Population:
5,057,392 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.72% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
45.29 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
8.14 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
63.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
63.88 years
male:
61.73 years
female:
66.13 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.38 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Libyan(s)
adjective:
Libyan
Ethnic divisions:
Berber and Arab 97%, Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis,
Turks, Indians, Tunisians
Religions:
Sunni Muslim 97%
Languages:
Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major
cities
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
64%
male:
75%
female:
50%
Labor force:
1 million (includes about 280,000 resident foreigners)
by occupation:
industry 31%, services 27%, government 24%, agriculture 18%
@Libya, Government
Names:
conventional long form:
Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
conventional short form:
Libya
local long form:
Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishirakiyah
local short form:
none
Digraph:
LY
Type:
Jamahiriya (a state of the masses) in theory, governed by the populace
through local councils; in fact, a military dictatorship
Capital:
Tripoli
Administrative divisions:
25 municipalities (baladiyah, singular - baladiyat); Ajdabiya, Al
'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al
Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi,
Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt,
Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan
Independence:
24 December 1951 (from Italy)
National holiday:
Revolution Day, 1 September (1969)
Constitution:
11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977
Legal system:
based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious
courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative
acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Revolutionary Leader Col. Mu'ammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1
September 1969)
head of government:
Chairman of the General People's Committee (Premier) Abd al Majid
al-Qa'ud (since 29 January 1994)
cabinet:
General People's Committee; established by the General People's
Congress
note:
national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of peoples'
committees
Legislative branch:
unicameral
General People's Congress:
national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of peoples'
committees
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
none
Other political or pressure groups:
various Arab nationalist movements with almost negligible memberships
may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements
Member of:
ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
none
US diplomatic representation:
none
Flag:
plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state
religion)
@Libya, Economy
Overview: The socialist-oriented economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contributes practically all export earnings and about one-third of GDP. In 1990 per capita GDP was the highest in Africa at $5,410, but GDP growth rates have slowed and fluctuate sharply in response to changes in the world oil market. Import restrictions and inefficient resource allocations have led to shortages of basic goods and foodstuffs. Windfall revenues from the hike in world oil prices in late 1990 improved the foreign payments position and resulted in a current account surplus through 1992. The nonoil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for about 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Although agriculture accounts for only 5% of GDP, it employs about 20% of the labor force. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit farm output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food requirements. The UN sanctions imposed in April 1992 have not yet had a major impact on the economy because Libya's oil revenues generate sufficient foreign exchange that, along with Libya's large currency reserves, sustain food and consumer goods imports as well as equipment for the oil industry and ongoing development projects. National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $32 billion (1993 est.) National product real growth rate: 1% (1993 est.) National product per capita: $6,600 (1993 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6% (1993 est.) Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues: $8.1 billion expenditures: $9.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.1 billion (1989 est.) Exports: $7.7 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.) commodities: crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas partners: Italy, Germany, Spain, France, UK, Turkey, Greece, Egypt Imports: $8.26 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.) commodities: machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods partners: Italy, Germany, UK, France, Spain, Turkey, Tunisia, Eastern Europe External debt: $3.5 billion excluding military debt (1991 est.) Industrial production: growth rate 10.5% (1990) Electricity: capacity: 4,935,000 kW production: 14.385 billion kWh consumption per capita: 2,952 kWh (1992) Industries: petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement Agriculture: 5% of GNP; cash crops - wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus fruits, peanuts; 75% of food is imported Economic aid: recipient: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $242 million note: no longer a recipient Currency: 1 Libyan dinar (LD) = 1,000 dirhams Exchange rates: Libyan dinars (LD) per US$1 - 0.3233 (January 1994), 0.3250 (1993), 0.3013 (1992), 0.2684 (1991), 0.2699 (1990), 0.2922 (1989) Fiscal year: calendar year Railroads: Libya has had no railroad in operation since 1965, all previous systems having been dismantled; current plans are to construct a standard gauge (1.435 m) line from the Tunisian frontier to Tripoli and Misratah, then inland to Sabha, center of a mineral rich area, but there has been no progress; other plans made jointly with Egypt would establish a rail line from As Sallum, Egypt to Tobruk with completion set for mid-1994, progress unknown Highways: total: 19,300 km paved: bituminous 10,800 km unpaved: gravel, earth 8,500 km Inland waterways: none Pipelines: crude oil 4,383 km; petroleum products 443 km (includes liquified petroleum gas 256 km); natural gas 1,947 km Ports: Tobruk, Tripoli, Banghazi, Misratah, Marsa al Burayqah, Ra's Lanuf, Ra's al Unif Merchant marine: 31 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 690,703 GRT/1,211,184 DWT, cargo 10, chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 2, oil tanker 10, roll-on/roll-off cargo 4, short-sea passenger 4 Airports: total: 145 usable: 132 with permanent-surface runways: 57 with runways over 3,659 m: 8 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 28 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 52 Telecommunications: modern telecommunications system using radio relay, coaxial cable, tropospheric scatter, and domestic satellite stations; 370,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 17 AM, 3 FM, 12 TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, and 14 domestic; submarine cables to France and Italy; radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric scatter to Greece; planned ARABSAT and Intersputnik satellite stations
@Libya, Defense Forces
Branches:
Armed Peoples of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriyah (including Army, Navy,
Air and Air Defense Command)
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 1,094,052; fit for military service 649,976; reach
military age (17) annually 52,723 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $3.3 billion, 15% of GDP (1989 est.)
@Liechtenstein, Geography
Location:
Central Europe, between Austria and Switzerland
Map references:
Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
160 sq km
land area:
160 sq km
comparative area:
about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
total 78 km, Austria 37 km, Switzerland 41 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none; landlocked
International disputes:
claims 620 square miles of Czech territory confiscated from its royal
family in 1918; the Czech Republic insists that restitution does not
go back before February 1948, when the Communists seized power
Climate:
continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain; cool to
moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers
Terrain:
mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western third
Natural resources:
hydroelectric potential
Land use:
arable land:
25%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
38%
forest and woodland:
19%
other:
18%
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
NA
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Hazardous
Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified -
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea
Note:
landlocked; variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation
@Liechtenstein, People