The 1995 CIA World Factbook

Part 14 out of 45




Type: overseas territory of France since 1955; governed by High
Administrator Bernard de GOUTTES (since May 1990), who is assisted by
a 7-member Consultative Council and a 12-member Scientific Council

Capital: none; administered from Paris, France

Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of France); there
are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US
Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles
Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Terre Adelie"
claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US

Independence: none (overseas territory of France)

Flag: the flag of France is used

@French Southern And Antarctic Lands:Economy

Overview: Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and
geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The
fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to
France and Reunion.

Budget:
revenues: $17.5 million
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992)

@French Southern And Antarctic Lands:Transportation

Highways:
total: NA
paved: NA
unpaved: NA

Ports: none; offshore anchorage only

Merchant marine:
total: 48 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,290,975 GRT/2,403,050
DWT
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 6, chemical tanker 4, container 1,
liquefied gas tanker 3, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker
15, refrigerated cargo 4, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, specialized
liquefied tanker 1
note: a subset of the French register allowing French-owned ships to
operate under more liberal taxation and manning regulations than
permissable under the main French register

Airports: none

@French Southern And Antarctic Lands:Communications

Telephone system: NA telephones
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: NA

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
radios: NA

Television:
broadcast stations: NA
televisions: NA

@French Southern And Antarctic Lands:Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of France


________________________________________________________________________

GABON

@Gabon:Geography

Location: Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator,
between Congo and Equatorial Guinea

Map references: Africa

Area:
total area: 267,670 sq km
land area: 257,670 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Colorado

Land boundaries: total 2,551 km, Cameroon 298 km, Congo 1,903 km,
Equatorial Guinea 350 km

Coastline: 885 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: maritime boundary dispute with Equatorial
Guinea because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay

Climate: tropical; always hot, humid

Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and
south

Natural resources: petroleum, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron
ore

Land use:
arable land: 1%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 18%
forest and woodland: 78%
other: 2%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Environment:
current issues: deforestation; poaching
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Law of the Sea, Tropical Timber 94

@Gabon:People

Population: 1,155,749 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 34% (female 193,859; male 194,761)
15-64 years: 61% (female 347,839; male 359,997)
65 years and over: 5% (female 30,218; male 29,075) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.46% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 28.34 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 13.72 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 92.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 55.14 years
male: 52.31 years
female: 58.06 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.93 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Gabonese (singular and plural)
adjective: Gabonese

Ethnic divisions: Bantu tribes including four major tribal groupings
(Fang, Eshira, Bapounou, Bateke), other Africans and Europeans
100,000, including 27,000 French

Religions: Christian 55%-75%, Muslim less than 1%, animist

Languages: French (official), Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou/Eschira,
Bandjabi

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population: 61%
male: 74%
female: 48%

Labor force: 120,000 salaried
by occupation: agriculture 65.0%, industry and commerce 30.0%,
services 2.5%, government 2.5%

@Gabon:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Gabonese Republic
conventional short form: Gabon
local long form: Republique Gabonaise
local short form: Gabon

Digraph: GB

Type: republic; multiparty presidential regime (opposition parties
legalized 1990)

Capital: Libreville

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue,
Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo,
Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem

Independence: 17 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday: Renovation Day, 12 March (1968) (Gabonese Democratic
Party established)

Constitution: adopted 14 March 1991

Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law;
judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the
Supreme Court; compulsory ICJ jurisdiction not accepted

Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President El Hadj Omar BONGO (since 2 December 1967);
election last held on 5 December 1993 (next to be held 1998); results
- President Omar BONGO was reelected with 51% of the vote
head of government: Prime Minister Paulin OBAME Nguema (since 9
December 1994)
cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the prime minister in
consultation with the president

Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale): elections last held on 5
December 1993 (next to be held by 1998); results - percent of vote by
party NA; seats - (120 total) PDG 62, Morena-Bucherons/RNB 19, PGP 18,
National Recovery Movement (Morena-Original) 7, APSG 6, USG 4, CRP 1,
independents 3

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)

Political parties and leaders: Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG, former
sole party), Jaques ADIAHENOT, Secretary General; National Recovery
Movement - Lumberjacks (Morena-Bucherons/RNB), Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE,
leader; Gabonese Party for Progress (PGP), Pierre-Louis AGONDHO-OKAWE,
President; National Recovery Movement (Morena-Original), Pierre
ZONGUE-NGUEMA, Chairman; Association for Socialism in Gabon (APSG),
leader NA; Gabonese Socialist Union (USG), leader NA; Circle for
Renewal and Progress (CRP), leader NA; Union for Democracy and
Development (UDD), leader NA; Rally of Democrats (RD), leader NA;
Forces of Change for Democratic Union, leader NA

Member of: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-24,
G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS
(associate), ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU,
NAM, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UDEAC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Paul BOUNDOUKOU-LATHA
chancery: 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007, Suite 200
telephone: [1] (202) 797-1000

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph C. WILSON IV
embassy: Boulevard de la Mer, Libreville
mailing address: B. P. 4000, Libreville
telephone: [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, 74 34 92
FAX: [241] 74 55 07

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue

@Gabon:Economy

Overview: Notwithstanding its serious ongoing economic problems, Gabon
enjoys a per capita income more than twice that of most nations of
sub-Saharan Africa. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil
was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now
accounts for 50% of GDP. Real growth was feeble in 1992 and Gabon
continues to face the problem of fluctuating prices for its oil,
timber, manganese, and uranium exports. Despite an abundance of
natural wealth, and a manageable rate of population growth, the
economy is hobbled by poor fiscal management. In 1992, the fiscal
deficit widened to 2.4% of GDP, and Gabon failed to settle arrears on
its bilateral debt, leading to a cancellation of rescheduling
agreements with official and private creditors. Devaluation of its
Francophone currency by 50% in January 1994 did not set off an
expected inflationary spiral but the government must continue to keep
a tight reign on spending and wage increases.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $5.6 billion (1994
est.)

National product real growth rate: 1.9% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $4,900 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 35% (1994 est.)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $1.3 billion
expenditures: $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $311
million (1993 est.)

Exports: $2.1 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est)
commodities: crude oil 80%, timber 10%, manganese 6%, uranium 2%
partners: US 38%, France 26%, Japan, Germany

Imports: $832 million (c.i.f., 1993 est.)
commodities: foodstuffs, chemical products, petroleum products,
construction materials, manufactures, machinery
partners: France 42%, African countries 23%, US, Japan

External debt: $3.3 billion (1993 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate -3% (1991)

Electricity:
capacity: 315,000 kW
production: 910 million kWh
consumption per capita: 757 kWh (1993)

Industries: food and beverages, lumbering and plywood, textiles,
cement, petroleum refining, mining - manganese, uranium, gold,
petroleum

Agriculture: cash crops - cocoa, coffee, palm oil; livestock raising
not developed; importer of food; small fishing operations provide a
catch of about 20,000 metric tons; okoume (a tropical softwood) is the
most important timber product

Economic aid:
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $68 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-90), $2.342 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $27 million

Currency: 1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1
- 529.43 (January 1995), 555.20 (1994), 283.16 (1993), 264.69 (1992),
282.11 (1991), 272.26 (1990)
note: beginning 12 January 1994, the CFA franc was devalued to CFAF
100 per French franc from CFAF 50 at which it had been fixed since
1948

Fiscal year: calendar year

@Gabon:Transportation

Railroads:
total: 649 km single track (Transgabonese Railroad)
standard gauge: 649 km 1.437-m gauge

Highways:
total: 7,500 km
paved: 560 km
unpaved: crushed stone 960 km; earth 5,980 km

Inland waterways: 1,600 km perennially navigable

Pipelines: crude oil 270 km; petroleum products 14 km

Ports: Cape Lopez, Kango, Lambarene, Libreville, Owendo, Port-Gentil

Merchant marine:
total: 1 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,281 GRT/12,665 DWT

Airports:
total: 69
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 28
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 8
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 23

@Gabon:Communications

Telephone system: 15,000 telephones; telephone density - 13/1,000
persons
local: NA
intercity: adequate system, comprising cable, microwave radio relay,
tropospheric scatter, radiocommunication stations, and 12 domestic
satellite links
international: 3 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 6, FM 6, shortwave 0
radios: NA

Television:
broadcast stations: 3 (repeaters 5)
televisions: NA

@Gabon:Defense Forces

Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Presidential Guard, National
Gendarmerie, National Police

Manpower availability: males age 15-49 272,025; males fit for military
service 138,197; males reach military age (20) annually 10,516 (1995
est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $154 million, 2.4% of
GDP (1993)


________________________________________________________________________

THE GAMBIA

@The Gambia:Geography

Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and
Senegal

Map references: Africa

Area:
total area: 11,300 sq km
land area: 10,000 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Delaware

Land boundaries: total 740 km, Senegal 740 km

Coastline: 80 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 18 nm
continental shelf: not specified
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: short section of boundary with Senegal is
indefinite

Climate: tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler, dry
season (November to May)

Terrain: flood plain of the Gambia River flanked by some low hills

Natural resources: fish

Land use:
arable land: 16%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 9%
forest and woodland: 20%
other: 55%

Irrigated land: 120 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: deforestation; desertification; water-borne diseases
prevalent
natural hazards: rainfall has dropped by 30% in the last thirty years
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Desertification

Note: almost an enclave of Senegal; smallest country on the continent
of Africa

@The Gambia:People

Population: 989,273 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 47% (female 231,636; male 231,053)
15-64 years: 51% (female 257,329; male 244,947)
65 years and over: 2% (female 11,850; male 12,458) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.08% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 45.97 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 15.19 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 120.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 50.55 years
male: 48.25 years
female: 52.92 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.23 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Gambian(s)
adjective: Gambian

Ethnic divisions: African 99% (Mandinka 42%, Fula 18%, Wolof 16%, Jola
10%, Serahuli 9%, other 4%), non-Gambian 1%

Religions: Muslim 90%, Christian 9%, indigenous beliefs 1%

Languages: English (official), Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous
vernaculars

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population: 27%
male: 39%
female: 16%

Labor force: 400,000 (1986 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 75.0%, industry, commerce, and services
18.9%, government 6.1%

@The Gambia:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Republic of The Gambia
conventional short form: The Gambia

Digraph: GA

Type: republic under multiparty democratic rule

Capital: Banjul

Administrative divisions: 5 divisions and 1 city*; Banjul*, Lower
River, MacCarthy Island, North Bank, Upper River, Western

Independence: 18 February 1965 (from UK; The Gambia and Senegal signed
an agreement on 12 December 1981 that called for the creation of a
loose confederation to be known as Senegambia, but the agreement was
dissolved on 30 September 1989)

National holiday: Independence Day, 18 February (1965)

Constitution: 24 April 1970

Legal system: based on a composite of English common law, Koranic law,
and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with
reservations

Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: Chairman of the Armed Forces
Provisional Ruling Council Capt. Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH (since the
military coup of 22 July 1994); Vice Chairman of the Armed Forces
Provisional Ruling Council Capt. Edward SINGHATEH (since March 1995);
election last held on 29 April 1992; results - Sir Dawda JAWARA (PPP)
58.5%, Sherif Mustapha DIBBA (NCP) 22.2%, Assan Musa CAMARA (GPP) 8.0%
(prior to the 22 July 1994 coup, next election was scheduled for April
1997)
cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president from members of the House
of Representatives (present cabinet appointed by Chairman of the Armed
Forces Provisional Ruling Council)

Legislative branch: unicameral
House of Representatives: elections last held on 29 April 1992 (next
to be held April 1997); results - PPP 58.1%; seats - (43 total, 36
elected) PPP 30, NCP 6

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: People's Progressive Party (PPP), Dawda
K. JAWARA (in exile), secretary general; National Convention Party
(NCP), Sheriff DIBBA (in exile); Gambian People's Party (GPP), Hassan
Musa CAMARA; United Party (UP), leader NA; People's Democratic
Organization of Independence and Socialism (PDOIS), leader NA;
People's Democratic Party (PDP), Jabel SALLAH

Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD,
ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT
(nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Aminatta DIBBA
chancery: Suite 1000, 1155 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
telephone: [1] (202) 785-1399, 1379, 1425
FAX: [1] (202) 785-1430

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Andrew J. WINTER
embassy: Fajara, Kairaba Avenue, Banjul
mailing address: P. M. B. No. 19, Banjul
telephone: [220] 392856, 392858, 391970, 391971
FAX: [220] 392475

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue with white
edges, and green

@The Gambia:Economy

Overview: The Gambia has no important mineral or other natural
resources and has a limited agricultural base. About 75% of the
population is engaged in crop production and livestock raising, which
contribute 30% to GDP. Small-scale manufacturing activity - processing
peanuts, fish, and hides - accounts for less than 10% of GDP. A
sustained structural adjustment program, including a liberalized trade
policy, had fostered a respectable 4% rate of growth in recent years.
Reexport trade constitutes one-third of economic activity; however,
border closures associated with Senegal's monetary crisis in late 1993
led to a halving of reexport trade, reducing government revenues in
turn. The 50% devaluation of the CFA franc in January 1994 has made
Senegalese goods more competitive and apparently prompted a relaxation
of Senegalese controls, paving the way for a comeback in reexports.
But overwhelming these developments were the devastating effects of
the military's takeover in July 1994. By October, traffic at the Port
of Banjul had fallen precipitously as importers nervously scaled back
their activities with the commencement of the anticorruption drive by
the new regime. Concerned with the growing potential for serious
unrest after a countercoup attempt was bloodily put down by the
regime, the United Kingdom and the EU in November issued a travelers
advisory for The Gambia, which brought a halt to tourism almost
immediately. The Gambia faces additional problems in 1995 if, as is
likely, economic sanctions by Western governments remain in effect in
response to indications that the military regime intends to stay in
power far longer than expected by the donors.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1993
est.)

National product real growth rate: NA%

National product per capita: $1,050 (1993 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.5% (1993)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $94 million
expenditures: $89 million, including capital expenditures of $24
million (FY92/93 est.)

Exports: $81 million (f.o.b., FY92/93 est.)
commodities: peanuts and peanut products, fish, cotton lint, palm
kernels
partners: Japan 60%, Europe 29%, Africa 5%, US 1%, other 5% (1989)

Imports: $154 million (f.o.b., FY92/93 est.)
commodities: foodstuffs, manufactures, raw materials, fuel, machinery
and transport equipment
partners: Europe 57%, Asia 25%, USSR and Eastern Europe 9%, US 6%,
other 3% (1989)

External debt: $286 million (FY92/93 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate 6.7%

Electricity:
capacity: 30,000 kW
production: 70 million kWh
consumption per capita: 64 kWh (1993)

Industries: peanut processing, tourism, beverages, agricultural
machinery assembly, woodworking, metalworking, clothing

Agriculture: accounts for 30% of GDP; one-third of food requirements
is imported; major export crop is peanuts; other principal crops -
millet, sorghum, rice, corn, cassava, palm kernels; livestock -
cattle, sheep, goats; forestry and fishing resources not fully
exploited

Economic aid:
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $93 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $535 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $39 million

Currency: 1 dalasi (D) = 100 butut

Exchange rates: dalasi (D) per US$1 - 9.565 (January 1995), 9.576
(1994), 9.129 (1993), 8.888 (1992), 8.803 (1991), 7.883 (1990)

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

@The Gambia:Transportation

Railroads: 0 km

Highways:
total: 3,083 km
paved: 431 km
unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 501 km; unimproved earth 2,151 km

Inland waterways: 400 km

Ports: Banjul

Merchant marine:
total: 1 bulk ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 11,194 GRT/19,394 DWT

Airports:
total: 1
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1

@The Gambia:Communications

Telephone system: 3,500 telephones; telephone density - 4
telephones/1,000 persons
local: NA
intercity: adequate network of radio relay and wire
international: 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 2, shortwave 0
radios: NA

Television:
broadcast stations: NA
televisions: NA

@The Gambia:Defense Forces

Branches: Army, Navy, National Police

Manpower availability: males age 15-49 214,680; males fit for military
service 108,659 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $14 million, 3.8% of
GDP (FY93/94)


________________________________________________________________________

GAZA STRIP

Note--The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government Arrangements ("the DOP"), signed in Washington on 13
September 1993, provides for a transitional period not exceeding five
years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank. Under the DOP, final status negotiations are to begin no
later than the beginning of the third year of the transitional period.

@Gaza Strip:Geography

Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt
and Israel

Map references: Middle East

Area:
total area: 360 sq km
land area: 360 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: total 62 km, Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km

Coastline: 40 km

Maritime claims: Israeli occupied with interim status subject to
Israeli/Palestinian negotiations - final status to be determined

International disputes: West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli occupied
with interim status subject to Israeli/Palestinian negotiations -
final status to be determined

Climate: temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers

Terrain: flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain

Natural resources: negligible

Land use:
arable land: 13%
permanent crops: 32%
meadows and pastures: 0%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 55%

Irrigated land: 115 sq km (1992 est.)

Environment:
current issues: desertification
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: NA

Note: there are 24 Jewish settlements and civilian land use sites in
the Gaza Strip (August 1994 est.)

@Gaza Strip:People

Population: 813,322 (July 1995 est.)
note: in addition, there are 4,800 Jewish settlers in the Gaza Strip
(August 1994 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 52% (female 205,192; male 215,158)
15-64 years: 45% (female 185,748; male 183,886)
65 years and over: 3% (female 13,106; male 10,232) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 4.55% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 50.24 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 4.75 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 30.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.09 years
male: 69.56 years
female: 72.69 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 7.74 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: NA
adjective: NA

Ethnic divisions: Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%

Religions: Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish
0.6%

Languages: Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers), English
(widely understood)

Literacy: NA%

Labor force: NA
by occupation: construction 33.4%, agriculture 20.0%, commerce,
restaurants, and hotels 14.9%, industry 10.0%, other services 21.7%
(1991)
note: excluding Jewish settlers

@Gaza Strip:Government

Note: Under the Israeli-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government Arrangements ("the DOP"), Israel agreed to transfer
certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, and
subsequently to an elected Palestinian Council, as part of interim
self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A
transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho
has taken place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement
on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area. The DOP provides that Israel
will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external
security and for internal security and public order of settlements and
Israelis. Final status is to be determined through direct negotiations
within five years.

Names:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gaza Strip
local long form: none
local short form: Qita Ghazzah

Digraph: GZ

@Gaza Strip:Economy

Overview: In 1991 roughly 40% of Gaza Strip workers were employed
across the border by Israeli industrial, construction, and
agricultural enterprises, with worker remittances supplementing GDP by
roughly 50%. Gaza depends upon Israel for nearly 90% of its external
trade. Aggravating the impact of Israeli military administration,
unrest in the territory since 1988 (intifadah) has raised unemployment
and lowered the standard of living of Gazans. The Persian Gulf crisis
and its aftershocks also have dealt blows to Gaza since August 1990.
Worker remittances from the Gulf states have dropped, unemployment has
increased, and exports have fallen. The withdrawal of Israel from the
Gaza Strip in May 1994 brings a new set of adjustment problems.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.7 billion (1993
est.)

National product real growth rate: NA%

National product per capita: $2,400 (1993 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.7% (1993)

Unemployment rate: 45% (1994 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $33.6 million
expenditures: $34.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(FY89/90)

Exports: $83 million (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities: citrus
partners: Israel, Egypt

Imports: $365 million (c.i.f., 1992)
commodities: food, consumer goods, construction materials
partners: Israel, Egypt

External debt: $NA

Industrial production: growth rate 11% (1991 est.)

Electricity: power supplied by Israel

Industries: generally small family businesses that produce textiles,
soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis
have established some small-scale modern industries in an industrial
center

Agriculture: olives, citrus and other fruits; vegetables; beef and
dairy products

Economic aid: $240 million disbursed from international aid pledges in
1994

Currency: 1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot

Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1 - 3.0270 (December
1994), 3.0111 (1994), 2.8301 (1993), 2.4591 (1992), 2.2791 (1991),
2.0162 (1990)

Fiscal year: calendar year (since 1 January 1992)

@Gaza Strip:Transportation

Railroads:
total: NA km; note - one line, abandoned and in disrepair, little
trackage remains

Highways:
total: NA
paved: NA
unpaved: NA
note: small, poorly developed road network

Ports: Gaza

Airports:
total: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 1

@Gaza Strip:Communications

Telephone system: NA; note - 10% of Palestinian households have
telephones (1992 est.)
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: NA

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0
radios: NA; note - 95% of Palestinian households have radios (1992
est.)

Television:
broadcast stations: 0
televisions: NA; note - 59% of Palestinian households have televisions
(1992 est.)

@Gaza Strip:Defense Forces

Branches: NA

Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP


________________________________________________________________________

GEORGIA

Note--Georgia has been beset by ethnic and civil strife since
independence. In late 1991, the country's first elected president,
Zviad GAMSAKHURDIA was ousted in an armed coup. In October 1993,
GAMSAKHURDIA, and his supporters sponsored a failed attempt to retake
power from the current government led by former Soviet Foreign
Minister Eduard SHEVARDNADZE. The Georgian government has also faced
armed separatist conflicts in the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions.
A cease-fire went into effect in South Ossetia in June 1992 and a
joint Georgian-Ossetian-Russian peacekeeping force has been in place
since that time. Georgian forces were driven out of the Abkhaz region
in September 1993 after a yearlong war with Abkhaz separatists. Nearly
200,000 Georgian refugees have since fled Abkhazia, adding
substantially to the estimated 100,000 internally displaced persons
already in Georgia. Russian peacekeepers are deployed along the border
of Abkhazia and the rest of Georgia.

@Georgia:Geography

Location: Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between Turkey
and Russia

Map references: Middle East

Area:
total area: 69,700 sq km
land area: 69,700 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than South Carolina

Land boundaries: total 1,461 km, Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km,
Russia 723 km, Turkey 252 km

Coastline: 310 km

Maritime claims: NA

International disputes: none

Climate: warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast

Terrain: largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the
north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhida Lowland
opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River Basin in the east;
good soils in river valley flood plains, foothills of Kolkhida Lowland

Natural resources: forest lands, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron
ores, copper, minor coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils
allow for important tea and citrus growth

Land use:
arable land: 11%
permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 29%
forest and woodland: 38%
other: 18%

Irrigated land: 4,660 sq km (1990)

Environment:
current issues: air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy
pollution of Mtkvari River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies of
potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Desertification

@Georgia:People

Population: 5,725,972 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 24% (female 674,331; male 707,355)
15-64 years: 64% (female 1,894,681; male 1,791,847)
65 years and over: 12% (female 410,703; male 247,055) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.77% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 15.77 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 8.73 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 22.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.1 years
male: 69.43 years
female: 76.95 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.16 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Georgian(s)
adjective: Georgian

Ethnic divisions: Georgian 70.1%, Armenian 8.1%, Russian 6.3%, Azeri
5.7%, Ossetian 3%, Abkhaz 1.8%, other 5%

Religions: Georgian Orthodox 65%, Russian Orthodox 10%, Muslim 11%,
Armenian Orthodox 8%, unknown 6%

Languages: Armenian 7%, Azeri 6%, Georgian 71% (official), Russian 9%,
other 7%

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1989)
total population: 99%
male: 100%
female: 98%

Labor force: 2.763 million
by occupation: industry and construction 31%, agriculture and forestry
25%, other 44% (1990)

@Georgia:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Georgia
conventional short form: Georgia
local long form: Sak'art'velos Respublika
local short form: Sak'art'velo
former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic

Digraph: GG

Type: republic

Capital: T'bilisi

Administrative divisions: 2 autonomous republics (avtomnoy respubliki,
singular - avtom respublika); Abkhazia (Sokhumi), Ajaria (Bat'umi)
note: the administrative centers of the autonomous republics are
included in parentheses; there are no oblasts - the rayons around
T'bilisi are under direct republic jurisdiction

Independence: 9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 26 May (1991)

Constitution: adopted 21 February 1921; currently amending
constitution for Parliamentary and popular review by late 1995

Legal system: based on civil law system

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Chairman of Parliament Eduard Amvrosiyevich
SHEVARDNADZE (Chairman of the Government Council since 10 March 1992;
elected Chairman of Parliament in 11 October 1992; note - the
Government Council has since been disbanded); election last held 11
October 1992 (next to be held October 1995); results - Eduard
SHEVARDNADZE 95%
head of government: Prime Minister Otar PATSATSIA (since September
1993); Deputy Prime Ministers Avtandil MARGIANI, Zurab KERVALISHVILI
(since 25 November 1992), Tamaz NADAREISHVILI (since September 1993),
Temur BASILIA (since 17 March 1994), Bakur GULA (since NA)
cabinet: Council of Ministers

Legislative branch: unicameral
Georgian Parliament (Supreme Soviet): elections last held 11 October
1992 (next to be held October 1995); results - percent of vote by
party NA; seats - (225 total) number of seats by party NA

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: Citizens Union (CU), Eduard
SHEVARDNADZE, Zurab SHVANIA, general secretary; National Democratic
Party (NDP), Georgi (Gia) CHANTURIA, Ivane GIORGADZE; United
Republican Party, umbrella organization for parties including the GPF
and the Charter 1991 Party, cochairmen Bakhtand DZABIRADZE, Notar
NATADZE, and Theodor PAATASHVILI; Georgian Popular Front (GPF), Nodar
NATADZE, chairman; Charter 1991 Party, Thedor PAATASHVILI; Georgian
Social Democratic Party (GSDP), Guram MUCHAIDZE, secretary general;
National Reconstruction and Rebirth of Georgia Union, Valerian
ADVADZE; Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Irakli SHENGELAYA;
Democratic Georgia Union (DGU), El'dar SHENGELAYA; National
Independence Party (NIP), Irakliy TSERETELI, chairman; Georgian
Monarchists' Party (GMP), Temur ZHORZHOLIANI; Green Party, Zurab
ZHVANIA; Republican Party (RP), Ivliane KHAINDRAVA; Workers' Union of
Georgia (WUG), Vakhtang GABUNIA; Agrarian Party of Georgia (APG), Roin
LIPARTELIANI; Choice Society (Archevani), Jaba IOSELIANI, chairman;
Georgian Workers Communist Party, Panteleimon GIORGADZE, chairman;
National Liberation Front, Tengiz SIGULA, chairman

Other political or pressure groups: supporters of ousted President
Zviad GAMSAKHURDIA (deceased 1 January 1994) boycotted the October
elections and remain a source of opposition

Member of: BSEC, CCC, CIS, EBRD, ECE, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INMARSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Tedo JAPARIDZE
chancery: (temporary) Suite 424, 1511 K Street NW, Washington, DC
20005
telephone: [1] (202) 393-6060, 5959

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kent N. BROWN
embassy: #25 Antoneli Street, T'bilisi 380026
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [7] (8832) 98-99-67, 93-38-03
FAX: [7] (8832) 93-37-59

Flag: maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist side corner;
rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below

@Georgia:Economy

Overview: Georgia's economy has traditionally revolved around Black
Sea tourism; cultivation of citrus fruits, tea, and grapes; mining of
manganese and copper; and a small industrial sector producing wine,
metals, machinery, chemicals, and textiles. The country imports the
bulk of its energy needs, including natural gas and oil products. Its
only sizable domestic energy resource is hydropower. Since 1990,
widespread conflicts, e.g., in Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and
Mingreliya, have severely aggravated the economic crisis resulting
from the disintegration of the Soviet command economy in December
1991. Throughout 1993 and 1994, much of industry was functioning at
only 20% of capacity; heavy disruptions in agricultural cultivation
were reported; and tourism was shut down. The country is precariously
dependent on US and EU humanitarian grain shipments, as most other
foods are priced beyond reach of the average citizen. Georgia is also
suffering from an acute energy crisis, as it is having problems paying
for even minimal imports. Georgia is pinning its hopes for recovery on
reestablishing trade ties with Russia and on developing international
transportation through the key Black Sea ports of P'ot'i and Bat'umi.
The government began a tenuous program in 1994 aiming to stabilize
prices and reduce large consumer subsidies.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $6 billion (1994
estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1992)

National product real growth rate: -30% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $1,060 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 40.5% per month (2nd half 1993 est.)

Unemployment rate: officially less than 5% but real unemployment may
be more than 20%, with even larger numbers of underemployed workers

Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Exports: $NA
commodities: citrus fruits, tea, wine, other agricultural products;
diverse types of machinery; ferrous and nonferrous metals; textiles;
chemicals; fuel re-exports
partners: Russia, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan (1992)

Imports: $NA
commodities: fuel, grain and other foods, machinery and parts,
transport equipment
partners: Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey (1993); note - EU and US sent
humanitarian food shipments

External debt: NA (T'bilisi owes about $400 million to Turkmenistan
for natural gas as of January 1995)

Industrial production: growth rate -27% (1993); accounts for 36% of
GDP

Electricity:
capacity: 4,410,000 kW
production: 9.1 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 1,526 kWh (1993)

Industries: heavy industrial products include raw steel, rolled steel,
airplanes; machine tools, foundry equipment, electric locomotives,
tower cranes, electric welding equipment, machinery for food
preparation and meat packing, electric motors, process control
equipment, instruments; trucks, tractors, and other farm machinery;
light industrial products, including cloth, hosiery, and shoes;
chemicals; wood-working industries; the most important food industry
is wine

Agriculture: accounted for 97% of former USSR citrus fruits and 93% of
former USSR tea; important producer of grapes; also cultivates
vegetables and potatoes; dependent on imports for grain, dairy
products, sugar; small livestock sector

Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly
for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for illicit
drugs to Western Europe

Economic aid:
recipient: heavily dependent on US and EU for humanitarian grain
shipments; EC granted around $70 million in trade credits in 1992 and
another $40 million in 1993; Turkey granted $50 million in 1993;
smaller scale credits granted by Russia and China

Currency: coupons introduced in April 1993 to be followed by
introduction of the lari at undetermined future date; in July 1993 use
of the Russian ruble was banned

Exchange rates: coupons per $US1 - 1,280,000 (end December 1994)

Fiscal year: calendar year

@Georgia:Transportation

Railroads:
total: 1,570 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial
lines
broad gauge: 1,570 km 1.520-m gauge (1990)

Highways:
total: 33,900 km
paved and graveled: 29,500 km
unpaved: earth 4,400 km (1990)

Pipelines: crude oil 370 km; refined products 300 km; natural gas 440
km (1992)

Ports: Bat'umi, P'ot'i, Sokhumi

Merchant marine:
total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 419,416 GRT/640,897 DWT
ships by type: bulk 11, cargo 1, oil tanker 19, short-sea passenger 1

Airports:
total: 28
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 1
with unpaved runways over 3,047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 5
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 6

Note: transportation network is in poor condition and disrupted by
ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel shortages; network
lacks maintenance and repair

@Georgia:Communications

Telephone system: 672,000 telephones (mid-1993); 117 telephones/1,000
persons; poor telephone service; 339,000 unsatisfied applications for
telephones (December 1990)
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: links via landline to CIS members and Turkey;
low-capacity satellite link and leased international connections via
the Moscow international gateway switch with other countries;
international electronic mail and telex service available

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
radios: NA

Television:
broadcast stations: NA
televisions: NA

@Georgia:Defense Forces

Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border
Guards/National Guard

Manpower availability: males age 15-49 1,385,593; males fit for
military service 1,095,835; males reach military age (18) annually
42,207 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $85 million, NA% of
GDP (1992)

Note: Georgian forces are poorly organized and not fully under the
government's control


________________________________________________________________________

GERMANY

@Germany:Geography

Location: Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea,
between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark

Map references: Europe

Area:
total area: 356,910 sq km
land area: 349,520 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Montana
note: includes the formerly separate Federal Republic of Germany, the
German Democratic Republic, and Berlin following formal unification on
3 October 1990

Land boundaries: total 3,621 km, Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech
Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km,
Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km

Coastline: 2,389 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: none

Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers;
occasional warm, tropical foehn wind; high relative humidity

Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south

Natural resources: iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium,
copper, natural gas, salt, nickel

Land use:
arable land: 34%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 16%
forest and woodland: 30%
other: 19%

Irrigated land: 4,800 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries
and lead emissions from vehicle exhausts (the result of continued use
of leaded fuels) contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting
from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; heavy pollution in
the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in
eastern Germany
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air
Pollution-Sulphur 94, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes

Note: strategic location on North European Plain and along the
entrance to the Baltic Sea

@Germany:People

Population: 81,337,541 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 16% (female 6,518,108; male 6,857,577)
15-64 years: 68% (female 27,167,824; male 28,130,083)
65 years and over: 16% (female 8,127,938; male 4,536,011) (July 1995
est.)

Population growth rate: 0.26% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 10.98 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 10.83 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.62 years
male: 73.5 years
female: 79.92 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.5 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: German(s)
adjective: German

Ethnic divisions: German 95.1%, Turkish 2.3%, Italians 0.7%, Greeks
0.4%, Poles 0.4%, other 1.1% (made up largely of people fleeing the
war in the former Yugoslavia)

Religions: Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 37%, unaffiliated or other
18%

Languages: German

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1991 est.)
total population: 99%

Labor force: 36.75 million
by occupation: industry 41%, agriculture 6%, other 53% (1987)

@Germany:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany
local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland
local short form: Deutschland

Digraph: GM

Type: federal republic

Capital: Berlin
note: the shift from Bonn to Berlin will take place over a period of
years with Bonn retaining many administrative functions and several
ministries

Administrative divisions: 16 states (laender, singular - land);
Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg,
Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen,
Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt,
Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen

Independence: 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided
into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in
1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West
Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and
French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany)
proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone;
unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October
1990; all four power rights formally relinquished 15 March 1991

National holiday: German Unity Day (Day of Unity), 3 October (1990)

Constitution: 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of
the united German people 3 October 1990

Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial
review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Roman HERZOG (since 1 July 1994)
head of government: Chancellor Dr. Helmut KOHL (since 4 October 1982)
cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president upon the proposal of the
chancellor

Legislative branch: bicameral chamber (no official name for the two
chambers as a whole)
Federal Assembly (Bundestag): last held 16 October 1994 (next to be
held by NA 1998); results - CDU 34.2%, SPD 36.4%, Alliance 90/Greens
7.3%, CSU 7.3%, FDP 6.9%, PDS 4.4%, Republicans 1.9% ; seats - (662
total, but number can vary) CDU 244, SPD 252, Alliance 90/Greens 49,
CSU 50, FDP 47, PDS 30; elected by direct popular vote under a system
combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5%
of the national vote or 3 direct mandates to gain representation
Federal Council (Bundesrat): State governments are directly
represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on size and are
required to vote as a block; current composition: votes - (68 total)
SPD-led states 37, CDU-led states 31

Judicial branch: Federal Constitutional Court
(Bundesverfassungsgericht)

Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic Union (CDU),
Helmut KOHL, chairman; Christian Social Union (CSU), Theo WAIGEL,
chairman; Free Democratic Party (FDP), Klaus KINKEL, chairman; Social
Democratic Party (SPD), Rudolf SCHARPING, chairman; Alliance
'90/Greens, Krista SAGER, Juergen TRITTIN, cochairpersons; Party of
Democratic Socialism (PDS), Lothar BISKY, chairman; Republikaner, Rolf
SCHLIERER, chairman; National Democratic Party (NPD), Guenter DECKERT;
Communist Party (DKP), Rolf PRIEMER

Other political or pressure groups: expellee, refugee, and veterans
groups

Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS,
CBSS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, EBRD, EC, ECE, EIB, ESA, FAO,
G- 5, G- 7, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG,
OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNITAR, UNOMIG, UPU, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juergen CHROBOG
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000
FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los
Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Seattle
consulate(s): Manila (Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands) and
Wellington (America Samoa)

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Charles E. REDMAN
embassy: Deichmanns Aue 29, 53170 Bonn
mailing address: Unit 21701, Bonn; APO AE 09080
telephone: [49] (228) 3391
FAX: [49] (228) 339-2663
branch office: Berlin
consulate(s) general: Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, and
Stuttgart

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and yellow

@Germany:Economy

Overview: Five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, progress
towards economic integration between eastern and western Germany is
clearly visible, yet the eastern region almost certainly will remain
dependent on subsidies funded by western Germany until well into the
next century. The staggering $390 billion in western German assistance
that the eastern states have received since 1990 - 40 times the amount
in real terms of US Marshall Fund aid sent to West Germany after World
War II - is just beginning to have an impact on the eastern German
standard of living, which plummeted after unification. Assistance to
the east continues to run at roughly $100 billion annually. Although
the growth rate in the east was much greater than in the west in
1993-94, eastern GDP per capita nonetheless remains well below
preunification levels; it will take 10-15 years for the eastern states
to match western Germany's living standards. The economic recovery in
the east is led by the construction industries which account for
one-third of industrial output, with growth increasingly supported by
the service sectors and light manufacturing industries. Eastern
Germany's economy is changing from one anchored on manufacturing to a
more service-oriented economy. Western Germany, with three times the
per capita output of the eastern states, has an advanced market
economy and is a world leader in exports. The strong recovery in 1994
from recession began in the export sector and spread to the investment
and consumption sectors in response to falling interest rates. Western
Germany has a highly urbanized and skilled population that enjoys
excellent living standards, abundant leisure time, and comprehensive
social welfare benefits. It is relatively poor in natural resources,
coal being the most important mineral. Western Germany's world-class
companies manufacture technologically advanced goods. The region's
economy is mature: services and manufacturing account for the dominant
share of economic activities, and raw materials and semimanufactured
goods constitute a large portion of imports.

National product:
Germany: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.3446 trillion (1994 est.)
western: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.2363 trillion (1994 est.)
eastern: GDP - purchasing power parity - $108.3 billion (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate:
Germany: 2.9% (1994 est.)
western: 2.3% (1994 est.)
eastern: 9.2% (1994 est.)

National product per capita:
Germany: $16,580 (1994 est.)
western: $19,660 (1994 est.)
eastern: $5,950 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
western: 3% (1994)
eastern: 3.2% (1994 est.)

Unemployment rate:
western: 8.2% (December 1994)
eastern: 13.5% (December 1994)

Budget:
revenues: $690 billion
expenditures: $780 billion, including capital expenditures of $96.5
billion (1994)

Exports: $437 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities: manufactures 89.3% (including machines and machine tools,
chemicals, motor vehicles, iron and steel products), agricultural
products 5.5%, raw materials 2.7%, fuels 1.3% (1993)
partners: EC 47.9% (France 11.7%, Netherlands 7.4%, Italy 7.5%, UK
7.7%, Belgium-Luxembourg 6.6%), EFTA 15.5%, US 7.7%, Eastern Europe
5.2%, OPEC 3.0% (1993)

Imports: $362 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities: manufactures 75.1%, agricultural products 10.0%, fuels
8.3%, raw materials 5.0% (1993)
partners: EC 46.4% (France 11.3%, Netherlands 8.4%, Italy 8.1%, UK
6.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg 5.7%), EFTA 14.3%, US 7.3%, Japan 6.3%,
Eastern Europe 5.1%, OPEC 2.6% (1993)

External debt: $NA

Industrial production:
western: growth rate 2.8% (1994)
eastern: growth rate $NA

Electricity:
capacity: 115,430,000 kW
production: 493 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 5,683 kWh (1993)

Industries:
western: among world's largest and technologically advanced producers
of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine
tools, electronics; food and beverages
eastern: metal fabrication, chemicals, brown coal, shipbuilding,
machine building, food and beverages, textiles, petroleum refining

Agriculture:
western: accounts for about 1% of GDP (including fishing and
forestry); diversified crop and livestock farming; principal crops and
livestock include potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit,
cabbage, cattle, pigs, poultry; net importer of food
eastern: accounts for about 10% of GDP (including fishing and
forestry); principal crops - wheat, rye, barley, potatoes, sugar
beets, fruit; livestock products include pork, beef, chicken, milk,
hides and skins; net importer of food

Illicit drugs: source of precursor chemicals for South American
cocaine processors; transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and
Latin American cocaine for West European markets

Economic aid:
western-donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $75.5 billion
eastern-donor: bilateral to non-Communist less developed countries
(1956-89) $4 billion

Currency: 1 deutsche mark (DM) = 100 pfennige

Exchange rates: deutsche marks (DM) per US$1 - 1.5313 (January 1995),
1.6228 (1994), 1.6533 (1993), 1.5617 (1992), 1.6595 (1991), 1.6157
(1990)

Fiscal year: calendar year

@Germany:Transportation

Railroads:
total: 43,457 km
standard gauge: 43,190 km (electrified 16,694 km)
narrow gauge: 267 km (1994)

Highways:
total: 636,282 km
paved: 501,282 km (10,955 km of autobahn)
unpaved: 135,000 km (1991)

Inland waterways:
western: 5,222 km, of which almost 70% are usable by craft of
1,000-metric-ton capacity or larger; major rivers include the Rhine
and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea
and North Sea
eastern: 2,319 km (1988)

Pipelines: crude oil 3,644 km; petroleum products 3,946 km; natural
gas 97,564 km (1988)

Ports: Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden,
Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Lubeck, Magdeburg,
Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart

Merchant marine:
total: 481 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,065,074 GRT/6,409,198
DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 6, bulk 8, cargo 224, chemical tanker 16,
combination bulk 4, combination ore/oil 5, container 158, liquefied
gas tanker 13, oil tanker 10, passenger 3, railcar carrier 4,
refrigerated cargo 7, roll-on/roll-off cargo 18, short-sea passenger 5

note: the German register includes ships of the former East and West
Germany

Airports:
total: 660
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 13
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 64
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 68
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 53
with paved runways under 914 m: 381
with unpaved runways over 3,047 m: 2
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 9
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 62

@Germany:Communications

Telephone system:
western: 40,300,000 telephones; highly developed, modern
telecommunication service to all parts of the country; fully adequate
in all respects; intensively developed, highly redundant cable and
microwave radio relay networks, all completely automatic
local: very modern
intercity: domestic satellite, microwave radio relay, and cable
systems
international: 12 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean), 2 INTELSAT (Indian
Ocean), and 1 EUTELSAT earth station; 2 HF radiocommunication centers;
tropospheric scatter links
eastern: 3,970,000 telephones; badly needs modernization
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: 1 INTELSAT earth station and 1 Intersputnik system

Radio:
western: NA
broadcast stations: AM 80, FM 470, shortwave 0
radios: NA
eastern: NA
broadcast stations: AM 23, FM 17, shortwave 0
radios: 67 million

Television:
broadcast stations: 246 (repeaters 6,000); note - there are 15 Russian
repeaters in eastern Germany
televisions: 25 million in western Germany, 6 million in eastern
Germany

@Germany:Defense Forces

Branches: Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm), Air Force, Border
Police, Coast Guard

Manpower availability: males 15-49 20,274,127; males fit for military
service 17,472,940; males reach military age (18) annually 428,082
(1995 est.)

Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $40 billion, 1.8% of
GNP (1995)


________________________________________________________________________

GHANA

@Ghana:Geography

Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Cote d'Ivoire and Togo

Map references: Africa

Area:
total area: 238,540 sq km
land area: 230,020 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Oregon

Land boundaries: total 2,093 km, Burkina 548 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km,
Togo 877 km

Coastline: 539 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: none

Climate: tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast;
hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north

Terrain: mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central
area

Natural resources: gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite,
manganese, fish, rubber

Land use:
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 7%
meadows and pastures: 15%
forest and woodland: 37%
other: 36%

Irrigated land: 80 sq km (1989)

Environment:
current issues: recent drought in north severely affecting
agricultural activities; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion;
poaching and habitat destruction threatens wildlife populations; water
pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water
natural hazards: dry, dusty, harmattan winds occur from January to
March; droughts
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands;
signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Desertification, Marine
Life Conservation

Note: Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake; northeasterly
harmattan wind (January to March)

@Ghana:People

Population: 17,763,138 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 46% (female 4,030,154; male 4,069,945)
15-64 years: 51% (female 4,638,451; male 4,494,533)
65 years and over: 3% (female 276,186; male 253,869) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.06% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 43.57 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 12.02 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 81.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 55.85 years
male: 53.88 years
female: 57.88 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.09 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian

Ethnic divisions: black African 99.8% (major tribes - Akan 44%,
Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%), European and other 0.2%

Religions: indigenous beliefs 38%, Muslim 30%, Christian 24%, other 8%

Languages: English (official), African languages (including Akan,
Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga)

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population: 60%
male: 70%
female: 51%

Labor force: 3.7 million
by occupation: agriculture and fishing 54.7%, industry 18.7%, sales
and clerical 15.2%, services, transportation, and communications 7.7%,
professional 3.7%

@Ghana:Government

Names:
conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana
former: Gold Coast

Digraph: GH

Type: constitutional democracy

Capital: Accra

Administrative divisions: 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central,
Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta,
Western

Independence: 6 March 1957 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 6 March (1957)

Constitution: new constitution approved 28 April 1992

Legal system: based on English common law and customary law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Jerry John RAWLINGS
(since 3 November 1992) election last held 3 November 1992 (next to be
held November 1996); results - opposition boycotted the election, the
National Democratic Congress won 198 of the total 200 seats and 2
seats were won by independents
cabinet: Cabinet; president nominates members subject to approval by
the Parliament

Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly: elections last held 29 December 1992 (next to be
held December 1996); results - opposition boycotted the election; the
National Democratic Congress won 198 0f 200 total seats and
independents won 2

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: National Democratic Congress, Jerry
John RAWLINGS; New Patriotic Party, Albert Adu BOAHEN; People's
Heritage Party, Alex ERSKINE; various other smaller parties

Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, GATT,
IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, UN,
UNAMIR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNPROFOR, UNU, UPU,
WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ekwow SPIO-GARBRAH
chancery: 3512 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 686-4520
FAX: [1] (202) 686-4527
consulate(s) general: New York

US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kenneth L. BROWN (scheduled to leave in
June 1995)
embassy: Ring Road East, East of Danquah Circle, Accra
mailing address: P. O. Box 194, Accra
telephone: [233] (21) 775348, 775349, 775297, 775298
FAX: [233] (21) 776008

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green
with a large black five-pointed star centered in the gold band; uses
the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of
Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band

@Ghana:Economy

Overview: Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana is relatively
well off, having twice the per capita output of the poorer countries
in West Africa. Heavily reliant on international assistance, Ghana has
made steady progress in liberalizing its economy since 1983. Overall
growth continued at a rate of approximately 5% in 1994, due largely to
increased gold, timber, and cocoa production - major sources of
foreign exchange. The economy, however, continues to revolve around
subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 45% of GDP and employs 55%
of the work force, mainly small landholders. Public sector wage
increases, regional peacekeeping commitments, and the containment of
internal unrest in the underdeveloped north have placed substantial
demands on the government's budget and have led to inflationary
deficit financing and a 27% depreciation of the cedi in 1994.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $22.6 billion (1994
est.)

National product real growth rate: 5% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $1,310 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 25% (1993 est.)

Unemployment rate: 10% (1991)

Budget:
revenues: $1.05 billion
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $178
million (1993)

Exports: $1 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities: cocoa 40%, gold, timber, tuna, bauxite, and aluminum
partners: Germany 31%, US 12%, UK 11%, Netherlands 6%, Japan 5% (1991)

Imports: $1.7 billion (c.i.f., 1993 est.)
commodities: petroleum 16%, consumer goods, foods, intermediate goods,
capital equipment
partners: UK 22%, US 11%, Germany 9%, Japan 6%

External debt: $4.6 billion (December 1993 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate 3.4% in manufacturing (1993);
accounts for almost 15% of GDP

Electricity:
capacity: 1,180,000 kW
production: 6.1 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 323 kWh (1993)

Industries: mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum, food
processing

Agriculture: accounts for almost 50% of GDP (including fishing and
forestry); the major cash crop is cocoa; other principal crops - rice,
coffee, cassava, peanuts, corn, shea nuts, timber; normally


 


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