Western Sahara (2005) | Burma (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 7 divisions (taing-myar, singular - taing) and 7 states (pyi ne-myar, singular - pyi ne)
divisions: Ayeyarwady, Bago, Magway, Mandalay, Sagaing, Tanintharyi, Yangon states: Chin, Kachin, Kayah, Kayin, Mon, Rakhine, Shan |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 26.1% (male 6,277,073/female 6,084,001)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 16,089,764/female 16,425,299) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 1,075,868/female 1,421,953) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products |
Airports | 11 (2004 est.) | 86 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 25
over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 61
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 32 (2007) |
Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 678,500 sq km
land: 657,740 sq km water: 20,760 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | slightly smaller than Texas |
Background | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. | Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence from the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the ruling junta refused to hand over power. NLD leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who was under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 and 2000 to 2002, was imprisoned in May 2003 and subsequently transferred to house arrest. After Burma's ruling junta in August 2007 unexpectedly increased fuel prices, tens of thousands of Burmese marched in protest, led by prodemocracy activists and Buddhist monks. In late September 2007, the government brutally suppressed the protests, killing at least 13 people and arresting thousands for participating in the demonstrations. Since then, the regime has continued to raid homes and monasteries and arrest persons suspected of participating in the pro-democracy protests. The junta appointed Labor Minister AUNG KYI in October 2007 as liaison to AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who remains under house arrest and virtually incommunicado with her party and supporters. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 17.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA (2006 est.) |
Capital | none | name: Rangoon (Yangon)
geographic coordinates: 16 48 N, 96 09 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Nay Pyi Taw is administrative capital |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April) |
Coastline | 1,110 km | 1,930 km |
Constitution | - | 3 January 1974; suspended since 18 September 1988; national convention convened in 1993 to establish principles to guide in the drafting of a new constitution concluded in 2007; it did not include participation of major democratic and ethnic majority representatives; a constitutional drafting committee appointed by the junta began meeting in December 2007 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
conventional long form: Union of Burma
conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma note: since 1989 the military authorities in Burma have promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name for their state; this decision was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma, and the US Government did not adopt the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 9.33 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $6.914 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Shari VILLAROSA
embassy: 110 University Avenue, Kamayut Township, Rangoon mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 556-509, 535-756 FAX: [95] (1) 650-306 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires MYINT LWIN
chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-3344 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4351 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals | over half of Burma's population consists of diverse ethnic groups who have substantial numbers of kin in neighboring countries; Thailand must deal with Karen and other ethnic rebels, illegal cross-border activities, Karen and other refugees, and asylum seekers from Burma; Thailand is studying the feasibility of jointly constructing the Hatgyi Dam on the Salween River near the border with Burma; in 2004, international environmentalist pressure prompted China to halt construction of 13 dams on the Salween River which flows through China, Burma, and Thailand; India seeks cooperation from Burma to keep Indian Nagaland separatists, such as the United Liberation Front of Assam, from hiding in remote Burmese Uplands; Burmese Rohingya Muslim refugees reside in two camps in Bangladesh |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $144.7 million (2005 est.) |
Economy - overview | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. | Burma, a resource-rich country, suffers from pervasive government controls, inefficient economic policies, and rural poverty. The junta took steps in the early 1990s to liberalize the economy after decades of failure under the "Burmese Way to Socialism," but those efforts stalled, and some of the liberalization measures were rescinded. Despite Burma's increasing oil and gas revenue, socio-economic conditions have deteriorated due to the regime's mismanagement of the economy. Lacking monetary or fiscal stability, the economy suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including rising inflation, fiscal deficits, multiple official exchange rates that overvalue the Burmese kyat, a distorted interest rate regime, unreliable statistics, and an inability to reconcile national accounts to determine a realistic GDP figure. Most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta began to suppress the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently refused to honor the results of the 1990 legislative elections. In response to the government of Burma's attack in May 2003 on AUNG SAN SUU KYI and her convoy, the US imposed new economic sanctions in August 2003 including a ban on imports of Burmese products and a ban on provision of financial services by US persons. Further, a poor investment climate hampers attracting outside investment slowing the inflow of foreign exchange. The most productive sectors will continue to be in extractive industries, especially oil and gas, mining, and timber with the latter especially causing environmental degradation. Other areas, such as manufacturing and services, are struggling with inadequate infrastructure, unpredictable import/export policies, deteriorating health and education systems, and endemic corruption. A major banking crisis in 2003 shuttered the country's 20 private banks and disrupted the economy. As of 2007, the largest private banks operated under tight restrictions limiting the private sector's access to formal credit. Moreover, the September 2007 crackdown on prodemocracy demonstrators, including thousands of monks, further strained the economy as the tourism industry, which directly employs about 500,000 people, suffered dramatic declines in foreign visitor levels. In November 2007, the European Union announced new sanctions banning investment and trade in Burmese gems, timber and precious stones, while the United States expanded its sanctions list to include more Burmese government and military officials and their family members, as well as prominent regime business cronies, their family members, and associated companies. Official statistics are inaccurate. Published statistics on foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and unofficial border trade - often estimated to be as large as the official economy. Though the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbors, better investment and business climates and an improved political situation are needed to promote serious foreign investment, exports, and tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2002) | 3.744 billion kWh (FY06) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2002) | 6.154 billion kWh (FY06) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m |
Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease |
Environment - international agreements | party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Berber | Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000) | kyats per US dollar - 1,296 (2007), 1,280 (2006), 5.761 (2005), 5.7459 (2004), 6.0764 (2003)
note: unofficial exchange rates ranged in 2004 from 815 kyat/US dollar to nearly 970 kyat/US dollar, and by yearend 2005, the unofficial exchange rate was 1,075 kyat/US dollar; data shown for 2003-05 are official exchange rates |
Executive branch | none | chief of state: Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister, Lt. Gen THEIN SEIN (since 24 October 2007) cabinet: Cabinet is overseen by SPDC; military junta assumed power 18 September 1988 under name State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) elections: none |
Exports | NA | 5,000 bbl/day (2006 est.) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice, clothing, jade and gems |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Thailand 48.8%, India 12.7%, China 5.2%, Japan 5.2% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | - | red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 14, white, five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the seven administrative divisions and seven states |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 53.9%
industry: 10.6% services: 35.5% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 5.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 22 00 N, 98 00 E |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes |
Heliports | - | 4 (2007) |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | remains world's second largest producer of illicit opium with an estimated production in 2005 of 380 metric tons, up 13% from 2004 and cultivation in 2005 was 40,000 hectares, a 10% increase from 2004; the decline in opium production in the United Wa State Army's areas of greatest control was more than offset by increases in south and east Shan state; lack of government will to take on major narcotrafficking groups and lack of serious commitment against money laundering continues to hinder the overall antidrug effort; major source of methamphetamine and heroin for regional consumption; currently under Financial Action Task Force countermeasures due to continued failure to address its inadequate money-laundering controls
(2005) |
Imports | NA | 19,180 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | fabric, petroleum products, fertilizer, plastics, machinery, transport equipment; cement, construction materials, crude oil; food products, edible oil |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | China 35.1%, Thailand 22.1%, Singapore 16.4%, Malaysia 4.8% (2006) |
Independence | - | 4 January 1948 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 3.9% (2007 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | agricultural processing; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; cement, construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; natural gas; garments, jade and gems |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 50.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 57.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 43.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 39.5% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ADB, APT, ARF, ASEAN, BIMSTEC, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 18,700 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | - | remnants of the British-era legal system are in place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive |
Labor force | 12,000 | 29.26 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | agriculture: 70%
industry: 7% services: 23% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
total: 5,876 km
border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
arable land: 14.92%
permanent crops: 1.31% other: 83.77% (2005) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages |
Legal system | - | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never allowed by junta to convene (junta has anounced plans to hold elections in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NLD 392 (opposition), SNLD 23 (opposition), NUP 10 (pro-government), other 60 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: 62.49 years
male: 60.29 years female: 64.83 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.9% male: 93.9% female: 86.4% (2000 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | - | total: 33 ships (1000 GRT or over) 364,447 GRT/549,310 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 7, cargo 20, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 8 (Germany 5, Japan 3) (2007) |
Military branches | - | Myanmar Armed Forces (Tatmadaw): Army, Navy, Air Force (Tatmadaw Lay) (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.1% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 4 January (1948); Union Day, 12 February (1947) |
Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
adjective: Burmese |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility | destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,790 km; oil 558 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | - | National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, AUNG SAN SUU KYI]; National Unity Party or NUP (pro-regime) [TUN YE]; Shan Nationalities League for Democracy or SNLD [HKUN HTUN OO]; and other smaller parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | Ethnic Nationalities Council or ENC (based in Thailand); Federation of Trade Unions-Burma or FTUB (exile trade union and labor advocates); National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma or NCGUB (self-proclaimed government in exile) ["Prime Minister" Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals, some legitimately elected to the People's Assembly in 1990 (the group fled to a border area and joined insurgents in December 1990 to form parallel government in exile); Kachin Independence Organization or KIO; Karen National Union or KNU; Karenni National People's Party or KNPP; National Council-Union of Burma or NCUB (exile coalition of opposition groups); several Shan factions; United Wa State Army or UWSA; Union Solidarity and Development Association or USDA (pro-regime, a social and political mass-member organization) [HTAY OO, general secretary]; 88 Generation Students (pro-democracy movement) [MIN KO NAING] |
Population | 273,008 (July 2005 est.) | 47,373,958
note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 32.7% (2007 est.) |
Population growth rate | NA | 0.815% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 3 (2007) |
Railways | - | total: 3,955 km
narrow gauge: 3,955 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Muslim | Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.032 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.757 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
general assessment: meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government; international service is good
domestic: system capable of providing basic service; cellular mobile phone system functions more efficiently than traditional lines international: country code - 95; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2, Intelsat (Indian Ocean), and ShinSat (2007) |
Telephones - main lines in use | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 503,900 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 214,200 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 4 (2008) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 1.95 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 5.2% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | - | 12,800 km (2007) |