Lebanon (2001) | Micronesia, Federated States of (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Ech Chimal, Ej Jnoub, El Bekaa, Jabal Loubnane | 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae, Pohnpei, Yap |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
27.57% (male 509,975; female 490,031) 15-64 years: 65.72% (male 1,136,995; female 1,247,184) 65 years and over: 6.71% (male 110,964; female 132,625) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats | black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 8 (2000 est.) | 7 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
10,400 sq km land: 10,230 sq km water: 170 sq km |
total:
702 sq km land: 702 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Truk (Chuuk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae |
Area - comparative | about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut | four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions and regaining its national sovereignty since 1991 and the end of the devastating 16-year civil war. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese have established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater say in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, the Lebanese have conducted several successful elections, most of the militias have been weakened or disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended central government authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, the radical Shi'a party, retains its weapons. Syria maintains about 25,000 troops in Lebanon based mainly in Beirut, North Lebanon, and the Bekaa Valley. Syria's troop deployment was legitimized by the Arab League during Lebanon's civil war and in the Ta'if Accord. Damascus justifies its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing the continued weakness of the LAF, Beirut's requests, and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from its security zone in southern Lebanon in May of 2000, however, has emboldened some Lebanese Christians and Druze to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. | In 1979 the Federated States of Micronesia, a UN Trust Territory under US administration, adopted a constitution. In 1986 independence was attained under a Compact of Free Association with the United States. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid. |
Birth rate | 20.16 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues:
$3.31 billion expenditures: $5.55 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$161 million ($69 million less grants) expenditures: $160 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Beirut | Palikir |
Climate | Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows | tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage |
Coastline | 225 km | 6,112 km |
Constitution | 23 May 1926, amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Taif Accord) of October 1989 | 10 May 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Lebanese Republic conventional short form: Lebanon local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah local short form: Lubnan |
conventional long form:
Federated States of Micronesia conventional short form: none former: Ponape, Truk, and Yap Districts (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) abbreviation: FSM |
Currency | Lebanese pound (LBP) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
Debt - external | $9.6 billion (2000 est.) | $111 million (1997 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador David M. SATTERFIELD embassy: Antelias, Beirut mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Beirut; PSC 815, Box 2, FPO AE 09836-0002 telephone: [961] (4) 543600, 543600 FAX: [961] (4) 544136 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Diane E. WATSON embassy: address NA, Kolonia mailing address: P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941 telephone: [691] 320-2187 FAX: [691] 320-2186 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Dr. Farid ABBOUD chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6300 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324 consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jesse Bibiano MAREHALAU chancery: 1725 N Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4383 FAX: [1] (202) 223-4391 consulate(s) general: Honolulu and Tamuning (Guam) |
Disputes - international | Syrian troops in northern, central, and eastern Lebanon since October 1976; Lebanese government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as a part of Lebanon from which Hizballah conducts cross-border attacks | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $3.5 billion (pledges 1997-2001) | under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US will provide $1.3 billion in grant aid during the period 1986-2001 |
Economy - overview | The 1975-91 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Peace enabled the central government to restore control in Beirut, begin collecting taxes, and regain access to key port and government facilities. Economic recovery was helped by a financially sound banking system and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers. Family remittances, banking services, manufactured and farm exports, and international aid provided the main sources of foreign exchange. Lebanon's economy has made impressive gains since the launch in 1993 of "Horizon 2000," the government's $20 billion reconstruction program. Real GDP grew 8% in 1994, 7% in 1995, 4% per year in 1996 and 1997 but slowed to 2% in 1998, -1% in 1999, and 1% in 2000. Annual inflation fell during the course of the 1990s from more than 100% to 0%, and foreign exchange reserves jumped from $1.4 billion to more than $6 billion. Burgeoning capital inflows have generated foreign payments surpluses, and the Lebanese pound has remained very stable for the past two years. Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure. Solidere, a $2-billion firm, has managed the reconstruction of Beirut's central business district; the stock market reopened in January 1996; and international banks and insurance companies are returning. The government nonetheless faces serious challenges in the economic arena. It has funded reconstruction by tapping foreign exchange reserves and by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. The newly re-installed HARIRI government's announced policies fail to address the ever-increasing budgetary deficits and national debt burden. The gap between rich and poor has widened in the 1990s, resulting in grassroots dissatisfaction over the skewed distribution of the reconstruction's benefits. | Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remoteness of the location and a lack of adequate facilities hinder development. In 1996, the country experienced a 20% reduction in revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement between the US and Micronesia in which Micronesia receives $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001 - as a result of the second step-down under the agreement. Since these revenues accounted for 57% of consolidated government revenues, reduced Compact funding resulted in a severe depression. While Micronesia's economy appears to have bottomed out in 1999, the country's medium-term economic outlook remains fragile due to likely further reductions in external grants made under the US Compact funding. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.86 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 654 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 7.748 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
91.29% hydro: 8.71% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Totolom 791 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills | overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1% | nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups |
Exchange rates | Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (January 2001), 1,507.5 (2000), 1,507.8 (1999), 1,516.1 (1998), 1,539.5 (1997), 1,571.4 (1996) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Emile LAHUD (since 24 November 1998) head of government: Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI (since 23 October 2000); Deputy Prime Minister Issam FARES (since 23 October 2000) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly; the current Cabinet was formed in 1998 elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term; election last held 15 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by custom, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shi'a Muslim election results: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions |
chief of state:
President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet elections: president and vice president elected by Congress from among the four senators-at-large for four-year terms; election last held NA May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2003) election results: Leo A. FALCAM elected president; percent of Congress vote - NA%; Redley KILLION elected vice president; percent of Congress vote - NA% |
Exports | $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $73 million (f.o.b., 1996 est.) |
Exports - commodities | foodstuffs and tobacco, textiles, chemicals, precious stones, metal and metal products, electrical equipment and products, jewelry, paper and paper products | fish, garments, bananas, black pepper |
Exports - partners | UAE 9%, Saudi Arabia 8%, Syria 6%, US 6%, Kuwait 6%, France 5%, Belgium 5%, Jordan 4% (1999) | Japan, US, Guam |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width), and red with a green and brown cedar tree centered in the white band | light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $18.2 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $263 million (1999 est.)
note: GDP is supplemented by grant aid, averaging perhaps $100 million annually |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
12% industry: 27% services: 61% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
19% industry: 4% services: 77% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 0.3% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 33 50 N, 35 50 E | 6 55 N, 158 15 E |
Geography - note | Nahr al Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity | four major island groups totaling 607 islands |
Highways | total:
7,300 km paved: 6,350 km unpaved: 950 km (1999 est.) |
total:
240 km paved: 42 km unpaved: 198 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | inconsequential producer of hashish; a Lebanese/Syrian eradication campaign started in the early 1990s has practically eliminated the opium and cannabis crops | - |
Imports | $6.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $168 million (c.i.f., 1996 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, textiles, metals, fuels, agricultural foods | food, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, beverages |
Imports - partners | Italy 13%, France 11%, Germany 8%, US 7%, Switzerland 6%, Japan, UK, Syria (1999) | US, Japan, Australia |
Independence | 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | banking; food processing; jewelry; cement; textiles; mineral and chemical products; wood and furniture products; oil refining; metal fabricating | tourism, construction, fish processing, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls |
Infant mortality rate | 28.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | - |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (FY98/99) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, Intelsat, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 22 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 860 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed) | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 1.3 million (1999 est.)
note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (1997 est.) |
NA |
Labor force - by occupation | services NA%, industry NA%, agriculture NA% | two-thirds are government employees |
Land boundaries | total:
454 km border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
18% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 8% other: 64% (1996 est.) |
arable land:
NA% permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA% |
Languages | Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian | English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean |
Legal system | mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 August and 3 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Muslim 57% (of which Sunni 25%, Sh'ite 25%, Druze 6%, Alawite less than 1%), Christian 43% (of which Maronite 23%); seats by party - Muslim 64 (of which Sunni 27, Sh'ite 27, Druze 8, Alawite 2), Christian 64 (of which Maronite 34) |
unicameral Congress (14 seats; members elected by popular vote; four - one elected from each of state - to serve four-year terms and 10 - elected from single-member districts delineated by population - to serve two-year terms)
elections: elections for four-year term seats last held 2 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003); elections for two-year term seats last held 6 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
71.52 years male: 69.13 years female: 74.03 years (2001 est.) |
- |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.4% male: 90.8% female: 82.2% (1997 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89% male: 91% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria | Oceania, island group in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Indonesia |
Map references | Middle East | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
71 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 379,705 GRT/592,672 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 42, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 1, container 4, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Netherlands 1, Syria 1 (2000 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a sovereign, self-governing state in free association with the US; FSM is totally dependent on the US for its defense |
Military branches | Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $343 million (FY99/00) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.8% (FY99/00) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
980,412 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
605,332 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 November (1943) | Constitution Day, 10 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun:
Lebanese (singular and plural) adjective: Lebanese |
noun:
Micronesian(s) adjective: Micronesian; Kosrae(s), Pohnpeian(s), Trukese, Yapese |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms | typhoons (June to December) |
Natural resources | limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land | forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
Pipelines | crude oil 72 km (none in operation) | - |
Political parties and leaders | political party activity is organized along largely sectarian lines; numerous political groupings exist, consisting of individual political figures and followers motivated by religious, clan, and economic considerations | no formal parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
Population | 3,627,774 (July 2001 est.) | 134,597 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 28% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.38% (2001 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | Antilyas, Batroun, Beirut, Chekka, El Mina, Ez Zahrani, Jbail, Jounie, Naqoura, Sidon, Tripoli, Tyre | Colonia (Yap), Kolonia (Pohnpei), Lele, Moen |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 5, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 2.85 million (1997) | NA |
Railways | total:
399 km (mostly unusable because of damage in civil war) standard gauge: 317 km 1.435-m narrow gauge: 82 km (1999) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 70% (including Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 30% (including Orthodox Christian, Catholic, Protestant), Jewish NEGL% | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 47%, other and none 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
- |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
telecommunications system severely damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway domestic: primarily microwave radio relay and cable international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) (erratic operations); coaxial cable to Syria; microwave radio relay to Syria but inoperable beyond Syria to Jordan; 3 submarine coaxial cables |
general assessment:
adequate system domestic: islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 700,000 (1999) | 11,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 580,000 (1999) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | narrow coastal plain; Al Biqa' (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains | islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Truk |
Total fertility rate | 2.05 children born/woman (2001 est.) | - |
Unemployment rate | 18% (1997 est.) | 16% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |