male: NA%
female: NA%
@Ireland:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Ireland
Data code: EI
Government type: republic
National capital: Dublin
Administrative divisions: 26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
Independence: 6 December 1921 (from UK)
National holiday: Saint Patrick’s Day, 17 March
Constitution: 29 December 1937; adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite
Legal system: based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Mary Bourke ROBINSON (since 9 November 1990) head of government: Prime Minister John BRUTON (since 15 December 1994)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives elections : president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 9 November 1990 (next to be held NA November 1997); prime minister nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president
election results: Mary Bourke ROBINSON elected president; percent of vote – Mary Bourke ROBINSON 52.8%, Brian LENIHAN 47.2%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats, 49 elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote and proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate – last held NA February 1992 (next to be held NA February 1997); House of Representatives – last held 25 November 1992 (next to be held NA November 1997)
election results: Senate – percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – Fianna Fail 26, Fine Gael 16, Labor 9, Progressive Democrats 2, Democratic Left 1, independents 6; House of Representatives – percent of vote by party – Fianna Fail 39.1%, Fine Gael 24.5%, Labor Party 19.3%, Progressive Democrats 4.7%, Democratic Left 2.8%, Sinn Fein 1.6%, Workers’ Party 0.7%, independents 5.9%; seats by party – Fianna Fail 68, Fine Gael 45, Labor Party 33, Progressive Democrats 10, Democratic Left 4, Greens 1, independents 5
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges appointed by the president on the advice of the government (prime minister and cabinet)
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Left [Proinsias DE ROSSA]; Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Labor Party [Richard SPRING]; Fine Gael [John BRUTON]; Communist Party of Ireland [Michael O’RIORDAN]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY]; The Workers’ Party [Marion DONNELLY]; Green Alliance [Bronwen MAHER] note: Prime Minister BRUTON heads a three-party coalition consisting of the Fine Gael, the Labor Party, and the Democratic Left
International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MTCR, NEA, NSG, OECD, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNPREDEP, UNTAES, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Dermot A. GALLAGHER (will return to Dublin in July)
chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939
FAX : [1] (202) 232-5993
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Jean Kennedy SMITH embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin mailing address : use embassy street address telephone: [353] (1) 6688777
FAX: [353] (1) 6689946
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d’Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed – orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red
Economy
Economy – overview: The economy is small and trade dependent. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts for 38% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and employs 26% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland’s robust growth, the economy is also benefiting from a rise in consumer spending and recovery in both construction and business investment. Since the 1980s, inflation has fallen sharply and chronic trade deficits have been transformed into annual surpluses. Unemployment remains a serious problem, however, and job creation is the main focus of government policy. To ease unemployment, Dublin aggressively courts foreign investors and recently created a new industrial development agency to aid small indigenous firms.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $59.9 billion (1996 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 7% (1996 est.)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $16,800 (1996 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture: 8.9%
industry: 38.6%
services: 52.5% (1994)
Inflation rate – consumer price index: 1.8% (1996 est.)
Labor force:
total: 1.474 million (1996 est.)
by occupation: services 62.3%, manufacturing and construction 26.0%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10.6%, utilities 1.1% (1996 est.)
Unemployment rate: 11.9% (April 1996)
Budget:
revenues : $22.6 billion
expenditures: $23.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $4.3 billion (1995)
Industries: food products, brewing, textiles, clothing, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, machinery, transportation equipment, glass and crystal
Industrial production growth rate: 8.9% (1995 est.)
Electricity – capacity: 3.62 million kW (1994)
Electricity – production: 17.9 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity – consumption per capita: 4,343 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture – products: turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; meat and dairy products
Exports:
total value: $43.4 billion (f.o.b., 1995) commodities: chemicals, data processing equipment, industrial machinery, live animals, animal products partners: EU 70% (UK 26%, Germany 14%, France 9%), US 6%
Imports:
total value: $32.7 billion (c.i.f., 1995) commodities : food, animal feed, data processing equipment, petroleum and petroleum products, machinery, textiles, clothing partners: EU 58% (UK 37%, Germany 7%, France 4%), US 17%
Debt – external: $17.5 billion (1995)
Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $81 million (1993)
Currency: 1 Irish pound (£Ir) = 100 pence
Exchange rates: Irish pounds (£Ir) per US$1 – 0.6123 (January 1997), 0.6248 (1996), 0.6235 (1995), 0.6676 (1994), 0.6816 (1993), 0.5864 (1992)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Ireland:Communications
Telephones: 900,000 (1987 est.)
Telephone system: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: microwave radio relay
international: satellite earth station – 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 45, shortwave 0
Radios: 2.2 million (1991 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 86 (1987 est.)
Televisions: 1.025 million (1990 est.)
@Ireland:Transportation
Railways:
total: 1,947 km
broad gauge: 1,947 km 1.600-m gauge (37 km electrified; 485 km double track) (1996)
Highways:
total: 92,430 km
paved : 86,884 km (including 70 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,546 km (1995 est.)
Waterways: limited for commercial traffic
Pipelines: natural gas 225 km
Ports and harbors: Arklow, Cork, Drogheda, Dublin, Foynes, Galway, Limerick, New Ross, Waterford
Merchant marine:
total : 39 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 130,029 GRT/148,516 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 27, chemical tanker 2, container 5, oil tanker 1, short-sea passenger 3 (1996 est.)
Airports: 40 (1996 est.)
Airports – with paved runways:
total: 37
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m : 3
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 29 (1996 est.)
Airports – with unpaved runways:
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps), National Police (Garda Siochana)
Military manpower – military age: 17 years of age
Military manpower – availability:
males age 15-49: 959,807 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – fit for military service: males : 778,234 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – reaching military age annually: males : 36,560 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures – dollar figure: $618 million (1994)
Military expenditures – percent of GDP: 1.3% (1994)
Transnational Issues
Disputes – international: Northern Ireland question with the UK; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area)
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; transshipment point for heroin and cocaine ______________________________________________________________________
ISRAEL
(also see separate Gaza Strip and West Bank entries)
Introduction
Current issues: The territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war are not included in the data below, unless otherwise noted. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations are being conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives, and Israel and Syria, to achieve a permanent settlement between them. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace.
@Israel:Geography
Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon
Geographic coordinates: 31 30 N, 34 45 E
Map references: Middle East
Area:
total: 20,770 sq km
land: 20,330 sq km
water : 440 sq km
Area – comparative: slightly smaller than New Jersey
Land boundaries:
total: 1,006 km
border countries: Egypt 255 km, Gaza Strip 51 km, Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km
Coastline: 273 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf : to depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Terrain: Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Elevation extremes:
lowest point : Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m
Natural resources: copper, phosphates, bromide, potash, clay, sand, sulfur, asphalt, manganese, small amounts of natural gas and crude oil
Land use:
arable land: 17%
permanent crops: 4%
permanent pastures: 7%
forests and woodland : 6%
other: 66% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 1,800 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: sandstorms may occur during spring and summer
Environment – current issues: limited arable land and natural fresh water resources pose serious constraints; desertification; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides
Environment – international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified : Marine Life Conservation
Geography – note: there are 203 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 24 in the Gaza Strip, and 26 in East Jerusalem (August 1996 est.)
@Israel:People
Population: 5,534,672 (July 1997 est.) note: includes 136,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, 15,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 5,000 in the Gaza Strip, and 156,000 in East Jerusalem (August 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 28% (male 803,792; female 766,224) 15-64 years : 62% (male 1,711,668; female 1,708,700) 65 years and over: 10% (male 234,902; female 309,386) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.01% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 20.16 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 6.22 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 6.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 8.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.21 years
male : 76.34 years
female: 80.18 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.74 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Israeli(s)
adjective: Israeli
Ethnic groups: Jewish 82% (Israel-born 50%, Europe/Americas/Oceania-born 20%, Africa-born 7%, Asia-born 5%), non-Jewish 18% (mostly Arab) (1993 est.)
Religions: Judaism 82%, Islam 14% (mostly Sunni Muslim), Christian 2%, Druze and other 2%
Languages: Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95%
male: 97%
female : 93% (1992 est.)
@Israel:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: State of Israel conventional short form: Israel
local long form: Medinat Yisra’el
local short form: Yisra’el
Data code: IS
Government type: republic
National capital: Jerusalem
note: Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv
Administrative divisions: 6 districts (mehozot, singular – mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Independence: 14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
National holiday: Independence Day, 14 May 1948 (Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or May)
Constitution: no formal constitution; some of the functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the basic laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law
Legal system: mixture of English common law, British Mandate regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim legal systems; in December 1985, Israel informed the UN Secretariat that it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Ezer WEIZMAN (since 13 May 1993) head of government : Prime Minister Binyamin NETANYAHU (since 18 June 1996)
cabinet: Cabinet selected from and approved by the Knesset elections: president elected by the Knesset for a five-year term; election last held 24 March 1993 (next to be held NA March 1998); prime minister elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 29 May 1996 (next to be held NA 2000); note – in March 1992, the Knesset approved legislation, effective in 1996, which allowed for the direct election of the prime minister; under the new law, each voter casts two ballots – one for the direct election of the prime minister and one for the party in the Knesset; the candidate that receives the largest percentage of the popular vote then works to form a coalition with other parties to achieve a parliamentary majority of 61 seats; finally, the candidate must submit his or her cabinet to the Knesset for approval and this must be done within 45 days of the election; in contrast to the old system, under the new law, the prime minister’s party need not be the single-largest party in the Knesset election results: Ezer WEIZMAN elected president; percent of Knesset vote – NA; Binyamin NETANYAHU elected prime minister; percent of vote – Binyamin NETANYAHU 50.4%, Shimon PERES 49.5%
Legislative branch: unicameral Knesset or parliament (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 29 May 1996 (next to be held NA 2000) election results: percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – Labor Party 34, Likud Party 32, SHAS 10, MERETZ 9, National Religious Party 9, Yisra’el Ba’Aliya 7, Hadash-Balad 5, Third Way 4, United Arab List 4, United Jewish Torah 4, Moledet 2; note – Likud, Tzomet, and Gesher candidates ran on a joint list
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
government coalition: Likud Party, Prime Minister Binyamin NETANYAHU; Tzomet, Rafael EITAN; Gesher, David LEVI; SHAS, Arieh DERI; National Religious Party, Zevulun HAMMER; Yisra’el Ba’Aliya, Natan SHARANSKY; United Jewish Torah, Meir PORUSH; Third Way, Avigdor KAHALANI; Moledet, Rehavam ZEEVI
opposition: Labor Party, Shimon PERES; MERETZ, Yossi SARID; United Arab List, Abd al-Malik DAHAMSHAH; Hadash-Balad, Hashim MAHAMID
Political pressure groups and leaders: Gush Emunim, Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and is critical of government’s Lebanon policy
International organization participation: AG (observer), BSEC (observer), CCC, CE (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, OAS (observer), OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission : Ambassador Eliahu BEN-ELISSAR chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500
FAX: [1] (202) 364-5610
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Martin S. INDYK embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv
mailing address: PSC 98, Box 100, APO AE 09830 telephone : [972] (3) 519-7575
FAX: [972] (3) 517-3227
consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note – an independent US mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited to a foreign government
Flag description: white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag
Economy
Economy – overview: Israel has a market economy with substantial government participation. It depends on imports of crude oil, grains, raw materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources, Israel has intensively developed its agricultural and industrial sectors over the past 20 years. Manufacturing and construction employ about 29% of Israeli workers, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 3.5%, and services the rest. Israel is largely self-sufficient in food production except for grains. Diamonds, high-technology equipment, and agricultural products (fruits and vegetables) are leading exports. Israel usually posts sizable current account deficits, which are covered by large transfer payments from abroad and by foreign loans. Roughly half of the government’s external debt is owed to the US, which is its major source of economic and military aid. To earn needed foreign exchange, Israel has been targeting high-technology niches in international markets, such as medical scanning equipment. The influx of Jewish immigrants from the former USSR, which topped 750,000 during the period 1989-96, initially increased unemployment, intensified housing problems, and strained the government budget. At the same time, the immigrants bring to the economy valuable scientific and professional expertise.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $85.7 billion (1996 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 4.6% (1996)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $16,400 (1996 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 22%
services: 74.5%
Inflation rate – consumer price index: 11.3% (1996)
Labor force:
total: 2.2 million (1996)
by occupation : public services 29.3%, manufacturing 22.1%, construction 6.5%, commerce 13.9%, finance and business 10.4%, personal and other services 7.4%, transport, storage, and communications 6.3%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 3.5%, other 0.6% (1992)
Unemployment rate: 6.5% (1996)
Budget:
revenues: $41 billion
expenditures: $53 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1996)
Industries: food processing, diamond cutting and polishing, textiles and apparel, chemicals, metal products, military equipment, transport equipment, electrical equipment, potash mining, high-technology electronics, tourism
Industrial production growth rate: 8% (1995)
Electricity – capacity: 6.92 million kW (1995 est.)
Electricity – production: 30.4 billion kWh (1995 est.)
Electricity – consumption per capita: 4,738 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture – products: citrus and other fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products
Exports:
total value: $20.3 billion (f.o.b., 1996) commodities : machinery and equipment, cut diamonds, chemicals, textiles and apparel, agricultural products, metals partners: US, EU, Japan
Imports:
total value: $28.3 billion (c.i.f., 1996) commodities : military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, oil, other productive inputs, consumer goods partners: EU, US, Japan
Debt – external: $25.7 billion (1996)
Economic aid:
recipient : total receipts $12.14 billion of which $11.38 billion from the US (1990-93)
Currency: 1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot
Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1 – 3.2761 (January 1997), 3.2882 (1996), 3.0113 (1995), 3.0111 (1994), 2.8301 (1993), 2.4591 (1992)
Fiscal year: calendar year (since 1 January 1992)
@Israel:Communications
Telephones: 2.425 million (1990 est.)
Telephone system: most highly developed system in the Middle East although not the largest
domestic : good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay international: 3 submarine cables; satellite earth stations – 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 45, shortwave 0
Radios: 2.25 million (1993 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 20
Televisions: 1.5 million (1993 est.)
@Israel:Transportation
Railways:
total: 526 km
standard gauge: 526 km 1.435-m gauge
Highways:
total: 14,700 km
paved: 14,700 km (including 56 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1995 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 708 km; petroleum products 290 km; natural gas 89 km
Ports and harbors: Ashdod, Ashqelon, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa, Tel Aviv-Yafo
Merchant marine:
total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 659,505 GRT/778,780 DWT ships by type: cargo 2, container 23, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1 (1996 est.)
Airports: 50 (1996 est.)
Airports – with paved runways:
total: 45
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m : 7
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 22 (1996 est.)
Airports – with unpaved runways:
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m : 2
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (1996 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Israel Defense Forces (includes ground, naval, and air components), Pioneer Fighting Youth (Nahal), Frontier Guard, Chen (women); note – historically there have been no separate Israeli military services
Military manpower – military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower – availability:
males age 15-49: 1,420,066
females age 15-49 : 1,391,042 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – fit for military service: males: 1,162,745 (1997 est.)
females: 1,134,610 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – reaching military age annually: males: 50,744
females : 48,519 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures – dollar figure: $9.2 billion (1996)
Military expenditures – percent of GDP: about 9.8% (1996)
Transnational Issues
Disputes – international: 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; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Israeli troops in southern Lebanon since June 1982
Illicit drugs: increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse and trafficking
______________________________________________________________________
ITALY
@Italy:Geography
Location: Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Geographic coordinates: 42 50 N, 12 50 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 301,230 sq km
land : 294,020 sq km
water: 7,210 sq km
note: includes Sardinia and Sicily
Area – comparative: slightly larger than Arizona
Land boundaries:
total: 1,932.2 km
border countries: Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km, Switzerland 740 km
Coastline: 7,600 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south
Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands
Elevation extremes:
lowest point : Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m
Natural resources: mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, dwindling natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal
Land use:
arable land: 31%
permanent crops: 10%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 23%
other : 21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 27,100 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice
Environment – current issues: air pollution from industrial emissions such as sulfur dioxide; coastal and inland rivers polluted from industrial and agricultural effluents; acid rain damaging lakes; inadequate industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities
Environment – 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, Hazardous Wastes, 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, Tropical Timber 94
Geography – note: strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe
@Italy:People
Population: 56,830,508 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years : 15% (male 4,234,767; female 3,997,589) 15-64 years: 68% (male 19,314,674; female 19,442,196) 65 years and over: 17% (male 4,028,659; female 5,812,623) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.08% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 8.96 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 10.07 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.25 years
male: 75.13 years
female: 81.58 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.16 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Italian(s)
adjective: Italian
Ethnic groups: Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south)
Religions: Roman Catholic 98%, other 2%
Languages: Italian, German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d’Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Literacy:
definition : age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97%
male: 98%
female: 96% (1990 est.)
@Italy:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Italian Republic conventional short form: Italy
local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form : Italia
former: Kingdom of Italy
Data code: IT
Government type: republic
National capital: Rome
Administrative divisions: 20 regions (regioni, singular – regione); Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Puglia, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige, Umbria, Valle d’Aosta, Veneto
Independence: 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed)
National holiday: Anniversary of the Republic, 2 June (1946)
Constitution: 1 January 1948
Legal system: based on civil law system, with ecclesiastical law influence; appeals treated as trials de novo; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Oscar Luigi SCALFARO (since 28 May 1992) head of government : Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Romano PRODI (since 18 May 1996)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president
elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of Parliament and 58 regional representatives for a seven-year term; election last held 25 May 1992 (next to be held NA 1999); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Oscar Luigi SCALFARO elected president; percent of electoral college vote – NA
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (326 seats, 315 popularly elected of which 232 are directly elected and 83 by regional proportional representation, 11 appointed senators-for-life; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms) elections: Senate – last held 21 April 1996 (next to be held by NA April 2001); Chamber of Deputies – last held 21 April 1996 (next to be held by NA April 2001)
election results: Senate – percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – Olive Tree 157, Freedom Alliance 116, Northern League 27, Refounded Communists 10, regional lists 3, Social Movement-Tricolor Flames 1, Panella Reformers 1; Chamber of Deputies – percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – Olive Tree 284, Freedom Alliance 246, Northern League 59, Refounded Communists 35, Southern Tyrol List 3, Autonomous List 2, other 1
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale, composed of 15 judges (one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected by Parliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrative supreme courts)
Political parties and leaders:
Olive Tree (Ulivo): Democratic Party of the Left or PDS [Massimo D’ALEMA]; Greens (Verdi) [Carlo RIPA DI MEANA]; Italian Renewal or RI [Lamberto DINI]; Italian Popular Party or PPI [Franco MARINI – elected 12 January 1997]
Freedom Pole: Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Christian Democratic Center or CCD [Pierferdinando CASINI]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE]
other: Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Communism Refoundation or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Italian Social Movement-Tricolor Flame or MSI-Fiamma Tricolore [Pino RAUTI]; Pannella-Sgarbi’s List (Lista Pannella-Sgarbi) [Marco PANNELLA]; Italian Socialists or SI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Autonomous List (a group of minor parties); Southern Tyrols List or SVP (German speakers)
Political pressure groups and leaders: the Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL which is PDS-dominated, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL which is centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL which is center-right); Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura)
International organization participation: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CE (observer), CEI, CERN, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAVEM III, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO chancery: 1601 Fuller Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 and 2700 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 328-5500
FAX: [1] (202) 483-2187
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco
consulate(s): Detroit and New Orleans
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Reginald BARTHOLOMEW embassy : Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome
mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (6) 46741
FAX: [39] (6) 488-2672
consulate(s) general : Florence, Milan, Naples
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote d’Ivoire, which has the colors reversed – orange (hoist side), white, and green
Economy
Economy – overview: Since World War II, the Italian economy has changed from one based on agriculture into a ranking industrial economy, with approximately the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. This basically capitalistic economy is still divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south, with large public enterprises. Most raw materials needed by industry and over 75% of energy requirements must be imported. In the second half of 1992, Rome became unsettled by the prospect of not qualifying to participate in EU plans for economic and monetary union later in the decade; thus, it finally began to address its huge fiscal imbalances. Subsequently, the government has adopted fairly stringent budgets, abandoned its inflationary wage indexation system, and started to scale back its generous social welfare programs, including pension and health care benefits. In November 1996 the lire rejoined the European monetary system, which it had left in September 1992 when under extreme pressure in currency markets. Italy in early 1997 faces the problem of restructuring its economy to meet Maastricht criteria for inclusion in the EMU, together with other problems of refurbishing a tottering communications system, curbing industrial pollution, and adjusting to new EU and global competitive forces.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $1.12 trillion (1996 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 0.8% (1996 est.)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $19,600 (1996 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.3%
industry : 33%
services: 63.7% (1994)
Inflation rate – consumer price index: 4% (1996 est.)
Labor force:
total: 22.851 million
by occupation: services 61%, industry 32%, agriculture 7% (1996)
Unemployment rate: 12% (1996 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $416 billion
expenditures : $506 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1996 est.)
Industries: tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics
Industrial production growth rate: 0.5% (1996 est.)
Electricity – capacity: 57.19 million kW (1994)
Electricity – production: 241.6 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity – consumption per capita: 4,238 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture – products: fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; meat and dairy products; fish catch of 525,000 metric tons in 1990
Exports:
total value: $250 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: metals, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transportation equipment, chemicals partners : EU 53.4%, US 7.8%, OPEC 3.8%
Imports:
total value: $205 billion (c.i.f., 1996 est.) commodities : industrial machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, petroleum, metals, food, agricultural products partners: EU 56.3%, OPEC 5.3%, US 4.6%
Debt – external: $45 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $3.043 billion (1993)
Currency: 1 Italian lira (Lit) = 100 centesimi
Exchange rates: Italian lire (Lit) per US$1 – 1,568.1 (January 1997), 1,542.9 (1996), 1,628.9 (1995), 1,612.4 (1994), 1,573.7 (1993), 1,232.4 (1992)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Italy:Communications
Telephones: 25.6 million (1996 est.)
Telephone system: modern, well-developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services
domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks international: satellite earth stations – 3 Intelsat (with a total of 5 antennas – 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean Region), and NA Eutelsat; 21 submarine cables
Radio broadcast stations: AM 135, FM 28 (repeaters 1,840), shortwave 0
Radios: 45.7 million (1996 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 83 (repeaters 1,000)
Televisions: 17 million (1996 est.)
@Italy:Transportation
Railways:
total : 18,961 km
standard gauge: 17,981 km 1.435-m gauge; Italian Railways (FS) operates 16,118 km of the total standard gauge routes (10,560 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 113 km 1.000-m gauge (113 km electrified); 867 km 0.950-m gauge (144 km electrified)
Highways:
total: 305,388 km
paved: 305,388 km (including 6,301 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1991 est.)
Waterways: 2,400 km for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value
Pipelines: crude oil 1,703 km; petroleum products 2,148 km; natural gas 19,400 km
Ports and harbors: Ancona, Augusta (Sicily), Bari, Cagliari (Sardinia), Catania (Sicily), Gaeta, Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno, Naples, Oristano (Sardinia), Palermo (Sicily), Piombino, Porto Torres (Sardinia), Ravenna, Savona, Trieste, Venice
Merchant marine:
total : 396 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,503,637 GRT/7,794,505 DWT
ships by type: bulk 36, cargo 50, chemical tanker 39, combination ore/oil 2, container 17, liquefied gas tanker 36, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 106, passenger 7, roll-on/roll-off cargo 54, short-sea passenger 30, specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 7 (1996 est.)
Airports: 132 (1996 est.)
Airports – with paved runways:
total: 112
over 3,047 m : 5
2,438 to 3,047 m: 34
1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 24
under 914 m: 34 (1996 est.)
Airports – with unpaved runways:
total : 20
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 18 (1996 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Carabinieri
Military manpower – military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower – availability:
males age 15-49: 14,356,666 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – fit for military service: males: 12,423,178 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – reaching military age annually: males: 339,255 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures – dollar figure: $20.4 billion (1995)
Military expenditures – percent of GDP: 1.9% (1995)
Transnational Issues
Disputes – international: Italy is negotiating with Slovenia over property and minority rights issues dating from World War II; Croatia and Italy have not resolved a bilateral issue dating from WWII over property and ethnic minority rights
Illicit drugs: important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market ______________________________________________________________________
JAMAICA
@Jamaica:Geography
Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
Geographic coordinates: 18 15 N, 77 30 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 10,990 sq km
land: 10,830 sq km
water: 160 sq km
Area – comparative: slightly smaller than Connecticut
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,022 km
Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point : Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
Natural resources: bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Land use:
arable land : 14%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 24%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 39% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 350 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: hurricanes (especially July to November)
Environment – current issues: deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
Environment – international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified : none of the selected agreements
Geography – note: strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal
@Jamaica:People
Population: 2,615,582 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years : 32% (male 428,831; female 409,959) 15-64 years: 61% (male 793,609; female 806,031) 65 years and over: 7% (male 78,453; female 98,699) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.75% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 21.56 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 5.5 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: -8.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 15 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.12 years
male : 72.8 years
female: 77.56 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.39 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality:
noun : Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican
Ethnic groups: black 76.3%, Afro-European 15.1%, East Indian and Afro-East Indian 3%, white 3.2%, Chinese and Afro-Chinese 1.2%, other 1.2%
Religions: Protestant 55.9% (Church of God 18.4%, Baptist 10%, Anglican 7.1%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6.9%, Pentecostal 5.2%, Methodist 3.1%, United Church 2.7%, other 2.5%), Roman Catholic 5%, other, including some spiritual cults 39.1% (1982)
Languages: English, Creole
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 85%
male: 80.8%
female: 89.1% (1995 est.)
@Jamaica:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica
Data code: JM
Government type: parliamentary democracy
National capital: Kingston
Administrative divisions: 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
Independence: 6 August 1962 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day (first Monday in August) (1962)
Constitution: 6 August 1962
Legal system: based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II of the UK (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) cabinet : Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister
elections: none; the queen is a hereditary monarch; governor general appointed by the queen on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party 13 seats, opposition 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 30 March 1993 (next to be held by March 1998) election results: percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – PNP 52, JLP 8; note – the establishment of a major third party, the National Democratic Movement (NDM) in 1995 led to a realignment of seats – PNP 51, JLP 7, NDM 2
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges appointed by the governor general on advice of the prime minister
Political parties and leaders: People’s National Party (PNP), P. J. PATTERSON; Jamaica Labor Party (JLP), Edward SEAGA; National Democratic Movement (NDM), Bruce GOLDING
Political pressure groups and leaders: Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists); New Beginnings Movement (NBM)
International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Richard Leighton BERNAL chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660
FAX : [1] (202) 452-0081
consulate(s) general: Miami and New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador J. Gary COOPER embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston
mailing address : use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743
Flag description: diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles – green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
Economy
Economy – overview: Key sectors in this island economy are bauxite (alumina and bauxite account for more than half of exports) and tourism. Since assuming office in 1992, Prime Minister PATTERSON has consolidated the market-oriented reforms initiated by his predecessor, Michael MANLEY, to make Jamaica a regional leader in economic reform. PATTERSON has eliminated most price controls, streamlined tax schedules, and privatized government enterprises. Tight monetary and fiscal policies under an IMF program have helped slow inflation and stabilize the exchange rate, but, as a result, economic growth has slowed down and unemployment remains high. Jamaica’s medium-term prospects depend largely on its ability to continue to attract foreign capital and to limit speculation against the Jamaican dollar.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $8.4 billion (1996 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 0.5% (1996 est.)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $3,260 (1996 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture : 8.1%
industry: 36.2%
services: 55.7% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate – consumer price index: 17% (1996 est.)
Labor force:
total: 1,062,100
by occupation: services 41%, agriculture 22.5%, industry 19%, unemployed 17.5% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 15.4% (1994 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $1.45 billion
expenditures: $2 billion, including capital expenditures of $732 million (FY95/96 est.)
Industries: bauxite, tourism, textiles, food processing, light manufactures
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity – capacity: 848,400 kW (1995)
Electricity – production: 5.829 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity – consumption per capita: 2,014 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture – products: sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk
Exports:
total value: $1.4 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum partners: US 47%, UK 11%, Canada 9%, Norway 7%, France 4% (1993)
Imports:
total value: $2.8 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals
partners: US 54%, Japan 4.0%, Mexico 6%, UK 4%, Venezuela 3% (1993)
Debt – external: $4.2 billion (1995)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $239 million (1993)
Currency: 1 Jamaican dollar (J$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Jamaican dollars (J$) per US$1 – 34.952 (December 1996), 37.120 (1996), 35.142 (1995), 33.086 (1994), 24.949 (1993), 22.960 (1992)
Fiscal year: 1 April – 31 March
@Jamaica:Communications
Telephones: 212,257 (1991 est.)
Telephone system: fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: NA
international: satellite earth stations – 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
Radio broadcast stations: AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 0
Radios: 1.04 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 8
Televisions: 330,000 (1992 est.)
@Jamaica:Transportation
Railways:
total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note – 207 km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation which were in common carrier service are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite
Highways:
total: 18,600 km
paved: 13,132 km
unpaved : 5,468 km (1995 est.)
Pipelines: petroleum products 10 km
Ports and harbors: Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point
Merchant marine:
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,435 GRT/6,105 DWT ships by type: oil tanker 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1 (1996 est.)
Airports: 26 (1996 est.)
Airports – with paved runways:
total: 25
2,438 to 3,047 m : 2
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 20 (1996 est.)
Airports – with unpaved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Jamaica Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force
Military manpower – military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower – availability:
males age 15-49: 691,799 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – fit for military service: males: 488,569 (1997 est.)
Military manpower – reaching military age annually: males : 25,532 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures – dollar figure: $30 million (FY95/96)
Military expenditures – percent of GDP: NA%
Transnational Issues
Disputes – international: none
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for cocaine from Central and South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active cannabis eradication program ______________________________________________________________________
JAN MAYEN
(territory of Norway)
@Jan Mayen:Geography
Location: Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the Norwegian Sea, northeast of Iceland
Geographic coordinates: 71 00 N, 8 00 W
Map references: Arctic Region
Area:
total: 373 sq km
land: 373 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area – comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 124.1 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone : 10 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 4 nm
Climate: arctic maritime with frequent storms and persistent fog
Terrain: volcanic island, partly covered by glaciers
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Norwegian Sea 0 m
highest point: Haakon VII Toppen/Beerenberg 2,277 m
Natural resources: none
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops : 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100%
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: dominated by the volcano Beerenberg; volcanic activity resumed in 1970
Environment – current issues: NA
Environment – international agreements: party to : NA
signed, but not ratified: NA
Geography – note: barren volcanic island with some moss and grass
@Jan Mayen:People
Population: no permanent inhabitants
note: there are personnel who operate the Long Range Navigation (Loran) C base and the weather and coastal services radio station
@Jan Mayen:Government
Country name:
conventional long form : none
conventional short form: Jan Mayen
Data code: JN
Dependency status: territory of Norway; administered from Oslo, Norway, through a governor (sysselmann) resident in Longyearbyen (Svalbard); however, authority has been delegated to a station commander of the Norwegian Defense Communication Service
Flag description: the flag of Norway is used
Economy
Economy – overview: Jan Mayen is a volcanic island with no exploitable natural resources. Economic activity is limited to providing services for employees of Norway’s radio and meteorological stations located on the island.
Electricity – capacity: NA kW
Electricity – production: NA kWh
Electricity – consumption per capita: NA kWh
@Jan Mayen:Communications
Telephone system:
domestic: NA
international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA note: radio and meteorological station
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: NA
Televisions: NA
@Jan Mayen:Transportation
Highways:
total: NA km
paved : NA km
unpaved: NA km
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Airports: 1 (1996 est.)
Airports – with unpaved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1996 est.)
Military
Military – note: defense is the responsibility of Norway
Transnational Issues
Disputes – international: none
______________________________________________________________________
JAPAN
@Japan:Geography
Location: Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
Geographic coordinates: 36 00 N, 138 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total: 377,835 sq km
land: 374,744 sq km
water: 3,091 sq km
note: includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okinotori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto)
Area – comparative: slightly smaller than California
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 29,751 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone : 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm; 3 nm in the international straits – La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait
Climate: varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous
Elevation extremes:
lowest point : Hachiro-gata -4 m
highest point: Fujiyama 3,776 m
Natural resources: negligible mineral resources, fish
Land use:
arable land : 11%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 2%
forests and woodland: 67%
other : 19% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 27,820 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis
Environment – current issues: air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan’s appetite for fish and tropical timber is contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere
Environment – international agreements: party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Desertification
Geography – note: strategic location in northeast Asia
@Japan:People
Population: 125,732,794 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 15% (male 9,931,114; female 9,464,940) 15-64 years: 69% (male 43,577,219; female 43,250,874) 65 years and over: 16% (male 8,089,200; female 11,419,447) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.23% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 10.01 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 7.39 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 80.45 years
male: 77.4 years
female: 83.65 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.44 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality:
noun : Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese
Ethnic groups: Japanese 99.4%, other 0.6% (mostly Korean)
Religions: observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Languages: Japanese
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1970 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
@Japan:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Japan
Data code: JA
Government type: constitutional monarchy
National capital: Tokyo
Administrative divisions: 47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gumma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Oita, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tokyo, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi
Independence: 660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu)
National holiday: Birthday of the Emperor, 23 December (1933)
Constitution: 3 May 1947
Legal system: modeled after European civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 20 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Ryutaro HASHIMOTO (since 11 January 1996); note – an acting prime minister – determined upon a rotational basis – serves when Prime Minister HASHIMOTO is out of the country cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: none; the emperor is a constitutional monarch; the Diet designates the prime minister; the constitution requires that the prime minister must command a parliamentary majority, therefore, following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition in the House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister
Legislative branch: bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (252 seats; one-half of the members elected every three years – 76 seats of which are elected from the 47 multi-seat prefectural districts and 50 of which are elected from a single nationwide list with voters casting ballots by party; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Shugi-in (500 seats – 200 of which are elected from 11 regional blocks on a proportional representation basis and 300 of which are elected from 300 single-seat districts; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Councillors – last held 23 July 1995 (next to be held NA July 1998); House of Representatives – last held 20 October 1996 (next to be held by October 2000)
election results : House of Councillors – percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – LDP 110, NFP 56, SDP 38, JCP 14, Sakigake 3, others 19, independents 12; note – the distribution of seats as of March 1997 is as follows – LDP 112, NFP 61, SDP 23, JCP 14, Sakigake 3, others 39; House of Representatives – percent of vote by party – NA; seats by party – LDP 240, NFP 142, DPJ 52, JCP 26, SDP 15, Sun Party 10, others and independents 15; note – the distribution of seats as of March 1997 is as follows – LDP 241, NFP 141, DPJ 52, JCP 26, SDP 15, Sun Party 10, others and independents 15
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, chief justice is appointed by the emperor after designation by the cabinet, all other justices are appointed by the cabinet
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Ryutaro HASHIMOTO, president, Koichi KATO, secretary general; Social Democratic Party (SDP), Takako DOI, chairman, Shigeru ITO, secretary general; Sakigake (Harbinger), Akiko DOMOTO, acting chairman, Hiroyuki SONODA, secretary general; New Frontier Party or NFP (Shinshinto), Ichiro OZAWA, president, Takeo NISHIOKA, secretary general; Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), coleaders Yukio HATOYAMA and Naoto KAN; Japan Communist Party (JCP), Tetsuzo FUWA, chairman, Kazuo SHII, secretary general; Sun Party, Tsutomu HATA, chairman, Eijiro HATA, secretary general
note: DPJ was formed in September 1996 by former members of SDP and Sakigake; Sun Party was formed in December 1996 by former members of NFP
International organization participation: AfDB, AG (observer), APEC, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE (observer), CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G- 2, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNRWA, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kunihiko SAITO chancery : 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6700
FAX: [1] (202) 328-2187
consulate(s) general: Agana (Guam), Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Honolulu, Houston, Kansas City (Missouri), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, and Seattle
consulate(s): Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands)
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
embassy: 10-5, Akasaka 1-chome, Minato-ku (107), Tokyo mailing address : Unit 45004, Box 258, APO AP 96337-0001 telephone: [81] (3) 3224-5000
FAX: [81] (3) 3505-1862
consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo consulate(s) : Fukuoka, Nagoya
Flag description: white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center
Economy
Economy – overview: Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (roughly 1% of GDP) have helped Japan advance with extraordinary rapidity to the rank of second most powerful economy in the world. One notable characteristic of the economy is the working together of manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors in closely knit groups called keiretsu. A second basic feature has been the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force; this guarantee is slowly eroding. Industry, the most important sector of the economy, is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The much smaller agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self-sufficient in rice, Japan must import about 50% of its requirements of other grain and fodder crops. Japan maintains one of the world’s largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades overall real economic growth had been spectacular: a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed considerably in 1992-95 largely because of the aftereffects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets. Growth picked up in 1996, largely a reflection of stimulative fiscal and monetary policies as well as low rates of inflation and social disorder. As a result of the expansionary fiscal policies and declining tax revenues due to the recession, Japan currently has one of the largest budget deficits as a percent of GDP among the industrialized countries. The crowding of habitable land area and the aging of the population are two other major long-run problems.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $2.85 trillion (1996 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 3.6% (1996)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $22,700 (1996 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture: 2%
industry : 41.5%
services: 56.5% (1995)
Inflation rate – consumer price index: 0.3% (1996)
Labor force:
total: 67.23 million (March 1997)
by occupation: trade and services 50%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 33%, utilities and communication 7%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 6%, government 3% (1994)
Unemployment rate: 3.4% (1996)
Budget:
revenues: $528 billion
expenditures: $673 billion, including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $75 billion (FY97/98 est.)
Industries: among world’s largest and technologically advanced producers of steel and nonferrous metallurgy, heavy electrical equipment, construction and mining equipment, motor vehicles and parts, electronic and telecommunication equipment, machine tools, automated production systems, locomotives and railroad rolling stock, ships, chemicals; textiles, processed foods
Industrial production growth rate: 2.4% (1996 est.)
Electricity – capacity: 199.88 million kW (1994)
Electricity – production: 992.5 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity – consumption per capita: 6,895 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture – products: rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; world’s largest fish catch of 10 million metric tons in 1991
Exports:
total value: $385 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities : manufactures 96% (including machinery 50%, motor vehicles 19%, consumer electronics 3%)
partners : Southeast Asia 37%, US 27%, Western Europe 15%, China 5%
Imports:
total value: $329 billion (c.i.f., 1996 est.) commodities: manufactures 54%, foodstuffs and raw materials 28%, fossil fuels 16%
partners: Southeast Asia 24%, US 22%, Western Europe 15%, China 12%
Debt – external: $NA
Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $14.7 billion (1995 est.) note: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-94), $174 billion
Currency: yen (¥)
Exchange rates: yen (¥) per US$1 – 118.02 (January 1997), 108.78 (1996), 94.06 (1995), 102.21 (1994), 111.20 (1993), 126.65 (1992)
Fiscal year: 1 April – 31 March
@Japan:Communications
Telephones: 64 million (1987 est.)
Telephone system: excellent domestic and international service domestic: NA