CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Nepal


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!| Background:
 * In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government. Reforms in 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. A Maoist insurgency, launched in 1996, has gained traction and is threatening to bring down the regime, especially after a negotiated cease-fire between the Maoists and government forces broke down in August 2003. In 2001, the crown prince massacred ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, and then took his own life. In October 2002, the new king dismissed the prime minister and his cabinet for "incompetence" after they dissolved the parliament and were subsequently unable to hold elections because of the ongoing insurgency. While stopping short of reestablishing parliament, the king in June 2004 reinstated the most recently elected Prime Minister who formed a four-party coalition government, which the king subsequently tasked with paving the way for elections to be held in spring of 2005.
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!| Location: !| Geographic coordinates: !| Map references: !| Area: water: 4,000 sq km land: 136,800 sq km !| Area - comparative: !| Land boundaries: border countries: China 1,236 km, India 1,690 km !| Coastline: !| Maritime claims: !| Climate: !| Terrain: !| Elevation extremes: highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999) !| Natural resources: !| Land use: permanent crops: 0.64% other: 77.68% (2001) !| Irrigated land: !| Natural hazards: !| Environment - current issues: !| Environment - international agreements: signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation !| Geography - note:
 * Southern Asia, between China and India
 * 28 00 N, 84 00 E
 * Asia
 * total: 140,800 sq km
 * slightly larger than Arkansas
 * total: 2,926 km
 * 0 km (landlocked)
 * none (landlocked)
 * varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south
 * Terai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north
 * lowest point: Kanchan Kalan 70 m
 * quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore
 * arable land: 21.68%
 * 11,350 sq km (1998 est.)
 * severe thunderstorms, flooding, landslides, drought, and famine depending on the timing, intensity, and duration of the summer monsoons
 * deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions
 * party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
 * landlocked; strategic location between China and India; contains eight of world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest - the world's tallest - on the border with China
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!| Population: !| Age structure: 15-64 years: 57% (male 7,912,553; female 7,518,430) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 483,998; female 503,282) (2004 est.) !| Median age: male: 19.7 years female: 20 years (2004 est.) !| Population growth rate: !| Birth rate: !| Death rate: !| Net migration rate: !| Sex ratio: under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.) !| Infant mortality rate: female: 70.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 67.1 deaths/1,000 live births !| Life expectancy at birth: male: 59.73 years female: 59.06 years (2004 est.) !| Total fertility rate: !| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: !| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: !| HIV/AIDS - deaths: !| Nationality: adjective: Nepalese !| Ethnic groups: !| Religions: note: only official Hindu state in the world (1995) !| Languages: !| Literacy: total population: 45.2% male: 62.7% female: 27.6% (2003 est.)
 * 27,070,666 (July 2004 est.)
 * 0-14 years: 39.4% (male 5,500,698; female 5,151,705)
 * total: 19.9 years
 * 2.23% (2004 est.)
 * 31.96 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 9.66 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
 * total: 68.77 deaths/1,000 live births
 * total population: 59.4 years
 * 4.29 children born/woman (2004 est.)
 * 0.5% (2001 est.)
 * 58,000 (2001 est.)
 * 2,400 (2001 est.)
 * noun: Nepalese (singular and plural)
 * Brahman, Chetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tharu, and others (1995)
 * Hinduism 86.2%, Buddhism 7.8%, Islam 3.8%, other 2.2%
 * Nepali (official; spoken by 90% of the population), about a dozen other languages and about 30 major dialects; note - many in government and business also speak English (1995)
 * definition: age 15 and over can read and write
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!| Country name: conventional short form: Nepal !| Government type: !| Capital: !| Administrative divisions: !| Independence: !| National holiday: !| Constitution: !| Legal system: !| Suffrage: !| Executive branch: head of government: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur DEUBA (since 3 June 2004); note - Prime Minister THAPA resigned 7 May 2004 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody shooting at the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is believed to have been responsible for the shootings before fatally wounding himself; immediately following the shootings and while still clinging to life, DIPENDRA was crowned king; he died three days later and was succeeded by his uncle !| Legislative branch: : bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) note: Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 2002 election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%, NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%, others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1 elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 May 1999 (next election NA 2004) !| Judicial branch: !| Political parties and leaders: !| Political pressure groups and leaders: !| International organization participation: !| Diplomatic representation in the US: FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534 consulate(s) general: New York telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550 chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 !| Diplomatic representation from the US: embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [977] (1) 411179 FAX: [977] (1) 419963 !| Flag description:
 * conventional long form: Kingdom of Nepal
 * parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy
 * Kathmandu
 * 14 zones (anchal, singular and plural); Bagmati, Bheri, Dhawalagiri, Gandaki, Janakpur, Karnali, Kosi, Lumbini, Mahakali, Mechi, Narayani, Rapti, Sagarmatha, Seti
 * 1768 (unified by Prithvi Narayan Shah)
 * Birthday of King GYANENDRA, 7 July (1946)
 * 9 November 1990
 * based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
 * 18 years of age; universal
 * chief of state: King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the throne 4 June 2001 following the death of his nephew, King DIPENDRA Bir Bikram Shah)
 * Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the Judicial Council)
 * Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National Democratic Party or NDP (also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya Bahadur THAPA, chairman]; People's Front Nepal (Rastriya Jana Morcha) [Chitra BAHADUR, chairman]; Nepal Sadbhavana (Goodwill) Party or NSP [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL, acting party president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man BIJUKCHHE, party chairman]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party president; Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Nepali Congress-Democratic [Sher Bahadur DEUBA, president]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [NA leader]
 * Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency [Pushpa Kamal DAHAL, also known as PRAHANDA, chairman; Dr. Baburam BHATTARAI, from Communist Party of Nepal/Maoist, chief negotiator]; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups
 * AsDB, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MICAH, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
 * chief of mission: Ambassador Kedar Bhakta SHRESTHA
 * chief of mission: Ambassador James F. MORIARTY
 * red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun
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!| Economy - overview: !| GDP: !| GDP - real growth rate: !| GDP - per capita: !| GDP - composition by sector: industry: 20% services: 40% (2002 est.) !| Population below poverty line: !| Household income or consumption by percentage share: highest 10%: 29.8% (1995-96) !| Distribution of family income - Gini index: !| Inflation rate (consumer prices): !| Labor force: note: severe lack of skilled labor (1996 est.) !| Labor force - by occupation: !| Unemployment rate: !| Budget: expenditures: $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (FY99/00 est.) !| Agriculture - products: !| Industries: !| Industrial production growth rate: !| Electricity - production: !| Electricity - consumption: !| Electricity - exports: !| Electricity - imports: !| Oil - production: !| Oil - consumption: !| Oil - exports: !| Oil - imports: !| Exports: !| Exports - commodities: !| Exports - partners: !| Imports: !| Imports - commodities: !| Imports - partners: !| Debt - external: !| Economic aid - recipient: !| Currency: !| Currency code: !| Exchange rates: !| Fiscal year:
 * Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with 42% of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for over 80% of the population and accounting for 40% of GDP. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. Security concerns in the wake of the Maoist conflict and the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the US have led to a decrease in tourism, a key source of foreign exchange. Nepal has considerable scope for exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. Prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, its civil strife, and its susceptibility to natural disaster. The international community's role of funding more than 60% of Nepal's development budget and more than 28% of total budgetary expenditures will likely continue as a major ingredient of growth.
 * purchasing power parity - $38.29 billion (2003 est.)
 * 3% (2003 est.)
 * purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2003 est.)
 * agriculture: 40%
 * 42% (1995-96)
 * lowest 10%: 3.2%
 * 36.7 (FY95/96)
 * 2.9% (2002 est.)
 * 10 million
 * agriculture 81%, industry 3%, services 16%
 * 47% (2001 est.)
 * revenues: $665 million
 * rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat
 * tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production
 * 8.7% (FY99/00)
 * 1.755 billion kWh (2001)
 * 1.764 billion kWh (2001)
 * 95 million kWh (2001)
 * 227 million kWh (2001)
 * 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * 16,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * NA (2001)
 * NA (2001)
 * $568 million f.o.b., but does not include unrecorded border trade with India (2002 est.)
 * carpets, clothing, leather goods, jute goods, grain
 * India 50.7%, US 26%, Germany 6.6% (2003)
 * $1.419 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
 * gold, machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer
 * India 22.9%, China 13.4%, UAE 12.5%, Singapore 7.1%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, Kuwait 4.6% (2003)
 * $2.7 billion (2001)
 * $424 million (FY00/01)
 * Nepalese rupee (NPR)
 * NPR
 * Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.1414 (2003), 77.8766 (2002), 74.9492 (2001), 71.0938 (2000), 68.2394 (1999)
 * 16 July - 15 July
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!| Telephones - main lines in use: !| Telephones - mobile cellular: !| Telephone system: domestic: NA international: country code - 977; radiotelephone communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) !| Radio broadcast stations: !| Radios: !| Television broadcast stations: !| Televisions: !| Internet country code: !| Internet hosts: !| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): !| Internet users:
 * 371,800 (2003)
 * 50,400 (2003)
 * general assessment: poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network
 * AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000)
 * 840,000 (1997)
 * 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998)
 * 130,000 (1997)
 * .np
 * 917 (2003)
 * 6 (2000)
 * 80,000 (2002)
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!| Railways: narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2003) !| Highways: paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (1999 est.) !| Ports and harbors: !| Airports: !| Airports - with paved runways: over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 (2004 est.) !| Airports - with unpaved runways: 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2004 est.)
 * total: 59 km
 * total: 13,223 km
 * none
 * 46 (2003 est.)
 * total: 9
 * total: 37
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!| Military branches: !| Military manpower - military age and obligation: !| Military manpower - availability: !| Military manpower - fit for military service: !| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: !| Military expenditures - dollar figure: !| Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
 * Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army Air Service), Nepalese Police Force
 * 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)
 * males age 15-49: 6,865,849 (2004 est.)
 * males age 15-49: 3,566,576 (2004 est.)
 * males: 308,776 (2004 est.)
 * $295 million (FY03)
 * 1.6% (2003)
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