Compare Mauritania (2006) - Vietnam (2005)

Compare Mauritania (2006) z Vietnam (2005)

	Mauritania (2006)	Vietnam (2005)

Administrative divisions	12 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 capital district; Adrar, Assaba, Brakna, Dakhlet Nouadhibou, Gorgol, Guidimaka, Hodh Ech Chargui, Hodh El Gharbi, Inchiri, Nouakchott, Tagant, Tiris Zemmour, Trarza	59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thu do, singular and plural) provinces: An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Dac Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hau Giang, Hoa Binh, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai municipalities: Can Tho, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh
Age structure	0-14 years: 45.6% (male 726,376/female 723,013) 15-64 years: 52.2% (male 818,408/female 839,832) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 28,042/female 41,717) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 27.9% (male 12,065,777/female 11,212,299) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 27,406,456/female 28,024,250) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,889,585/female 2,937,209) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	dates, millet, sorghum, rice, corn; cattle, sheep	paddy rice, coffee, fish and seafood, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas, poultry
Airports	25 (2006)	24 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2006)	total: 21 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2006)	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 1,030,700 sq km land: 1,030,400 sq km water: 300 sq km	total: 329,560 sq km land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than three times the size of New Mexico	slightly larger than New Mexico
Background	Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976, but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA seized power in a coup in 1984. Opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution approved in 1991. Two multiparty presidential elections since then were widely seen as flawed, but October 2001 legislative and municipal elections were generally free and open. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council headed by Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL, which declared it would remain in power for up to two years while it created conditions for genuine democratic institutions and organized elections. For now, however, Mauritania remains an autocratic state, and the country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population and different Moor (Arab-Berber) communities.	The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH, who took control of the North. US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South. Despite the return of peace, for over two decades the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. Since 2001, Vietnamese authorities have committed to economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from the Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands over loss of land to Vietnamese settlers and religious persecution.
Birth rate	40.99 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	17.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $421 million expenditures: $378 million; including capital expenditures of $154 million (2002 est.)	revenues: $10.66 billion expenditures: $13.09 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2004 est.)
Capital	name: Nouakchott geographic coordinates: 18 06 N, 15 57 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Hanoi
Climate	desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty	tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Coastline	754 km	3,444 km (excludes islands)
Constitution	12 July 1991	15 April 1992
Country name	conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Mauritania conventional short form: Mauritania local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Islamiyah al Muritaniyah local short form: Muritaniyah	conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam conventional short form: Vietnam local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam local short form: Viet Nam abbreviation: SRV
Death rate	12.16 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	6.2 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$2.5 billion (2000)	$16.55 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Steven KOUTSIS embassy: 288 Rue Abdallaye (between Presidency building and Spanish Embassy), Nouakchott mailing address: BP 222, Nouakchott telephone: [222] 525-2660/525-2663 FAX: [222] 525-1592	chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500 FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510 consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Tijani Ould Mohamed EL KERIM chancery: 2129 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-5700, 5701 FAX: [1] (202) 319-2623	chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam CHIEN chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737 FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917 consulate(s) general: San Francisco
Disputes - international	Mauritanian claims to Western Sahara have been dormant in recent years	southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; in 2004 Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commission agrees to erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Vietnam continues to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly Islands; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands
Economic aid - recipient	$305.7 million (2002)	$2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004)
Economy - overview	Half the population still depends on agriculture and livestock for a livelihood, even though many of the nomads and subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s. Mauritania has extensive deposits of iron ore, which account for nearly 40% of total exports. The decline in world demand for this ore, however, has led to cutbacks in production. The nation's coastal waters are among the richest fishing areas in the world, but overexploitation by foreigners threatens this key source of revenue. The country's first deepwater port opened near Nouakchott in 1986. In the past, drought and economic mismanagement resulted in a buildup of foreign debt which now stands at more than three times the level of annual exports. In February 2000, Mauritania qualified for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative and in December 2001 received strong support from donor and lending countries at a triennial Consultative Group review. A new investment code approved in December 2001 improved the opportunities for direct foreign investment. Ongoing negotiations with the IMF involve problems of economic reforms and fiscal discipline. In 2001, exploratory oil wells in tracts 80 km offshore indicated potential extraction at current world oil prices. Mauritania has an estimated 1 billion barrels of proved reserves. Substantial oil production and exports are scheduled to begin in early 2006 and may average 75,000 barrels per day for that year. Meantime the government emphasizes reduction of poverty, improvement of health and education, and promoting privatization of the economy.	Vietnam is a densely-populated, developing country that in the last 30 years has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1997 in moving forward from an extremely low level of development and significantly reducing poverty. Growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy and temporarily allowed opponents of reform to slow progress towards a market oriented economy. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 7% in 2000-04 even against the background of global recession. Since 2001, however, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and international integration. They have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. However, equitization of state-owned enterprises and reduction in the proportion of non-performing loans has fallen behind schedule. Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade in December 2001 have led to even more rapid changes in Vietnam's trade and economic regime. Vietnam's exports to the US doubled in 2002 and again in 2003. Vietnam is working toward accession to the WTO in 2005. Among other benefits, accession will allow Vietnam to take advantage of the phase out of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which eliminated quotas on textiles and clothing for WTO partners on 1 January 2005. Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, in 2004, high levels of inflation prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies.
Electricity - consumption	172.6 million kWh (2003)	32.06 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	185.6 million kWh (2003)	34.48 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Sebkhet Te-n-Dghamcha -5 m highest point: Kediet Ijill 915 m	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m
Environment - current issues	overgrazing, deforestation, and soil erosion aggravated by drought are contributing to desertification; very limited natural fresh water resources away from the Senegal, which is the only perennial river; locust infestation	logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	mixed Maur/black 40%, Moor 30%, black 30%	Kinh (Viet) 86.2%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.7%, Muong 1.5%, Khome 1.4%, Hoa 1.1%, Nun 1.1%, Hmong 1%, others 4.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates	ouguiyas per US dollar - NA (2005), NA (2004), 263.03 (2003), 271.74 (2002), 255.63 (2001)	dong per US dollar - 15,746 (2004), 15,510 (2003), 15,280 (2002), 14,725 (2001), 14,168 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: Col. Ely Ould Mohamed VALL, whose Military Council for Justice and Democracy deposed longtime President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA in a coup on 3 August 2005 head of government: Prime Minister Sidi Mohamed Ould BOUBAKAR (since 8 August 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second consecutive term); note - passage of a constitutional reform referendum in July 2006 limits president to two five-year terms; election last held 7 November 2003 (next to be held 11 March 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA reelected for a third term with 60.8% of the vote	chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Vu KHOAN (8 August 2002) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and ratification of National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA
Exports - commodities	iron ore, fish and fish products, gold	crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes
Exports - partners	Italy 14.9%, Japan 12.3%, France 11.8%, Belgium 8.5%, Germany 8.3%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.2%, Spain 6.5%, Russia 5%, Netherlands 4.4% (2005)	US 20.2%, Japan 13.6%, China 9%, Australia 7%, Germany 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, UK 4.6% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent; the closed side of the crescent is down; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam	red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 25% industry: 29% services: 46% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 21.8% industry: 40.1% services: 38.1% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.5% (2005 est.)	7.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	20 00 N, 12 00 W	16 00 N, 106 00 E
Geography - note	most of the population concentrated in the cities of Nouakchott and Nouadhibou and along the Senegal River in the southern part of the country	extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
Highways	-	total: 93,300 km paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 30.2% (2000)	lowest 10%: 3.6% highest 10%: 29.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs	-	minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, petroleum products, capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods	machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles
Imports - partners	France 18.5%, UK 7.2%, US 7%, China 6%, Spain 5%, Belgium 4.3% (2005)	China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.3%, South Korea 10.8%, Japan 10.5%, Singapore 10.5%, Thailand 6.2%, Hong Kong 4% (2004)
Independence	28 November 1960 (from France)	2 September 1945 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	2% (2000 est.)	16% (2004 est.)
Industries	fish processing, mining of iron ore and gypsum	food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper
Infant mortality rate	total: 69.48 deaths/1,000 live births male: 72.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 66.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 25.95 deaths/1,000 live births male: 26.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	7% (2003 est.)	9.5% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACCT (observer), APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	490 sq km (2002)	30,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lower courts	Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president)
Labor force	786,000 (2001)	42.98 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 50% industry: 10% services: 40% (2001 est.)	agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 5,074 km border countries: Algeria 463 km, Mali 2,237 km, Senegal 813 km, Western Sahara 1,561 km	total: 4,639 km border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
Land use	arable land: 0.2% permanent crops: 0.01% other: 99.79% (2005)	arable land: 19.97% permanent crops: 5.95% other: 74.08% (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, French, Hassaniya, Wolof	Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Legal system	a combination of Shari'a (Islamic law) and French civil law	based on communist legal theory and French civil law system
Legislative branch	bicameral legislature consists of the Senate or Majlis al-Shuyukh (56 seats; a portion of seats up for election every two years; members elected by municipal leaders to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlis al-Watani (95 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 9 and 16 April 2004 (next to be held 21 January 2007); National Assembly - last held 19 November and 3 December 2006 election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA	unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the 10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 53.12 years male: 50.88 years female: 55.42 years (2006 est.)	total population: 70.61 years male: 67.82 years female: 73.6 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 41.7% male: 51.8% female: 31.9% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.3% male: 93.9% female: 86.9% (2002)
Location	Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Senegal and Western Sahara	Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
Map references	Africa	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	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	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	-	total: 194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,170,621 GRT/1,798,376 DWT by type: bulk carrier 18, cargo 142, chemical tanker 3, container 2, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 22, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2005)
Military branches	Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Navy (Marine Mauritanienne; includes naval infantry), Air Force (Force Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, FAIM) (2005)	People's Army of Vietnam: Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (includes Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$19.32 million (2005 est.)	$650 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.4% (2005 est.)	2.5% (FY98)
National holiday	Independence Day, 28 November (1960)	Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Nationality	noun: Mauritanian(s) adjective: Mauritanian	noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural) adjective: Vietnamese
Natural hazards	hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind blows primarily in March and April; periodic droughts	occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta
Natural resources	iron ore, gypsum, copper, phosphate, diamonds, gold, oil, fish	phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-0.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Action for Change or AC (no longer active) [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Alliance for Justice and Democracy or AJD [Cisse Amadou CHEIKHOU]; National Union for Democracy and Development or UNDD [Tidjane KOITA]; Party for Liberty, Equality, and Justice or PLEJ [Ba Mamdou ALASSANE]; Party of Democratic Convergence or PCD [Cheikh Ould HORMA]; Popular Front or FP [Ch'bih Ould CHEIKH MALAININE]; Popular Progressive Alliance or APP [Messoud Ould BOULKHEIR]; Progress Force Union or UFP (no longer active) [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD]; Rally of Democratic Forces or RFD [Ahmed Ould DADDAH]; Rally for Democracy and Unity or RDU [Ahmed Ould SIDI BABA]; Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal or PRDR (formerly ruling Democratic and Social Republican Party or PRDS) [Boullah Ould MOGUEYA]; Right Way or SAWAB [Cheikh Ould Sidi Ould HANANA]; Union for Democracy and Progress or UDP [Naha Mint MOUKNASS]; Union of Forces of Progress or UFP [Mohamed Ould MAOULOUD] note: the Party of Democratic Convergence was banned in October 2005 because it was regarded as Islamist and therefore in breach of Mauritanian law	only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH, general secretary]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Arab nationalists; Ba'thists; General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CGTM [Abdallahi Ould MOHAMED, secretary general]; Independent Confederation of Mauritanian Workers or CLTM [Samory Ould BEYE]; Islamists; Mauritanian Workers Union or UTM [Mohamed Ely Ould BRAHIM, secretary general]	none
Population	3,177,388 (July 2006 est.)	83,535,576 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	40% (2004 est.)	28.9% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	2.88% (2006 est.)	1.04% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 1 (2001)	AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)
Railways	717 km standard gauge: 717 km 1.435-m gauge (2005)	total: 2,600 km standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 253 km three-rail track combining 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (2004)
Religions	Muslim 100%	Buddhist 9.3%, Catholic 6.7%, Hoa Hao 1.5%, Cao Dai 1.1%, Protestant 0.5%, Muslim 0.1%, none 80.8% (1999 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: limited system of cable and open-wire lines, minor microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations (improvements being made) domestic: mostly cable and open-wire lines; a recently completed domestic satellite telecommunications system links Nouakchott with regional capitals international: country code - 222; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 2 Arabsat	general assessment: Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system, but its performance continues to lag behind that of its more modern neighbors domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay networks; main lines have been substantially increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly international: country code - 84; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	41,000 (2005)	4.402 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	745,600 (2005)	2.742 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2002)	at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998)
Terrain	mostly barren, flat plains of the Sahara; some central hills	low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
Total fertility rate	5.86 children born/woman (2006 est.)	1.94 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (2004 est.)	1.9% (2004 est.)
Waterways	-	17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004)

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