Nepal (2002) | San Marino (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti | 9 municipalities (castelli, singular - castello); Acquaviva, Borgo Maggiore, Chiesanuova, Domagnano, Faetano, Fiorentino, Monte Giardino, San Marino, Serravalle |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 40% (male 5,346,422; female 5,007,416)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 7,476,202; female 7,125,471) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 453,263; female 465,143) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.3% (male 2,364; female 2,220)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 9,149; female 9,731) 65 years and over: 16.6% (male 2,009; female 2,646) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat | wheat, grapes, corn, olives; cattle, pigs, horses, beef, cheese, hides |
Airports | 45 (2001) | none (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2002) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 28 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 140,800 sq km
land: 136,800 sq km water: 4,000 sq km |
total: 61.2 sq km
land: 61.2 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arkansas | about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. A maoist insugency, launched in 1996, has gained traction and is threatening to bring down the regime. Ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, were massacred in a family dispute in 2001. In October 2002, the new king dismissed the prime minister and his cabinet for "incompetence" after they dissolved the parliament and were subsequently unable to hold elections because of the ongoing insurgency. The country is now governed by the king and his appointed cabinet until elections can be held at some unspecified future date. | The third smallest state in Europe (after the Holy See and Monaco) also claims to be the world's oldest republic. According to tradition, it was founded by a Christian stonemason named Marinus in 301 A.D. San Marino's foreign policy is aligned with that of Italy. Social and political trends in the republic also track closely with those of its larger neighbor. |
Birth rate | 32.94 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.49 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $665 million
expenditures: $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $400 million
expenditures: $400 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Kathmandu | San Marino |
Climate | varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south | Mediterranean; mild to cool winters; warm, sunny summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 9 November 1990 | 8 October 1600; electoral law of 1926 serves some of the functions of a constitution |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Nepal
conventional short form: Nepal |
conventional long form: Republic of San Marino
conventional short form: San Marino local long form: Repubblica di San Marino local short form: San Marino |
Currency | Nepalese rupee (NPR) | euro (EUR) |
Death rate | 10.03 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 7.86 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.55 billion (FY00/01) | $NA |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael E. MALINOWSKI
embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 |
the US does not have an embassy in San Marino; the US Consul General in Florence (Italy) is accredited to San Marino |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Jai Pratap RANA
chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York |
San Marino does not have an embassy in the US
honorary consulate(s) general: Washington, DC and New York honorary consulate(s): Detroit and Honolulu |
Disputes - international | formed Joint Border committee with India in 2001 to resolve 53 disputed sections of boundary covering an area of 720 sq km; approximately 100,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal, 90% of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees camps, place decades-long strains on Nepal | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $424 million (FY00/01) | $NA |
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. Textile and carpet production, accounteing for about 80% of foreign exchange earnings in recent years, contracted significantly in 2001 due to the overall slowdown in the world economy and pressures by Maoist insurgents on factory owners and workers. Security concerns in the wake of Maoist activity, the June massacre of many members of the royal family, and the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US led to a decrease in tourism, another key source of foreign exchange. 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 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. | The tourist sector contributes over 50% of GDP. In 2000 more than 3 million tourists visited San Marino. The key industries are banking, wearing apparel, electronics, and ceramics. Main agricultural products are wine and cheeses. The per capita level of output and standard of living are comparable to those of the most prosperous regions of Italy, which supplies much of its food. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.431 billion kWh (2000) | NA (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 95 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh
note: electric power supplied by Italy |
Electricity - imports | 174 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh
note: electricity supplied by Italy |
Electricity - production | 1.454 billion kWh (2000) | NA |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 10%
hydro: 90% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 41.18%
hydro: 58.82% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
lowest point: Torrente Ausa 55 m
highest point: Monte Titano 755 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 | NA |
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, Desertification, Nuclear Test Ban
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution |
Ethnic groups | Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995) | Sammarinese, Italian |
Exchange rates | Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.675 (January 2002), 74.961 (2001), 71.094 (2000), 68.239 (1999), 65.976 (1998), 58.010 (1997) | euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999) |
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 Lokendra Bahadur CHAND (since 11 October 2002) 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: cochiefs of state Captain Regent Giovanni LONFERNINI and Captain Regent Valeria CIAVATTA (for the period 1 October 2003-31 March 2004)
head of government: Secretary of State for Foreign and Political Affairs Fiorenzo STOLFI (since 17 December 2002) cabinet: Congress of State elected by the Great and General Council for a five-year term elections: cochiefs of state (captains regent) elected by the Great and General Council for a six-month term; election last held NA September 2003 (next to be held NA March 2004); secretary of state for foreign and political affairs elected by the Great and General Council for a five-year term; election last held 17 December 2002 (next to be held NA June 2007) election results: Giovanni LONFERNINI and Valeria CIAVATTA elected captains regent; percent of legislative vote - NA%; Fiorenzo STOLFI elected secretary of state for foreign and political affairs; percent of legislative vote - 40% note: the popularly elected parliament (Grand and General Council) selects two of its members to serve as the Captains Regent (cochiefs of state) for a six-month period; they preside over meetings of the Grand and General Council and its cabinet (Congress of State), which has 10 other members, all selected by the Grand and General Council; assisting the captains regent are 10 secretaries of state; the secretary of state for Foreign Affairs has assumed some of the prerogatives of a prime minister |
Exports | $757 million f.o.b., but does not include unrecorded border trade with India (FY00/01 est.) | trade data are included with the statistics for Italy |
Exports - commodities | carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain | building stone, lime, wood, chestnuts, wheat, wine, baked goods, hides, ceramics |
Exports - partners | India 48%, US 26%, Germany 11% (FY00/01) | - |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and light blue with the national coat of arms superimposed in the center; the coat of arms has a shield (featuring three towers on three peaks) flanked by a wreath, below a crown and above a scroll bearing the word LIBERTAS (Liberty) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $35.6 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $940 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 41%
industry: 22% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $34,600 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2001 est.) | 7.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 28 00 N, 84 00 E | 43 46 N, 12 25 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest - the world's tallest - on the border with China | landlocked; smallest independent state in Europe after the Holy See and Monaco; dominated by the Apennines |
Highways | total: 13,223 km
paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (April 1999) |
total: 220 km
paved: 220 km unpaved: 0 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 30% (1995-96) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West | - |
Imports | $1.6 billion f.o.b. (FY00/01 est.) | trade data are included with the statistics for Italy |
Imports - commodities | gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer | wide variety of consumer manufactures, food |
Imports - partners | India 39%, Singapore 10%, China/Hong Kong 9%, (FY00/01) | - |
Independence | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) | 3 September 301 |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.7% (FY99/00) | 6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production | tourism, banking, textiles, electronics, ceramics, cement, wine |
Infant mortality rate | 72.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 5.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.41 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% | 3.3% (2001) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | CE, ECE, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 11,350 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
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) | Council of Twelve or Consiglio dei XII |
Labor force | 10 million
note: severe lack of skilled labor (1996 est.) |
18,500 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 81%, services 16%, industry 3% | services 57%, industry 42%, agriculture 1% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,926 km
border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km |
total: 39 km
border countries: Italy 39 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.27%
permanent crops: 0.49% other: 79.24% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 16.67%
permanent crops: 0% other: 83.33% (1998 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) | Italian |
Legal system | based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system with Italian law influences; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | note: Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 2002 and elections are scheduled for 13 November 2002
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 13 November 2002) 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 Grand and General Council or Consiglio Grande e Generale (60 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 10 June 2001 (next to be held by June 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - PDCS 41.4%, PSS 24.2%, PD 20.8%, APDS 8.2%, RC 3.4%, AN 1.9%; seats by party - PDCS 25, PSS 15, PD 12, APDS 5, RC 2, AN 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.61 years
male: 59.01 years female: 58.2 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 81.43 years
male: 77.9 years female: 85.26 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 27.5% male: 40.9% female: 14% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 10 and over can read and write
total population: 96% male: 97% female: 95% (1976 est.) |
Location | Southern Asia, between China and India | Southern Europe, an enclave in central Italy |
Map references | Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force | Voluntary Military Force (Corpi Militari Voluntar), Gendarmerie; note - the Voluntary Military Force performs ceremonial duties and limited police assistance |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $51.5 million (FY01) | $700,000 (FY00/01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (FY01) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,484,343 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,369,454 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 17 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 292,589 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946) | Founding of the Republic, 3 September (301) |
Nationality | noun: Nepalese (singular and plural)
adjective: Nepalese |
noun: Sammarinese (singular and plural)
adjective: Sammarinese |
Natural hazards | severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons | NA |
Natural resources | quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore | building stone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 11.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 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]; National People's Front (Rastriya Jana Morcha) [Chitra Bahadur, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL, acting party 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]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [Lila Mani POKHAREL, general secretary] | Communist Refoundation or RC [Ivan FOSHI]; Ideas in Movement or IM [Alessandro ROSSI]; National Alliance or AN [leader NA]; Party of Democrats or PD [Claudio FELICI]; San Marino Christian Democratic Party or PDCS [Giovanni LONFERNINI]; San Marino Popular Alliance of Democrats or APDS [Roberto GIORGETTI]; San Marino Socialist Party or PSS [Alberto CECCHETTI]; Socialists for Reform or SR [Renzo GIARDI] |
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 | 25,873,917 (July 2002 est.) | 28,119 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 42% (FY95/96 est. ) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.29% (2002 est.) | 1.38% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000) | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 840,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 59 km
narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge note: all in Kosi close to Indian border (2001) |
0 km; note - there is a 1.5-km cable railway connecting the city of San Marino to Borgo Maggiore |
Religions | Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) |
Roman Catholic |
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: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 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: adequate connections
domestic: automatic telephone system completely integrated into Italian system international: connected to Italian international network |
Telephones - main lines in use | 236,816 (January 2000) | 18,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 3,010 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998) | 1 (San Marino residents also receive broadcasts from Italy) (1997) |
Terrain | Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north | rugged mountains |
Total fertility rate | 4.48 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.31 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 47% (2001 est.) | 2.6% (2001) |
Waterways | none | none |