Iran (2005) | Anguilla (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 30 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-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e Shemali, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27.1% (male 9,465,475/female 8,973,828)
15-64 years: 68% (male 23,556,970/female 22,701,065) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,637,512/female 1,683,010) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 22.3% (male 1,546/female 1,502)
15-64 years: 70.8% (male 4,979/female 4,705) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 423/female 522) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar | small quantities of tobacco, vegetables; cattle raising |
Airports | 305 (2004 est.) | 3 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 127
over 3,047 m: 39 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 26 914 to 1,523 m: 32 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 178
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 129 under 914 m: 39 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
Area | total: 1.648 million sq km
land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km |
total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Alaska | about half the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of 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 that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist president and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction have floundered as conservative politicians have prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and consolidated their control over the government. | Colonized by English settlers from Saint Kitts in 1650, Anguilla was administered by Great Britain until the early 19th century, when the island - against the wishes of the inhabitants - was incorporated into a single British dependency, along with Saint Kitts and Nevis. Several attempts at separation failed. In 1971, two years after a revolt, Anguilla was finally allowed to secede; this arrangement was formally recognized in 1980, with Anguilla becoming a separate British dependency. |
Birth rate | 16.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.97 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $43.34 billion
expenditures: $47.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.6 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $22.8 million
expenditures: $22.5 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | Tehran | name: The Valley
geographic coordinates: 18 13 N, 63 03 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km) | 61 km |
Constitution | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership | Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 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: none
conventional short form: Anguilla |
Death rate | 5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.34 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $13.4 billion (2004 est.) | $8.8 million (1998) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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; FAX [1] (202) 965-1073 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Iran and UAE engage in direct talks and solicit Arab League support to resolve disputes over Iran's occupation of Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island; Iran stands alone among littoral states in insisting upon a division of the Caspian Sea into five equal sectors | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $408 million (2002 est.) | $9 million (2004 est.) |
Economy - overview | Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and statist policies that create major distortions throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale - workshops, farming, and services. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $30 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not eased economic hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. The proportion of the economy devoted to the development of weapons of mass destruction remains a contentious issue with leading Western nations. | Anguilla has few natural resources, and the economy depends heavily on luxury tourism, offshore banking, lobster fishing, and remittances from emigrants. Increased activity in the tourism industry, which has spurred the growth of the construction sector, has contributed to economic growth. Anguillan officials have put substantial effort into developing the offshore financial sector, which is small, but growing. In the medium term, prospects for the economy will depend largely on the tourism sector and, therefore, on revived income growth in the industrialized nations as well as on favorable weather conditions. |
Electricity - consumption | 119.9 billion kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - production | 129 billion kWh (2002) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crocus Hill 65 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; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization | supplies of potable water sometimes cannot meet increasing demand largely because of poor distribution system |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
- |
Ethnic groups | Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1% | black (predominant) 90.1%, mixed, mulatto 4.6%, white 3.7%, other 1.5% (2001 Census) |
Exchange rates | rials per US dollar - 8,614 (2004), 8,193.9 (2003), 6,907 (2002), 1,753.6 (2001), 1,764.4 (2000)
note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002 |
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003)
note: fixed rate since 1976 |
Executive branch | chief of state: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)
head of government: President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD (since 3 August 2005) First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-Yazdi (since 26 August 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries 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 17 June 2005 with a two-candidate runoff on 24 June 2005 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD elected president; percent of vote - Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD 62%, Ali Akbar Hashemi RAFSANJANI 36%; note - 2% of ballots spoiled |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Andrew N. GEORGE (since 10 July 2006)
head of government: Chief Minister Osbourne FLEMING (since 3 March 2000) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from among the elected members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | 2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.) | $13 million (2006) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets | lobster, fish, livestock, salt, concrete blocks, rum |
Exports - partners | Japan 18.4%, China 9.7%, Italy 6%, South Africa 5.8%, South Korea 5.4%, Taiwan 4.6%, Turkey 4.4%, Netherlands 4% (2004) | UK, US, Puerto Rico, Saint-Martin (2006) |
Fiscal year | 21 March - 20 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) 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 | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Anguillan coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts three orange dolphins in an interlocking circular design on a white background with blue wavy water below |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.2%
industry: 40.9% services: 48.7% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 18% services: 78% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.3% (2004 est.) | 10.2% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 53 00 E | 18 15 N, 63 10 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport | the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles |
Heliports | 13 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 167,157 km
paved: 94,109 km (including 890 km of expressways) unpaved: 73,048 km (1998) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and according to official Iranian statistics there are at least two million drug users in the country; lax anti-money-laundering regulations | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | NA | $143 million (2006) |
Imports - commodities | industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies | fuels, foodstuffs, manufactures, chemicals, trucks, textiles |
Imports - partners | Germany 12.8%, France 8.3%, Italy 7.7%, China 7.2%, UAE 7.2%, South Korea 6.1%, Russia 5.4% (2004) | US, Puerto Rico, UK (2006) |
Independence | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.5% excluding oil (2004 est.) | 3.1% (1997 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments | tourism, boat building, offshore financial services |
Infant mortality rate | total: 41.58 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 41.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 41.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 19.61 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15.5% (2004 est.) | 5.3% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | CP, ECO, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, UPU |
Irrigated land | 75,620 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a special administrative court | High Court (judge provided by Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court) |
Labor force | 23 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (2004 est.) |
6,049 (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.) | agriculture/fishing/forestry/mining 4%, manufacturing 3%, construction 18%, transportation and utilities 10%, commerce 36%, services 29% (2000 est.) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 8.72%
permanent crops: 1.39% other: 89.89% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mostly rock with sparse scrub oak, few trees, some commercial salt ponds) (2005) |
Languages | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% | English (official) |
Legal system | the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government | based on English common law |
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 20 February 2004 with a runoff held 7 May 2004 (next to be held February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50, independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats unaccounted for |
unicameral House of Assembly (11 seats; 7 members elected by direct popular vote, 2 ex officio members, and 2 appointed; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 21 February 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - AUF 38.9%, AUM 19.4%, ANSA 19.2%, APP 9.5%, independents 13%; seats by party - AUF 4, ANSA 2, AUM 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.96 years
male: 68.58 years female: 71.4 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 77.46 years
male: 74.53 years female: 80.49 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79.4% male: 85.6% female: 73% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 12 and over can read and write
total population: 95% male: 95% female: 95% (1984 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Middle East | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf continental shelf: natural prolongation |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 144 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,715,242 GRT/8,240,069 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 38, cargo 49, chemical tanker 4, container 14, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 30, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) registered in other countries: 8 (2005) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Islamic Republic of Iran Regular Forces (Artesh): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (includes Air Defense)
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e Enqelab-e Eslami, IRGC): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Qods Force (special operations), and Basij Force (Popular Mobilization Army) Law Enforcement Forces: (2004) |
- |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4.3 billion (2003 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.3% (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925) |
Anguilla Day, 30 May (1967) |
Nationality | noun: Iranian(s)
adjective: Iranian |
noun: Anguillan(s)
adjective: Anguillan |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes | frequent hurricanes and other tropical storms (July to October) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur | salt, fish, lobster |
Net migration rate | -2.64 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 5.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate/gas 212 km; gas 16,998 km; liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,256 km; refined products 7,808 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | formal political parties are a relatively new phenomenon in Iran and most conservatives still prefer to work through political pressure groups rather than parties; a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd Khordad front, which includes political parties as well as less formal pressure groups and organizations, achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majles in early 2000; groups in the coalition include: Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF); Executives of Construction Party (Kargozaran); Solidarity Party; Islamic Labor Party; Mardom Salari; Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO); and Militant Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); the coalition participated in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004; a new apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic Iran, took a leading position in the new Majles after winning a majority of the seats in February 2004 | Anguilla United Movement or AUM [Hubert HUGHES]; The Anguilla United Front or AUF [Osbourne FLEMING, Victor BANKS] (a coalition of the Anguilla Democratic Party or ADP and the Anguilla National Alliance or ANA); Anguilla Progressive Party or APP [Roy ROGERS]; Anguilla Strategic Alternative or ANSA [Edison BAIRD] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | political pressure groups conduct most of Iran's political activities; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic Coalition Party (Motalefeh), and Islamic Engineers Society; active pro-reform student groups include the Organization for Strengthening Unity; opposition groups include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front, Marz-e Por Gohar, and various ethnic and Monarchist organizations; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mujahidin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and Komala | NA |
Population | 68,017,860 (July 2005 est.) | 13,677 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2002 est.) | 23% (2002) |
Population growth rate | 0.86% (2005 est.) | 1.375% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Assaluyeh, Bushehr | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Railways | total: 7,203 km
broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 7,109 km 1.435-m gauge (189 km electrified) (2004) |
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Religions | Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2% | Anglican 29%, Methodist 23.9%, other Protestant 30.2%, Roman Catholic 5.7%, other Christian 1.7%, other 5.2%, none or unspecified 4.3% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.029 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.058 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.033 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 15 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: country code - 98; 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 |
general assessment: NA
domestic: modern internal telephone system international: country code - 1-264; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; microwave radio relay to island of Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 14,571,100 (2003) | 6,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,376,500 (2003) | 1,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts | flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone |
Total fertility rate | 1.82 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.2% (2004 est.) | 8% (2002) |
Waterways | 850 km (on Karun River and Lake Urmia) (2004) | - |