Korea, North (2003) | Pakistan (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 special cities* (si, singular and plural); Chagang-do (Chagang Province), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong Province), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong Province), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae Province), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae Province), Kaesong-si* (Kaesong City), Kangwon-do (Kangwon Province), Najin Sonbong-si*, Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (Pyongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) | 4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital territory**; Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**, North-West Frontier Province, Punjab, Sindh
note: the Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region consists of two administrative entities: Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 25% (male 2,845,727; female 2,763,800)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 7,485,310; female 7,746,603) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 541,155; female 1,083,886) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 39% (male 33,293,428/female 31,434,314)
15-64 years: 56.9% (male 48,214,298/female 46,062,933) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 3,256,065/female 3,542,522) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs | cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; milk, beef, mutton, eggs |
Airports | 72 (2002) | 139 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 34
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 91
over 3,047 m: 14 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 33 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 8 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 7 (2002) |
total: 48
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 23 (2006) |
Area | total: 120,540 sq km
land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
total: 803,940 sq km
land: 778,720 sq km water: 25,220 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Mississippi | slightly less than twice the size of California |
Background | Following World War II, Korea was split, with the northern half coming under Communist domination and the southern portion becoming Western-oriented. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, North Korea repudiated a 1994 agreement that shut down its nuclear reactors and expelled UN monitors, further raising fears it would produce nuclear weapons. | The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with two sections West and East) and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily resolved, and India and Pakistan fought two wars - in 1947-48 and 1965 - over the disputed Kashmir territory. A third war between these countries in 1971 - in which India capitalized on Islamabad's marginalization of Bengalis in Pakistani politics - resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998. The dispute over the state of Kashmir is ongoing, but discussions and confidence-building measures have led to decreased tensions since 2002. |
Birth rate | 17.61 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 29.74 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $15.45 billion
expenditures: $20.07 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Pyongyang | name: Islamabad
geographic coordinates: 33 42 N, 73 10 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer | mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north |
Coastline | 2,495 km | 1,046 km |
Constitution | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 | 12 April 1973; suspended 5 July 1977, restored with amendments 30 December 1985; suspended 15 October 1999, restored in stages in 2002; amended 31 December 2003 |
Country name | conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: none note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country abbreviation: DPRK |
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Pakistan
conventional short form: Pakistan local long form: Jamhuryat Islami Pakistan local short form: Pakistan former: West Pakistan |
Currency | North Korean won (KPW) | - |
Death rate | 6.93 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 8.23 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $12 billion (1996 est.) | $38.8 billion (2005 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) | chief of mission: Ambassador Ryan CROCKER
embassy: Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad mailing address: P. O. Box 1048, Unit 62200, APO AE 09812-2200 telephone: [92] (51) 208-0000 FAX: [92] (51) 2276427 consulate(s) general: Karachi consulate(s): Lahore, Peshawar |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York | chief of mission: Ambassador Mahmud Ali DURRANI
chancery: 3517 International Court, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 243-6500 FAX: [1] (202) 686-1544 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Sunnyvale (California) |
Disputes - international | with China, certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers are in uncontested dispute; a section of boundary around Paektu-san (mountain) is indefinite; China objects to illegal migration of North Koreans into northern China; Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953 | various talks and confidence-building measures cautiously have begun to defuse tensions over Kashmir, particularly since the October 2005 earthquake in the region; Kashmir nevertheless remains the site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas); UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) has maintained a small group of peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; in 2004, India and Pakistan instituted a cease-fire in the Kashmir, and in 2005 restored bus service across the highly militarized Line of Control; Pakistan has taken its dispute on the impact of India's building the Baglihar Dam on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir to the World Bank for arbitration and in general the two states still dispute Indus River water sharing; to defuse tensions and prepare discussions on a maritime boundary, in 2004, India and Pakistan resurveyed a portion of the disputed the Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch; Pakistani maps continue to show the Junagadh claim in India's Gujarat State; by 2005, Pakistan, with UN assistance, had repatriated 2.3 million Afghan refugees and had undertaken a census to count the remaining million or more, many of whom remain at their own choosing; Pakistan has sent troops into remote tribal areas to control the border with Afghanistan and stem organized terrorist or other illegal cross-border activities; regular meetings with Afghan and Coalition allies aim to resolve periodic claims of boundary encroachments |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - nearly $300 million in food aid alone from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 2001 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations | $2.4 billion (FY01/02) |
Economy - overview | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and spare parts shortages. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. The nation has suffered its tenth year of food shortages because of a lack of arable land; collective farming; weather-related problems, including major drought in 2000; and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape mass starvation since 1995-96, but the population remains the victim of prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. Recently, the regime has placed emphasis on earning hard currency, developing information technology, addressing power shortages, and attracting foreign aid, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing widespread market-oriented reforms. In 2003, heightened political tensions with key donor countries and general donor fatigue have held down the flow of desperately needed food aid and have threatened fuel aid as well. | Pakistan, an impoverished and underdeveloped country, has suffered from decades of internal political disputes, low levels of foreign investment, and a costly, ongoing confrontation with neighboring India. However, IMF-approved government policies, bolstered by generous foreign assistance and renewed access to global markets since 2001, have generated solid macroeconomic recovery the last four years. The government has made substantial macroeconomic reforms since 2000, although progress on more politically sensitive reforms has slowed. For example, in the budget for fiscal year 2006, Islamabad did not impose taxes on the agriculture or real estate sectors, despite Pakistan's chronically low tax-to-GDP ratio. While long-term prospects remain uncertain, given Pakistan's low level of development, medium-term prospects for job creation and poverty reduction are the best in more than a decade. Islamabad has raised development spending from about 2% of GDP in the 1990s to 4% in 2003, a necessary step towards reversing the broad underdevelopment of its social sector. GDP growth, spurred by double-digit gains in industrial production over the past year, has become less dependent on agriculture, and remained above 7% in 2004 and 2005. Inflation remains the biggest threat to the economy, jumping to more than 9% in 2005. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank announced that they would provide US $1 billion each in aid to help Pakistan rebuild areas hit by the October 2005 earthquake in Kashmir. Foreign exchange reserves continued to reach new levels in 2005, supported by steady worker remittances. In the near term, growth probably cannot be sustained at the 7% level; however, massive international aid, increased government spending, lower taxes, and pay increases for government workers will help Pakistan maintain strong GDP growth over the longer term. |
Electricity - consumption | 27.91 billion kWh (2001) | 71.54 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 30.01 billion kWh (2001) | 76.92 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 29%
hydro: 71% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation | water pollution from raw sewage, industrial wastes, and agricultural runoff; limited natural fresh water resources; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese | Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun (Pathan), Baloch, Muhajir (immigrants from India at the time of partition and their descendants) |
Exchange rates | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 150 (December 2002), 2.15 (December 2001), 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 300-600 (December 2002), 200 (December 2001) | Pakistani rupees per US dollar - 59.515 (2005), 58.258 (2004), 57.752 (2003), 59.724 (2002), 61.927 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: KIM Chong-il (since NA July 1994); note - on 3 September 2003, KIM Chong-il was reelected Chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded the nation's "highest administrative authority"; KIM Yong-nam was reelected President of the Supreme People's Assembly Presidium and given the responsibility of representing the state and receiving diplomatic credentials
head of government: Premier PAK Pong-chu (since 3 September 2003); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom-ki (since 5 September 1998), CHON Sung-hun (since 3 September 2003), NO Tu-chol (since 3 September 2003) cabinet: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly elections: premier elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA) election results: HONG Song-nam elected premier; percent of Supreme People's Assembly vote - NA% |
note: following a military takeover on 12 October 1999, Chief of Army Staff and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Pervez MUSHARRAF, suspended Pakistan's constitution and assumed the additional title of Chief Executive; on 12 May 2000, Pakistan's Supreme Court unanimously validated the October 1999 coup and granted MUSHARRAF executive and legislative authority for three years from the coup date; on 20 June 2001, MUSHARRAF named himself as president and was sworn in, replacing Mohammad Rafiq TARAR; in a referendum held on 30 April 2002, MUSHARRAF's presidency was extended by five more years; on 1 January 2004, MUSHARRAF won a vote of confidence in the Senate, National Assembly, and four provincial assemblies
chief of state: President General Pervez MUSHARRAF (since 20 June 2001) head of government: Prime Minister Shaukat AZIZ (since 28 August 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: the president is elected by Parliament for a five-year term; note - in a referendum held on 30 April 2002, MUSHARRAF's presidency was extended by five more years (next to be held in 2007); the prime minister is selected by the National Assembly (next to be held in 2007) election results: AZIZ elected by the National Assembly on 27 August 2004 with 191 of the votes |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); textiles and fishery products | textiles (garments, bed linen, cotton cloth, yarn), rice, leather goods, sports goods, chemicals, manufactures, carpets and rugs |
Exports - partners | China 23.5%, Japan 19.9%, Costa Rica 12.4%, Brazil 6.5% (2002) | US 22.5%, UAE 8.9%, UK 5.8%, China 5.4%, Germany 4.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star | green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent and star are centered in the green field; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22.26 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30.4%
industry: 32.3% services: 37.3% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 21.6%
industry: 25.1% services: 53.3% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 6.6% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 127 00 E | 30 00 N, 70 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated | controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent |
Heliports | - | 18 (2006) |
Highways | total: 31,200 km
paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 27.6% (FY96/97) |
Illicit drugs | - | opium poppy cultivation declined 58% to 3,147 hectares in 2005; federal and provincial authorities continue to conduct anti-poppy campaigns that force eradication - fines and arrests will take place if the ban on poppy cultivation is not observed; key transit point for Afghan drugs, including heroin, opium, morphine, and hashish, bound for Western markets, the Gulf States, and Africa; financial crimes related to drug trafficking, terrorism, corruption, and smuggling remain problems |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; textiles, grain | petroleum, petroleum products, machinery, plastics, transportation equipment, edible oils, paper and paperboard, iron and steel, tea |
Imports - partners | China 24.9%, Brazil 12.1%, India 9.2%, Thailand 9.2%, Germany 7.8%, Japan 7.1%, Singapore 4.5%, Qatar 4% (2002) | China 13.8%, Saudi Arabia 10.3%, UAE 8.8%, Japan 6.1%, US 5%, Kuwait 5%, Germany 4.8% (2005) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | 14 August 1947 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 10.7% (2005 est.) |
Industries | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism | textiles and apparel, food processing, pharmaceuticals, construction materials, paper products, fertilizer, shrimp |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 27.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 70.45 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 70.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 9.1% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO | ARF, AsDB, C (reinstated 2004), CP, ECO, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 14,600 sq km (1998 est.) | 182,300 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) | Supreme Court (justices appointed by the president); Federal Islamic or Shari'a Court |
Labor force | 9.6 million | 46.84 million
note: extensive export of labor, mostly to the Middle East, and use of child labor (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% | agriculture: 42%
industry: 20% services: 38% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,673 km
border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
total: 6,774 km
border countries: Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km, India 2,912 km, Iran 909 km |
Land use | arable land: 14.12%
permanent crops: 2.49% other: 83.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 24.44%
permanent crops: 0.84% other: 74.72% (2005) |
Languages | Korean | Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official and lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8% |
Legal system | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law with provisions to accommodate Pakistan's status as an Islamic state; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held in August 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; the KWP approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats are held by minor parties |
bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (100 seats - formerly 87; members indirectly elected by provincial assemblies to serve six-year terms and the National Assembly (342 seats - formerly 217; 60 seats represent women; 10 seats represent minorities; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held in March 2006 (next to be held in March 2009); National Assembly - last held 10 October 2002 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Senate results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PML 47, PPPP 9, MMA 20, MQM/A 6, PML/N 4, PML/F 1, PkMAP 3, ANP 2, PPP 3, JWP 1, BNP-Awami 1, BNP-Mengal 1, BNP/H 1, independents 1; National Assembly results - percent of votes by party - NA; seats by party - PML/Q 126, PPPP 81, MMA 63, PML/N 19, MQM/A 17, NA 16, PML/F 5, PML/J 3, PPP/S 2, BNP 1, JWP 1, PAT 1, PML/Z 1, PTI 1, MQM/H 1, PkMAP 1, independents 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.79 years
male: 68.1 years female: 73.61 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 63.39 years
male: 62.4 years female: 64.44 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write Korean
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 48.7% male: 61.7% female: 35.2% (2004 est.) |
Location | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea | Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north |
Map references | Asia | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM note: military boundary line 50 NM in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 149 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 881,276 GRT/1,309,547 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 120, combination bulk 2, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 8, refrigerated cargo 4, short-sea passenger 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 1, Greece 2, Pakistan 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 16 ships (1000 GRT or over) 397,740 GRT/657,656 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 10, container 1, petroleum tanker 4 registered in other countries: 11 (Comoros 2, North Korea 3, Malta 1, Nigeria 1, Panama 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006) |
Military branches | Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces | Army (includes National Guard), Navy (includes Marines), Pakistan Air Force (Pakistan Fiza'ya) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5,217.4 million (FY02) | $4.26 billion (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 33.9% (FY02) | 3.9% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,103,615 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,654,223 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 180,875 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) | Republic Day, 23 March (1956) |
Nationality | noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
noun: Pakistani(s)
adjective: Pakistani |
Natural hazards | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall | frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August) |
Natural resources | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower | land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | oil 136 km (2003) | gas 10,257 km; oil 2,001 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Chondoist Chongu Party [YU Mi-yong, chairwoman]; Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong-tae, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, general secretary] | Awami National Party or ANP [Asfandyar Wali KHAN]; Balochistan National Party/Hayee Group or BNP/H [Dr. Hayee BALUCH]; Baluch National Party/Awami or BNP/Awami [Moheem Khan BALOCH]; Baluch National Party-Mengal or BNP/M [Sardar Ataullah MENGAL]; Jamhoori Watan Party or JWP; Jamiat-al-Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR]; Jamiat-i-Islami or JI [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Fazlur Rehman faction or JUI/F [Fazlur REHMAN]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Sami ul-HAQ faction or JUI/S [Sami ul-HAQ]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan or JUP [Shah Faridul HAQ]; Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal Pakistan or MMA [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Altaf faction or MQM/A [Altaf HUSSAIN]; Muttahida Quami Movement, Haqiqi faction or MQM/H [Afaq AHMAD]; National Alliance or NA [Ghulam Mustapha JATOI]; Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PkMAP [Mahmood Khan ACHAKZAI]; Pakhtun Quami Party or PQP [Mohammed Afzal KHAN]; Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir ul QADRI]; Pakistan Muslim League, Functional Group or PML/F [Pir PAGARO]; Pakistan Muslim League, Nawaz Sharif faction or PML/N [Nawaz SHARIF]; Pakistan Muslim League or PML [Chaudhry Shujaat HUSSAIN]; note - as of May 2004, the PML/Q changed its name to PML and absorbed the PML/J, PML/Z, and NA; Pakistan National Party or PNP [Hasil BIZENJO]; Pakistan People's Party or PPP [Aftab Ahmed Khan SHERPAO]; Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians or PPPP [Benazir BHUTTO]; Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf or PTI [Imran KHAN]; Tehrik-i-Islami [Allama Sajid NAQVI]
note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift frequently |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | military remains most important political force; ulema (clergy), landowners, industrialists, and small merchants also influential |
Population | 22,466,481 (July 2003 est.) | 165,803,560 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 32% (FY00/01 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.07% (2003 est.) | 2.09% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) | AM 27, FM 1, shortwave 21 (1998) |
Railways | total: 5,214 km
standard gauge: 4,549 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge (2002) |
total: 8,163 km
broad gauge: 7,718 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km electrified) narrow gauge: 445 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
Muslim 97% (Sunni 77%, Shi'a 20%), Christian, Hindu, and other 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; joint electorates and reserved parliamentary seats for women and non-Muslims |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
general assessment: the domestic system is mediocre, but improving; service is adequate for government and business use, in part because major businesses have established their own private systems; since 1988, the government has promoted investment in the national telecommunications system on a priority basis, significantly increasing network capacity; despite major improvements in trunk and urban systems, telecommunication services are still not readily available to the majority of the rural population
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, cellular, and satellite networks international: country code - 92; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); 3 operational international gateway exchanges (1 at Karachi and 2 at Islamabad); microwave radio relay to neighboring countries (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.1 million (1997) | 5,277,500 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 12.771 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (1999) | 22 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east | flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan plateau in west |
Total fertility rate | 2.25 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 4 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 6.6% plus substantial underemployment (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |
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