, Slovene 0.5%, Czech 0.4%, Albanian 0.3%, Montenegrin 0.3%, Roma 0.2%, others 6.6% (1991) |
Exchange rates | Iranian rials per US dollar - 1,754.71 (January 2001), 1,764.43 (2000), 1,725.93 (1999), 1,751.86 (1998), 1,752.92 (1997), 1,750.76 (1996)
note: Iran has three officially recognized exchange rates; the averages for 1999 are as follows: the official floating rate of 1,750 rials per US dollar, the "export" rate of 3,000 rials per US dollar, and the variable Tehran Stock Exchange rate, which averages 7,863 rials per US dollar; the market rate averages 8,615 rials per US dollar |
kuna per US dollar - 8.452 (January 2002), 8.340 (2001), 8.277 (2000), 7.112 (1999), 6.362 (1998), 6.101 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989) head of government: President (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani (since 3 August 1997); First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-YAZDI (since NA August 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 8 June 2001 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president; percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77% |
chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since NA July 2002), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44% note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a fifth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001 |
Exports | $25 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $5.1 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum 85%, carpets, fruits and nuts, iron and steel, chemicals | transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels |
Exports - partners | Japan, Italy, UAE, South Korea, France, China | Italy 23.7%, Germany 14.8%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 12%, Slovenia 9.1%, Austria 5.7%, France 3.5 (2001) |
Fiscal year | 21 March - 20 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band | red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $413 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $38.9 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
24% industry: 28% services: 48% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 33% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 53 00 E | 45 10 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | - | controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits |
Heliports | 11 (2000 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
140,200 km paved: 49,440 km (including 470 km of expressways) unpaved: 90,760 km (1998 est.) |
total: 28,009 km
paved: 23,695 km (including 330 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,314 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 23% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic consumption of narcotics remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate that there are at least 1.2 million drug users in the country | transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe |
Imports | $15 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $9.7 billion c.i.f. (2002) |
Imports - commodities | industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies | machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Germany, South Korea, Italy, UAE, France, Japan | Germany 17.1%, Italy 16.9%, Slovenia 7.9%, Russia 7.2%, Austria 7%, France 4.4% (2001) |
Independence | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed) | 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.4% (nonoil) (1999) | 2.8% (2002 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments | chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 29.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 7.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 16% (2000 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO | BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2000) | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 94,000 sq km (1993 est.) | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives |
Labor force | 17.3 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (1998) |
1.7 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 33%, industry 25%, services 42% (1999 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total:
5,440 km border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km |
total: 2,197 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 27% forests and woodland: 7% other: 55% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 23.55%
permanent crops: 2.24% other: 74.21% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% | Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) |
Legal system | the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 February-NA April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - reformers 170, conservatives 45, and independents 10; 65 seats were up for runoff election on 5 May 2000 (reformers 52, conservatives 10, independents 3) |
unicameral Assembly or Sabor (151 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001
elections: Assembly - last held 2-3 January 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2003) election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - HDZ 46, SDP 44, HSLS 24, HSS 17, HSP/HKDU 5, IDS 4, HNS 2, independents 4, minority representatives 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.95 years male: 68.61 years female: 71.37 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.13 years
male: 70.52 years female: 77.96 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 72.1% male: 78.4% female: 65.8% (1994 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 99% female: 95% (1991 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia |
Map references | Middle East | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: natural prolongation exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
152 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,097,977 GRT/7,131,688 DWT ships by type: bulk 49, cargo 38, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 1, container 10, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 32, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Singapore 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 681,465 GRT/1,076,315 DWT
ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 13, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 5, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces), Revolutionary Guards (includes Ground, Air, Navy, Qods, and Basij-mobilization-forces), Law Enforcement Forces | Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5.787 billion (FY98/99) | $520 million (2002 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (FY98/99) | 2.39% (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
18,319,328 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,086,578 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
10,872,407 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 860,497 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 21 years of age | 19 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
823,040 (2001 est.) |
males: 30,037 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 1 April (1979) | Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) |
Nationality | noun:
Iranian(s) adjective: Iranian |
noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)
adjective: Croatian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along western border and in the northeast | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur | oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -4.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km | crude oil 670 km; petroleum products 20 km; natural gas 310 km (1992) |
Political parties and leaders | the following organizations appeared to have achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majlis in early 2000: Assembly of the Followers of the Imam's Line, Freethinkers' Front, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Moderation and Development Party, Servants of Construction Party, Society of Self-sacrificing Devotees | Alliance of Croatian Coast and Mountains Department or PGS [Luciano SUSANJ]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Marko VESELICA]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Dobroslav PARAGA]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LP [leader NA]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria |
Political pressure groups and leaders | active student groups include the pro-reform "Organization for Strengthening Unity" and "the Union of Islamic Student Societies'; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, and the Islamic Coalition Association; opposition groups include the Liberation Movement of Iran and the Nation of Iran party; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan; the Society for the Defense of Freedom | NA |
Population | 66,128,965 (July 2001 est.) | 4,390,751 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (1996 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.72% (2001 est.) | 1.12% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Ahvaz, Bandar 'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, Bandar-e Lengeh, Bandar-e Mahshahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar (Bandar Beheshti), Jazireh-ye Khark, Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr (limited operation since November 1992), Now Shahr | Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) |
Radios | 17 million (1997) | 1.51 million (1997) |
Railways | total:
5,600 km broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 5,506 km 1.435-m gauge (146 km electrified) note: broad gauge track is employed at the borders with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan which have broad-gauge rail systems (2001) |
total: 2,726 km
standard gauge: 2,726 km 1.435-m gauge (NA electrified) (2000) |
Religions | Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1% | Roman Catholic 76.5%, Orthodox 11.1%, Muslim 1.2%, Protestant 0.4%, others and unknown 10.8% (1991) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.11 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 15 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) |
Telephone system | general assessment:
inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; and thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches international: HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat; Internet service available but limited to electronic mail to promote Iranian culture |
general assessment: NA
domestic: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk international: digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 6.313 million (1997) | 1,721,139 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 265,000 (August 1998) | 1.3 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995) |
Terrain | rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts | geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands |
Total fertility rate | 2.02 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14% (1999 est.) | 20.2% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 904 km
note: the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use |
785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |