Libya (2005) | Pakistan (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 25 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan; note - the 25 municipalities may have been replaced by 13 regions | 4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital territory**; Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**, North-West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: 33.9% (male 997,364/female 955,272)
15-64 years: 62% (male 1,842,775/female 1,729,235) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 117,967/female 122,950) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 36.9% (male 31,264,576/female 29,507,174)
15-64 years: 58.8% (male 49,592,033/female 47,327,161) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 3,342,650/female 3,708,330) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle | cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; milk, beef, mutton, eggs |
Airports | 139 (2004 est.) | 146 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 59
over 3,047 m: 23 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 92
over 3,047 m: 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 29 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 10 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 80
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 41 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
total: 54
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 24 (2007) |
Area | total: 1,759,540 sq km
land: 1,759,540 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 803,940 sq km
land: 778,720 sq km water: 25,220 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Alaska | slightly less than twice the size of California |
Background | From the earliest days of his rule following his 1969 military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI has espoused his own political system, the Third Universal Theory. The system is a combination of socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices and is supposed to be implemented by the Libyan people themselves in a unique form of "direct democracy." QADHAFI has always seen himself as a revolutionary and visionary leader. He used oil funds during the 1970s and 1980s to promote his ideology outside Libya, supporting subversives and terrorists abroad to hasten the end of Marxism and capitalism. In addition, beginning in 1973, he engaged in military operations in northern Chad's Aozou Strip - to gain access to minerals and to use as a base of influence in Chadian politics - but was forced to retreat in 1987. UN sanctions in 1992 isolated QADHAFI politically following the downing of Pan AM Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Libyan support for terrorism appeared to have decreased after the imposition of sanctions. During the 1990s, QADHAFI also began to rebuild his relationships with Europe. UN sanctions were suspended in April 1999 and finally lifted in September 2003 after Libya resolved the Lockerbie case. In December 2003, Libya announced that it had agreed to reveal and end its programs to develop weapons of mass destruction, and QADHAFI has made significant strides in normalizing relations with western nations since then. He has received various Western European leaders as well as many working-level and commercial delegations, and made his first trip to Western Europe in 15 years when he traveled to Brussels in April 2004. QADHAFI also finally resolved in 2004 several outstanding cases against his government for terrorist activities in the 1980s by paying compensation to the families of victims of the UTA and La Belle disco bombings. | The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world and dating back at least 5,000 years, spread over much of what is presently Pakistan. During the second millennium B.C., remnants of this culture fused with the migrating Indo-Aryan peoples. The area underwent successive invasions in subsequent centuries from the Persians, Greeks, Scythians, Arabs (who brought Islam), Afghans, and Turks. The Mughal (Mongol) Empire flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries; the British came to dominate the region in the 18th century. The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with West and East sections) 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 | 26.82 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 27.52 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $13.52 billion
expenditures: $12.23 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.6 billion (2004 est.) |
revenues: $23.17 billion
expenditures: $29.74 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Tripoli | name: Islamabad
geographic coordinates: 33 42 N, 73 10 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior | mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north |
Coastline | 1,770 km | 1,046 km |
Constitution | 11 December 1969; amended 2 March 1977 | 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; suspended 3 November 2007; restored with amendments on 15 December 2007 |
Country name | conventional long form: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
conventional short form: Libya local long form: Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah al Uzma local short form: none |
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Pakistan
conventional short form: Pakistan local long form: Jamhuryat Islami Pakistan local short form: Pakistan former: West Pakistan |
Death rate | 3.48 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.069 billion (2004 est.) | $40.32 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US suspended all embassy activities in Tripoli in May 1980, resumed embassy activities in February 2004 under the protective power of the US interests section of the Belgian Embassy in Tripoli, then opened a Liaison Office in Tripoli in June 2004 | chief of mission: Ambassador Anne W. PATTERSON
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 | Libya does not have an embassy in the US but maintains an interest section under the protective power of the United Arab Emirates Embassy in the US | 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 | Libya has claimed more than 32,000 sq km in southeastern Algeria and about 25,000 sq km in Niger in currently dormant disputes; various Chadian rebels from the Aozou region reside in southern Libya | 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; India and Pakistan have maintained their 2004 cease fire in Kashmir and initiated discussions on defusing the armed stand-off in the Siachen glacier region; Pakistan protests India's fencing the highly militarized Line of Control and construction of the Baglihar Dam on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir, which is part of the larger dispute on water sharing of the Indus River and its tributaries; to defuse tensions and prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and Pakistan seek technical resolution of the disputed boundary in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in the Arabian Sea; Pakistani maps continue to show the Junagadh claim in India's Gujarat State; by 2005, Pakistan, with UN assistance, repatriated 2.3 million Afghan refugees leaving slightly more than a million, many of whom remain at their own choosing; Pakistan has proposed and Afghanistan protests construction of a fence and laying of mines along portions of their porous border; Pakistan has sent troops into remote tribal areas to monitor and control the border with Afghanistan and to stem terrorist or other illegal activities |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.4 million ODA (2002) | $1.666 billion (2005) |
Economy - overview | The Libyan economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contribute practically all export earnings and about one-quarter of GDP. These oil revenues and a small population give Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs in Africa, but little of this income flows down to the lower orders of society. Libyan officials in the past four years have made progress on economic reforms as part of a broader campaign to reintegrate the country into the international fold. This effort picked up steam after UN sanctions were lifted in September 2003 and as Libya announced in December 2003 that it would abandon programs to build weapons of mass destruction. Almost all US unilateral sanctions against Libya were removed in April 2004. Libya faces a long road ahead in liberalizing the socialist-oriented economy, but initial steps - including applying for WTO membership, reducing some subsidies, and announcing plans for privatization - are laying the groundwork for a transition to a more market-based economy. The non-oil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for about 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food. | 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 five years. The government has made substantial macroeconomic reforms since 2000, most notably privatizing the banking sector. Poverty levels have decreased by 10% since 2001, and Islamabad has steadily raised development spending in recent years, including a 52% real increase in the budget allocation for development in FY07, a necessary step toward reversing the broad underdevelopment of its social sector. The fiscal deficit - the result of chronically low tax collection and increased spending, including reconstruction costs from the October 2005 earthquake - appears manageable for now. GDP growth, spurred by gains in the industrial and service sectors, remained in the 6-8% range in 2004-07. Inflation remains the biggest threat to the economy, jumping to more than 9% in 2005 before easing to 6.9% in 2007. The central bank is pursuing tighter monetary policy while trying to preserve growth. Foreign exchange reserves are bolstered by steady worker remittances, but a growing current account deficit - driven by a widening trade gap as import growth outstrips export expansion - could draw down reserves and dampen GDP growth in the medium term. |
Electricity - consumption | 19.43 billion kWh (2002) | 67.06 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 20.89 billion kWh (2002) | 89.82 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m
highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m |
Environment - current issues | desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources; the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities | 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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: 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 | Berber and Arab 97%, Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, Tunisians | Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun (Pathan), Baloch, Muhajir (immigrants from India at the time of partition and their descendants) |
Exchange rates | Libyan dinars per US dollar - 1.305 (2004), 1.2929 (2003), 1.2707 (2002), 0.6051 (2001), 0.5122 (2000) | Pakistani rupees per US dollar - 60.6295 (2007), 60.35 (2006), 59.515 (2005), 58.258 (2004), 57.752 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Revolutionary Leader Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); note - holds no official title, but is de facto chief of state
head of government: Secretary of the General People's Committee (Prime Minister) Shukri Muhammad GHANIM (since 14 June 2003) cabinet: General People's Committee established by the General People's Congress elections: national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of people's committees; head of government elected by the General People's Congress; election last held 2 March 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: NA |
chief of state: President Pervez MUSHARRAF (since 20 June 2001)
note: following an October 1999 military coup, General Pervez MUSHARRAF suspended Pakistan's constitution and assumed the additional title of Chief Executive; in May 2000, Pakistan's Supreme Court validated the 1999 coup and granted MUSHARRAF executive and legislative authority for three years following the coup; in June 2001, MUSHARRAF named himself president, replacing Mohammad Rafiq TARAR; an April 2002 referendum extended MUSHARRAF's presidency by five years head of government: caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian SOOMRO (since 16 November 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: the president is elected by secret ballot (1,170 votes total) through an Electoral College comprising the members of the Senate, National Assembly, and the provincial assemblies for a five-year term; the prime minister is selected by the National Assembly election results: MUSHARRAF reelected on 6 October 2007 (next election to be held in October 2012); MUSHARRAF 671 votes; Wajihuddin AHMED 8 votes; 6 votes invalid |
Exports | NA | 23,230 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas | textiles (garments, bed linen, cotton cloth, yarn), rice, leather goods, sports goods, chemicals, manufactures, carpets and rugs |
Exports - partners | Italy 37%, Germany 16.6%, Spain 11.9%, Turkey 7.1%, France 6.2% (2004) | US 21%, UAE 9%, Afghanistan 7.7%, China 5.3%, UK 5.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion) | 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 - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.7%
industry: 45.7% services: 45.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 19.6%
industry: 26.8% services: 53.7% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,700 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2004 est.) | 6.3% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 25 00 N, 17 00 E | 30 00 N, 70 00 E |
Geography - note | more than 90% of the country is desert or semidesert | controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | 18 (2007) |
Highways | total: 83,200 km
paved: 47,590 km unpaved: 35,610 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 26.3% (2002) |
Illicit drugs | - | opium poppy cultivation estimated to be 800 hectares in 2005 yielding a potential production of 4 metric tons of pure heroin; 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 | 278,900 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transport equipment, semi-finished goods, food, consumer products (1999) | petroleum, petroleum products, machinery, plastics, transportation equipment, edible oils, paper and paperboard, iron and steel, tea |
Imports - partners | Italy 25.5%, Germany 11%, South Korea 6.1%, UK 5.4%, Tunisia 4.7%, Turkey 4.6% (2004) | China 13.8%, Saudi Arabia 10.5%, UAE 9.7%, US 6.5%, Japan 5.7%, Kuwait 4.7%, Germany 4.2% (2006) |
Independence | 24 December 1951 (from Italy) | 14 August 1947 (from British India) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 6.8% (2007 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, iron and steel, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement | textiles and apparel, food processing, pharmaceuticals, construction materials, paper products, fertilizer, shrimp |
Infant mortality rate | total: 24.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.92 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 68.84 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 68.94 deaths/1,000 live births female: 68.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.9% (2004 est.) | 6.9% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), WToO | ADB, ARF, C (reinstated 2004), CP, ECO, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 4,700 sq km (1998 est.) | 182,300 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court (justices appointed by the president); Federal Islamic or Shari'a Court |
Labor force | 1.59 million (2004 est.) | 49.18 million
note: extensive export of labor, mostly to the Middle East, and use of child labor (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 17%, industry 29%, services 54% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 42%
industry: 20% services: 38% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 4,348 km
border countries: Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,115 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 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: 1.03%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 98.78% (2001) |
arable land: 24.44%
permanent crops: 0.84% other: 74.72% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities | Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski and other 8% |
Legal system | based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for 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 General People's Congress (NA seats; members elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees) | bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (100 seats; members indirectly elected by provincial assemblies and the territories' representatives in the National Assembly to serve six-year terms; one half are elected every three years) and the National Assembly (342 seats; 272 members elected by popular vote; 60 seats reserved for women; 10 seats reserved for non-Muslims; to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held in March 2006 (next to be held in March 2009); National Assembly - last held 18 February 2008 (next to be held in 2013) election results: Senate results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PML 39, MMA 18, PPPP 9, MQM 6, PML/N 4, PkMAP 3, PPP/S 3, ANP 2, BNP/A 1, BNP/M 1, JWP 1, PML/F 1, independents 12; National Assembly results - percent of votes by party - NA; seats by party - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.5 years
male: 74.29 years female: 78.82 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 63.75 years
male: 62.73 years female: 64.83 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.6% male: 92.4% female: 72% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 49.9% male: 63% female: 36% (2005 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia | 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 | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north |
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: 17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 129,627 GRT/105,110 DWT
by type: cargo 7, liquefied gas 3, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 1 (Algeria 1) (2005) |
total: 14 ships (1000 GRT or over) 325,254 GRT/536,876 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 10, petroleum tanker 3 registered in other countries: 12 (Comoros 2, Hong Kong 1, North Korea 1, Malta 2, Panama 5, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Armed Peoples on Duty (Army), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command | Army (includes National Guard), Navy (includes Marines and Maritime Security Agency), Pakistan Air Force (Pakistan Fiza'ya) (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.3 billion (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.9% (FY99) | 3.2% (2006; 3% 2007 est.) |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 1 September (1969) | Republic Day, 23 March (1956) |
Nationality | noun: Libyan(s)
adjective: Libyan |
noun: Pakistani(s)
adjective: Pakistani |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust storms, sandstorms | frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, gypsum | land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -1.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 225 km; gas 3,611 km; oil 7,252 km (2004) | gas 10,398 km; oil 2,076 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | none | 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/A [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 or MMA [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Muttahida Qaumi Movement, or MQM [Altaf HUSSAIN]; National Alliance or NA [Ghulam Mustapha JATOI] (merged with PML); Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PkMAP [Mahmood Khan ACHAKZAI]; 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 People's Party or PPP/S [Aftab Ahmed Khan SHERPAO]; Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians or PPPP [Bilawal Bhutto ZARDARI, chairman; Asif Ali ZARDANI, co-chairman]; 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 | various Arab nationalist movements with almost negligible memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements; an anti-QADHAFI Libyan exile movement exists, primarily based in London, but has little influence | military remains most important political force; ulema (clergy), landowners, industrialists, and small merchants also influential |
Population | 5,765,563
note: includes 166,510 non-nationals (July 2005 est.) |
164,741,924 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 24% (FY05/06 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.33% (2005 est.) | 1.828% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | As Sidrah, Az Zuwaytinah, Marsa al Burayqah, Ra's Lanuf, Tripoli, Zawiyah | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 3 (2002) | AM 31, FM 68, shortwave NA (2006) |
Railways | 0 km
note: Libya is working on 7 lines totaling 2,757 km of 1.435-m gauge track; it hopes to have trains running by 2008 (2004) |
total: 8,163 km
broad gauge: 7,718 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km electrified) narrow gauge: 445 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 97% | Muslim 97% (Sunni 77%, Shi'a 20%), other (includes Christian and Hindu) 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.901 male(s)/female total population: 1.045 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal; joint electorates and reserved parliamentary seats for women and non-Muslims |
Telephone system | general assessment: telecommunications system is being modernized; mobile cellular telephone system became operational in 1996
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, cellular, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 218; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat, NA Arabsat, and NA Intersputnik; submarine cables to France and Italy; microwave radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric scatter to Greece; participant in Medarabtel (1999) |
general assessment: the telecom infrastructure is improving dramatically with foreign and domestic investments into fixed-line and mobile networks; mobile cellular subscribership has skyrocketed, reaching some 63 million in mid-2007, up from only about 300,000 in 2000; fiber systems are being constructed throughout the country to aid in network growth; main line availability has risen only marginally over the same period and there are still difficulties getting main line service to rural areas
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, cellular, and satellite networks international: country code - 92; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable systems that provide links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; 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 (2006) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 750,000 (2003) | 5.24 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 100,000 (2003) | 63.16 million (2007) |
Television broadcast stations | 12 (plus one low-power repeater) (1999) | 20 (5 state-run channels and 15 privately-owned satellite channels) (2006) |
Terrain | mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions | flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan plateau in west |
Total fertility rate | 3.34 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.71 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (2004) | 7.5% plus substantial underemployment (2007 est.) |