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Compare Mali (2004) - Iran (2002)

Compare Mali (2004) z Iran (2002)

 Mali (2004)Iran (2002)
 MaliIran
Administrative divisions 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou 28 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohkiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan
Age structure 0-14 years: 47.1% (male 2,835,378; female 2,801,578)


15-64 years: 49.9% (male 2,862,075; female 3,101,009)


65 years and over: 3% (male 163,927; female 192,821) (2004 est.)
0-14 years: 31.6% (male 10,753,218; female 10,273,015)


15-64 years: 63.7% (male 21,383,542; female 21,096,307)


65 years and over: 4.7% (male 1,633,016; female 1,483,606) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar
Airports 27 (2003 est.) 322 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 9


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
total: 122


over 3,047 m: 39


2,438 to 3,047 m: 25


1,524 to 2,437 m: 27


914 to 1,523 m: 27


under 914 m: 4 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 19


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 5


914 to 1,523 m: 5


under 914 m: 8 (2004 est.)
total: 187


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 9


914 to 1,523 m: 138


under 914 m: 39 (2002)
Area total: 1.24 million sq km


land: 1.22 million sq km


water: 20,000 sq km
total: 1.648 million sq km


land: 1.636 million sq km


water: 12,000 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than twice the size of Texas slightly larger than Alaska
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. Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq over disputed territory. Key current issues affecting the country include the pace of accepting outside modernizing influences and reconciliation between clerical control of the regime and popular government participation and widespread demands for reform.
Birth rate 47.29 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 17.54 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $764 million


expenditures: $828 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2002 est.)
revenues: $24 billion


expenditures: $22 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital Bamako Tehran
Climate subtropical to arid; hot and dry February to June; rainy, humid, and mild June to November; cool and dry November to February mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)
Constitution adopted 12 January 1992 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership
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: Islamic Republic of Iran


conventional short form: Iran


local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran


local short form: Iran


former: Persia
Currency Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States Iranian rial (IRR)
Death rate 19.12 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 5.39 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $3.3 billion (2000) $8.2 billion (2002 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
none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland
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
none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990
Disputes - international none despite restored diplomatic relations in 1990, Iran lacks maritime boundary with Iraq and disputes land boundary, navigation channels, and other issues from eight-year war; UAE seeks United Arab League and other international support against Iran's occupation of Greater Tunb Island (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran) and Lesser Tunb Island (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and attempts to occupy completely a jointly administered island in the Persian Gulf (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran); Iran insists on division of Caspian Sea into five equal sectors while Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan have generally agreed upon equidistant seabed boundaries; Iran threatens to conduct oil exploration in Azerbaijani-claimed waters, while interdicting Azerbaijani activities
Economic aid - recipient $596.4 million (2001) $129 million (1995) (2000 est.)
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. Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI and has indicated that he will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy although he has made little progress toward that goal. The strong oil market in 1996 helped ease financial pressures on Iran and allowed for Tehran's timely debt service payments. Iran's financial situation tightened in 1997 and deteriorated further in 1998 because of lower oil prices. Subsequent rises in oil prices have afforded Iran fiscal breathing room but do not solve Iran's structural economic problems, including the encouragement of foreign investment and the containment of inflation.
Electricity - consumption 446.6 million kWh (2001) 111.907 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2001) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 480.2 million kWh (2001) 120.33 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 94%


hydro: 6%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Senegal River 23 m


highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m


highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5% Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) from 1997 to 2001, Iran had a multi-exchange-rate system; one of these rates, the official floating exchange rate, by which most essential goods were imported, averaged 1,750 rials per US dollar; in March 2002, the multi-exchange-rate system was converged into one rate at about 7,900 rials per US dollar
Executive branch chief of state: President Amadou Toumani TOURE (since 8 June 2002)


head of government: Prime Minister Ousmane Issoufi MAIGA (since 30 April 2004)


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: Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)


head of government: President (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani (since 3 August 1997); First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-YAZDI (since 26 August 2001)


cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval


elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 8 June 2001 (next to be held NA 2005)


election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president; percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77%
Exports NA (2001) $24 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities cotton, gold, livestock petroleum 85%, carpets, fruits and nuts, iron and steel, chemicals
Exports - partners Thailand 14%, China 12.1%, India 7.9%, Italy 7.5%, Bangladesh 6.1%, UK 6.1% (2003) Japan 20.5%, Italy 7%, UAE 5.9%, France 4.7%, China 4.1% (1999)
Fiscal year calendar year 21 March - 20 March
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), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band
GDP purchasing power parity - $10.53 billion (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $456 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 45%


industry: 17%


services: 38% (2001 est.)
agriculture: 19%


industry: 26%


services: 55% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $900 (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $7,000 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 0.5% (2003 est.) 5% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 17 00 N, 4 00 W 32 00 N, 53 00 E
Geography - note landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport
Heliports - 13 (2002)
Highways total: 15,100 km


paved: 1,827 km


unpaved: 13,273 km (1999 est.)
total: 140,200 km


paved: 49,440 km (including 470 km of expressways)


unpaved: 90,760 km (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1.8%


highest 10%: 40.4% (1994)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate at least 1.8 million drug users in the country
Imports NA (2001) $19.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies
Imports - partners France 15.4%, Senegal 7.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.1% (2003) Germany 11%, Italy 8.3%, China 6.1%, Japan 5.3%, UAE 5% (1999)
Independence 22 September 1960 (from France) 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)
Industrial production growth rate NA (FY96/97) 5.5% excluding oil (2001 est.)
Industries food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments
Infant mortality rate total: 117.99 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 124.51 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 111.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
28.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 4.5% (2002 est.) 17.3% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 8 (2000)
Irrigated land 1,380 sq km (1998 est.) 75,620 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Cour Supreme Supreme Court
Labor force 3.93 million (2001 est.) 18 million


note: shortage of skilled labor (1998)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture and fishing 80% (2001 est.) agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 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: 5,440 km


border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km
Land use arable land: 3.82%


permanent crops: 0.03%


other: 96.15% (2001)
arable land: 10.17%


permanent crops: 1.16%


other: 88.67% (1998 est.)
Languages French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%
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 the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government
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 Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 18 February-NA April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004)


election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - reformers 170, conservatives 45, and independents 10, 65 seats up for runoff; note - election on 5 May 2000 (reformers 52, conservatives 10, independents 3)
Life expectancy at birth total population: 45.28 years


male: 44.7 years


female: 45.87 years (2004 est.)
total population: 70.25 years


male: 68.87 years


female: 71.69 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: 72.1%


male: 78.4%


female: 65.8% (1994 est.)
Location Western Africa, southwest of Algeria Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan
Map references Africa Middle East
Maritime claims none (landlocked) contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: natural prolongation


exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine - total: 147 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,136,971 GRT/7,166,703 DWT


ships by type: bulk 48, cargo 36, chemical tanker 4, container 10, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 30, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Army, Air Force, National Guard Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Command), Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) (includes Ground Forces, Air Force, Navy, Qods [special operations], and Basij [Popular Mobilization Army] forces), Law Enforcement Forces
Military expenditures - dollar figure $51.1 million (2003) $9.7 billion (FY00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.3% (2003) 3.1% (FY00)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 2,529,147 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 18,868,571 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 1,450,795 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 11,192,731 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 21 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 823,041 (2002 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 22 September (1960) Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
Nationality noun: Malian(s)


adjective: Malian
noun: Iranian(s)


adjective: Iranian
Natural hazards hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along western border and in the northeast
Natural resources gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower


note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited
petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur
Net migration rate -0.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) -4.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines - crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km
Political parties and leaders Alliance for Democracy or ADEMA [Diounconda TRAORE, 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] the following organizations appeared to have achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majlis in early 2000: Assembly of the Followers of the Imam's Line, Freethinkers' Front, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Moderation and Development Party, Servants of Construction Party, Society of Self-sacrificing Devotees
Political pressure groups and leaders Patriotic Movement of the Ghanda Koye or MPGK; United Movement and Fronts of Azawad or MFUA active student groups include the pro-reform "Organization for Strengthening Unity" and "the Union of Islamic Student Societies'; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, and the Islamic Coalition Association; opposition groups include the Liberation Movement of Iran and the Nation of Iran party; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan; the Society for the Defense of Freedom
Population 11,956,788 (July 2004 est.) 66,622,704 (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.) 53% (1996 est.)
Population growth rate 2.78% (2004 est.) 0.77% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Koulikoro Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Ahvaz, Bandar 'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, Bandar-e Lengeh, Bandar-e Mahshahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar (Bandar Beheshti), Jazireh-ye Khark, Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr (limited operation since November 1992), Now Shahr
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 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998)
Radios - 17 million (1997)
Railways total: 729 km


narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)
total: 6,130 km


broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge


standard gauge: 6,036 km 1.435-m gauge (187 km electrified)


note: broad-gauge track is employed at the borders with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan which have broad-gauge rail systems; 41 km of the standard-gauge, electrified track is in suburban service at Tehran (2001)
Religions Muslim 90%, indigenous beliefs 9%, Christian 1% Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1%
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: 0.85 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female


total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 15 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: country code - 223; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)
general assessment: inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected


domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; and thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches


international: HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat; Internet service available but limited to electronic mail to promote Iranian culture
Telephones - main lines in use 56,600 (2002) 6.313 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 250,000 (2003) 265,000 (August 1998)
Television broadcast stations 1 (plus repeaters) (2001) 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997)
Terrain mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts
Total fertility rate 6.58 children born/woman (2004 est.) 2.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 14.6% urban areas; 5.3% rural areas (2001 est.) 14% (1999 est.)
Waterways 1,815 km (2004) 904 km


note: the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use
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