Lesotho (2004) | Georgia (2002) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 9 regions, (mkharebi, singular - mkhare), 9 cities* (k'alak'ebi, singular - k'alak'i), and 2 autonomous republics** (avtomnoy respubliki, singular - avtom respublika); Abkhazia or Ap'khazet'is Avtonomiuri Respublika** (Sokhumi), Ajaria or Acharis Avtonomiuri Respublika** (Bat'umi), Chiat'ura*, Gori*, Guria, Imereti, Kakheti, K'ut'aisi*, Kvemo Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, P'ot'i*, Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti, Rust'avi*, Samegrelo and Zemo Svaneti, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Shida Kartli, T'bilisi*, Tqibuli*, Tsqaltubo*, Zugdidi*
note: the administrative centers of the 2 autonomous republics are shown in parentheses |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.3% (male 350,288; female 345,815)
15-64 years: 57.2% (male 521,434; female 545,183) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 41,903; female 60,417) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 19% (male 481,669; female 462,966)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 1,631,351; female 1,752,230) 65 years and over: 12.8% (male 246,663; female 386,072) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | citrus, grapes, tea, vegetables, potatoes; livestock |
Airports | 28 (2003 est.) | 31 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
total: 15
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 69,700 sq km
land: 69,700 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
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. | Georgia was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 19th century. Independent for three years (1918-1921) following the Russian revolution, it was forcibly incorporated into the USSR until the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. Ethnic separation in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, poor governance, and Russian military bases deny the government effective control over the entirety of the state's internationally recognized territory. Despite myriad problems, progress on market reforms and democratization support the country's goal of greater integration with Western political, economic, and security institutions. |
Birth rate | 26.91 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 11.48 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $625.4 million
expenditures: $675.2 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $499 million
expenditures: $554 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Maseru | Tbilisi |
Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 310 km |
Constitution | 2 April 1993 | adopted 17 October 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Georgia local long form: none local short form: Sak'art'velo former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) | lari (GEL) |
Death rate | 24.79 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 14.61 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $735 million (2002) | $1.7 billion (2001) |
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 Richard MILES
embassy: #25 Atoneli Street, T'bilisi 380026 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [995] (32) 989-967/68 FAX: [995] (32) 933-759 |
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 Levan MIKELADZE
chancery: Suite 300, 1615 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 387-2390 FAX: [1] (202) 393-6060 |
Disputes - international | none | Chechen and other insurgents transit Pankisi Gorge to infiltrate Akhmeti region; boundary with Russia has been largely delimited, but not demarcated; several small, strategic segments remain in dispute |
Economic aid - donor | ODA $4.4 million | - |
Economic aid - recipient | $41.5 million (2000) | ODA $150 million (2000 est.) |
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. | Georgia's main economic activities include the cultivation of agricultural products such as citrus fruits, tea, hazelnuts, and grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and output of a small industrial sector producing alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages, metals, machinery, and chemicals. The country imports the bulk of its energy needs, including natural gas and oil products. Its only sizable internal energy resource is hydropower. Despite the severe damage the economy has suffered due to civil strife, Georgia, with the help of the IMF and World Bank, has made substantial economic gains since 1995, achieving positive GDP growth and curtailing inflation. However, the Georgian government suffers from limited resources due to a chronic failure to collect tax revenues. Georgia also suffers from energy shortages; it privatized the T'bilisi distribution network in 1998, but collection rates are low, making the venture unprofitable. The country is pinning its hopes for long-term growth on its role as a transit state for pipelines and trade. The start of construction on the Baku-T'bilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Baku-T'bilisi-Erzerum gas pipeline will bring much-needed investment and job opportunities in 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 40 million kWh (2001) | 7.886 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 200 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 1.2 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 7.404 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 21%
hydro: 79% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Mt'a Shkhara 5,201 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 | air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy pollution of Mtkvari River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | Georgian 70.1%, Armenian 8.1%, Russian 6.3%, Azeri 5.7%, Ossetian 3%, Abkhaz 1.8%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | maloti per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000), 6.1095 (1999) | lari per US dollar - 2.1888 (January 2002), 2.0730 (2001), 1.9762 (2000), 2.0245 (1999), 1.3898 (1998), 1.2975 (1997) |
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 Eduard Amvrosiyevich SHEVARDNADZE (previously elected chairman of the Government Council 10 March 1992; Council has since been disbanded; previously elected chairman of Parliament 11 October 1992; president since 26 November 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduard Amvrosiyevich SHEVARDNADZE (previously elected chairman of the Government Council 10 March 1992; Council has since been disbanded; previously elected chairman of Parliament 11 October 1992; president since 26 November 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Eduard SHEVARDNADZE reelected president; percent of vote - Eduard SHEVARDNADZE 80% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $515 million (2002 est.) |
Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | scrap metal, machinery, chemicals; fuel reexports; citrus fruits, tea, wine |
Exports - partners | US 97.6%, Canada 1.5%, France 0.5% (2003) | Russia 23.0%, Turkey 21.5%, Azerbaijan 3.3%, US 3.0%, Germany 2.5% (2001) |
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 | maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist side corner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.583 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15.3%
industry: 43.3% services: 41.4% (2003) |
agriculture: 20%
industry: 25% services: 55% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2003 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 42 00 N, 43 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | strategically located east of the Black Sea; Georgia controls much of the Caucasus Mountains and the routes through them |
Highways | total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999) |
total: 33,900 km
paved: 29,500 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 4,400 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 28% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | - | limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for opiates via Central Asia to Western Europe and Russia |
Imports | NA (2001) | $750 million (2002 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) | fuels, machinery and parts, transport equipment, grain and other foods, pharmaceuticals |
Imports - partners | Hong Kong 36.6%, Taiwan 36.2%, China 12%, Germany 9.9% (2003) | Turkey 15.3%, Russia 13.3%, Azerbaijan 10.7%, Germany 10.1%, US 4.1% (2001) |
Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999) | 3% (2000) |
Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism | steel, aircraft, machine tools, electrical appliances, mining (manganese), chemicals, wood products, wine |
Infant mortality rate | total: 85.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
51.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.1% (2003 est.) | 5.2% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 6 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 4,700 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court | Supreme Court (judges elected by the Supreme Council on the president's recommendation); Constitutional Court |
Labor force | 838,000 (2000) | 2.1 million (2001 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 20%, agriculture 40%, services 40% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
total: 1,461 km
border countries: Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km, Russia 723 km, Turkey 252 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2001) |
arable land: 11.21%
permanent crops: 4.09% other: 84.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | Georgian 71% (official), Russian 9%, Armenian 7%, Azeri 6%, other 7%
note: Abkhaz is the official language in Abkhazia |
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 | based on civil law system |
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 |
unicameral Supreme Council (commonly referred to as Parliament) or Umaghiesi Sabcho (235 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 October and 14 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - CUG 41.85%, AGUR 25.65%, IWSG 7.8%, all other parties received less than 7% each; seats by party - CUG 130, AGUR 58, IWSG 15, Abkhaz (government-in-exile) deputies 12, independents 17, other 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 36.81 years
male: 36.81 years female: 36.81 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 64.67 years
male: 61.19 years female: 68.32 years (2002 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: 100% female: 98% (1989 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between Turkey and Russia |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | NA |
Merchant marine | - | total: 64 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 210,620 GRT/288,565 DWT
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 46, container 5, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belize 1, Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Ecuador 1, Egypt 4, Gibraltar 1, Greece 5, Jordan 1, Latvia 1, Liberia 1, Malta 1, Panama 9, Romania 8, Russia 4, Saint Kitts and Nevis 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, Saudi Arabia 2, Syria 5, Turkey 2, Ukraine 7, United Arab Emirates 11, United Kingdom 1, United States 1 (2002 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 | a CIS peacekeeping force of Russian troops is deployed in the Abkhazia region of Georgia together with a UN military observer group; a Russian peacekeeping battalion is deployed in South Ossetia |
Military branches | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; with Army and Air Wing) | Ground Forces (includes National Guard), combined Air and Air Defense Forces, Naval Forces, Republic Security and Police Forces (internal and border troops) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $32.5 million (2003) | $23 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2003) | 0.59% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 465,827 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,300,259 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 253,974 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,027,407 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 41,561 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Independence Day, 26 May (1918); note - 26 May 1918 is the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 9 April 1991 is the date of independence from the Soviet Union |
Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun: Georgian(s)
adjective: Georgian |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | earthquakes |
Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals | forests, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron ore, copper, minor coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils allow for important tea and citrus growth |
Net migration rate | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -2.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 370 km; refined products 300 km; natural gas 440 km (1992) |
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] | Citizen's Union of Georgia or CUG [Zarab ZHVANIA]; Georgian People's Front [Nodar NATADZE]; Georgian United Communist Party or UCPG [Panteleimon GIORGADZE]; Greens [Giorgi GACHECHILADZE]; Industry Will Save Georgia or IWSG [Georgi TOPADZE]; Labor Party [Salva NATELASHVILI]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Irina SARISHVILI-CHANTURIA]; New National Movement [Mikheil SAAKASHVILI]; New Rightists [Levaii GACHECHILADZE]; Republican Party [David BERDZENISHVILI]; "Revival" Union Party or AGUR [Alsan ABASHIDZE]; Socialist Party or SPG [Irakli MINDELI]; Traditionalists [Akaki ASATIANI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Georgian independent deputies from Abkhazia (Abkhaz faction in Georgian Parliament); separatist elements in the breakaway region of Abkhazia; supporters of the late ousted President Zviad GAMSAKHURDYA remain a source of opposition |
Population | 1,865,040
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 2004 est.) |
4,960,951 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | 54% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.14% (2004 est.) | -0.55% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Bat'umi, P'ot'i, Sokhumi |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 7, FM 12, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.02 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total: 1,583 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines
broad gauge: 1,546 km 1.520-m gauge narrow gauge: 37 km 0.912-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Georgian Orthodox 65%, Muslim 11%, Russian Orthodox 10%, Armenian Apostolic 8%, unknown 6% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2002 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: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: local - T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi have cellular telephone networks; urban telephone density is about 20 per 100 people; rural telephone density is about 4 per 100 people; intercity facilities include a fiber-optic line between T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi; nationwide pager service is available international: Georgia and Russia are working on a fiber-optic line between P'ot'i and Sochi (Russia); present international service is available by microwave, landline, and satellite through the Moscow switch; international electronic mail and telex service are available |
Telephones - main lines in use | 28,600 (2002) | 620,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 92,000 (2002) | 185,500 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 12 (plus repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhet'is Dablobi (Kolkhida Lowland) opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River Basin in the east; good soils in river valley flood plains, foothills of Kolkhida Lowland |
Total fertility rate | 3.44 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.48 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Transportation - note | - | transportation network is in poor condition resulting from ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel shortages; network lacks maintenance and repair |
Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | 17% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |