Nepal (2004) | Syria (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti | 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 39.4% (male 5,500,698; female 5,151,705)
15-64 years: 57% (male 7,912,553; female 7,518,430) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 483,998; female 503,282) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.6% (male 3,494,473; female 3,290,699)
15-64 years: 58.2% (male 5,238,026; female 4,991,588) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 274,744; female 296,010) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk |
Airports | 46 (2003 est.) | 92 (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 (2004 est.) |
total: 24
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 37
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2004 est.) |
total: 68
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 55 (2002) |
Area | total: 140,800 sq km
land: 136,800 sq km water: 4,000 sq km |
total: 185,180 sq km
land: 184,050 sq km water: 1,130 sq km note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arkansas | slightly larger than North Dakota |
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 insurgency, launched in 1996, has gained traction and is threatening to bring down the regime, especially after a negotiated cease-fire between the Maoists and government forces broke down in August 2003. In 2001, the crown prince massacred ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, and then took his own life. 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. While stopping short of reestablishing parliament, the king in June 2004 reinstated the most recently elected Prime Minister who formed a four-party coalition government, which the king subsequently tasked with paving the way for elections to be held in spring of 2005. | Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. In recent years, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights. |
Birth rate | 31.96 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 29.54 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $665 million
expenditures: $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $6 billion
expenditures: $7 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2002 est.) |
Capital | Kathmandu | Damascus |
Climate | varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south | mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 193 km |
Constitution | 9 November 1990 | 13 March 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Nepal
conventional short form: Nepal |
conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic
conventional short form: Syria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah local short form: Suriyah former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt) |
Currency | Nepalese rupee (NPR) | Syrian pound (SYP) |
Death rate | 9.66 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 5.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.7 billion (2001) | $22 billion (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James F. MORIARTY
embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Theodore H. KATTOUF
embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Kedar Bhakta SHRESTHA
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 (acting) Imad MUSTAFA
chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548 |
Disputes - international | joint border commission continues to work on small disputed sections of boundary with India; India has instituted a stricter border regime to restrict transit of Maoist insurgents and illegal cross-border activities | Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; Turkey is quick to rebuff any perceived Syrian claim to Hatay province |
Economic aid - recipient | $424 million (FY00/01) | $199 million (1997 est.) |
Economy - overview | Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with 42% 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 40% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Security concerns in the wake of the Maoist conflict and the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the US have led to a decrease in tourism, a key source of foreign exchange. Nepal has considerable scope for 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, its civil strife, 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. | Syria's predominantly statist economy has been growing, on average, more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate, causing a persistent decline in per capita GDP. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. External factors such as the international war on terrorism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq probably will drive real annual GDP growth levels back below their 3.5% spike in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.764 billion kWh (2001) | 21.63 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 95 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 227 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.755 billion kWh (2001) | 23.26 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 57.6%
hydro: 42.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999) |
lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 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 | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995) | Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% |
Exchange rates | Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.1414 (2003), 77.8766 (2002), 74.9492 (2001), 71.0938 (2000), 68.2394 (1999) | Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.23 (2002), 11.23 (2001), 11.23 (2000), 11.23 (1999), 11.23 (1998), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999), 52 (1998) |
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 Sher Bahadur DEUBA (since 3 June 2004); note - Prime Minister THAPA resigned 7 May 2004 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 Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984)
head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003), Deputy Prime Ministers Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984), Farouk al-SHARA (since 13 December 2001), Dr. Muhammad al-HUSAYN (since 13 December 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafez al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held NA 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29% note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000 |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain | crude oil 70%, petroleum products 7%, fruits and vegetables 5%, cotton fiber 4%, clothing 3%, meat and live animals 2% (2000 est.) |
Exports - partners | India 50.7%, US 26%, Germany 6.6% (2003) | Germany 19.1%, Italy 17.5%, Turkey 7.8%, France 7.5%, Lebanon 5.2% (2002) |
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 horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, and of Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $38.29 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $63.48 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 40%
industry: 20% services: 40% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 27%
industry: 23% services: 50% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2003 est.) | 3.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 28 00 N, 84 00 E | 35 00 N, 38 00 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 | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.) |
Heliports | - | 7 (2002) |
Highways | total: 13,223 km
paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (1999 est.) |
total: 43,381 km
paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1995-96) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis and hashish for the domestic and international drug markets; transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West | a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer | machinery and transport equipment 21%, food and livestock 18%, metal and metal products 15%, chemicals and chemical products 10% (2000 est.) |
Imports - partners | India 22.9%, China 13.4%, UAE 12.5%, Singapore 7.1%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, Kuwait 4.6% (2003) | Italy 8.3%, Germany 7.4%, China 5.7%, South Korea 4.8%, France 4.6%, US 4.4%, Turkey 4.1% (2002) |
Independence | 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah) | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.7% (FY99/00) | NA% |
Industries | tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 68.77 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 67.1 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 31.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 31.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.9% (2002 est.) | 0.9% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MICAH, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 11,350 sq km (1998 est.) | 12,130 sq km (1998 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 Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts |
Labor force | 10 million
note: severe lack of skilled labor (1996 est.) |
5.2 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 81%, industry 3%, services 16% | agriculture, industry, services NA (2002) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,926 km
border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km |
total: 2,253 km
border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km |
Land use | arable land: 21.68%
permanent crops: 0.64% other: 77.68% (2001) |
arable land: 25.96%
permanent crops: 4.08% other: 69.96% (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) | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood |
Legal system | based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; 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 election NA 2004) note: Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 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 People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 59.4 years
male: 59.73 years female: 59.06 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 69.39 years
male: 68.18 years female: 70.67 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 45.2% male: 62.7% female: 27.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Asia, between China and India | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey |
Map references | Asia | Middle East |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone: 41 NM
territorial sea: 35 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 129 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 450,135 GRT/645,296 DWT
ships by type: bulk 13, cargo 109, container 2, livestock carrier 3, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Egypt 1, Greece 2, Italy 1, Lebanon 10 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force | Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (includes Air Defense Forces), Police and Security Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $295 million (FY03) | $858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2003) | 5.9% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,865,849 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 4,715,386 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 3,566,576 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,629,148 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 308,776 (2004 est.) | males: 210,941 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946) | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) |
Nationality | noun: Nepalese (singular and plural)
adjective: Nepalese |
noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian |
Natural hazards | severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons | dust storms, sandstorms |
Natural resources | quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2003) |
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]; People's Front Nepal (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 chairman]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party president; Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Nepali Congress-Democratic [Sher Bahadur DEUBA, president]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [NA leader] | National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general], Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Ahmad al ASAD], Syrian Communist Party [leader NA], Unionist Socialist Party [leader NA], Arab Socialist Party [Abd al-Ghani QANNUT], and Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Sami SUFAN]) [President Bashar al-ASAD, chairman]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL]; Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency [Pushpa Kamal DAHAL, also known as PRAHANDA, chairman; Dr. Baburam BHATTARAI, from Communist Party of Nepal/Maoist, chief negotiator]; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups | conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence |
Population | 27,070,666 (July 2004 est.) | 17,585,540 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (February 2003 est.) (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 42% (1995-96) | 15%-25% |
Population growth rate | 2.23% (2004 est.) | 2.45% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000) | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 59 km
narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2003) |
total: 2,743 km
standard gauge: 2,425 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 318 km 1.050-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) |
Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) |
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: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 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: country code - 977; radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel |
Telephones - main lines in use | 371,800 (2003) | 1.313 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 50,400 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998) | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west |
Total fertility rate | 4.29 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 3.72 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 47% (2001 est.) | 20% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | 870 km (minimal economic importance) |