Iraq (2001) | Saint Helena (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 18 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Anbar, Al Basrah, Al Muthanna, Al Qadisiyah, An Najaf, Arbil, As Sulaymaniyah, At Ta'mim, Babil, Baghdad, Dahuk, Dhi Qar, Diyala, Karbala', Maysan, Ninawa, Salah ad Din, Wasit | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
41.64% (male 4,934,340; female 4,781,206) 15-64 years: 55.28% (male 6,528,854; female 6,368,823) 65 years and over: 3.08% (male 335,953; female 382,809) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.8% (male 715/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 2,745/female 2,575) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 330/female 404) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 110 (2000 est.) | 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
76 over 3,047 m: 20 2,438 to 3,047 m: 36 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
34 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 12 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
437,072 sq km land: 432,162 sq km water: 4,910 sq km |
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Idaho | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq became an independent kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of military strongmen have ruled the country since then, the latest being SADDAM Husayn. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-1988). In August 1990 Iraq seized Kuwait, but was expelled by US-led, UN coalition forces during January-February 1991. The victors did not occupy Iraq, however, thus allowing the regime to stay in control. Following Kuwait's liberation, the UN Security Council (UNSC) required Iraq to scrap all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles and to allow UN verification inspections. UN trade sanctions remain in effect due to incomplete Iraqi compliance with relevant UNSC resolutions. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 34.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.33 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY92/93) |
Capital | Baghdad | Jamestown |
Climate | mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 58 km | 60 km |
Constitution | 22 September 1968, effective 16 July 1970 (provisional constitution); new constitution drafted in 1990 but not adopted | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Iraq conventional short form: Iraq local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah local short form: Al Iraq |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | Iraqi dinar (IQD) | - |
Death rate | 6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.43 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $139 billion (2000 est.) | NA (1996) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none; note - the US has an Interests Section in the Polish Embassy in Baghdad; address: P. O. Box 2051 Hay Babel, Baghdad; telephone: [964] (1) 718-9267; FAX: [964] (1) 718-9297 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - Iraq has an Interest Section in the Algerian Embassy headed by Akram AL DOURI; address: Iraqi Interests Section, Algerian Embassy, 1801 P Street NW, Washington, DC 20036; telephone: [1] (202) 483-7500; FAX: [1] (202) 462-5066 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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; in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the UN-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1993), and 883 (1993); this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands although the government continues periodic rhetorical challenges; dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $327.5 million (1995) | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
Economy - overview | Iraq's economy is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s, financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and damage to oil export facilities by Iran led the government to implement austerity measures, borrow heavily, and later reschedule foreign debt payments; Iraq suffered economic losses of at least $100 billion from the war. After the end of hostilities in 1988, oil exports gradually increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged facilities. Iraq's seizure of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international economic sanctions, and damage from military action by an international coalition beginning in January 1991 drastically reduced economic activity. Although government policies supporting large military and internal security forces and allocating resources to key supporters of the regime have hurt the economy, implementation of the UN's oil-for-food program in December 1996 has helped improve conditions for the average Iraqi citizen. For the first six, six-month phases of the program, Iraq was allowed to export limited amounts of oil in exchange for food, medicine, and some infrastructure spare parts. In December 1999, the UN Security Council authorized Iraq to export under the program as much oil as required to meet humanitarian needs. Oil exports are now more than three-quarters their prewar level. Per capita food imports have increased significantly, while medical supplies and health care services are steadily improving. Per capita output and living standards are still well below the prewar level, but any estimates have a wide range of error. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.361 billion kWh (1999) | 4.65 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 29.42 billion kWh (1999) | 5 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
97.96% hydro: 2.04% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Haji Ibrahim 3,600 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Shi'a Muslims, who have inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of Tigris-Euphrates Rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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Ethnic groups | Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5% | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 0.3109 (fixed official rate since 1982); black market rate - Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 1,910 (December 1999), 1,815 (December 1998), 1,530 (December 1997), 910 (December 1996), 3,000 (December 1995); note - subject to wide fluctuations | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001), 0.6609 (2000)
note: the Saint Helenian pound is on par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President SADDAM Husayn (since 16 July 1979); Vice Presidents Taha Muhyi al-Din MARUF (since 21 April 1974) and Taha Yasin RAMADAN (since 23 March 1991) head of government: Prime Minister SADDAM Husayn (since 29 May 1994); Deputy Prime Ministers Tariq Mikhail AZIZ (since NA 1979), Hikmat Mizban Ibrahim al-AZZAWI (since 30 July 1999), Ahmad Husayn al-KHUDAYIR (since NA July 2001), and Abd al-Tawab Mullah al-HUWAYSH (since NA July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers; note - there is also a Revolutionary Command Council or RCC (Chairman SADDAM Husayn, Vice Chairman Izzat IBRAHIM al-Duri) which controls the ruling Ba'th Party, and is the most powerful political entity in the country elections: president and vice presidents elected by a two-thirds majority of the Revolutionary Command Council; election last held 17 October 1995 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: SADDAM Husayn reelected president; percent of vote - 99%; Taha Muhyi al-Din MARUF and Taha Yasin RAMADAN elected vice presidents; percent of vote - NA% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Michael CLANCY (since 15 October 2004) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $21.8 billion (2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | crude oil | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Russia, France, Switzerland, China (2000) | Tanzania 30.3%, US 23.8%, Japan 10.4%, UK 7.1%, Spain 6.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with three green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; the phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in green Arabic script - Allahu to the right of the middle star and Akbar to the left of the middle star - was added in January 1991 during the Persian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of Syria which has two stars but no script and the flag of Yemen which has a plain white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a symbolic eagle centered in the white band | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $57 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 13% services: 81% (1993 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 15% (2000 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 33 00 N, 44 00 E | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | - | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Heliports | 4 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
45,550 km paved: 38,400 km unpaved: 7,150 km (1996 est.) |
total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $13.8 billion (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | food, medicine, manufactures | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | Egypt, Russia, France, Vietnam (2000) | UK 35.7%, US 17.6%, South Africa 17.5%, Tanzania 10.4%, Australia 5.5%, Spain 4.1% (2004) |
Independence | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 60.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 19 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 100% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, EAPC, ESCWA, FAO, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ICFTU, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 25,500 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Cassation | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 4.4 million (1989) | 3,500
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
3,631 km border countries: Iran 1,458 km, Jordan 181 km, Kuwait 242 km, Saudi Arabia 814 km, Syria 605 km, Turkey 331 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
12% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 0% other: 79% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian | English |
Legal system | based on Islamic law in special religious courts, civil law system elsewhere; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (250 seats; 30 appointed by the president to represent the three northern provinces of Dahuk, Arbil, and As Sulaymaniyah; 220 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 March 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held June 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
66.95 years male: 65.92 years female: 68.03 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 77.76 years
male: 74.86 years female: 80.81 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 70.7% female: 45% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
not specified territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 453,273 GRT/779,662 DWT ships by type: cargo 14, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 12, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Republican Guard, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Border Guard Force, Fedayeen Saddam | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
5,902,215 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,301,880 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
274,035 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Revolution Day, 17 July (1968) | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun:
Iraqi(s) adjective: Iraqi |
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms, floods | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur | fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 4,350 km; petroleum products 725 km; natural gas 1,360 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Ba'th Party [SADDAM Husayn, central party leader] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | any formal political activity must be sanctioned by the government; opposition to regime from Kurdish groups and southern Shi'a dissidents | none |
Population | 23,331,985 (July 2001 est.) | 7,460 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.84% (2001 est.) | 0.59% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, and Al Basrah have limited functionality | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 19 (5 are inactive), FM 51, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 4.85 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,032 km standard gauge: 2,032 km 1.435-m gauge note: rail link between Iraq and Syria restored in 2000 after 19 years |
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Religions | Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3% | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment:
reconstitution of damaged telecommunication facilities began after the Gulf war; most damaged facilities have been rebuilt domestic: the network consists of coaxial cables and microwave radio relay links international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Arabsat (inoperative); coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey; Kuwait line is probably nonoperational |
general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network international: country code - 290; HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension Island, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 675,000 (1997) | 2,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA; service available in northern Iraq (2001) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (1997) | 0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
Terrain | mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 4.75 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.54 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 1,015 km
note: Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use; Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft boats; Shatt al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991 because of the Gulf war |
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