West Bank (2008) | Chad (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 18 regions (regions, singular - region); Batha, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Hadjer-Lamis, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Mayo-Kebbi Est, Mayo-Kebbi Ouest, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile, Ville de N'Djamena, Wadi Fira |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.4% (male 551,243/female 524,800)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 704,209/female 670,382) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 36,175/female 49,118) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.3% (male 2,366,496/female 2,308,155)
15-64 years: 49.8% (male 2,250,211/female 2,676,076) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 120,666/female 164,057) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels |
Airports | 3 (2007) | 55 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 48
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 21 under 914 m: 11 (2007) |
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: 1.284 million sq km
land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly more than three times the size of California |
Background | The September 1993 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements provided for a transitional period of Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under a series of agreements signed between May 1994 and September 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and Gaza. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza stalled following the outbreak of an intifada in September 2000, as Israeli forces reoccupied most Palestinian-controlled areas. In April 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004, Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005. A month later, Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments in an effort to move the peace process forward. In September 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and withdrew settlers and redeployed soldiers from four small northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. A November 2005 PA-Israeli agreement authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control. In January 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won control of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). The international community refused to accept the HAMAS-led government because it did not recognize Israel, would not renounce violence, and refused to honor previous peace agreements between Israel and the PA. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, but President ABBAS had little success negotiating with HAMAS to present a political platform acceptable to the international community so as to lift economic sanctions on Palestinians. The PLC was unable to convene throughout most of 2006 as a result of Israel's detention of many HAMAS PLC members and Israeli-imposed travel restrictions on other PLC members. Violent clashes took place between Fatah and HAMAS supporters in the Gaza Strip in 2006 and early 2007, resulting in numerous Palestinian deaths and injuries. ABBAS and HAMAS Political Bureau Chief MISHAL in February 2007 signed the Mecca Agreement in Saudi Arabia that resulted in the formation of a Palestinian National Unity Government (NUG) headed by HAMAS member Ismail HANIYA. However, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, and in June, HAMAS militants succeeded in a violent takeover of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip. ABBAS dismissed the NUG and through a series of presidential decrees formed a PA government in the West Bank led by independent Salam FAYYAD. HAMAS rejected the NUG's dismissal and has called for resuming talks with Fatah, but ABBAS has ruled out negotiations until HAMAS agrees to a return of PA control over the Gaza Strip and recognizes the FAYYAD-led government. FAYYAD and his PA government initiated a series of security and economic reforms to improve conditions in the West Bank. ABBAS participated in talks with Israel's Prime Minister OLMERT and secured the release of some Palestinian prisoners and previously withheld customs revenue. During a November 2007 international meeting in Annapolis Maryland, ABBAS and OLMERT agreed to resume peace negotiations with the goal of reaching a final peace settlement by the end of 2008. | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of civil warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually drafted a democratic constitution, and held flawed presidential elections in 1996 and 2001. In 1998, a rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which sporadically flares up despite several peace agreements between the government and the rebels. In 2005 new rebel groups emerged in western Sudan and have made probing attacks into eastern Chad. Power remains in the hands of an ethnic minority. In June 2005, President Idriss DEBY held a referendum successfully removing constitutional term limits. |
Birth rate | 30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 42.35 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.149 billion
expenditures: $2.31 billion note: includes Gaza Strip (2006) |
revenues: $990.6 million
expenditures: $1.038 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | - | name: N'Djamena
geographic coordinates: 12 06 N, 15 02 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters | tropical in south, desert in north |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | - | passed by referendum 31 March 1996; a June 2005 referendum removed constitutional term limits |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
conventional long form: Republic of Chad
conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad/Jumhuriyat Tshad local short form: Tchad/Tshad |
Death rate | 3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 16.69 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $1.5 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Louis NIGRO
embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] 251-62-11, [235] 251-70-09, [235] 251-77-59 FAX: [235] 251-56-54 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Mahamat Adam BECHIR
chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
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; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region | since 2003, Janjawid armed militia and the Sudanese military have driven hundreds of thousands of Darfur residents into Chad; Chad remains an important mediator in the Sudanese civil conflict, reducing tensions with Sudan arising from cross-border banditry; Chadian Aozou rebels reside in southern Libya; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty, which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) | ODA, $379.8 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | The West Bank - the larger of the two areas comprising the Palestinian Authority (PA) - has experienced a general decline in economic conditions since the second intifada began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely a result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of closures and access restrictions in response to security concerns in Israel - which disrupted labor and trading relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of capital, the disruption of administrative structures, and widespread business closures. International aid of at least $1.14 billion to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities - due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally - stymied growth. Israel's and the international community's financial embargo of the PA when HAMAS ran the PA during March 2006 - June 2007 has interrupted the provision of PA social services and the payment of PA salaries. Since June the Fayyad government in the West Bank has restarted salary payments and the provision of services but would be unable to operate absent high levels of international assistance. | Chad's primarily agricultural economy will continue to be boosted by major foreign direct investment projects in the oil sector that began in 2000. Over 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and livestock raising for its livelihood. Chad's economy has long been handicapped by its landlocked position, high energy costs, and a history of instability. Chad relies on foreign assistance and foreign capital for most public and private sector investment projects. A consortium led by two US companies has been investing $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves - estimated at 1 billion barrels - in southern Chad. The nation's total oil reserves have been estimated to be 2 billion barrels. Oil production came on stream in late 2003. Chad began to export oil in 2004. Cotton, cattle, and gum arabic provide the bulk of Chad's non-oil export earnings. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 88.35 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | 0 kWh (2005) |
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; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants | 95 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
lowest point: Djourab Depression 160 m
highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m |
Environment - current issues | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% | Sara 27.7%, Arab 12.3%, Mayo-Kebbi 11.5%, Kanem-Bornou 9%, Ouaddai 8.7%, Hadjarai 6.7%, Tandjile 6.5%, Gorane 6.3%, Fitri-Batha 4.7%, other 6.4%, unknown 0.3% (1993 census) |
Exchange rates | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno (since 4 December 1990)
head of government: Prime Minister Nouradine Delwa KASSIRE Koumakoye (since 26 February 2007) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 3 May 2006 (next to be held by May 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno reelected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 64.7%, Delwa Kassire KOUMAKOYE 15.1%, Albert Pahimi PADACKE 7.8%, Mahamat ABDOULAYE 7.1%, Brahim KOULAMALLAH 5.3%; note - a June 2005 national referendum altered the constitution removing presidential term limits and permitting Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY Itno to run for reelection |
Exports | $301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) | 170,000 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone | cotton, cattle, gum arabic, oil |
Exports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) | US 80.6%, China 10.4%, South Korea 2.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | - | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8%
industry: 13% services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 22.7%
industry: 47% services: 30.3% (2006 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) | 1.3% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 35 15 E | 15 00 N, 19 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.) | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | food, consumer goods, construction materials | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) | France 18.7%, Cameroon 17.6%, US 12.6%, Germany 7.4%, Saudi Arabia 5%, Belgium 4.9% (2006) |
Independence | - | 11 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) | 5% (1995) |
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 | oil, cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials |
Infant mortality rate | total: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 102.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 108.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 95.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006) | 8% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) | 300 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts |
Labor force | 605,000 (2006) | 2.719 million (1993) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 18%
industry: 15% services: 67% (2006) |
agriculture: 80% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing)
industry and services: 20% (1993) |
Land boundaries | total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
total: 5,968 km
border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.9%
permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001) |
arable land: 2.8%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 97.18% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects |
Legal system | - | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral National Assembly (155 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - the 1996 constitution called for a Senate that has never been formed
elections: National Assembly - last held 21 April 2002 (next to be held by 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MPS 110, RDP 12, FAR 9, RNDP 5, URD 5, UNDR 3, other 11 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.46 years
male: 71.68 years female: 75.35 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 47.2 years
male: 46.17 years female: 48.27 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.4% male: 96.7% female: 88% (2004 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic
total population: 47.5% male: 56% female: 39.3% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle East, west of Jordan | Central Africa, south of Libya |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | - | Chadian National Army (Armee Nationale Tchadienne, ANT), Chadian Air Force (Force Aerienne Tchadienne, FAT), Gendarmerie (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 4.2% (2006) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun: Chadian(s)
adjective: Chadian |
Natural hazards | droughts | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues |
Natural resources | arable land | petroleum, uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad), gold, limestone, sand and gravel, salt |
Net migration rate | 2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -2.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | oil 205 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Federation Action for the Republic or FAR [Ngarledjy YORONGAR]; National Rally for Development and Progress or RNDP [Delwa Kassire KOUMAKOYE]; National Union for Democracy and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; Party for Liberty and Development or PLD [Ibni Oumar Mahamat SALEH]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Lol Mahamat CHOUA]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR [Jean ALINGUE]; Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 2,535,927
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.) |
9,885,661 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 46% (2007 est.) | 80% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.985% (2007 est.) | 2.32% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 5 (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% | Muslim 53.1%, Catholic 20.1%, Protestant 14.2%, animist 7.3%, other 0.5%, unknown 1.7%, atheist 3.1% (1993 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.736 male(s)/female total population: 1.038 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.025 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.841 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.736 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 (2004) |
general assessment: primitive system with high costs and low telephone density
domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: country code - 235; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) | 13,000 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) | 466,100 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 30 (2008) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south |
Total fertility rate | 4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 5.56 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 18.6% (2006) | NA% |
Waterways | - | Chari and Legone rivers are navigable only in wet season (2006) |