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Pakistan Histroy
Background: The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of
Pakistan (with two sections West and East) and largely Hindu India was never
satisfactorily resolved. A third war between these countries in 1971 resulted in East
Pakistan seceding and becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. A dispute over the state
of Kashmir is ongoing. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted
its own tests in 1998. |
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Location:
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and
Afghanistan on the west and China in the north.
Geographic coordinates: 30 00 N, 70 00 E
Map references: Asia.
Area:
total: 803,940 sq km.
land: 778,720 sq km.
water: 25,220 sq km.
Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of California.
Land boundaries:
total: 6,774 km.
border countries: Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km, India 2,912 km, Iran 909 km.
Coastline: 1,046 km.
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm.
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin.
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm.
territorial sea: 12 nm.
Climate: mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north.
Terrain: flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan plateau
in west.
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m.
highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m.
Natural resources: land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality
coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone.
Land use:
arable land: 27%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 6%
forests and woodland: 5%
other: 61% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 171,100 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west;
flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August)
Environment - current issues: water pollution from raw sewage, industrial wastes, and
agricultural runoff; limited natural fresh water resources; a majority of the population
does not have access to potable water; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note: controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between
Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. |
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Population:
141,553,775 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 41% (male 29,880,574; female 28,145,247)
15-64 years: 55% (male 39,751,222; female 37,981,378)
65 years and over: 4% (male 2,856,305; female 2,939,049) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.17% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 32.11 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 9.51 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 82.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 61.07 years
male: 60.27 years
female: 61.91 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.56 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Pakistani(s)
adjective: Pakistani
Ethnic groups: Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun (Pathan), Baloch, Muhajir (immigrants from India
at the time of partition and their descendants)
Religions: Muslim 97% (Sunni 77%, Shi'a 20%), Christian, Hindu, and other 3%
Languages: Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu
(official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official and lingua franca of
Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8%
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 37.8%
male: 50%
female: 24.4% (1995 est.) |
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Country
name:
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Pakistan conventional short form: Pakistan
former: West Pakistan
Data code: PK
Government type: federal republic
Capital: Islamabad
Administrative divisions: 4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital territory**;
Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**,
North-West Frontier, Punjab, Sindh
Note: the Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region includes
Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas.
Independence: 14 August 1947 (from UK)
National holiday: Pakistan Day, 23 March (1956) (proclamation of the republic)
Constitution: 10 April 1973, suspended 5 July 1977, restored with amendments 30 December
1985; suspended 15 October 1999
Legal system: based on English common law with provisions to accommodate Pakistan's status
as an Islamic state; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal; separate electorates and reserved parliamentary
seats for non-Muslims
Executive branch: Meer Zafar ullah jamali take oath as a priminister of Pakistan on
November 23, 2002. Gen. Pervez Musharraf remains the president of Pakistan for next 5
years.
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Maleeha LODHI
chancery: 2315 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 939-6200
FAX: [1] (202) 387-0484
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador William MILAM
embassy: Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad
mailing address: P. O. Box 1048, Unit 62200, APO AE 09812-2200
telephone: [92] (51) 826161 through 826179
FAX: [92] (51) 276427
consulate(s) general: Karachi
consulate(s): Lahore, Peshawar
Flag description: green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious
minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent and star are centered in the green
field; the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam. |
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Economy - overview: Pakistan is a poor, heavily populated country,
suffering from internal political disputes, lack of foreign investment, and a costly
confrontation with neighboring India. Pakistan's economic outlook continues to be marred
by its weak foreign exchange position, notably its continued reliance on international
creditors for hard currency inflows. The MUSHARRAF government faces $32 billion in
external debt and has nearly completed rescheduling with Paris Club members and other
bilateral creditors. Foreign loans and grants provide approximately 25% of government
revenue, but debt service obligations total nearly 50% of government expenditure. The IMF
has remained silent on future disbursements from its $1.56 billion bailout package
initiated in 1999, and other international financial institutions are gauging the current
administration's resolve to implement necessary fiscal reforms. MUSHARRAF's ambitious
economic agenda includes measures to widen the tax net, privatize public sector assets,
and improve its balance of trade position. Pakistan has made privatization a cornerstone
of economic revival, but may have difficulty attracting new investors until it receives
positive endorsement from the World Bank. The Bank has withheld its approval pending
resolution of the pricing dispute between the government and independent power producers.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $282 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3.1% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capital: purchasing power parity - $2,000 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 25.2%
industry: 26.6%
services: 48.2% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: 34% (1991 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 27.7% (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 38.6 million (1999)
Note: extensive export of labor, mostly to the Middle East, and use of child labor
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 44%, industry 17%, services 39% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 7% (FY98/99 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $10 billion
expenditures: $11.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99)
Industries: textiles, food processing, beverages, construction materials, clothing, paper
products, shrimp
Industrial production growth rate: 3.8% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 59.262 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 63.05%
hydro: 36.31%
nuclear: 0.64%
other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 55.114 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; milk, beef,
mutton, eggs
Exports: $8.4 billion (f.o.b., 1999)
Exports - commodities: cotton, fabrics, and yarn, rice, other agricultural products
Exports - partners: US 22%, Hong Kong 7%, UK 7%, Germany 7%, UAE 5% (FY98/99)
Imports: $9.8 billion (f.o.b., 1999)
Imports - commodities: machinery, petroleum, petroleum products, chemicals, transportation
equipment, edible oils, grains, pulses, flour
Imports - partners: US 8%, Japan 8%, Malaysia 7%, Saudi Arabia 7%, UAE 7% (FY98/99)
Debt - external: $32 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:$2 billion (FY97/98)
Currency: 1 Pakistani rupee (PRe) = 100 paisa
Exchange rates: Pakistani rupees (PRs) per US$1 - 51.90 (December 1999), 44.550 (1998),
40.185 (1997), 35.266 (1996), 30.930 (1995)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June |
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Telephones
- main lines in use: 2.861 million (March 1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 158,000 (1998)
Telephone system: the domestic system is mediocre, but improving; service is adequate for
government and business use, in part because major businesses have established their own
private systems; since 1988, the government has promoted investment in the national
telecommunications system on a priority basis, significantly increasing network capacity;
despite major improvements in trunk and urban systems, telecommunication services are
still not readily available to the majority of the rural population.
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, cellular, and
satellite.
international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian
Ocean); 3 operational international gateway exchanges (1 at Karachi and 2 at Islamabad);
microwave radio relay to neighboring countries.
Radio broadcast stations: AM 27, FM 1, shortwave 21 (1998)
Radios: 13.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 22 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 3.1 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 26 (1999) |
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Railways:
total: 8,163 km
broad gauge: 7,718 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km electrified; 1,037 km double track)
narrow gauge: 445 km 1.000-m gauge (1996 est.)
Highways:
total: 247,811 km
paved: 141,252 km (including 339 km of expressways)
unpaved: 106,559 km (1998 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 250 km; petroleum products 885 km; natural gas 4,044 km (1987)
Ports and harbors: Karachi, Port Muhammad bin Qasim
Merchant marine: total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 288,249 GRT/444,451 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 15, container 3, petroleum tanker 1 (1999 est.)
Airports: 118 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 82
over 3,047 m: 12
2,438 to 3,047 m: 21
1,524 to 2,437 m: 32
914 to 1,523 m: 14
under 914 m: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 20 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 7 (1999 est.) |
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Military
branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Civil Armed Forces, National Guard
Military manpower - military age: 17 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 34,632,509 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 21,206,148 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 1,604,806 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $2.435 billion (FY99/00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 3.9% (FY99/00) |
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Disputes
- international: status of Kashmir with India; water-sharing problems with India over the
Indus River (Wular Barrage)
Illicit drugs: producer of illicit opium and hashish for the international drug trade
(poppy cultivation in 1999 - 1,570 hectares, a 48% drop from 1998 because of eradication
and alternative development); key transit area for Southwest Asian heroin moving to
Western markets; narcotics still move from Afghanistan into Balochistan Province |
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