Tuvalu (2003) | Iran (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none | 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, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.9% (male 1,838; female 1,772)
15-64 years: 63% (male 3,432; female 3,687) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 231; female 345) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.97% (male 11,150,053; female 10,654,884) 15-64 years: 62.38% (male 20,765,001; female 20,488,672) 65 years and over: 4.65% (male 1,617,045; female 1,453,310) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts; fish | wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar |
Airports | 1 (2002) | 317 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total:
117 over 3,047 m: 38 2,438 to 3,047 m: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
200 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 122 under 914 m: 60 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 26 sq km
land: 26 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 | 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Alaska |
Background | In 1974, ethnic differences within the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands. The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties over the next dozen years. | Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant 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. The key current issue is how rapidly the country should open up to the modernizing influences of the outside world. |
Birth rate | 21.58 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $22.5 million
expenditures: $11.2 million, including capital expenditures of $4.2 million (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$27 billion expenditures: $27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
Capital | Funafuti | Tehran |
Climate | tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March) | mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast |
Coastline | 24 km | 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km) |
Constitution | 1 October 1978 | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tuvalu former: Ellice Islands note: "Tuvalu" means "group of eight," referring to the country's eight traditionally inhabited islands |
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 | Australian dollar (AUD); note - there is also a Tuvaluan dollar | Iranian rial (IRR) |
Death rate | 7.34 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 5.41 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $7.5 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Tuvalu; the US ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tuvalu | none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tuvalu does not have an embassy in the US - the country's only diplomatic post is in Fiji - Tuvalu does, however, have a UN office located at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, New York 10017, telephone: [1] (212) 490-0534 | 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 and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway; Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE: Lesser Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); Iran jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island; the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in protesting these Iranian actions; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan |
Economic aid - recipient | $13 million ; note - major donors are Australia, Japan, and the US (1999 est.) | $116.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Tuvalu consists of a densely populated, scattered group of nine coral atolls with poor soil. The country has no known mineral resources and few exports. Subsistence farming and fishing are the primary economic activities. Fewer than 1,000 tourists, on average, visit Tuvalu annually. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins and worker remittances. About 1,000 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry. Nauru has begun repatriating Tuvaluans, however, as phosphate resources decline. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, NZ, and the UK and supported also by Japan and South Korea. Thanks to wise investments and conservative withdrawals, this Fund has grown from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu, because of payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%. In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and in 2000, from the lease of its ".tv" Internet domain name. Royalties from these new technology sources could increase substantially over the next decade. With merchandise exports only a fraction of merchandise imports, continued reliance must be placed on fishing and telecommunications license fees, remittances from overseas workers, official transfers, and investment income from overseas assets. | 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. The strong oil market in 1996 helped ease financial pressures on Iran and allowed for Tehran's timely debt service payments. Iran's financial situation tightened in 1997 and deteriorated further in 1998 because of lower oil prices. The subsequent zoom in oil prices in 1999-2000 afforded Iran fiscal breathing room but does not solve Iran's structural economic problems, including the encouragement of foreign investment. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 95.84 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | - | 103.054 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel:
93.16% hydro: 6.84% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
lowest point:
Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Qolleh-ye Damavand 5,671 m |
Environment - current issues | since there are no streams or rivers and groundwater is not potable, most water needs must be met by catchment systems with storage facilities (the Japanese Government has built one desalination plant and plans to build one other); beachhead erosion because of the use of sand for building materials; excessive clearance of forest undergrowth for use as fuel; damage to coral reefs from the spread of the Crown of Thorns starfish; Tuvalu is very concerned about global increases in greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on rising sea levels, which threaten the country's underground water table; in 2000, the government appealed to Australia and New Zealand to take in Tuvaluans if rising sea levels should make evacuation necessary | air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; inadequate supplies of potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea |
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 | Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4% | Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1% |
Exchange rates | Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.8406 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998) | Iranian rials per US dollar - 1,754.71 (January 2001), 1,764.43 (2000), 1,725.93 (1999), 1,751.86 (1998), 1,752.92 (1997), 1,750.76 (1996)
note: Iran has three officially recognized exchange rates; the averages for 1999 are as follows: the official floating rate of 1,750 rials per US dollar, the "export" rate of 3,000 rials per US dollar, and the variable Tehran Stock Exchange rate, which averages 7,863 rials per US dollar; the market rate averages 8,615 rials per US dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Faimalaga LUKA (since 9 September 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Saufatu SOPOANGA (since 2 August 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by and from the members of Parliament; election last held 2 August 2002 (next to be held NA) election results: Saufatu SOPOANGA elected prime minister; Parliamentary vote - Saufatu SOPOANGA 8, Amasone KILEI 7 |
chief of state:
Leader of the Islamic Revolution 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 NA August 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval 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 NA 2005) election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president; percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77% |
Exports | $276,000 f.o.b. (1997) | $25 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copra, fish | petroleum 85%, carpets, fruits and nuts, iron and steel, chemicals |
Exports - partners | UK 58.3%, Italy 16.7%, Denmark 8.3%, Fiji 8.3% (2002) | Japan, Italy, UAE, South Korea, France, China |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 21 March - 20 March |
Flag description | light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the outer half of the flag represents a map of the country with nine yellow five-pointed stars symbolizing the nine islands | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) 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 - $12.2 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $413 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
24% industry: 28% services: 48% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 S, 178 00 E | 32 00 N, 53 00 E |
Geography - note | one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth; six of the coral atolls - Nanumea, Nui, Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti, and Nukulaelae - have lagoons open to the ocean; Nanumaya and Niutao have landlocked lagoons; Niulakita does not have a lagoon | - |
Heliports | - | 11 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 8 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 8 km (1999 est.) |
total:
140,200 km paved: 49,440 km (including 470 km of expressways) unpaved: 90,760 km (1998 est.) |
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 consumption of narcotics remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate that there are at least 1.2 million drug users in the country |
Imports | $7.2 million c.i.f. (1998) | $15 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food, animals, mineral fuels, machinery, manufactured goods | industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies |
Imports - partners | Hungary 68.2%, Japan 12.9%, Fiji 11.9% (2002) | Germany, South Korea, Italy, UAE, France, Japan |
Independence | 1 October 1978 (from UK) | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.4% (nonoil) (1999) |
Industries | fishing, tourism, copra | petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments |
Infant mortality rate | total: 21.34 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
29.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (2000 est.) | 16% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, IFRCS (associate), ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) | CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 8 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 94,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to preside over its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 7,000 (2001 est.) | 17.3 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | people make a living mainly through exploitation of the sea, reefs, and atolls and from wages sent home by those abroad (mostly workers in the phosphate industry and sailors) | agriculture 33%, industry 25%, services 42% (1999 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: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
10% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 27% forests and woodland: 7% other: 55% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% |
Legal system | NA | the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Fale I Fono, also called House of Assembly (15 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
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-NA April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - reformers 170, conservatives 45, and independents 10; 65 seats were up for runoff election on 5 May 2000 (reformers 52, conservatives 10, independents 3) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 67.32 years
male: 65.15 years female: 69.59 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
69.95 years male: 68.61 years female: 71.37 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA%
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 72.1% male: 78.4% female: 65.8% (1994 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan |
Map references | Oceania | Middle East |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 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: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 33,199 GRT/56,187 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 5 (2002 est.) |
total:
152 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,097,977 GRT/7,131,688 DWT ships by type: bulk 49, cargo 38, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 1, container 10, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, petroleum tanker 32, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Singapore 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | no regular military forces; Police Force (includes Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations) | Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces), Revolutionary Guards (includes Ground, Air, Navy, Qods, and Basij-mobilization-forces), Law Enforcement Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $5.787 billion (FY98/99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.9% (FY98/99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
18,319,328 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
10,872,407 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 21 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
823,040 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 October (1978) | Republic Day, 1 April (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Tuvaluan(s)
adjective: Tuvaluan |
noun:
Iranian(s) adjective: Iranian |
Natural hazards | severe tropical storms are usually rare, but, in 1997, there were three cyclones; low level of islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level | periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along western border and in the northeast |
Natural resources | fish | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -4.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km |
Political parties and leaders | there are no political parties but members of Parliament usually align themselves in informal groupings | the following organizations appeared to have achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majlis in early 2000: Assembly of the Followers of the Imam's Line, Freethinkers' Front, Islamic Iran Participation Front, Moderation and Development Party, Servants of Construction Party, Society of Self-sacrificing Devotees |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | active student groups include the pro-reform "Organization for Strengthening Unity" and "the Union of Islamic Student Societies'; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, and the Islamic Coalition Association; opposition groups include the Liberation Movement of Iran and the Nation of Iran party; 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; the Society for the Defense of Freedom |
Population | 11,305 (July 2003 est.) | 66,128,965 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 53% (1996 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.42% (2003 est.) | 0.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Funafuti, Nukufetau | 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 0, shortwave 0 (1999) | AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998) |
Radios | - | 17 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
5,600 km broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 5,506 km 1.435-m gauge (146 km electrified) note: broad gauge track is employed at the borders with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan which have broad-gauge rail systems (2001) |
Religions | Church of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%, Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%, Baha'i 1%, other 0.6% | Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.11 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 15 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: serves particular needs for internal communications
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: NA |
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; Internet service available but limited to electronic mail to promote Iranian culture |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,000 (1997) | 6.313 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 265,000 (August 1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1997) | 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | very low-lying and narrow coral atolls | rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts |
Total fertility rate | 3.05 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.02 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | 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 |