Panama (2006) | Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 territory* (comarca); Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, Panama, San Blas*(Kuna Yala), and Veraguas | 10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 30.3% (male 492,403/female 472,996)
15-64 years: 63.4% (male 1,025,898/female 998,926) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 94,122/female 106,974) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
48.24% (male 12,988,488; female 12,878,232) 15-64 years: 49.21% (male 12,931,886; female 13,459,109) 65 years and over: 2.55% (male 575,113; female 791,890) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, rice, corn, coffee, sugarcane, vegetables; livestock; shrimp | coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products |
Airports | 117 (2006) | 232 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 53
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 28 (2006) |
total:
24 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 64
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 53 (2006) |
total:
208 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 96 under 914 m: 92 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 78,200 sq km
land: 75,990 sq km water: 2,210 sq km |
total:
2,345,410 sq km land: 2,267,600 sq km water: 77,810 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US |
Background | Explored and settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, Panama broke with Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador - named the Republic of Gran Colombia. When the latter dissolved in 1830, Panama remained part of Colombia. With US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. In 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of the century. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the subsequent decades. With US help, dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were transfered to Panama by the end of 1999. In October 2006, Panamanians approved an ambitious plan to expand the Canal. The project, which is to begin in 2007 and could double the Canal's capacity, is expected to be completed in 2014-15. | Since 1994 the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC; formerly called Zaire) has been rent by ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow of refugees from the fighting in Rwanda and Burundi. The government of former president MOBUTU Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent KABILA in May 1997; his regime was subsequently challenged by a Rwanda- and Uganda-backed rebellion in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state. The new president quickly began overtures to end the war. |
Birth rate | 21.74 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 46.02 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.426 billion
expenditures: $3.959 billion; including capital expenditures of $471 million (2005 est.) |
revenues:
$269 million expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | name: Panama
geographic coordinates: 8 58 N, 79 32 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Kinshasa |
Climate | tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May) | tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season April to October |
Coastline | 2,490 km | 37 km |
Constitution | 11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983, 1994, and 2004 | 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it has not been ratified by a national referendum |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Panama
conventional short form: Panama local long form: Republica de Panama local short form: Panama |
conventional long form:
Democratic Republic of the Congo conventional short form: none local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo local short form: none former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire abbreviation: DROC |
Currency | - | Congolese franc (CDF) |
Death rate | 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 15.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $9.758 billion (2005 est.) | $13 billion (1998 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William A. EATON
embassy: Avenida Balboa and Calle 37, Apartado Postal 0816-02561, Zona 5, Panama City 5 mailing address: American Embassy Panama, Unit 0945, APO AA 34002 telephone: [507] 207-7000 FAX: [507] 227-1964 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador William Lacy SWING embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828 telephone: [243] (12) 21804, 21807 FAX: [243] (88) 43805 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Federico HUMBERT Arias
chancery: 2862 McGill Terrace NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-1407 FAX: [1] (202) 483-8416 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Tampa |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Faida MITIFU chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691 FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609 |
Disputes - international | organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia operate within the border region with Panama | the Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war that has drawn in military forces from neighboring states, with Uganda and Rwanda supporting the rebel movements that occupy much of the eastern portion of the state; most of the Congo river boundary with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area) |
Economic aid - recipient | $197.1 million (1995) | $195.3 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Panama's dollarised economy rests primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for three-fourths of GDP. Services include operating the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism. A slump in the Colon Free Zone and agricultural exports, the global slowdown, and the withdrawal of US military forces held back economic growth in 2000-03; growth picked up in 2004 and 2005 led by export-oriented services and a construction boom stimulated by tax incentives. The government has implemented tax reforms, as well as social security reforms, and backs regional trade agreements and development of tourism. Unemployment remains high. | The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. The new government instituted a tight fiscal policy that initially curbed inflation and currency depreciation, but these small gains were quickly reversed when the foreign-backed rebellion in the eastern part of the country began in August 1998. The war has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue and has increased external debt. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict and because of increased government harassment and restrictions. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, raging inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. A number of IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan but associated reforms are on hold. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.87 billion kWh (2003) | 4.55 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 175 million kWh (2003) | 404 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 25 million kWh (2003) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 5.398 billion kWh (2003) | 5.268 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
2.05% hydro: 97.95% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Volcan de Chiriqui 3,475 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources; deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal; air pollution in urban areas; mining threatens natural resources | poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees who arrived in mid-1994 were responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching in the eastern part of the country (most of those refugees were repatriated in November and December 1996) |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West Indian) 14%, white 10%, Amerindian 6% | over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population |
Exchange rates | balboas per US dollar - 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003), 1 (2002), 1 (2001) | Congolese francs per US dollar - 50 (January 2001), 4.5 (January 2000), 4.02 (1999), 1.61 (1998), 1.31 (1997), 0.50 (1996)
note: on 30 June 1998 the Congolese franc was introduced, replacing the new zaire |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Martin TORRIJOS Espino (since 1 September 2004); First Vice President Samuel LEWIS Navarro (since 1 September 2004); Second Vice President Ruben AROSEMENA Valdes (since 1 September 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Martin TORRIJOS Espino (since 1 September 2004); First Vice President Samuel LEWIS Navarro (since 1 September 2004); Second Vice President Ruben AROSEMENA Valdes (since 1 September 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice presidents elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms (eligible for two more terms); election last held 2 May 2004 (next to be held 3 May 2009); note - beginning in 2009, Panama will have only one vice president. election results: Martin TORRIJOS Espino elected president; percent of vote - Martin TORRIJOS Espino 47.5%, Guillermo ENDARA Galimany 30.6%, Jose Miguel ALEMAN 17%, Ricardo MARTINELLI 4.9% note: government coalition - PRD (Democratic Revolutionary Party), PP (Popular Party) |
chief of state:
Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - the president succeeded his father Laurent Desire KABILA after his assassination on 16 January 2001; as president he is both chief of state and head of government head of government: Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - the president succeeded his father Laurent Desire KABILA after his assassination on 16 January 2001; as president he is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president elections: before Laurent Desire KABILA seized power, the president was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997); formerly, the prime minister was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - elections were not held in 1991 as called for by the constitution election results: results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition note: Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga was president from 24 November 1965 until forced into exile on 16 May 1997 when his government was overthrown militarily by Laurent Desire KABILA, who immediately assumed governing authority; KABILA pledged to hold elections by April 1999, but in December 1998 announced that elections would be postponed until all foreign military forces attempting to topple the government had withdrawn from the country; KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and was succeeded by his son Joseph KABILA |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $960 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | bananas, shrimp, sugar, coffee, clothing | diamonds, copper, coffee, cobalt, crude oil |
Exports - partners | US 44.9%, Spain 8.9%, Sweden 5.6%, Netherlands 4.9%, Costa Rica 4% (2005) | Benelux 62%, US 18%, South Africa, Finland, Italy (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | divided into four, equal rectangles; the top quadrants are white (hoist side) with a blue five-pointed star in the center and plain red; the bottom quadrants are plain blue (hoist side) and white with a red five-pointed star in the center | light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $31 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.8%
industry: 15.6% services: 77.6% (2005 est.) |
agriculture:
58% industry: 17% services: 25% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $600 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.4% (2005 est.) | -15% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 9 00 N, 80 00 W | 0 00 N, 25 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean | straddles Equator; very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo river and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands |
Highways | - | total:
157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)(1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 35.7% (1997) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | major cocaine transshipment point and primary money-laundering center for narcotics revenue; money-laundering activity is especially heavy in the Colon Free Zone; offshore financial center; negligible signs of coca cultivation; monitoring of financial transactions is improving; official corruption remains a major problem | illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption |
Imports | NA bbl/day; note - imports oil | $660 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals | foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels |
Imports - partners | US 27.5%, Netherlands Antilles 11.4%, Costa Rica 4.7%, Japan 4.5% (2005) | South Africa 28%, Benelux 14%, Nigeria 9%, Kenya 7%, China (1999) |
Independence | 3 November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28 November 1821) | 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1.7% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Industries | construction, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling | mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement |
Infant mortality rate | total: 16.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
99.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.9% (2005 est.) | 540% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | CAN (observer), CSN (observer), FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 430 sq km (2003) | 100 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (nine judges appointed for 10-year terms); five superior courts; three courts of appeal | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | 1.39 million
note: shortage of skilled labor, but an oversupply of unskilled labor (2005 est.) |
14.51 million (1993 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 20.8%
industry: 18% services: 61.2% (1995 est.) |
agriculture 65%, industry 16%, services 19% (1991 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 555 km
border countries: Colombia 225 km, Costa Rica 330 km |
total:
10,744 km border countries: Angola 2,511 km, Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 473 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km |
Land use | arable land: 7.26%
permanent crops: 1.95% other: 90.79% (2005) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 77% other: 13% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish (official), English 14%; note - many Panamanians bilingual | French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba |
Legal system | based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (formerly called Legislative Assembly) or Asamblea Nacional (78 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - in 2009, the number of seats will change to 71
elections: last held 2 May 2004 (next to be held 3 May 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 40, PA 17, PS 8, MOLIRENA 3, CD 2, PP 2, PLN 1, other 5 note: legislators from outlying rural districts are chosen on a plurality basis while districts located in more populous towns and cities elect multiple legislators by means of a proportion-based formula |
a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in August 2000
elections: NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were appointed by former President KABILA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.22 years
male: 72.68 years female: 77.87 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
48.94 years male: 46.96 years female: 50.98 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.6% male: 93.2% female: 91.9% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba total population: 77.3% male: 86.6% female: 67.7% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica | Central Africa, northeast of Angola |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
boundaries with neighbors territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 5,473 ships (1000 GRT or over) 146,511,342 GRT/219,940,567 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 1,776, cargo 992, chemical tanker 476, combination ore/oil 2, container 663, liquefied gas 193, livestock carrier 7, passenger 49, passenger/cargo 77, petroleum tanker 518, refrigerated cargo 299, roll on/roll off 123, specialized tanker 23, vehicle carrier 274 foreign-owned: 4,922 (Anguilla 1, Argentina 9, Australia 3, Bahamas, The 2, Belgium 11, Bermuda 1, Bulgaria 1, Canada 4, Chile 9, China 420, Colombia 5, Croatia 5, Cuba 11, Cyprus 14, Denmark 34, Egypt 16, Estonia 3, France 15, Gabon 1, Germany 35, Greece 524, Hong Kong 169, India 19, Indonesia 50, Iran 4, Ireland 2, Israel 6, Italy 15, Japan 2007, Jordan 13, South Korea ( ( (291, Kuwait 2, Latvia 3, Lebanon 2, Lithuania 5, Malaysia 13, Maldives 1, Malta 3, Mexico 5, Monaco 9, Morocco 1, Netherlands 21, Nigeria 7, Norway 66, Pakistan 3, Peru 15, Philippines 13, Poland 15, Portugal 10, Qatar 1, Romania 9, Russia 7, Saudi Arabia 8, Singapore 67, South Africa 3, Spain 53, Sri Lanka 5, Sudan 1, Sweden 5, Switzerland 226, Syria 18, Taiwan 308, Thailand 9, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Turkey 42, UAE 105, UK 37, Ukraine 8, US 94, Venezuela 14, Vietnam 4, Yemen 3) registered in other countries: 1 (Venezuela 1) (2006) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | on 10 February 1990, the government of then President ENDARA abolished Panama's military and reformed the security apparatus by creating the Panamanian Public Forces; in October 1994, Panama's Legislative Assembly approved a constitutional amendment prohibiting the creation of a standing military force, but allowing the temporary establishment of special police units to counter acts of "external aggression" | - |
Military branches | an amendment to the Constitution abolished the armed forces, but there are security forces (Panamanian Public Forces or PPF includes the Panamanian National Police, National Maritime Service, and National Air Service) | Army, Navy, Air Force, Special Presidential Security Group |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $150 million (2005 est.) | $250 million (FY97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (2005 est.) | 4.6% (FY97) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
11,615,554 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
5,915,251 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 3 November (1903) | Independence Day, 30 June (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Panamanian(s)
adjective: Panamanian |
noun:
Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo |
Natural hazards | occasional severe storms and forest fires in the Darien area | periodic droughts in south; volcanic activity |
Natural resources | copper, mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower | cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber |
Net migration rate | -0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: one million refugees fled into Zaire (now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo or DROC) in 1994 to escape the fighting between the Hutus and the Tutsis; fighting in the DROC between rebels and government forces in October 1996 caused 875,000 refugees to return to Rwanda in late 1996 and early 1997; an additional 173,000 Rwandan refugees disappeared in early 1997 and are assumed to have been killed by Zairian forces; fighting between the Congolese government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese displaced in DROC and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 390 km |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Change or CD [Ricardo MARTINELLI]; Democratic Revolutionary Party or PRD [Hugo GUIRAUD]; National Liberal Party or PLN [Anibal GALINDO]; Nationalist Republican Liberal Movement or MOLIRENA [Jesus ROSAS]; Panamenista Party or PA (formerly the Arnulfista Party) [Marco AMEGLIO]; Popular Party or PP (formerly Christian Democratic Party or PDC) [Ricardo ARIAS Calderon]; Solidarity Party or PS [Jose Raul MULINO] | Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR [leader NA]; Unified Lumumbast Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI [Kouyoumba MUCHULI Mulembe] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Chamber of Commerce; National Civic Crusade; National Council of Organized Workers or CONATO; National Council of Private Enterprise or CONEP; National Union of Construction and Similar Workers (SUNTRACS); Panamanian Association of Business Executives or APEDE; Panamanian Industrialists Society or SIP; Workers Confederation of the Republic of Panama or CTRP | NA |
Population | 3,191,319 (July 2006 est.) | 53,624,718
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 37% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.6% (2006 est.) | 3.1% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 101, FM 134, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 12, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Radios | - | 18.03 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 355 km
standard gauge: 77 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 278 km 0.914-m gauge (2005) |
total:
5,138 km (1995) note: severely reduced route-distance in use because of damage to facilities by civil strife narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15% | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic and international facilities well developed
domestic: NA international: country code - 507; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to the Central American Microwave System |
general assessment:
NA domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 440,100 (2005) | 21,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.352 million (2005) | 8,900 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 38 (including repeaters) (1998) | 20 (1999) |
Terrain | interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills | vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 2.68 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 6.84 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.8% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 800 km (includes 82 km Panama Canal) (2005) | 15,000 km (including the Congo and its tributaries, and unconnected lakes) |