Sao Tome and Principe (2007) | Iran (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 2 provinces; Principe, Sao Tome
note: Principe has had self government since 29 April 1995 |
28 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohkiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.3% (male 47,796/female 46,589)
15-64 years: 49% (male 47,386/female 50,412) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 3,383/female 4,013) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.3% (male 10,279,588; female 9,727,668)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 22,916,431; female 22,095,124) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 1,625,113; female 1,634,902) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish | wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar |
Airports | 2 (2007) | 309 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 122
over 3,047 m: 39 2,438 to 3,047 m: 25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 27 914 to 1,523 m: 27 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 187
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 138 under 914 m: 39 (2002) |
Area | total: 1,001 sq km
land: 1,001 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.648 million sq km
land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | more than five times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Alaska |
Background | Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. Although the first free elections were held in 1991, the political environment has been one of continued instability with frequent changes in leadership and coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. The recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea promises to have a significant impact on the country's economy. | Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority vested in a learned religious scholar. A group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq over disputed territory. Over the past decade, popular dissatisfaction with the government, driven by demographic changes, restrictive social policies, and poor economic conditions, has created a powerful and enduring pressure for political reform. |
Birth rate | 39.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 17.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $42.96 million
expenditures: $59.61 million (2006 est.) |
revenues: $29.5 billion
expenditures: $31.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.) |
Capital | name: Sao Tome
geographic coordinates: 0 12 N, 6 39 E time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Tehran |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May) | mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast |
Coastline | 209 km | 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km) |
Constitution | approved March 1990, effective 10 September 1990 | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership |
Country name | conventional long form: Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe
conventional short form: Sao Tome and Principe local long form: Republica Democratica de Sao Tome e Principe local short form: Sao Tome e Principe |
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran
conventional short form: Iran local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia |
Currency | - | Iranian rial (IRR) |
Death rate | 6.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.54 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $318 million (2002) | $8.7 billion (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Sao Tome and Principe; the Ambassador to Gabon is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe on a nonresident basis and makes periodic visits to the islands | none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: First Secretary Domingos Augusto FERREIRA
chancery: 400 Park Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (212) 317-0580 FAX: [1] (212) 935-7348 consulate(s): Atlanta |
none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990 |
Disputes - international | none | Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed waters on Helmand River tributaries in response to prolonged drought in region; thousands of Afghan refugees still reside in Iran; despite restored diplomatic relations in 1990, disputes with Iraq over maritime and land boundaries, navigation channel, and other issues from eight-year war persist; UAE engage direct talks and Arab League support to resolve disputes over Iran's occupation of Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island; Iran insists on division of the Caspian Sea into five equal sectors, while other littoral states have generally agreed to equidistant seabed boundaries - Iran has threatened Azerbaijanian hydrocarbon exploration in disputed waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $31.9 million in December 2000 under the HIPC program (2005) | $408 million (2002 est.) |
Economy - overview | This small, poor island economy has become increasingly dependent on cocoa since independence in 1975. Cocoa production has substantially declined in recent years because of drought and mismanagement, but strengthening prices helped boost export earnings in 2003. Sao Tome has to import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods, and a substantial amount of food. Over the years, it has had difficulty servicing its external debt and has relied heavily on concessional aid and debt rescheduling. Sao Tome benefited from $200 million in debt relief in December 2000 under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program, which helped bring down the country's $300 million debt burden. In August 2005, Sao Tome signed on to a new 3-year IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) program worth $4.3 million. Considerable potential exists for development of a tourist industry, and the government has taken steps to expand facilities in recent years. The government also has attempted to reduce price controls and subsidies. Sao Tome is optimistic about the development of petroleum resources in its territorial waters in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea, which are being jointly developed in a 60-40 split with Nigeria. The first production licenses were sold in 2004, though a dispute over licensing with Nigeria delayed Sao Tome's receipt of more than $20 million in signing bonuses for almost a year. Real GDP growth exceeded 4% in 2006, as a result of increases in public expenditures and oil-related capital investment. | Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI and has indicated that he will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy although he has made little progress toward that goal. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $15 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not solved Iran's structural economic problems, including high unemployment and inflation. |
Electricity - consumption | 16.74 million kWh (2005) | 115.9 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 18 million kWh (2005) | 124.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 97.1%
hydro: 2.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m |
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion and exhaustion | air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | mestico, angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), forros (descendants of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese) | Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1% |
Exchange rates | dobras per US dollar - 12,050 (2006), 9,900.4 (2005), NA 9,902.3 (2004), 9,347.6 (2003), 9,088.3 (2002) | rials per US dollar 6,906.96 (2002), 1,753.56 (2001), 1,764.43 (2000), 1,752.93 (1999), 1,751.86 (1998)
note: from 1997 to 2001, Iran had a multi-exchange-rate system; one of these rates, the official floating exchange rate, by which most essential goods were imported, averaged 1,750 rials per US dollar; in March 2002, the multi-exchange-rate system was converged into one rate at about 7,900 rials per US dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Fradique DE MENEZES (since 3 September 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Tome Soares da VERA CRUZ (since 21 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 30 July 2006 (next to be held July 2011); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president election results: Fradique DE MENEZES elected president; percent of vote - Fradique DE MENEZES 60%, Patrice TROVOADA 38.5% |
chief of state: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)
head of government: President (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani (since 3 August 1997); First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-YAZDI (since 26 August 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 8 June 2001 (next to be held June 2005) election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president; percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cocoa 80%, copra, coffee, palm oil | petroleum 85%, carpets, fruits and nuts, iron and steel, chemicals |
Exports - partners | Netherlands 47.9%, Belgium 19%, Portugal 9.3% (2006) | Japan 17.4%, China 8.6%, UAE 7.6%, Italy 6.6%, South Korea 4.9%, South Africa 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 21 March - 20 March |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of green (top), yellow (double width), and green with two black five-pointed stars placed side by side in the center of the yellow band and a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $458.3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15%
industry: 13.7% services: 71.3% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 19%
industry: 26% services: 55% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2006 est.) | 7.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 N, 7 00 E | 32 00 N, 53 00 E |
Geography - note | the smallest country in Africa; the two main islands form part of a chain of extinct volcanoes and both are fairly mountainous | strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport |
Heliports | - | 13 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 167,157 km
paved: 94,109 km (including 890 km of expressways) unpaved: 73,048 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate at least 2 million drug users in the country |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, food products, petroleum products | industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies |
Imports - partners | Portugal 48.8%, France 19.7%, Belgium 5.1%, US 5.1% (2006) | Germany 10.9%, Italy 9%, France 7.9%, China 7.4%, South Korea 6.5%, UAE 4.4%, Japan 4.1%, Russia 4% (2002) |
Independence | 12 July 1975 (from Portugal) | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5.5% excluding oil (2001 est.) |
Industries | light construction, textiles, soap, beer, fish processing, timber | petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments |
Infant mortality rate | total: 40.54 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 42.42 deaths/1,000 live births female: 38.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 44.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 44.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 44.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 23.1% (2006 est.) | 15.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CPLP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ITU, ITUC, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 100 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 100 sq km (2003) | 75,620 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the National Assembly) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 35,050 (1991) | 21 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | note: population mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing; shortages of skilled workers | agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 5,440 km
border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km |
Land use | arable land: 8.33%
permanent crops: 48.96% other: 42.71% (2005) |
arable land: 10.17%
permanent crops: 1.16% other: 88.67% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese (official) | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% |
Legal system | based on Portuguese legal system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 26 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - MDFM-PCD 37.2%, MLSTP 28.9%, ADI 20.0%, NR 4.7%, others 9.2%; seats by party - MDFM-PCD 23, MLSTP 19, ADI 12, NR 1 |
unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 February 2000 with a runoff held 5 May 2000 (next to be held February 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - reformers 189, conservatives 54, independents 42, seats reserved for religious minorities 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 67.64 years
male: 66.03 years female: 69.3 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 69.35 years
male: 68.04 years female: 70.73 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.9% male: 92.2% female: 77.9% (2001 census) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79.4% male: 85.6% female: 73% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: natural prolongation exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 20,455 GRT/27,871 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 6 foreign-owned: 2 (Egypt 1, Greece 1) (2007) |
total: 139 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,190,576 GRT/7,276,700 DWT
ships by type: bulk 43, cargo 34, chemical tanker 4, container 10, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 30, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | Sao Tome and Principe's army is a tiny force with almost no resources at its disposal and would be wholly ineffective operating unilaterally; infantry equipment is considered simple to operate and maintain but may require refurbishment or replacement after 25 years in tropical climates; poor pay, working conditions, and alleged nepotism in the promotion of officers have been problems in the past, as reflected in the 1995 and 2003 coups; these issues are being addressed with foreign assistance aimed at improving the army and its focus on realistic security concerns; command is exercised from the president, through the Minister of Defense, to the Chief of the Armed Forces staff (2005) | - |
Military branches | Armed Forces of Sao Tome and Principe (FASTP): Army, Navy, Presidential Guard (2007) | Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Command), Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) (includes Ground Forces, Air Force, Navy, Qods [special operations], and Basij [Popular Mobilization Army] forces), Law Enforcement Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $9.7 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.8% (2006) | 3.1% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 20,343,063 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 12,094,551 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 21 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 870,711 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1975) | Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925) |
Nationality | noun: Sao Tomean(s)
adjective: Sao Tomean |
noun: Iranian(s)
adjective: Iranian |
Natural hazards | NA | periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along western border and in the northeast |
Natural resources | fish, hydropower | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur |
Net migration rate | -2.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate/gas 212 km; gas 16,998 km; liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,256 km; refined products 7,808 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Renovation Party [Armindo GRACA]; Force for Change Democratic Movement or MDFM; Independent Democratic Action or ADI [Carlos NEVES]; Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Manuel Pinto Da COSTA]; New Way Movement or NR; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Aldo BANDEIRA]; Ue-Kedadji coalition; other small parties | a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd Khordad front achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majles in early 2000, and groups in the coalition include: Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF); Executives of Construction Party (Kargozaran); Solidarity Party; Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO); and Militant Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); a new apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic Iran, emerged at the local level in early 2003 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | active pro-reform student groups include the "Organization for Strengthening Unity"; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic Coalition Association, and Islamic Engineers Society; opposition groups include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front, Marz-e Por Gohar, and various Monarchist organizations; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and Komala |
Population | 199,579 (July 2007 est.) | 68,278,826 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (2004 est.) | 40% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.13% (2007 est.) | 1.08% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Ahvaz, Bandar 'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, Bandar-e Lengeh, Bandar-e Mahshahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar (Bandar Beheshti), Jazireh-ye Khark, Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr (limited operation since November 1992), Now Shahr |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 7,201 km
broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 7,107 km 1.435-m gauge (146 km electrified) (2002) |
Religions | Catholic 70.3%, Evangelical 3.4%, New Apostolic 2%, Adventist 1.8%, other 3.1%, none 19.4% (2001 census) | Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.026 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.843 male(s)/female total population: 0.976 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 15 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate facilities
domestic: minimal system international: country code - 239; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected
domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; and thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches international: HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 7,100 (2005) | 6.313 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 12,000 (2005) | 265,000 (August 1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2001) | 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic, mountainous | rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts |
Total fertility rate | 5.53 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 16.3% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | - | 904 km
note: the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use |