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Compare Lesotho (2003) - Poland (2001)
Compare Lesotho (2003) z Poland (2001)
| Lesotho (2003) | Poland (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 16 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Lodzkie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Malopolskie, Mazowieckie, Opolskie, Podkarpackie, Podlaskie, Pomorskie, Slaskie, Swietokrzyskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.7% (male 353,554; female 349,092)
15-64 years: 56.8% (male 516,017; female 541,694) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 41,735; female 59,867) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
18.39% (male 3,640,451; female 3,463,604) 15-64 years: 69.17% (male 13,288,471; female 13,434,753) 65 years and over: 12.44% (male 1,836,816; female 2,969,817) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | potatoes, fruits, vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork |
| Airports | 28 (2002) | 122 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
83 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 29 1,524 to 2,437 m: 42 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
total:
39 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
312,685 sq km land: 304,465 sq km water: 8,220 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than New Mexico |
| Background | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody South African military intervention. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002. | Poland gained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite country following the war, but one that was comparatively tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a political force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, boosting hopes for acceptance to the EU. Poland joined the NATO alliance in 1999. |
| Birth rate | 27.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 10.2 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $76 million
expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY 99/00 est.) |
revenues:
$49.6 billion expenditures: $52.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
| Capital | Maseru | Warsaw |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 491 km |
| Constitution | 2 April 1993 | 16 October 1997; adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997; passed by national referendum 23 May 1997 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
conventional long form:
Republic of Poland conventional short form: Poland local long form: Rzeczpospolita Polska local short form: Polska |
| Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) | zloty (PLN) |
| Death rate | 24.58 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.98 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $735 million (2002) | $57 billion (2000) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Christopher R. HILL embassy: Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 00-054, Warsaw P1 mailing address: American Embassy Warsaw, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5010 (pouch) telephone: [48] (22) 628-30-41 FAX: [48] (22) 628-82-98 consulate(s) general: Krakow |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Molelekeng E. RAPOLAKI
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Przemyslaw GRUDZINSKI chancery: 2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-3800 through 3802 FAX: [1] (202) 328-6271 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - donor | ODA $4.4 million | - |
| Economic aid - recipient | $41.5 million (2000) | $NA |
| Economy - overview | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue, but the government has strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, also generating royalties for Lesotho. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. | Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of liberalizing the economy and today stands out as one of the most successful and open transition economies. GDP growth has been strong and steady since 1992 - the best performance in the region. The privatization of small and medium state-owned companies and a liberal law on establishing new firms has allowed for the rapid development of a vibrant private sector. In contrast, Poland's large agricultural sector remains handicapped by structural problems, surplus labor, inefficient small farms, and lack of investment. Restructuring and privatization of "sensitive sectors" (e.g., coal, steel, railroads, and energy) has begun. Structural reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have resulted in larger than expected fiscal pressures. Further progress in public finance depends mainly on privatization of Poland's remaining state sector. The government's determination to enter the EU as soon as possible affects most aspects of its economic policies. Improving Poland's outsized current account deficit and reining in inflation are priorities. Warsaw leads the region in foreign investment and needs a continued large inflow. |
| Electricity - consumption | 40 million kWh (2001) | 120.007 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 8.43 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 3.491 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 134.351 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
96.43% hydro: 3.16% nuclear: 0% other: 0.41% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
lowest point:
Raczki Elblaskie -2 m highest point: Rysy 2,499 m |
| Environment - current issues | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa | situation has improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and increased environmental concern by postcommunist governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous wastes |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
party to:
Air Pollution, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | Polish 97.6%, German 1.3%, Ukrainian 0.6%, Byelorussian 0.5% (1990 est.) |
| Exchange rates | maloti per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998) | zlotych per US dollar - 4.3126 (December 2000), 4.3461 (2000), 3.9671 (1999), 3.4754 (1998), 3.2793 (1997), 2.6961 (1996) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution, which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch |
chief of state:
President Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI (since 23 December 1995) head of government: Prime Minister Jerzy BUZEK - Solidarity Electoral Union - (since 31 October 1997), Deputy Prime Ministers Janusz STEINHOFF (since 12 June 2000), Longin KOMOLOWSKI (since 19 October 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister proposes, the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election held 8 October 2000 (next to be held NA October 2005); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Sejm election results: Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI reelected president; percent of popular vote - Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI 53.9%, Andrzj OLECHOWSKI 17.3%, Marian KRZAKLEWSKI 15.6%, Lech WALESA 1% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | $28.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | machinery and transport equipment 30.2%, intermediate manufactured goods 25.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 20.9%, food and live animals 8.5% (1999) |
| Exports - partners | US 97.5%, Canada 0.9%, France 0.6% (2002) | Germany 36.1%, Italy 6.5%, Netherlands 5.3%, France 4.8%, UK 4.0%, Czech Republic 3.8% (1999) |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
| Flag description | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.106 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $327.5 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20%
industry: 46% services: 34% (2001) |
agriculture:
3.8% industry: 36.6% services: 59.6% (1999) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,500 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2002 est.) | 4.8% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 52 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain |
| Heliports | - | 3 (2000 est.) |
| Highways | total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999) |
total:
381,046 km paved: 249,966 km (including 268 km of expressways) unpaved: 131,080 km (1998) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% |
lowest 10%:
3% highest 10%: 26.3% (1996) |
| Illicit drugs | - | major illicit producer of amphetamine for the international market; minor transshipment point for Asian and Latin American illicit drugs to Western Europe |
| Imports | NA (2001) | $42.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) | machinery and transport equipment 38.2%, intermediate manufactured goods 20.8%, chemicals 14.3%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5% (1999) |
| Imports - partners | Hong Kong 51.9%, China 25%, France 3.9% (2002) | Germany 25.2%, Italy 9.4%, France 6.8%, Russia 5.8%, UK 4.6%, Netherlands 3.7% (1999) |
| Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 11 November 1918 (independent republic proclaimed) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999) | 4.3% (1999) |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism | machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 86.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 91.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
9.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10% (2002 est.) | 10.2% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 19 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms) |
| Labor force | 838,000 | 17.2 million (1999 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa | industry 22.1%, agriculture 27.5%, services 50.4% (1999) |
| Land boundaries | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
total:
2,888 km border countries: Belarus 605 km, Czech Republic 658 km, Germany 456 km, Lithuania 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 206 km, Slovakia 444 km, Ukraine 428 km |
| Land use | arable land: 10.71%
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.29% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
47% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 29% other: 10% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | Polish |
| Legal system | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts although under the new constitution, the Constitutional Tribunal ruling will become final as of October 1999; court decisions can be appealed to the European Court of Justice in Strasbourg |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election
elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18 |
bicameral National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe consists of the Sejm (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) and the Senate or Senat (100 seats; members are elected by a majority vote on a provincial basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: Sejm elections last held 21 September 1997 (next to be held by NA September 2001); Senate - last held 21 September 1997 (next to be held by NA September 2001) election results: Sejm - percent of vote by party - AWS 33.8%, SLD 27.1%, UW 13.4%, PSL 7.3%, ROP 5.6%, MNSO 0.4%, other 12.4%; seats by party - AWS 201, SLD 164, UW 60, PSL 27, ROP 6, MNSO 2; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - AWS 51, SLD 28, UW 8, ROP 5, PSL 3, independents 5; note - seats by party in the Sejm as of February 2001: AWS 175, SLD 161, UW 49, PSL 26, PP 6, KdP 7, ROP-PC 4, independents 31, one seat vacant note: two seats are assigned to ethnic minority parties |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 36.94 years
male: 36.76 years female: 37.13 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
73.42 years male: 69.26 years female: 77.82 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 98% (1978 est.) |
| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Central Europe, east of Germany |
| Map references | Africa | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone:
defined by international treaties territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | total:
46 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 943,540 GRT/1,532,694 DWT ships by type: bulk 41, cargo 2, chemical tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military - note | the Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs | - |
| Military branches | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $34 million (1999) | $3.17 billion (FY00) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.95% (FY00) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 459,723 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
10,447,931 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 250,560 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
8,139,245 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
344,781 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Constitution Day, 3 May (1791) |
| Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun:
Pole(s) adjective: Polish |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts | NA |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals | coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, arable land |
| Net migration rate | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | crude oil and petroleum products 2,280 km; natural gas 17,000 km (1996) |
| Political parties and leaders | Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] | Coalition for Poland or KdP [first name unknown GRABOWSKI]; Confederation for an Independent Poland-Patriotic Camp or KPN-OP (KPN-Fatherland or KPN-O is a small group within the KPN-OP) [Michal JANISZEWSKI]; Democratic Left Alliance or SLD (Social Democracy of Poland) [Leszek MILLER]; Freedom Union or UW [Bronislaw GEREMEK]; German Minority of Lower Silesia or MNSO [Henryk KROLL]; Movement for the Reconstruction of Poland or ROP-PC [Jan OLSZEWSKI]; Polish Accord or PP [Jan LOPUSZANSKI]; Polish Peasant Party or PSL [Jaroslaw KALINOWSKI]; Polish Socialist Party or PPS [Piotr IKONOWICZ]; Solidarity Electoral Action or AWS (includes RS-AWS and Solidarity) [Marian KRZAKLEWSKI]; Social Movement-Solidarity Electoral Action or RS-AWS [Jerzy BUZEK] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | All Poland Trade Union Alliance or OPZZ (trade union); Roman Catholic Church; Solidarity (trade union) |
| Population | 1,861,959
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2003 est.) |
38,633,912 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | 18.4% (2000 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.19% (2003 est.) | -0.03% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | Gdansk, Gdynia, Gliwice, Kolobrzeg, Szczecin, Swinoujscie, Ustka, Warsaw, Wroclaw |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 14, FM 777, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 20.2 million (1997) |
| Railways | total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa
narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995) |
total:
23,420 km broad gauge: 646 km 1.524-m gauge standard gauge: 21,639 km 1.435-m gauge (11,626 km electrified; 8,978 km double track) narrow gauge: 1,135 km various gauges including 1.000-m, 0.785-m, 0.750-m, and 0.600-m (1998) |
| Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Roman Catholic 95% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, and other 5% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: rudimentary system
domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
underdeveloped and outmoded system; government aimed to have 10 million telephones in service by 2000; the process of partial privatization of the state-owned telephone monopoly has begun; in 1998 there were over 2 million applicants on the waiting list for telephone service domestic: cable, open wire, and microwave radio relay; 3 cellular networks; local exchanges 56.6% digital international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat, NA Eutelsat, 2 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 22,200 (2000) | 8.07 million (1998) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 21,600 (2000) | 1.78 million (1998) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 179 (plus 256 repeaters) (September 1995) |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border |
| Total fertility rate | 3.52 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.37 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | 12% (1999) |
| Waterways | none | 3,812 km (navigable rivers and canals) (1996) |
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