Mali (2003) | Mozambique (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | 10 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), 1 city*; Cabo Delgado, Gaza, Inhambane, Manica, Maputo, Maputo City*, Nampula, Niassa, Sofala, Tete, Zambezia |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.2% (male 2,759,802; female 2,727,226)
15-64 years: 49.8% (male 2,771,532; female 3,017,348) 65 years and over: 3% (male 161,983; female 188,328) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.5% (male 4,162,413; female 4,176,295)
15-64 years: 54.7% (male 5,313,511; female 5,407,052) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 227,761; female 320,487) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | cotton, cashew nuts, sugarcane, tea, cassava (tapioca), corn, coconuts, sisal, citrus and tropical fruits, potatoes, sunflowers; beef, poultry |
Airports | 26 (2002) | 166 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 19
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
total: 143
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 35 under 914 m: 91 (2002) |
Area | total: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 801,590 sq km
land: 784,090 sq km water: 17,500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly less than twice the size of California |
Background | The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. When Senegal withdrew after only a few months, what formerly made up the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 with a transitional government and in 1992 when Mali's first democratic presidential election was held. After his reelection in 1997, President Alpha KONARE continued to push through political and economic reforms and to fight corruption. In keeping with Mali's two-term constitutional limit, he stepped down in 2002 and was succeeded by Amadou TOURE. | Almost five centuries as a Portuguese colony came to a close with independence in 1975. Large-scale emigration by whites, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought, and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development. The ruling party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989, and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement with rebel forces ended the fighting in 1992. Heavy flooding in both 1999 and 2000 severely hurt the economy. |
Birth rate | 47.79 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 36.41 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.) |
revenues: $393.1 million
expenditures: $1.025 billion, including capital expenditures of $479.4 million (2001 est.) |
Capital | Bamako | Maputo |
Climate | subtropical to arid; hot and dry February to June; rainy, humid, and mild June to November; cool and dry November to February | tropical to subtropical |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,470 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 30 November 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Mali
conventional short form: Mali local long form: Republique de Mali local short form: Mali former: French Sudan and Sudanese Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Mozambique
conventional short form: Mozambique local long form: Republica de Mocambique local short form: Mocambique former: Portuguese East Africa |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | metical (MZM) |
Death rate | 19.21 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 25.13 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.3 billion (2000) | $1 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Vicki HUDDLESTONE
embassy: Rue Rochester NY and Rue Mohamed V, Bamako mailing address: B. P. 34, Bamako telephone: [223] (2) 223-833 FAX: [223] (2) 223-712 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Sharon P. WILKINSON
embassy: Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo mailing address: P. O. Box 783, Maputo telephone: [258] (1) 492797 FAX: [258] (1) 490448 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Abdoulaye DIOP
chancery: 2130 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-2249, 939-8950 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6603 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Armando PANGUENE
chancery: 1990 M Street NW, Suite 570, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 293-7146 FAX: [1] (202) 835-0245 |
Disputes - international | armed bandits based in Mali attack southern Algerian towns | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $596.4 million (2001) | $632.8 million (2001) |
Economy - overview | Mali is among the poorest countries in the world, with 65% of its land area desert or semidesert and with a highly unequal distribution of income. Economic activity is largely confined to the riverine area irrigated by the Niger. About 10% of the population is nomadic and some 80% of the labor force is engaged in farming and fishing. Industrial activity is concentrated on processing farm commodities. Mali is heavily dependent on foreign aid and vulnerable to fluctuations in world prices for cotton, its main export, along with gold. The government has continued its successful implementation of an IMF-recommended structural adjustment program that is helping the economy grow, diversify, and attract foreign investment. Mali's adherence to economic reform and the 50% devaluation of the African franc in January 1994 have pushed up economic growth to a sturdy 5% average in 1996-2002. Worker remittances and external trade routes have been jeopardized by continued unrest in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire. | At independence in 1975, Mozambique was one of the world's poorest countries. Socialist mismanagement and a brutal civil war from 1977-92 exacerbated the situation. In 1988, the government embarked on a series of dramatic macroeconomic reforms designed to stabilize the economy and reduce government participation. These steps combined with the political stability that has prevailed since the 1994 multi-party elections have led to dramatic improvements in the country's growth rate fueled by foreign and domestic investments and donor assistance. Inflation was brought to single digits during the same period, although it has returned to double digits in 2000 and 2001. Foreign exchange rates have remained relatively stable. Fiscal reforms, including the introduction of a value-added tax and reform of the customs service, have improved the government's revenue collection abilities. In spite of these gains, Mozambique remains dependent upon foreign assistance for much of its annual budget, and the majority of the population remains below the poverty line. Subsistence agriculture continues to employ the vast majority of the country's workforce. A substantial trade imbalance persists, although it has diminished with the opening of the MOZAL aluminum smelter, the country's largest foreign investment project. Additional investment projects in titanium extraction/processing and garment manufacturing should further close the import/export gap. Mozambique's once substantial foreign debt has been reduced through forgiveness and rescheduling under the IMF's Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and Enhanced HIPC initiatives, and is now at a manageable level. |
Electricity - consumption | 446.6 million kWh (2001) | 925.81 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2001) | 5.7 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 100 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 480.2 million kWh (2001) | 7.017 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 41.7%
hydro: 58.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 4%
hydro: 96% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Monte Binga 2,436 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | a long civil war and recurrent drought in the hinterlands have resulted in increased migration of the population to urban and coastal areas with adverse environmental consequences; desertification; pollution of surface and coastal waters; elephant poaching for ivory is a problem |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5% | indigenous tribal groups 99.66% (Shangaan, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, and others), Europeans 0.06%, Euro-Africans 0.2%, Indians 0.08% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) | meticais per US dollar - 23,314.2 (January 2002), 20,703.6 (2001), 15,447.1 (2000), 13,028.6 (1999), 12,110.2 (1998), 11,772.6 (1997)
note: effective October 2000, the exchange rate is determined as the weighted average of buying and selling exchange rates of all transactions of commercial banks and stock exchanges with the public; meticais is the plural form of metical |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Amadou Toumani TOURE (since 8 June 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Ahmed Mohamed Ag HAMANI (since 9 June 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (two-term limit); election last held 12 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Amadou Toumani TOURE elected president; percent of vote - Amadou Toumani TOURE 64.4%, Soumaila CISSE 35.6% |
chief of state: President Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO (since 6 November 1986); note - before being popularly elected, CHISSANO was elected president by Frelimo's Central Committee on 4 November 1986 (reelected by the Committee 30 July 1989)
head of government: Prime Minister Pascoal MOCUMBI (since 17 December 1994) cabinet: Cabinet elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO reelected president; percent of vote - Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO 52.29%, Afonso DHLAKAMA 47.71% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $746 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, gold, livestock | prawns 40%, cashews, cotton, sugar, citrus, timber; bulk electricity (2000) |
Exports - partners | Thailand 13.9%, Italy 9.8%, India 7.7%, Brazil 5.5%, Germany 5%, Spain 4.9%, Portugal 4.3%, Taiwan 4.3% (2002) | South Africa 12.7%, Zimbabwe 12.2%, Spain 10.6%, Portugal 10.0% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.775 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17.5 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 33%
industry: 25% services: 42% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.5% (2002 est.) | 9.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 18 15 S, 35 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan | the Zambezi flows through the north-central and most fertile part of the country |
Highways | total: 15,100 km
paved: 1,827 km unpaved: 13,273 km (1999 est.) |
total: 30,400 km
paved: 5,685 km unpaved: 24,715 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.8%
highest 10%: 40.4% (1994) |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 32% (1996-97) |
Illicit drugs | - | Southern African transit point for South Asian hashish, South Asian heroin, and South American cocaine probably destined for the European and South African markets; producer of cannabis (for local consumption) and methaqualone (for export to South Africa); corruption and poor regulatory capability makes the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center |
Imports | NA (2001) | $1.254 billion c.i.f. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs, textiles (2000) |
Imports - partners | Cote d'Ivoire 17.1%, France 13.5%, Senegal 6.5%, Germany 4% (2002) | South Africa 33.5%, Portugal 4.8%, US 4.2%, Australia 3.8% (2000) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | 25 June 1975 (from Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3.4% (2000) |
Industries | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | food, beverages, chemicals (fertilizer, soap, paints), petroleum products, textiles, cement, glass, asbestos, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | total: 119.2 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 125.72 deaths/1,000 live births female: 112.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
138.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2002 est.) | 10% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 13 (2001) | 11 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 1,380 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,070 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (the court of final appeal; some of its professional judges are appointed by the president and some are elected by the Assembly); other courts include an Administrative Court, customs courts, maritime courts, courts marshal, labor courts
note: although the constitution provides for the creation of a separate Constitutional Court, one has never been established; in its absence the Supreme Court reviews constitutional cases |
Labor force | 3.93 million (2001 est.) | 7.4 million (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and fishing 80% (2001 est.) | agriculture 81%, industry 6%, services 13% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 7,243 km
border countries: Algeria 1,376 km, Burkina Faso 1,000 km, Guinea 858 km, Cote d'Ivoire 532 km, Mauritania 2,237 km, Niger 821 km, Senegal 419 km |
total: 4,571 km
border countries: Malawi 1,569 km, South Africa 491 km, Swaziland 105 km, Tanzania 756 km, Zambia 419 km, Zimbabwe 1,231 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.77%
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 96.19% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 3.98%
permanent crops: 0.29% other: 95.73% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | Portuguese (official), indigenous dialects |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court (which was formally established on 9 March 1994); has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (147 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 July and 28 July 2002 (next to be held NA July 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Hope 2002 coalition 66, ADEMA 51, other 30 |
unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (250 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on a secret ballot to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Frelimo 48.54%, Renamo-UE 38.81%; seats by party - Frelimo 133, Renamo-UE 117 note: Renamo-UE ran as a multiparty coalition; none of the other opposition parties received the 5% required to win parliamentary seats; in September 2000, Renamo-UE member Raul DOMINGOS was expelled from the party, he continues to hold his parliamentary seat as an independent |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 45.43 years
male: 44.7 years female: 46.19 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 35.46 years
male: 36.25 years female: 34.65 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.3% male: 58.4% female: 27% (1998 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Southern Africa, bordering the Mozambique Channel, between South Africa and Tanzania |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,125 GRT/7,024 DWT
ships by type: cargo 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Guard, National Police (Surete Nationale) | Army, Naval Command, Air and Air Defense Forces, Special Forces, Militia |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $419.7 million (FY02) | $35.1 million (2000 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 15% (FY02) | 1% (2000 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,441,769 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 4,711,318 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,400,711 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,720,583 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | Independence Day, 25 June (1975) |
Nationality | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
noun: Mozambican(s)
adjective: Mozambican |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding | severe droughts; devastating cyclones and floods occur in central and southern provinces |
Natural resources | gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited |
coal, titanium, natural gas, hydropower, tantalum, graphite |
Net migration rate | -0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 306 km; petroleum products 289 km
note: not operating |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or ADEMA [Diounconda Traore KEITA, party chairman]; Block of Alternative for the Renewal of Africa or BARA [Yoro DIAKITE]; Democratic and Social Convention or CDS [Mamadou Bakary SANGARE, chairman]; Hope 2002 [leader NA]; Movement for the Independence, Renaissance and Integration of Africa or MIRIA [Mohamed Lamine TRAORE, Mouhamedou DICKO]; National Congress for Democratic Initiative or CNID [Mountaga TALL, chairman]; Party for Democracy and Progress or PDP [Me Idrissa TRAORE]; Party for National Renewal or PARENA [Yoro DIAKITE, chairman; Tiebile DRAME, secretary general]; Rally for Democracy and Labor or RDT [Ali GNANGADO]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Almamy SYLLA, chairman]; Rally for Mali or RPM [Ibrahim Bonbasor KEITA, chairman]; Sudanese Union/African Democratic Rally or US/RDA [Mamadou Bamou TOURE, secretary general]; Union of Democratic Forces for Progress or UFDP [Youssouf TOURE, secretary general]; Union for Democracy and Development or UDD [Moussa Balla COULIBALY] | Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frente de Liberatacao de Mocambique) or Frelimo [Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO, president]; Mozambique National Resistance-Electoral Union (Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana-Uniao Eleitoral) or Renamo-UE [Afonso DHLAKAMA, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Patriotic Movement of the Ghanda Koye or MPGK; United Movement and Fronts of Azawad or MFUA | Institute for Peace and Democracy (Instituto para Paz e Democracia) or IPADE [Raul DOMINGOS, president]; Etica [Abdul CARIMO Issa, chairman]; Movement for Peace and Citizenship (Movimento para Paz e Cidadania); Mozambican League of Human Rights (Liga Mocambicana dos Direitos Humanos) or LDH [Alice MABOTE, president]; Human Rights and Development (Direitos Humanos e Desenvolvimento) or DHD [Artemisia FRANCO, secretary general] |
Population | 11,626,219 (July 2003 est.) | 19,607,519
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; the 1997 Mozambican census reported a population of 16,099,246 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% average; 30% of the total population living in urban areas; 70% of the total population living in rural areas) (2001 est.) | 70% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.82% (2003 est.) | 1.13% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Koulikoro | Beira, Inhambane, Maputo, Nacala, Pemba, Quelimane |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 28, shortwave 1
note: the shortwave station in Bamako has seven frequencies and five transmitters and relays broadcasts for China Radio International (2001) |
AM 13, FM 17, shortwave 11 (2001) |
Radios | - | 730,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 729 km
narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
total: 3,131 km
narrow gauge: 2,988 km 1.067-m gauge; 143 km 0.762-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 90%, indigenous beliefs 9%, Christian 1% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic system unreliable but improving; provides only minimal service
domestic: network consists of microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone communications stations; expansion of microwave radio relay in progress international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: fair system but not available generally (telephone density is only 3.5 telephones for each 1,000 persons)
domestic: the system consists of open-wire lines and trunk connection by microwave radio relay and tropospheric scatter international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 45,000 (2000) | 90,000 (December 2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 40,000 (2001) | 100,000 (June 2001 est) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus repeaters) (2001) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus in northwest, mountains in west |
Total fertility rate | 6.66 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 4.71 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.6% urban areas; 5.3% rural areas (2001 est.) | 21% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | 1,815 km | 3,750 km (navigable routes) |