Nepal (2001) | Mongolia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti | 18 provinces (aymguud, singular - aymag) and 3 municipalities* (hotuud, singular - hot); Arhangay, Bayanhongor, Bayan-Olgiy, Bulgan, Darhan*, Dornod, Dornogovi, Dundgovi, Dzavhan, Erdenet*, Govi-Altay, Hentiy, Hovd, Hovsgol, Omnogovi, Ovorhangay, Selenge, Suhbaatar, Tov, Ulaanbaatar*, Uvs
note: there may be a new province named Gobi-Sumber; further, there may now be 21 provinces and 1 capital city instead of 18 provinces and 3 municipalities |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
40.35% (male 5,267,234; female 4,933,910) 15-64 years: 56.16% (male 7,264,575; female 6,934,384) 65 years and over: 3.49% (male 437,813; female 446,547) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.99% (male 445,252; female 430,758) 15-64 years: 63.13% (male 837,771; female 838,384) 65 years and over: 3.88% (male 44,436; female 58,398) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat | wheat, barley, potatoes, forage crops; sheep, goats, cattle, camels, horses |
Airports | 45 (2000 est.) | 34 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
8 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2000 est.) |
total:
26 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
140,800 sq km land: 136,800 sq km water: 4,000 sq km |
total:
1.565 million sq km land: 1.565 million sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arkansas | slightly smaller than Alaska |
Background | In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. The refugee issue of some 100,000 Bhutanese in Nepal remains unresolved; 90% of these displaced persons are housed in seven United Nations Offices of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camps. | Long a province of China, Mongolia won its independence in 1921 with Soviet backing. A communist regime was installed in 1924. During the early 1990s, the ex-communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) gradually yielded its monopoly on power. In 1996, the Democratic Union Coalition (DUC) defeated the MPRP in a national election. Over the next four years the Coalition implemented a number of key reforms to modernize the economy and institutionalize democratic reforms. However, the former communists were a strong opposition that stalled additional reforms and made implementation difficult. In 2000, the MPRP won 72 of the 76 seats in Parliament and completely reshuffled the government. While it continues many of the reform policies, the MPRP is focusing on social welfare and public order priorities. |
Birth rate | 33.4 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$536 million expenditures: $818 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY96/97 est.) |
revenues:
$262 million expenditures: $328 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Kathmandu | Ulaanbaatar |
Climate | varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south | desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 9 November 1990 | 12 February 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Nepal conventional short form: Nepal |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Mongolia local long form: none local short form: Mongol Uls former: Outer Mongolia |
Currency | Nepalese rupee (NPR) | togrog/tugrik (MNT) |
Death rate | 10.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.1 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.4 billion (1997) | $760 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ralph FRANK embassy: Pani Pokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179, 410531 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John DINGER embassy: inner north side of the Big Ring, just west of the Selbe Gol, Ulaanbaatar mailing address: United States Embassy in Mongolia, P. O. Box 1021, Ulaanbaatar 13; PSC 461, Box 300, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [976] (11) 329095 FAX: [976] (11) 320776 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Damodar Prasad GAUTAM chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jalbuugiyn CHOINHOR chancery: 2833 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7117 FAX: [1] (202) 298-9227 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | refugee issue over the presence in Nepal of approximately 98,700 Bhutanese refugees, 90% of whom are in seven United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camps | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $411 million (FY97/98) | $200 million (1998 est.) |
Economy - overview | Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with nearly half of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for over 80% of the population and accounting for 41% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Production of textiles and carpets has expanded recently and accounted for about 80% of foreign exchange earnings in the past three years. Agricultural production is growing by about 5% on average as compared with annual population growth of 2.3%. Since May 1991, the government has been moving forward with economic reforms, particularly those that encourage trade and foreign investment, e.g., by reducing business licenses and registration requirements in order to simplify investment procedures. The government has also been cutting expenditures by reducing subsidies, privatizing state industries, and laying off civil servants. More recently, however, political instability - five different governments over the past few years - has hampered Kathmandu's ability to forge consensus to implement key economic reforms. Nepal has considerable scope for accelerating economic growth by exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, and its susceptibility to natural disaster. The international community's role of funding more than 60% of Nepal's development budget and more than 28% of total budgetary expenditures will likely continue as a major ingredient of growth. | Economic activity traditionally has been based on agriculture and breeding of livestock. Mongolia also has extensive mineral deposits: copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production. Soviet assistance, at its height one-third of GDP, disappeared almost overnight in 1990-91, at the time of the dismantlement of the USSR. Mongolia was driven into deep recession, which was prolonged by the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party's (MPRP) reluctance to undertake serious economic reform. The Democratic Coalition (DC) government has embraced free-market economics, easing price controls, liberalizing domestic and international trade, and attempting to restructure the banking system and the energy sector. Major domestic privatization programs were undertaken, as well as the fostering of foreign investment through international tender of the oil distribution company, a leading cashmere company, and banks. Reform was held back by the ex-communist MPRP opposition and by the political instability brought about through four successive governments under the DC. Economic growth picked up in 1997-99 after stalling in 1996 due to a series of natural disasters and declines in world prices of copper and cashmere. In August and September 1999, the economy suffered from a temporary Russian ban on exports of oil and oil products, and Mongolia remains vulnerable in this sector. Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in 1997. The international donor community pledged over $300 million per year at the last Consultative Group Meeting, held in Ulaanbaatar in June 1999. The MPRP government, elected in July 2000, is anxious to improve the investment climate; it must also deal with a heavy burden of external debt. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.309 billion kWh (1999) | 2.767 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 68 million kWh (1999) | 80 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 210 million kWh (1999) | 363 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.255 billion kWh (1999) | 2.671 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
9.56% hydro: 90.44% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Kanchan Kalan 70 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
lowest point:
Hoh Nuur 518 m highest point: Nayramadlin Orgil (Huyten Orgil) 4,374 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions | limited natural fresh water resources in some areas; policies of the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal in power plants and the lack of enforcement of environmental laws have severely polluted the air in Ulaanbaatar; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification and mining activities have also had a deleterious effect on the environment |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995) | Mongol (predominantly Khalkha) 85%, Turkic (of which Kazakh is the largest group) 7%, Tungusic 4.6%, other (including Chinese and Russian) 3.4% (1998) |
Exchange rates | Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 74.129 (January 2001), 71.104 (2000), 68.239 (1999), 65.976 (1998), 58.010 (1997), 56.692 (1996) | togrogs/tugriks per US dollar - 1,097.00 (December 2000), 1,076.67 (2000), 1,072.37 (1999), 840.83 (1998), 789.99 (1997), 548.40 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the throne 4 June 2001 following the death of his nephew King DIPENDRA Bir Bikram Shah) head of government: Prime Minister Girija Prasad KOIRALA (since 22 March 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody shooting at the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is believed to have been responsible for the shootings before fatally wounding himself; immediately following the shootings and while still clinging to life, DIPENDRA was crowned king; he died three days later and was succeeded by his uncle |
chief of state:
President Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (since 20 June 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR (since 26 July 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the State Great Hural in consultation with the president elections: president nominated by parties in the State Great Hural and elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA May 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the State Great Hural; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Natsagiyn BAGABANDI reelected president; percent of vote - NA%; Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR elected prime minister by a vote in the State Great Hural of 68 to 3 |
Exports | $485 million (f.o.b., 1998), but does not include unrecorded border trade with India | $454.3 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain | copper, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, fluorspar, other nonferrous metals |
Exports - partners | India 33%, US 26%, Germany 25% (FY97/98) | China 60%, US 20%, Russia 9%, Japan 2% (2000 est.) |
Fiscal year | 16 July - 15 July | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun | three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), blue, and red; centered on the hoist-side red band in yellow is the national emblem ("soyombo" - a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometric representation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yang symbol) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $33.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.7 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
41% industry: 22% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
36% industry: 22% services: 42% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,360 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,780 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.7% (2000 est.) | -1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 28 00 N, 84 00 E | 46 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks | landlocked; strategic location between China and Russia |
Highways | total:
13,223 km paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (April 1999) |
total:
3,387 km paved: 1,563 km unpaved: 1,824 km note: there are also 45,862 km of rural roads that consist of rough, unimproved, cross-country tracks (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.2% highest 10%: 29.8% (1995-96) |
lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 24.5% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West | - |
Imports | $1.2 billion (f.o.b., 1998) | $510.7 million (c.i.f., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer | machinery and equipment, fuels, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, tea |
Imports - partners | India 31%, China/Hong Kong 16%, Singapore 14% (FY97/98) | Russia 33%, China 21%, Japan 12%, South Korea 10%, US 4% (1999) |
Independence | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) | 11 July 1921 (from China) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production | construction materials, mining (particularly coal and copper); food and beverages, processing of animal products |
Infant mortality rate | 74.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 53.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (FY99/00 est.) | 7.6% (1999) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (observer), CCC, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | 5 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 8,500 sq km (1993 est.) | 800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Judicial Council) | Supreme Court (serves as appeals court for people's and provincial courts, but rarely overturns verdicts of lower courts; judges are nominated by the General Council of Courts for approval by the president) |
Labor force | 10 million (1996 est.)
note: severe lack of skilled labor |
1.3 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 81%, services 16%, industry 3% | primarily herding/agricultural |
Land boundaries | total:
2,926 km border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km |
total:
8,161.9 km border countries: China 4,676.9 km, Russia 3,485 km |
Land use | arable land:
17% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 42% other: 26% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
5.7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 81% forests and woodland: 11.4% other: 1.9% (2000 est.) |
Languages | Nepali (official; spoken by 90% of the population), about a dozen other languages and about 30 major dialects; note - many in government and business also speak English (1995) | Khalkha Mongol 90%, Turkic, Russian (1999) |
Legal system | based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | blend of Russian, Chinese, Turkish, and Western systems of law that combines aspects of a parliamentary system with some aspects of a presidential system; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%, NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%, others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1 |
unicameral State Great Hural (76 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPRP 72, other 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
58.22 years male: 58.65 years female: 57.77 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
64.26 years male: 62.14 years female: 66.5 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 27.5% male: 40.9% female: 14% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 98% female: 97.5% (2000) |
Location | Southern Asia, between China and India | Northern Asia, between China and Russia |
Map references | Asia | Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force | Mongolian Armed Forces (includes General Purpose Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense Troops); note - Border Troops are under Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs in peacetime |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $44 million (FY96/97) | $25.5 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY96/97) | 2.3% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
6,295,990 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
748,779 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
3,272,077 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
486,491 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 17 years of age | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
292,589 (2001 est.) |
males:
30,230 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946) | Independence Day/Revolution Day, 11 July (1921) |
Nationality | noun:
Nepalese (singular and plural) adjective: Nepalese |
noun:
Mongolian(s) adjective: Mongolian |
Natural hazards | severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons | dust and snow storms, grassland and forest fires, drought and "zud", which is a combination of drought followed by harsh winter conditions |
Natural resources | quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore | oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold, silver, iron, phosphate |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National Democratic Party or NDP (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya Bahadur THAPA, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Gajendra Narayan SINGH, president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE, party chair]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party president, Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Rastriya Jana Morcha [Chitra Bahadur K. C., chairman]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [Lila Mani POKHAREL, general secretary] | Citizens' Will Party or CWP (also called Civil Will Party) [Sanjaasurengyn OYUN]; Democratic Party or DP [D. DORLIGAN]; Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party or MPRP [Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR]; Mongolian Democratic New Socialist Party or MDNSP [B. ERDENEBAT]; Mongolian Republican Party or MRP [B. JARGALSAIHAN]
note: the MPRP is the ruling party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups | NA |
Population | 25,284,463 (July 2001 est.) | 2,654,999 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 42% (FY95/96 est.) | 40% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.32% (2001 est.) | 1.47% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000) | AM 7, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | 840,000 (1997) | 155,900 (1999) |
Railways | total:
59 km; note - all in Kosi close to Indian border narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2000) |
1,815 km
broad gauge: 1,815 km 1.524-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) |
Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism 96%, Muslim (primarily in the southwest), Shamanism, and Christian 4% (1998) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network domestic: NA international: radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
very low density: about 3.5 telephones for each thousand persons domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean Region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 236,816 (January 2000) | 104,100 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 110,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998) | 4 (plus 18 provincial repeaters and many low powered repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north | vast semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in south-central |
Total fertility rate | 4.58 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA%; substantial underemployment (1999) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 400 km (1999) |