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The Gambia (continued)  (1970-87), $422 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $39 million

Currency: dalasi (plural—dalasi); 1 dalasi (D) = 100 bututs

Exchange rates: dalasi (D) per US$1—8.3232 (December 1989), 7.5846 (1989), 6.7086 (1988), 7.0744 (1987), 6.9380 (1986), 3.8939 (1985)

Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June

Communications

Highways: 3,083 km total; 431 km paved, 501 km gravel/laterite, and 2,151 km unimproved earth

Inland waterways: 400 km

Ports: Banjul

Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft

Airports: 1 with permanent-surface runway 2,440-3,659 m

Telecommunications: adequate network of radio relay and wire; 3,500 telephones; stations—3 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Defense Forces

Branches: Army, paramilitary Gendarmerie

Military manpower: males 15-49, 182,308; 92,001 fit for military service

Defense expenditures: NA  Gaza Strip



Note: The war between Israel and the Arab states in June 1967 ended with Israel in control of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Sinai, and the Golan Heights. As stated in the 1978 Camp David Accords and reaffirmed by President Reagan's 1 September 1982 peace initiative, the final status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, their relationship with their neighbors, and a peace treaty between Israel and Jordan are to be negotiated among the concerned parties. Camp David further specifies that these negotiations will resolve the respective boundaries. Pending the completion of this process, it is US policy that the final status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip has yet to be determined. In the view of the US, the term West Bank describes all of the area west of the Jordan under Jordanian administration before the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. With respect to negotiations envisaged in the framework agreement, however, it is US policy that a distinction must be made between Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank because of the city's special status and circumstances. Therefore, a negotiated solution for the final status of Jerusalem could be different in character from that of the rest of the West Bank.

Geography

Total area: 380km²; land area: 380 km²

Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

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

Coastline: 40 km

Maritime claims: Israeli occupied with status to be determined

Disputes: Israeli occupied with status to be determined

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

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

Natural resources: negligible

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

Environment: desertification

Note: there are 18 Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip

People

Population: 615,575 (July 1990), growth rate 3.2% (1990); in addition, there are 2,500 Jewish settlers in the Gaza Strip

Birth rate: 47 births/1,000 population (1990)

Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)

Net migration rate: -7 migrants/1,000 population (1990)

Infant mortality rate: 55 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)

Life expectancy at birth: 63 years male, 66 years female (1990)

Total fertility rate: 7.0 children born/ woman (1990)

Nationality: NA

Ethnic divisions: 99.8% Palestinian Arab and other, 0.2% Jewish

Religion: 99% Muslim (predominantly Sunni), 0.7% Christian, 0.3% Jewish

Language: Arabic, Israeli settlers speak Hebrew, English widely understood

Literacy: NA%

Labor force: (excluding Israeli Jewish settlers) 32.0% small industry, commerce and business, 24.4% construction, 25.5% service and other, and 18.1% agriculture (1984)

Organized labor: NA

Government

Long-form name: none

Note: The Gaza Strip is currently governed by Israeli military authorities and Israeli civil administration. It is US policy that the final status of the Gaza Strip will be determined by negotiations among the concerned parties. These negotiations will determine how this area is to be governed.

Economy

Overview: Nearly half of the labor force of the Gaza Strip is employed across the border by Israeli industrial, construction, and agricultural enterprises, with worker transfer funds accounting for 40% of GNP in 1989. The once dominant agricultural sector now contributes only 13% to GNP, about the same as that of the construction sector, and industry accounts for 7%. Gaza depends upon Israel for 90% of its imports and as a market for 80% of its 110