Iraq (2001) | Tokelau (2001) | |
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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 | none (territory of New Zealand) |
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:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 110 (2000 est.) | none; lagoon landings by amphibious aircraft from Samoa |
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.) |
- |
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.) |
- |
Area | total:
437,072 sq km land: 432,162 sq km water: 4,910 sq km |
total:
10 sq km land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Idaho | about 17 times the size of The Mall in 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. | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. According to a UN report, these low-lying islands will disappear in the 21st century, if global warming continues to raise sea levels. |
Birth rate | 34.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues:
$430,830 expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.) |
Capital | Baghdad | none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
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 | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 58 km | 101 km |
Constitution | 22 September 1968, effective 16 July 1970 (provisional constitution); new constitution drafted in 1990 but not adopted | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970 |
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: Tokelau |
Currency | Iraqi dinar (IQD) | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $139 billion (2000 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution, developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with Wellington |
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 (territory of New Zealand) |
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 (territory of New Zealand) |
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) | $3.8 million (1995) |
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. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people must rely on aid from New Zealand to maintain public services, annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.361 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 29.42 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
97.96% hydro: 2.04% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Haji Ibrahim 3,600 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 5 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 | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
- |
Ethnic groups | Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5% | Polynesian |
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 | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8632 (1998), 1.5083 (1997), 1.4543 (1996) |
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); the UK and New Zealand are represented by Administrator Lindsay WATT (since NA March 1993) head of government: Aliki Faipule FALIMATEAO (since NA 1997) cabinet: the Council of Faipule, consisting of three elected leaders, one from each atoll; functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
Exports | $21.8 billion (2000 est.) | $98,000 (f.o.b., 1983) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Russia, France, Switzerland, China (2000) | NZ |
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 | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $57 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.5 million (1993 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 - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 15% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 33 00 N, 44 00 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Heliports | 4 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
45,550 km paved: 38,400 km unpaved: 7,150 km (1996 est.) |
total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
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.) | $323,400 (c.i.f., 1983) |
Imports - commodities | food, medicine, manufactures | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | Egypt, Russia, France, Vietnam (2000) | NZ |
Independence | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 60.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 live births |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 100% (2000 est.) | NA% |
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 | SPC, WHO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 25,500 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Cassation | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 4.4 million (1989) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | - |
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:
0% (soil is thin and infertile) permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | based on Islamic law in special religious courts, civil law system elsewhere; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | British and local statutes |
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 General Fono (45 seats - 15 from each of the three atolls; members chosen by each atoll's Council of Elders or Taupulega to serve three-year terms); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers legislative power on the General Fono |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
66.95 years male: 65.92 years female: 68.03 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
NA years male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 70.7% female: 45% (1995 est.) |
- |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait | Oceania, group of three islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Middle East | Oceania |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
not specified territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 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.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
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.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,301,880 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
274,035 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 17 July (1968) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun:
Iraqi(s) adjective: Iraqi |
noun:
Tokelauan(s) adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms, floods | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
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.) | 1,445 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.84% (2001 est.) | -0.92% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, and Al Basrah have limited functionality | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 19 (5 are inactive), FM 51, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: each atoll has a radio broadcast station of unknown type that broadcasts shipping and weather reports (1998) |
Radios | 4.85 million (1997) | 1,000 (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 |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3% | Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
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.) |
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Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
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:
adequate domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 675,000 (1997) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA; service available in northern Iraq (2001) | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (1997) | NA |
Terrain | mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 4.75 children born/woman (2001 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
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 |
none |