Compare Zimbabwe (2007) - West Bank (2008)

Compare Zimbabwe (2007) z West Bank (2008)

	Zimbabwe (2007)	West Bank (2008)

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: 37.2% (male 2,308,731/female 2,266,027) 15-64 years: 59.3% (male 3,663,108/female 3,641,519) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 198,867/female 232,891) (2007 est.)	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.)
Agriculture - products	corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; sheep, goats, pigs	olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Airports	341 (2007)	3 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 19 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 10 (2007)	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 322 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 152 under 914 m: 166 (2007)	-
Area	total: 390,580 sq km land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km	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
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Montana	slightly smaller than Delaware
Background	The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the [British] South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated that favored whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded more complete 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. His chaotic land redistribution campaign, which began in 2000, caused an exodus of white farmers, crippled the economy, and ushered in widespread shortages of basic commodities. Ignoring international condemnation, MUGABE rigged the 2002 presidential election to ensure his reelection. Opposition and labor strikes in 2003 were unsuccessful in pressuring MUGABE to retire early; security forces continued their brutal repression of regime opponents. The ruling ZANU-PF party used fraud and intimidation to win a two-thirds majority in the March 2005 parliamentary election, allowing it to amend the constitution at will and recreate the Senate, which had been abolished in the late 1980s. In April 2005, Harare embarked on Operation Restore Order, ostensibly an urban rationalization program, which resulted in the destruction of the homes or businesses of 700,000 mostly poor supporters of the opposition, according to UN estimates. ZANU-PF announced in December 2006 that they would seek to extend MUGABE's term in office until 2010 when presidential and parliamentary elections would be "harmonized."	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.
Birth rate	27.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $2.156 billion expenditures: $2.789 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $1.149 billion expenditures: $2.31 billion note: includes Gaza Strip (2006)
Capital	name: Harare geographic coordinates: 17 50 S, 31 03 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	-
Climate	tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)	temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	0 km (landlocked)
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: West Bank
Death rate	21.76 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$4.576 billion (2006 est.)	$NA
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher W. DELL embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 and 250-594 FAX: [263] (4) 796-488	-
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Machivenyika T. MAPURANGA chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326	-
Disputes - international	Botswana built electric fences and South Africa has placed military along the border to stem the flow of thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing to find work and escape political persecution; Namibia has supported, and in 2004 Zimbabwe dropped objections to, plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited, Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river	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
Economic aid - recipient	$367.7 million; note - the EU and the US provide food aid on humanitarian grounds (2005 est.)	$1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
Economy - overview	The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles with an unsustainable fiscal deficit, an overvalued exchange rate, soaring inflation, and bare shelves. Its 1998-2002 involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. The government's land reform program, characterized by chaos and violence, has badly damaged the commercial farming sector, the traditional source of exports and foreign exchange and the provider of 400,000 jobs, turning Zimbabwe into a net importer of food products. Badly needed support from the IMF has been suspended because of the government's arrears on past loans, which it began repaying in 2005. The official annual inflation rate rose from 32% in 1998, to 133% in 2004, 585% in 2005, and approached 1000% in 2006, although private sector estimates put the figure much higher. Meanwhile, the official exchange rate fell from approximately 1 (revalued) Zimbabwean dollar per US dollar in 2003 to 160 per US dollar in 2006.	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.
Electricity - consumption	12.27 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - imports	3.013 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - production	9.95 billion kWh (2005)	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
Elevation extremes	lowest point: junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 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; poor mining practices have led to toxic waste and heavy metal pollution	adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment
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 82%, Ndebele 14%, other 2%), mixed and Asian 1%, white less than 1%	Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%
Exchange rates	Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar - 162.07 (2006), 77.965 (2005), 5.729 (2004), 0.824 (2003), 0.055 (2002) note: these are official exchange rates; non-official rates vary significantly	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003)
Executive branch	chief of state: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Vice President Joseph MSIKA (since December 1999) and Vice President Joyce MUJURU (since 6 December 2004); 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); Vice President Joseph MSIKA (since December 1999) and Vice President Joyce MUJURU (since 6 December 2004) 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 for a six-year term (no term limits); election last held 9-11 March 2002 (next to be held in March 2008); co-vice presidents appointed by the president election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 56.2%, Morgan TSVANGIRAI 41.9%	-
Exports	0 bbl/day (2004 est.)	$301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Exports - commodities	cotton, tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, textiles/clothing	olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone
Exports - partners	Sudan 24.9%, Republic of the Congo 17.7%, Burkina Faso 15.8%, US 10.5% (2006)	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
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 representing the long history of the country is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle, which symbolizes peace; green symbolizes agriculture, yellow - mineral wealth, red - blood shed to achieve independence, and black stands for the native people	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 16.7% industry: 21.6% services: 61.6% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 8% industry: 13% services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-4.1% (2006 est.)	-8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	20 00 S, 30 00 E	32 00 N, 35 15 E
Geography - note	landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zambia; in full flood (February-April) the massive Victoria Falls on the river forms the world's largest curtain of falling water	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.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2% highest 10%: 40.4% (1995)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	transit point for cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines en route to South Africa	-
Imports	13,370 bbl/day (2004 est.)	$2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Imports - commodities	machinery and transport equipment, other manufactures, chemicals, fuels	food, consumer goods, construction materials
Imports - partners	South Africa 40.8%, Zambia 29.6%, US 4.9% (2006)	Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006)
Independence	18 April 1980 (from UK)	-
Industrial production growth rate	-1.8% (2006 est.)	2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Industries	mining (coal, gold, platinum, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel; wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages	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
Infant mortality rate	total: 51.12 deaths/1,000 live births male: 53.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	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.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1,033.5% official data; private sector estimates are much higher (2006 est.)	3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006)
International organization participation	ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	-
Irrigated land	1,740 sq km (2003)	150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court; High Court	-
Labor force	3.99 million (2006 est.)	605,000 (2006)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 66% industry: 10% services: 24% (1996)	agriculture: 18% industry: 15% services: 67% (2006)
Land boundaries	total: 3,066 km border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km	total: 404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
Land use	arable land: 8.24% permanent crops: 0.33% other: 91.43% (2005)	arable land: 16.9% permanent crops: 18.97% other: 64.13% (2001)
Languages	English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects	Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Legal system	mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law	-
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate (66 seats - 50 elected by popular vote for a five-year term, 6 nominated by the president, 10 nominated by the Council of Chiefs) and a House of Assembly (150 seats - 120 elected by popular vote for five-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors appointed by the president) elections: Senate last held 26 November 2005 (next to be held in 2010; House of Assembly last held 31 March 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 73.7%, MDC 20.3%, other 4.4%, independents 1.6%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 43, MDC 7; House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 59.6%, MDC 39.5%, other 0.9%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 78, MDC 41, independents 1	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 39.5 years male: 40.62 years female: 38.35 years (2007 est.)	total population: 73.46 years male: 71.68 years female: 75.35 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write English total population: 90.7% male: 94.2% female: 87.2% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.4% male: 96.7% female: 88% (2004 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia	Middle East, west of Jordan
Map references	Africa	Middle East
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	none (landlocked)
Military branches	Zimbabwe Defense Forces (ZDF): Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ), Zimbabwe Republic Police (2005)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.8% (2006)	NA
National holiday	Independence Day, 18 April (1980)	-
Nationality	noun: Zimbabwean(s) adjective: Zimbabwean	noun: NA adjective: NA
Natural hazards	recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare	droughts
Natural resources	coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals	arable land
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2007 est.)	2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	refined products 261 km (2006)	-
Political parties and leaders	African National Party or ANP; Movement for Democratic Change or MDC [Morgan TSVANGIRAI, anti-Senate faction; Arthur MUTAMBARA, pro-Senate faction]; Peace Action is Freedom for All or PAFA; United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]; United People's Party [Daniel SHUMBA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Wilson KUMBULA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert Gabriel MUGABE]; Zimbabwe African Peoples Union or ZAPU [Agrippa MADLELA]; Zimbabwe Youth in Alliance or ZIYA	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition [Arnold TSUNGA]; National Constitutional Assembly or NCA [Lovemore MADHUKU]; Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions or ZCTU [Wellington CHIBEBE]	-
Population	12,311,143 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 2007 est.)	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.)
Population below poverty line	68% (2004)	46% (2007 est.)
Population growth rate	0.595% (2007 est.)	2.985% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008)
Railways	total: 3,077 km narrow gauge: 3,077 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified) (2006)	-
Religions	syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1%	Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.006 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.854 male(s)/female total population: 1.005 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	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.)
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: country code - 263; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat; 2 international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and Gweru)	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)
Telephones - main lines in use	331,700 (2006)	349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	832,500 (2006)	1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005)
Television broadcast stations	16 (1997)	30 (2008)
Terrain	mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east	mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east
Total fertility rate	3.08 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	80% (2005 est.)	18.6% (2006)
Waterways	on Lake Kariba (2005)	-

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.