Zimbabwe (2001) | Baker Island (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
38.68% (male 2,223,332; female 2,172,479) 15-64 years: 57.69% (male 3,319,982; female 3,236,286) 65 years and over: 3.63% (male 208,785; female 204,502) (2001 est.) |
- |
Agriculture - products | corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs | - |
Airports | 455 (2000 est.) | 1 abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m, completely covered with vegetation and unusable (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
18 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
437 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 209 under 914 m: 224 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
390,580 sq km land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km |
total: 1.4 sq km
land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Montana | about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated to keep whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence. | The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast. |
Birth rate | 24.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues:
$2.5 billion expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $279 million (FY96/97 est.) |
- |
Capital | Harare | - |
Climate | tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March) | equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 4.8 km |
Constitution | 21 December 1979 | - |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Zimbabwe conventional short form: Zimbabwe former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Baker Island |
Currency | Zimbabwean dollar (ZWD) | - |
Death rate | 23.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (2000 est.) | - |
Dependency status | - | unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Earl M. IRVING embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 FAX: [263] (4) 796487 |
- |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Simbi Veke MUBAKO chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326 |
- |
Disputes - international | - | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $200 million (2000 est.) | - |
Economy - overview | The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles to consolidate earlier moves to develop a market-oriented economy. Its involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, has already drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. Badly needed support from the IMF suffers delays in part because of the country's failure to meet budgetary goals. Inflation rose from an annual rate of 32% in 1998 to 59% in 1999 and 60% in 2000. The economy is being steadily weakened by excessive government deficits and AIDS; Zimbabwe has the highest rate of infection in the world. Per capita GDP, which is twice the average of the poorer sub-Saharan nations, will increase little if any in the near-term, and Zimbabwe will suffer continued frustrations in developing its agricultural and mineral resources. | no economic activity |
Electricity - consumption | 6.939 billion kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 1.564 billion kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 5.78 billion kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
69.98% hydro: 30.02% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 8 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd - once the largest concentration of the species in the world - has been significantly reduced by poaching | no natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | African 98% (Shona 71%, Ndebele 16%, other 11%), mixed and Asian 1%, white less than 1% | - |
Exchange rates | Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar - 54.9451 (January 2001), 43.2900 (2000), 38.3142 (1999), 21.4133 (1998), 11.8906 (1997), 9.9206 (1996) | - |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly elections: presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote; election last held 16-17 March 1996 (next to be held NA March 2002); co-vice presidents appointed by the president election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of electoral college vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 92.7%, Abel MUZOREWA 4.8%; Ndabaningi SITHOLE 2.4% |
- |
Exports | $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | - |
Exports - commodities | tobacco 29%, gold 7%, ferroalloys 7%, cotton 5% (1999 est.) | - |
Exports - partners | South Africa 10%, UK 9%, Malawi 8%, Botswana 8%, Japan 7%, (1999 est.) | - |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | - |
Flag description | seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle | the flag of the US is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $28.2 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
28% industry: 32% services: 40% (1997 est.) |
- |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -6.1% (2000 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 30 00 E | 0 13 N, 176 31 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife |
Highways | total:
18,338 km paved: 8,692 km unpaved: 9,646 km (1996 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.8% highest 10%: 46.9% (1990) |
- |
Illicit drugs | significant transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European markets | - |
Imports | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | - |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 35%, other manufactures 18%, chemicals 17%, fuels 14% (1999 est.) | - |
Imports - partners | South Africa 46%, UK 6%, China 4%, Germany 4%, US 3% (1999 est.) | - |
Independence | 18 April 1980 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
Industries | mining (coal, gold, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel, wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages | - |
Infant mortality rate | 62.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | - |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 60% (2000 est.) | - |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 1,930 sq km (1993 est.) | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | - |
Labor force | 5.5 million (2000 est.) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 66%, services 24%, industry 10% (1996 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
3,066 km border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 23% other: 57% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects | - |
Legal system | mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law | the laws of the US, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | unicameral parliament, called House of Assembly (150 seats - 120 elected by popular vote for six-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors)
elections: last held 24-25 June 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 47.2%, MDC 45.6%, ZANU-Ndonga 0.7%, United Parties 0.7%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 63, MDC 56, ZANU-Ndonga 1 |
- |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
37.13 years male: 38.51 years female: 35.7 years (2001 est.) |
- |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write English total population: 85% male: 90% female: 80% (1995 est.) |
- |
Location | Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia | Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard |
Military branches | Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Republic Police (includes Police Support Unit, Paramilitary Police) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $127 million (FY99/00) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.1% (FY99/00) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,996,631 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,860,167 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 18 April (1980) | - |
Nationality | noun:
Zimbabwean(s) adjective: Zimbabwean |
- |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard |
Natural resources | coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals | guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: there is a small but steady flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa in search of better paid employment |
- |
Pipelines | petroleum products 212 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Movement for Democratic Change or MDC [Morgan TSVANGIRAI]; Popular Democratic Front or PDF [Austin CHAKAODZA]; United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Ndabaningi SITHOLE]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert MUGABE]; Zimbabwe Unity Movement or ZUM [Edgar TEKERE] | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | National Constitutional Assembly or NCA | - |
Population | 11,365,366
note: estimates for this country explicitly 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 and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
uninhabited
note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service (2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (1999 est.) | - |
Population growth rate | 0.15% (2001 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | Binga, Kariba | none; offshore anchorage only; note - there is one small boat landing area along the middle of the west coast |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998) | - |
Radios | 1.14 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,759 km (1995) narrow gauge: 2,759 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified; 42 km double track) (1995 est.) |
- |
Religions | syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1% | - |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
- |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment:
system was once one of the best in Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100,000 outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number of installed but unused main lines domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines, radiotelephone communication stations, fixed wireless local loop installations, and a substantial mobile cellular network; Internet connection is available in Harare and planned for all major towns and for some of the smaller ones international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat; two international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and Gweru) |
- |
Telephones - main lines in use | 212,000 (in addition there are about 20,000 fixed telephones in wireless local loop connections) (1997) | - |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 70,000 (1999) | - |
Television broadcast stations | 16 (1997) | - |
Terrain | mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east | low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef |
Total fertility rate | 3.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) | - |
Transportation - note | - | there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | - |
Waterways | the Mazoe and Zambezi rivers are used for transporting chrome ore from Harare to Mozambique | - |