West Bank (2001) | Mongolia (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 21 provinces (aymguud, singular - aymag) and 1 municipality* (singular - hot); Arhangay, Bayanhongor, Bayan-Olgiy, Bulgan, Darhan Uul, Dornod, Dornogovi, Dundgovi, Dzavhan, Govi-Altay, Govi-Sumber, Hentiy, Hovd, Hovsgol, Omnogovi, Orhon, Ovorhangay, Selenge, Suhbaatar, Tov, Ulaanbaatar*, Uvs |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.61% (male 478,232; female 454,439) 15-64 years: 51.8% (male 552,661; female 530,230) 65 years and over: 3.59% (male 32,629; female 42,522) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.7% (male 423,081; female 408,119)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 890,482; female 892,140) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 42,292; female 56,201) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products | wheat, barley, potatoes, forage crops; sheep, goats, cattle, camels, horses |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 50 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 40
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 12 (2002) |
Area | total:
5,860 sq km land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
total: 1.565 million sq km
land: 1,555,400 sq km water: 9,600 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly smaller than Alaska |
Background | The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Permanent status is to be determined through direct negotiations, which resumed in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus. An intifadah broke out in September 2000; the resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability in the Palestinian Authority are undermining progress toward a permanent settlement. | The Mongols gained fame in the 13th century when under Genghis KHAN they conquered a huge Eurasian empire. After his death the empire was divided into several powerful Mongol states, but these broke apart in the 14th century. The Mongols eventually retired to their original steppe homelands and came under Chinese rule. Mongolia won its independence in 1921 with Soviet backing. A Communist regime was installed in 1924. During the early 1990s, the ex-Communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) gradually yielded its monopoly on power to the Democratic Union Coalition (DUC), which defeated the MPRP in a national election in 1996. Over the next four years, the DUC put forward a number of key reforms to modernize the economy and to democratize the political system. The former Communists were a strong opposition that stalled additional restructuring and made implementation difficult. In 2000, the MPRP won an overwhelming victory in the legislature - with 72 of the 76 seats - and completely reshuffled the government. While it continues many of the reform policies, the MPRP has focused on social welfare and public order priorities. |
Birth rate | 35.83 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.39 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.6 billion expenditures: $1.73 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
revenues: $386 million
expenditures: $427 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.) |
Capital | - | Ulaanbaatar |
Climate | temperate, temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters | desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | - | 12 February 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: West Bank |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Mongolia local long form: none local short form: Mongol Uls former: Outer Mongolia |
Currency | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) | togrog/tugrik (MNT) |
Death rate | 4.37 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.18 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) | $913 million (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela J. Slutz
embassy: Micro Region 11, Big Ring Road, C.P.O. 1021, Ulaanbaatar 13 mailing address: PSC 461, Box 300, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [976] (11) 329095 FAX: [976] (11) 320776 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Ravdangiyn BOLD
chancery: 2833 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7117 FAX: [1] (202) 298-9227 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $121 million disbursed (includes Gaza Strip) (2000) | $208.7 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Economic output in the West Bank is governed by the Paris Economic Protocol of April 1994 between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by 36.1% between 1992 and 1996 owing to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted established labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Since 1997 Israel's use of comprehensive closures has decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of Palestinian violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and a severe disruption of trade and labor movements. | Economic activity traditionally has been based on agriculture and breeding of livestock. Mongolia also has extensive mineral deposits; copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production. Soviet assistance, at its height one-third of GDP, disappeared almost overnight in 1990-1991 at the time of the dismantlement of the USSR. Mongolia was driven into deep recession, prolonged by the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party's (MPRP) reluctance to undertake serious economic reform. The Democratic Coalition (DC) government embraced free-market economics, eased price controls, liberalized domestic and international trade, and attempted to restructure the banking system and the energy sector. Major domestic privatization programs were undertaken, as well as the fostering of foreign investment through international tender of the oil distribution company, a leading cashmere company, and banks. Reform was held back by the ex-Communist MPRP opposition and by the political instability brought about through four successive governments under the DC. Economic growth picked up in 1997-1999 after stalling in 1996 due to a series of natural disasters and declines in world prices of copper and cashmere. In August and September 1999, the economy suffered from a temporary Russian ban on exports of oil and oil products, and Mongolia remains vulnerable in this sector. Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in 1997. The international donor community pledged over $300 million per year at the Consultative Group Meeting, held in Ulaanbaatar in June 1999. The MPRP government, elected in July 2000, is anxious to improve the investment climate; it must also deal with a heavy burden of external debt. Falling prices for Mongolia's mainly primary sector exports, widespread opposition to privatization, and adverse effects of weather on agriculture in early 2000 and 2001 restrained real GDP growth in 2000-2001. Despite drought problems in 2002, GDP rose 4.0%, followed by a solid 5.0% increase in 2003. The first applications under the land privatization law have been marked by a number of disputes over particular sites. Russia claims Mongolia owes it $11 billion from the old Soviet period; any settlement could substantially increase Mongolia's foreign debt burden. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 2.194 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 25 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | 196 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants | 2.225 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
lowest point: Hoh Nuur 518 m
highest point: Nayramadlin Orgil (Huyten Orgil) 4,374 m |
Environment - current issues | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment | limited natural fresh water resources in some areas; the policies of former Communist regimes promoted rapid urbanization and industrial growth that had negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal in power plants and the lack of enforcement of environmental laws severely polluted the air in Ulaanbaatar; deforestation, overgrazing, and the converting of virgin land to agricultural production increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification and mining activities had a deleterious effect on the environment |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% | Mongol (predominantly Khalkha) 85%, Turkic (of which Kazakh is the largest group) 7%, Tungusic 4.6%, other (including Chinese and Russian) 3.4% (1998) |
Exchange rates | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.0810 (December 2000), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997), 3.1917 (1996); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) | togrogs/tugriks per US dollar - 1,134 (2002), 1,097.7 (2001), 1,076.67 (2000), 1,021.87 (1999), 840.83 (1998) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: President Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (since 20 June 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR (since 26 July 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the State Great Hural in consultation with the president elections: president nominated by parties in the State Great Hural and elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA May 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the State Great Hural; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Natsagiyn BAGABANDI reelected president; percent of vote - Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (MPRP) 58.13%, Radnaasumbereliyn GONCHIGDORJ (DP) 36.58%, Luvsandamba DASHNYAM (CWP) 3.54%, other 1.75%; Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR elected prime minister by a vote in the State Great Hural of 68 to 3 |
Exports | $682 million (includes Gaza Strip) (f.o.b., 1998 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone | copper, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, fluorspar, other nonferrous metals |
Exports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | China 43.8%, US 33.6%, Russia 9.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) | calendar year |
Flag description | - | three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), blue, and red; centered on the hoist-side red band in yellow is the national emblem ("soyombo" - a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometric representation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yang symbol) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.06 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
9% industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 32%
industry: 23% services: 45% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -7.5% (2000 est.) | 3.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 35 15 E | 46 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 231 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) | landlocked; strategic location between China and Russia |
Highways | total:
4,500 km paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.) note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements |
total: 49,250 km
paved: 1,724 km unpaved: 47,526 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 24.5% (1995) |
Imports | $2.5 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (c.i.f., 1998 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, consumer goods, construction materials | machinery and equipment, fuels, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, tea |
Imports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | Russia 32%, China 19.4%, South Korea 12.1%, US 9.1%, Germany 4.7%, Japan 4.3% (2002) |
Independence | - | 11 July 1921 (from China) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.1% (2002 est.) |
Industries | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers | construction materials, mining (coal, copper, molybdenum, fluorspar, and gold); oil; food and beverages, processing of animal products |
Infant mortality rate | 21.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 57.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 60.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 53.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (includes Gaza Strip) (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (observer), CP (provisional), EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (1999) | 5 (2001) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 840 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court (serves as appeals court for people's and provincial courts but rarely overturns verdicts of lower courts; judges are nominated by the General Council of Courts for approval by the president) |
Labor force | NA | 1.4 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) | primarily herding/agricultural |
Land boundaries | total:
404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
total: 8,162 km
border countries: China 4,677 km, Russia 3,485 km |
Land use | arable land:
27% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 32% forests and woodland: 1% other: 40% |
arable land: 0.84%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.16% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) | Khalkha Mongol 90%, Turkic, Russian (1999) |
Legal system | - | blend of Soviet, German, and US systems of law that combines aspects of a parliamentary system with some aspects of a presidential system; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral State Great Hural (76 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPRP 72, other 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
72.28 years male: 70.58 years female: 74.07 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 63.81 years
male: 61.63 years female: 66.09 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.1% male: 99.2% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle East, west of Jordan | Northern Asia, between China and Russia |
Map references | Middle East | Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | NA | Mongolian Armed Forces (includes General Purpose Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense Troops); note - Border Troops are under Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs in peacetime |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $23.1 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.2% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 796,449 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 516,502 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 32,529 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day/Revolution Day, 11 July (1921) |
Nationality | noun:
NA adjective: NA |
noun: Mongolian(s)
adjective: Mongolian |
Natural hazards | droughts | dust storms, grassland and forest fires, drought, and "zud", which is harsh winter conditions |
Natural resources | arable land | oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold, silver, iron, phosphate |
Net migration rate | 3.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Citizens' Will Party or CWP (also called Civil Will Party or Civil Courage Party) [Sanjaasurengyn OYUN]; Democratic Party or DP [D. DORLIGJAN]; Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party or MPRP [Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR]; Mongolian New Socialist Democratic Party or MNSDP [B. ERDENEBAT]; Mongolian Republican Party or MRP [B. JARGALSAIHAN]
note: the MPRP is the ruling party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 2,090,713 (July 2001 est.)
note: in addition, there are some 176,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and about 173,000 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) |
2,712,315 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 36% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.48% (2001 est.) | 1.42% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
AM 7, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999) | - |
Railways | 0 km | 1,815 km
broad gauge: 1,815 km 1.524-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% | Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism 96%, Muslim (primarily in the southwest), Shamanism, and Christian 4% (1998) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
general assessment: very low density: about 3.5 telephones for each thousand persons
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean Region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) | 104,100 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 110,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 4 (plus 18 provincial repeaters and many low power repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east | vast semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in south-central |
Total fertility rate | 4.9 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.28 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 40% (includes Gaza Strip) (yearend 2000) | 20% (2000) |
Waterways | none | 400 km (1999) |