Yemen (2001) | Poland (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 17 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, 'Adan, Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, 'Ataq, Dhamar, Hadhramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Sa'dah, San'a', Ta'izz
note: there may be three more governorates: Al Daleh, Shabwah, and the capital city of Sana'a |
16 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie wojewodztwo, Kujawsko-Pomorskie wojewodztwo, Lodzkie wojewodztwo, Lubelskie wojewodztwo, Lubuskie wojewodztwo, Malopolskie wojewodztwo, Mazowieckie wojewodztwo, Opolskie wojewodztwo, Podkarpackie wojewodztwo, Podlaskie wojewodztwo, Pomorskie wojewodztwo, Slaskie wojewodztwo, Swietokrzyskie wojewodztwo, Warminsko-Mazurskie wojewodztwo, Wielkopolskie wojewodztwo, Zachodniopomorskie wojewodztwo |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
47.21% (male 4,340,436; female 4,195,076) 15-64 years: 49.79% (male 4,598,301; female 4,402,402) 65 years and over: 3% (male 274,202; female 267,618) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.5% (male 3,070,388/female 2,906,121)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 13,639,012/female 13,761,154) 65 years and over: 13.3% (male 1,964,429/female 3,177,137) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, fruits, vegetables, pulses, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton; dairy products, livestock (sheep, goats, cattle, camels), poultry; fish | potatoes, fruits, vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork, dairy |
Airports | 50 (2000 est.) | 123 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 83
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 30 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
37 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 40
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 22 (2007) |
Area | total:
527,970 sq km land: 527,970 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen) |
total: 312,685 sq km
land: 304,465 sq km water: 8,220 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming | slightly smaller than New Mexico |
Background | North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to a delimitation of their border. | Poland is an ancient nation that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16th century. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was comparatively tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a political force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, but Poland still faces the lingering challenges of high unemployment, underdeveloped and dilapidated infrastructure, and a poor rural underclass. Solidarity suffered a major defeat in the 2001 parliamentary elections when it failed to elect a single deputy to the lower house of Parliament, and the new leaders of the Solidarity Trade Union subsequently pledged to reduce the Trade Union's political role. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. With its transformation to a democratic, market-oriented country largely completed, Poland is an increasingly active member of Euro-Atlantic organizations. |
Birth rate | 43.36 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.94 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$3 billion expenditures: $3.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $80.53 billion
expenditures: $88.7 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Sanaa | name: Warsaw
geographic coordinates: 52 15 N, 21 00 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers |
Coastline | 1,906 km | 491 km |
Constitution | 16 May 1991; amended 29 September 1994 and February 2001 | adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997; passed by national referendum 25 May 1997; effective 17 October 1997 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Yemen conventional short form: Yemen local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah local short form: Al Yaman |
conventional long form: Republic of Poland
conventional short form: Poland local long form: Rzeczpospolita Polska local short form: Polska |
Currency | Yemeni rial (YER) | - |
Death rate | 9.58 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.4 billion (2000) | $187.8 billion (30 June 2007) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Barbara K. BODINE embassy: Dhahar Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa mailing address: P. O. Box 22347, Sanaa telephone: [967] (1) 303-161 FAX: [967] (1) 303-182 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Victor ASHE
embassy: Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 00-540 Warsaw mailing address: American Embassy Warsaw, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5010 (pouch) telephone: [48] (22) 504-2000 FAX: [48] (22) 504-2688 consulate(s) general: Krakow |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Abd al-Wahhab Abdallah al-HAJRI chancery: Suite 705, 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 965-4760 FAX: [1] (202) 337-2017 |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Wojciech FLERA; note - Robert KUPIECKI has been named the next Polish Ambassador to the US by the Polish Government
chancery: 2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-3800 through 3802 FAX: [1] (202) 328-6271 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | a June 2000 treaty delimited the boundary with Saudi Arabia, but final demarcation requires adjustments based on tribal considerations | as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Poland has implemented the strict Schengen border rules to restrict illegal immigration and trade along its eastern borders with Belarus and Ukraine |
Economic aid - recipient | $176.1 million (1995) | $1.524 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004) |
Economy - overview | Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, reported strong growth in the mid-1990s with the onset of oil production, but was harmed by low oil prices in 1998. Yemen has embarked on an IMF-supported structural adjustment program designed to modernize and streamline the economy, which has led to foreign debt relief and restructuring. Aided by higher oil prices in 1999-2000, Yemen worked to maintain tight control over spending and implement additional components of the IMF program. A high population growth rate of nearly 3.4% and internal political dissension complicate the government's task. | Poland has pursued a policy of economic liberalization since 1990 and today stands out as a success story among transition economies. In 2007, GDP grew an estimated 6.5%, based on rising private consumption, a jump in corporate investment, and EU funds inflows. GDP per capita is still much below the EU average, but is similar to that of the three Baltic states. Since 2004, EU membership and access to EU structural funds have provided a major boost to the economy. Unemployment is falling rapidly, though at roughly 11% in December 2007, it remains well above the EU average. Tightening labor markets, and rising global energy and food prices, pose a risk to consumer price stability. In December 2007 inflation reached 4.1% on a year-over-year basis, or higher than the upper limit of the National Bank of Poland's target range. Poland's economic performance could improve further if the country addresses some of the remaining deficiencies in its business environment. An inefficient commercial court system, a rigid labor code, bureaucratic red tape, and persistent low-level corruption keep the private sector from performing up to its full potential. Rising demands to fund health care, education, and the state pension system present a challenge to the Polish government's effort to hold the consolidated public sector budget deficit under 3.0% of GDP, a target which was achieved in 2007. The PO/PSL coalition government which came to power in November 2007 plans to further reduce the budget deficit with the aim of eventually adopting the euro. The new government has also announced its intention to enact business-friendly reforms, reduce public sector spending growth, lower taxes, and accelerate privatization. However, the government does not have the necessary two-thirds majority needed to override a presidential veto, and thus may have to water down initiatives in order to garner enough support to pass its pro-business policies. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.232 billion kWh (1999) | 120.4 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 16.19 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 5.002 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 2.4 billion kWh (1999) | 146.2 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Arabian Sea 0 m highest point: Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayb 3,760 m |
lowest point: near Raczki Elblaskie -2 m
highest point: Rysy 2,499 m |
Environment - current issues | very limited natural fresh water resources; inadequate supplies of potable water; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification | situation has improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and increased environmental concern by post-Communist governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous wastes; pollution levels should continue to decrease as industrial establishments bring their facilities up to EU code, but at substantial cost to business and the government |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban |
party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 |
Ethnic groups | predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asians, Europeans | Polish 96.7%, German 0.4%, Belarusian 0.1%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 2.7% (2002 census) |
Exchange rates | Yemeni rials per US dollar - 164.590 (October 2000), 160.683 (2000), 155.718 (1999), 135.882 (1998), 129.281 (1997), 94.157 (1996) | zlotych per US dollar - 2.81 (2007), 3.1032 (2006), 3.2355 (2005), 3.6576 (2004), 3.8891 (2003)
note: zlotych is the plural form of zloty |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Field Marshall Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen, assumed office upon the merger of North and South Yemen); Vice President Maj. Gen. Abd al-Rab Mansur al-HADI (since 3 October 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Abd al-Qadir BA JAMAL (since 4 April 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for a five-year term (a new constitution amendment extends the term by two years to a seven-year term); election last held 23 September 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); vice president appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Ali Abdallah SALIH elected president; percent of vote: Ali Abdallah SALIH 96.3%, Najeeb Qahtan AL-SHAABI 3.7% |
chief of state: President Lech KACZYNSKI (since 23 December 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Donald TUSK (since 16 November 2007); Deputy Prime Ministers Waldemar PAWLAK (since 16 November 2007) and Grzegorz SCHETYNA (since 16 November 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister proposes, the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 9 and 23 October 2005 (next to be held in the fall 2010); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Sejm election results: Lech KACZYNSKI elected president; percent of popular vote - Lech KACZYNSKI 54%, Donald Tusk 46% |
Exports | $4.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 51,780 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, coffee, dried and salted fish | machinery and transport equipment 37.8%, intermediate manufactured goods 23.7%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 17.1%, food and live animals 7.6% (2003) |
Exports - partners | Thailand 34%, China 26%, South Korea 14%, Japan 3% (1999) | Germany 27.2%, Italy 6.6%, France 6.2%, UK 5.7%, Czech Republic 5.6%, Russia 4.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; similar to the flag of Syria which has two green stars and of Iraq which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $14.4 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
20% industry: 42% services: 38% (1998) |
agriculture: 4.1%
industry: 31.9% services: 64% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $820 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2000 est.) | 6.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 48 00 E | 52 00 N, 20 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes | historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain |
Heliports | - | 7 (2007) |
Highways | total:
69,263 km paved: 9,963 km unpaved: 59,300 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 30.8% (1992) |
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 27% (2002) |
Illicit drugs | - | despite diligent counternarcotics measures and international information sharing on cross-border crimes, a major illicit producer of synthetic drugs for the international market; minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and Latin American cocaine to Western Europe |
Imports | $2.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 480,300 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | food and live animals, machinery and equipment | machinery and transport equipment 38%, intermediate manufactured goods 21%, chemicals 14.8%, minerals, fuels, lubricants, and related materials 9.1% (2003) |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 10%, UAE 8%, US 7%, France 7%, Italy 6% (1999) | Germany 29%, Russia 9.6%, Italy 6.4%, Netherlands 5.7%, France 5.4% (2006) |
Independence | 22 May 1990, Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]; previously North Yemen had become independent on NA November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK) | 11 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 10% (2007 est.) |
Industries | crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small aluminum products factory; cement | machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | 68.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10% (2000 est.) | 2.1% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT (observer), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA (cooperating state), EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 5,674 sq km (1999) | 1,000 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms) |
Labor force | NA | 17.01 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | most people are employed in agriculture and herding; services, construction, industry, and commerce account for less than one-fourth of the labor force | agriculture: 16.1%
industry: 29% services: 54.9% (2002) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,746 km border countries: Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km |
total: 3,056 km
border countries: Belarus 416 km, Czech Republic 790 km, Germany 467 km, Lithuania 103 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 210 km, Slovakia 541 km, Ukraine 529 km |
Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 33.5% forests and woodland: 4% other: 46.5% (1999) |
arable land: 40.25%
permanent crops: 1% other: 58.75% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic | Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census) |
Legal system | based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common law, and local tribal customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on a mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover Communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts, but rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal are final; court decisions can be appealed to the European Court of Justice in Strasbourg; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | a new constitutional amendment ratified on 20 February 2001 created a bicameral legislature consisting of a Shura Council (111 seats; members appointed by the president) and a House of Representatives (301 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: last held 27 April 1997 (next to be held 27 April 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - GPC 189, Islah 52, Nasserite Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Baath Party 2, independents 54, election pending 1; latest seats by party: GPC 223, Islah 64, Nasserite Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Baath Party 2, YSP 2, independents 7 |
bicameral National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe consists of the Senate or Senat (upper house) (100 seats; members are elected by a majority vote on a provincial basis to serve four-year terms), and the Sejm (lower house) (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system of proportional representation to serve four-year terms); the designation of National Assembly is only used on those rare occasions when the two houses meet jointly
elections: Senate - last held 21 October 2007 (next to be held by October 2011); Sejm elections last held 21 October 2007 (next to be held by October 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PO 60, PiS 39, independents 1; Sejm - percent of vote by party - PO 41.5%, PiS 32.1%, LiD 13.2%, PSL 8.9%, other 4.3%; seats by party - PO 209, PiS 166, LiD 53, PSL 31, German minorities 1; note - seats by party as of February 2008 - PO 209, PiS 159, LiD 53, PSL 31, German minorities 1, nonaffiliated 7 note: one seat is assigned to ethnic minority parties in the Sejm only |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.21 years male: 58.45 years female: 62.05 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.19 years
male: 71.18 years female: 79.44 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 38% male: 53% female: 26% (1990 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia | Central Europe, east of Germany |
Map references | Middle East | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: defined by international treaties |
Merchant marine | total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 15,075 GRT/23,562 DWT ships by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 11 ships (1000 GRT or over) 55,701 GRT/45,082 DWT
by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 2, passenger/cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Nigeria 1) registered in other countries: 102 (Antigua and Barbuda 2, Bahamas 15, Cyprus 18, Liberia 14, Malta 25, Norway 3, Panama 15, Slovakia 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 1, Vanuatu 7) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, Air Defense Forces, Presidential Guards, paramilitary (includes Police) | Polish Armed Forces: Land Forces (includes Navy (Marynarka Wojenna, MW)), Polish Air Force (Sily Powietrzne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, SPRP) (2008) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $414 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 7.6% (FY99) | 1.71% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
4,103,093 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
2,303,257 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 14 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
238,690 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Unification Day, 22 May (1990) | Constitution Day, 3 May (1791) |
Nationality | noun:
Yemeni(s) adjective: Yemeni |
noun: Pole(s)
adjective: Polish |
Natural hazards | sandstorms and dust storms in summer | flooding |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble, small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper, fertile soil in west | coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 644 km; petroleum products 32 km | gas 13,552 km; oil 1,384 km; refined products 777 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | there are over 12 political parties active in Yemen, some of the more prominent are: General People's Congress or GPC [President Ali Abdallah SALIH]; Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah [Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR]; National Arab Socialist Baath Party [Dr. Qassim SALAAM]; Nasserite Unionist Party [Abdel Malik al-MAKHLAFI]; Yemeni Socialist Party or YSP [Ali Salih MUQBIL]
note: President SALIH's General People's Congress or GPC won a landslide victory in the April 1997 legislative election and no longer governs in coalition with Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR's Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah - the two parties had been in coalition since the end of the civil war in 1994; the YSP, a loyal opposition party, boycotted the April 1997 legislative election, but announced that it would participate in Yemen's first local elections to be held in February 2001; these local elections aim to decentralize political power and are a key element of the government's political reform program |
Civic Platform or PO [Donald TUSK]; Democratic Left Alliance or SLD [Wojciech OLEJNICZAK]; Democratic Party or PD [Janusz ONYSZKIEWICZ]; German Minority of Lower Silesia or MNSO [Henryk KROLL]; Law and Justice or PiS [Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI]; League of Polish Families or LPR [Roman GIERTYCH]; Left and Democrats (LiD) (a coalition formed by the SLD, PD, SDPL, and UP) [Wojciech OLEJNICZAK]; Polish People's Party or PSL [Waldemar PAWLAK]; Samoobrona or SO [Andrzej LEPPER]; Social Democratic Party of Poland or SDPL [Marek BOROWSKI]; Union of Labor or UP [Andrzej SPYCHALSKI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | All Poland Trade Union Alliance or OPZZ (trade union) [Jan GUZ]; Roman Catholic Church [Cardinal Stanislaw DZIWISZ, Archbishop Jozef MICHALIK]; Solidarity Trade Union [Janusz SNIADEK] |
Population | 18,078,035 (July 2001 est.) | 38,518,241 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 19% (1992 est.) | 17% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.38% (2001 est.) | -0.046% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Mukalla, As Salif, Mocha, Nishtun | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 14, FM 777, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 1.05 million (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 23,072 km
broad gauge: 629 km 1.524-m gauge standard gauge: 22,443 km 1.435-m gauge (20,555 km operational; 11,910 km electrified) (2006) |
Religions | Muslim including Shaf'i (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shi'a), small numbers of Jewish, Christian, and Hindu | Roman Catholic 89.8% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, other 0.3%, unspecified 8.3% (2002) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.991 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.618 male(s)/female total population: 0.941 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
since unification in 1990, efforts have been made to create a national telecommunications network domestic: the national network consists of microwave radio relay, cable, tropospheric scatter, and GSM cellular mobile telephone systems international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 2 Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and Djibouti |
general assessment: modernization of the telecommunications network has accelerated with market based competition finalized in 2003; fixed-line service, dominated by the former state-owned company, is dwarfed by the growth in wireless telephony
domestic: mobile-cellular service available since 1993 and provided by three nation-wide networks with a fourth provider beginning operations in late 2006; cellular coverage is generally good with some gaps in the east; fixed-line service is growing slowly and still lags in rural areas international: country code - 48; international direct dialing with automated exchanges; satellite earth station - 1 with access to Intelsat, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik |
Telephones - main lines in use | 291,359 (1999) | 11.475 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 32,042 (2000) | 36.746 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (plus several low-power repeaters) (1997) | 40 (2006) |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border |
Total fertility rate | 6.97 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.26 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (1995 est.) | 12.8% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | none | 3,997 km (navigable rivers and canals) (2006) |