Iraq (2005) | Tokelau (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 18 governorates (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: 40% (male 5,293,709/female 5,130,826)
15-64 years: 57% (male 7,530,619/female 7,338,109) 65 years and over: 3% (male 367,832/female 413,811) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep, poultry | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 111; note - unknown number were damaged during the March-April 2003 war (2004 est.) | none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 79
over 3,047 m: 21 2,438 to 3,047 m: 36 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 32
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 9 (2004 est.) |
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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 was occupied by Britain during the course of World War I; in 1920, it was declared a League of Nations mandate under UK administration. In stages over the next dozen years, Iraq attained its independence as a kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of military strongmen ruled the country, the latest was SADDAM Husayn. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-88). In August 1990, Iraq seized Kuwait, but was expelled by US-led, UN coalition forces during the Gulf War of January-February 1991. 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. Continued Iraqi noncompliance with UNSC resolutions over a period of 12 years resulted in the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and the ouster of the SADDAM Husayn regime. Coalition forces remain in Iraq, helping to restore degraded infrastructure and facilitating the establishment of a freely elected government, while simultaneously dealing with a robust insurgency. The Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) in June 2004. Iraqis voted on 30 January 2005 to elect a 275-member Transitional National Assembly that will draft a permanent constitution and pave the way for new national elections at the end of 2005. | 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. |
Birth rate | 32.5 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $17.1 billion
expenditures: $28.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.6 billion (2004 budget) |
revenues: $430,800
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 | interim constitution signed 8 March 2004; note - the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) was enacted 8 March 2004 to govern the country until an elected Iraqi Government can draft and ratify a new constitution in 2005 | 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 | - | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $125 billion (2004 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires James F. JEFFREY
embassy: Baghdad mailing address: APO AE 09316 telephone: 00-1-240-553-0584 ext. 4354; note - Consular Section FAX: NA |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Rend Rahim FRANCKE
chancery: 1801 P Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 483-7500 FAX: [1] (202) 462-5066 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | coalition forces assist Iraqis in monitoring boundary security; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Turkey has expressed concern over the status of Kurds in Iraq | none |
Economic aid - recipient | more than $33 billion in foreign aid pledged for 2004-07 (2004) | from New Zealand about $4 million annually |
Economy - overview | Iraq's economy is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. 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 hurt the economy, implementation of the UN's oil-for-food program beginning in December 1996 helped improve conditions for the average Iraqi citizen. 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. The drop in GDP in 2001-02 was largely the result of the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices. Per capita food imports increased significantly, while medical supplies and health care services steadily improved. Per capita output and living standards were still well below the pre-1991 level, but any estimates have a wide range of error. The military victory of the US-led coalition in March-April 2003 resulted in the shutdown of much of the central economic administrative structure. Although a comparatively small amount of capital plant was damaged during the hostilities, looting, insurgent attacks, and sabotage have undermined efforts to rebuild the economy. Despite continuing political uncertainty, the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) has founded the institutions needed to implement economic policy, and has successfully concluded a debt reduction agreement with the Paris Club. The high percentage gain estimated for GDP in 2004 is the result of starting from a low base. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services, with 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 | 33.7 billion kWh (2004) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2004) | - |
Electricity - imports | 1.1 billion kWh (2004) | - |
Electricity - production | 32.6 billion kWh (2004) | NA kWh |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: unnamed peak; 3,611 m; note - this peak is not Gundah Zhur 3,607 m or Kuh-e Hajji-Ebrahim 3,595 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 Marsh Arabs, who 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 the Tigris and 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
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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Ethnic groups | Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5% | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | New Iraqi dinars per US dollar - 1,890 (second half, 2003), 0.3109 (2002), 0.3109 (2001), 0.3109 (2000) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.7229 (2003), 2.154 (2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Iraqi Transitional Government (ITG) President Jalal TALABANI (since 6 April 2005); Deputy Presidents Adil Abd AL-MAHDI and Ghazi al-Ujayl al-YAWR (since 6 April 2005); note - the President and Deputy Presidents comprise the Presidency Council)
head of government: Iraqi Transitional Government (ITG) Prime Minister Ibrahim al-JAFARI (since April 2005); Deputy Prime Ministers Rowsch SHAWAYS, Ahmad CHALABI, and Abid al-Mutlaq al-JABBURI (since May 2005) cabinet: 32 ministers appointed by the Presidency Council, plus Prime Minister Ibrahim al-JAFARI, Deputy Prime Ministers Rowsch SHAWAYS, Ahmad CHALABI, and Abid al-Mutlaq al-JABBURI elections: held 30 January 2005 to elect a 275-member Transitional National Assembly that will draft a permanent constitution and pave the way for new national elections at the end of 2005 |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by Administrator Neil WALTER (since NA 2002)
head of government: Aliki Faipule Kuresa NASAU (since 2004) note - position rotates annually among members of the cabinet 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 | 1.49 million bbl/day (2004 est.) | $98,000 f.o.b. (1983) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil (83.9%), crude materials excluding fuels (8.0%), food and live animals (5.0%) | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | US 51.9%, Spain 7.3%, Japan 6.6%, Italy 5.7%, Canada 5.2% (2004) | New Zealand (2000) |
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, Yemen, which has a plain white band, and that of Egypt which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; design is based upon the Arab Liberation colors | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.5 million (1993 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13.6%
industry: 58.6% services: 27.8% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 52.3% (2004 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 33 00 N, 44 00 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf | consists of three atolls, each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over three meters above sea level |
Heliports | 6 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 45,550 km
paved: 38,399 km unpaved: 7,151 km (1999) |
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 | NA | $323,000 c.i.f. (1983) |
Imports - commodities | food, medicine, manufactures | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | Syria 22.9%, Turkey 19.5%, US 9.2%, Jordan 6.7%, Germany 4.9% (2004) | New Zealand (2000) |
Independence | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA |
Industries | petroleum, chemicals, textiles, construction materials, food processing, fertilizer, metal fabrication/processing | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 50.25 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.06 deaths/1,000 live births female: 44.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 25.4% (2004 est.) | NA |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO | UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Irrigated land | 35,250 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court appointed by the Prime Minister, confirmed by the Presidency Council | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 6.7 million (2004 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA | - |
Land boundaries | total: 3,650 km
border countries: Iran 1,458 km, Jordan 181 km, Kuwait 240 km, Saudi Arabia 814 km, Syria 605 km, Turkey 352 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 13.15%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 86.07% (2001) |
arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | based on civil and Islamic law under the Iraqi Interim Government (IG) and Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) | New Zealand and local statutes |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Mejlis Watani (consisting of 275 members elected by a closed-list, proportional-representation system for the period between the National Assembly election and the formation of a permanent Iraqi government pursuant to the establishment of a permanent constitution)
elections: held 30 January 2005 to elect a 275-member Transitional National Assembly that will draft a permanent constitution and pave the way for new national elections at the end of 2005 election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - United Iraqi Alliance 48.2%, Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan 25.7%, Iraqi List 13.8%, others 12.3%; number of seats by party - United Iraqi Alliance 140, Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan 75, Iraqi List 40, others 20 |
unicameral General Fono (48 seats; 15 members from each of the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms and the 3 island village mayors [pulenuku]); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.7 years
male: 67.49 years female: 69.97 years (2005 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: 68 years female: 70 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 40.4% male: 55.9% female: 24.4% (2003 est.) |
NA |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait | Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Middle East | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: not specified |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 14 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,221 GRT/125,255 DWT
by type: cargo 11, petroleum tanker 3 (2005) |
none |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | Iraqi Armed Forces: Iraqi Regular Army (includes Iraqi Special Operations Force, Iraqi Intervention Force), Iraqi Navy (former Iraqi Coastal Defense Force), Iraqi Air Force (former Iraqi Army Air Corps) (2005) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.3 billion (FY00) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | - |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 17 July (1968); note - this holiday was celebrated under the SADDAM Husayn regime but the Iraqi Interim Government has yet to declare a new national holiday | 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 (2005 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Pipelines | gas 1,739 km; oil 5,418 km; refined products 1,343 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Al-Sadr Movement [Muqtada Al-SADR]; Constitutional Monarchy Movement or CMM [Sharif Ali Bin al-HUSAYN]; Da'wa Party [Ibrahim al-JA'FARI]; Independent Iraqi Alliance or IIA [Falah al-NAQIB]; Iraqi Hizballah [Karim Mahud al-MUHAMMADAWI]; Iraqi Independent Democrats or IID [Adnan PACHACHI, Mahdi al-HAFIZ]; Iraqi Islamic Party or IIP [Muhsin Abd al-HAMID, Hajim al-HASSANI]; Iraqi National Accord or INA [Ayad ALLAWI]; Iraqi National Congress or INC [Ahmad CHALABI]; Iraqi National Unity Movement or INUM [Ahmad al-KUBAYSI, chairman]; Jama'at al Fadilah or JAF [Ayatollah Muhammad ' Ali al-YAQUBI]; Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP [Masud BARZANI]; Muslim Ulama Council or MUC [Harith Sulayman al-DARI, secretary general]; Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK [Jalal TALABANI]
note: the Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan, the Iraqi List, and the United Iraqi Alliance were only electoral slates consisting of the representatives from the various Iraqi political parties |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | an insurgency against the Iraqi Interim Government and Coalition forces is primarily concentrated in Baghdad and in areas west and north of the capital; the diverse, multigroup insurgency is led principally by Sunni Arabs whose only common denominator is a shared desire to oust the Coalition and end US influence in Iraq | none |
Population | 26,074,906 (July 2005 est.) | 1,405 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.7% (2005 est.) | -0.01% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Al Basrah, Khawr az Zubayr, Umm Qasr | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | after 17 months of unregulated media growth, there are approximately 80 radio stations on the air inside Iraq (2004) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: each atoll has a radio broadcast station of unknown type that broadcasts shipping and weather reports (1998) |
Railways | total: 2,200 km
standard gauge: 2,200 km 1.435-m gauge (2004) |
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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: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | formerly 18 years of age; universal | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: the 2003 war severely disrupted telecommunications throughout Iraq including international connections; USAID is overseeing the repair of switching capability and the construction of mobile and satellite communication facilities
domestic: repairs to switches and lines destroyed in the recent fighting continue, but sabotage remains a problem; cellular service is expected to be in place within two years international: country code - 964; 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: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 675,000; note - an unknown number of telephone lines were damaged or destroyed during the March-April 2003 war (2003) | 300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 20,000 (2002) | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 21 (2004) | - |
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 | 4.28 children born/woman (2005 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 25% to 30% (2004 est.) | NA |
Waterways | 5,275 km (not all navigable)
note: Euphrates River (2,815 km), Tigris River (1,895 km), and Third River (565 km) are principal waterways (2004) |
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