@Yemen, Economy
Overview:
Whereas the northern city Sanaa is the political capital of a united
Yemen, the southern city Aden, with its refinery and port facilities,
is the economic and commercial capital. Future economic development
depends heavily on Western-assisted development of its moderate oil
resources. Former South Yemen's willingness to merge stemmed partly
from the steady decline in Soviet economic support. The low level of
domestic industry and agriculture have made northern Yemen dependent
on imports for practically all of its essential needs. Large trade
deficits have been compensated for by remittances from Yemenis working
abroad and by foreign aid. Because of the Gulf crisis, remittances
have dropped substantially. Once self-sufficient in food production,
northern Yemen has become a major importer. Land once used for export
crops - cotton, fruit, and vegetables - has been turned over to
growing a shrub called qat, whose leaves are chewed for their
stimulant effect by Yemenis and which has no significant export
market. Economic growth in former South Yemen has been constrained by
a lack of incentives, partly stemming from centralized control over
production decisions, investment allocation, and import choices.
Nominal growth in 1994-95 is apt to be under 3% annually because of
low oil prices and political deadlock that is causing a lack of
economic cooperation and leadership.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $9 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
3.1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
55% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate:
30% (December 1992)
Budget:
revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
$695 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
crude oil, cotton, coffee, hides, vegetables, dried and salted fish
partners:
Italy 55%, US 32%, Jordan 5% (1991)
Imports:
$1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
textiles and other manufactured consumer goods, petroleum products,
sugar, grain, flour, other foodstuffs, cement, machinery, chemicals
partners:
UAE 6%, Japan 6%, Saudi Arabia 6%, Kuwait 6%, US 6% (1991)
External debt:
$7 billion (1993)
Industrial production:
growth rate NA%, accounts for 18% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
714,000 kW
production:
1.224 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
120 kWh (1992)
Industries:
crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of
cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small
aluminum products factory; cement
Agriculture:
accounted for 26% of GDP; products - grain, fruits, vegetables, qat
(mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton, dairy, poultry, meat, fish;
not self-sufficient in grain
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $389 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2
billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.2 billion; Communist
countries (1970-89), $2.4 billion
Currency:
Yemeni rial (new currency); 1 North Yemeni riyal (YR) = 100 fils; 1
South Yemeni dinar (YD) = 1,000 fils
note:
following the establishment of the Republic of Yemen on 22 May 1990,
the North Yemeni riyal and the South Yemeni dinar are to be replaced
with a new Yemeni rial
Exchange rates:
Yemeni rials per US$1 - 12.0 (official); 70 (market rate, April 1994)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
@Yemen, Communications
Highways:
total:
15,500 km
paved:
4,000 km
unpaved:
natural surface 11,500 km
Pipelines:
crude oil 644 km; petroleum products 32 km
Ports:
Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Khalf, Al Mukalla, Mocha, Nishtun, Ra's Kathib,
Salif
Merchant marine:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,309 GRT/6,568 DWT, cargo 2, oil
tanker 1
Airports:
total:
46
usable:
40
with permanent-surface runways:
10
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
18
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
11
Telecommunications:
since unification in 1990, efforts are still being made to create a
national domestic civil telecommunications network; the network
consists of microwave radio relay, cable and troposcatter; 65,000
telephones (est.); broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 10 TV; satellite
earth stations - 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1
Intersputnik, 2 ARABSAT; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia, and
Djibouti
@Yemen, Defense Forces
Branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force, Police
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 2,142,519; fit for military service 1,219,985; reach
military age (14) annually 137,497 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $762 million, 14% of GDP (1992)
@Zaire, Geography
Location:
Central Africa, between Congo and Zambia
Map references:
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
2,345,410 sq km
land area:
2,267,600 sq km
comparative area:
slightly more than one-quarter the size of US
Land boundaries:
total 10,271 km, Angola 2,511 km, Burundi 233 km, Central African
Republic 1,577 km, Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Uganda
765 km, Zambia 1,930 km
Coastline:
37 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
Tanzania-Zaire-Zambia tripoint in Lake Tanganyika may no longer be
indefinite since it is reported that the indefinite section of the
Zaire-Zambia boundary has been settled; long section with Congo along
the Congo River is indefinite (no division of the river or its islands
has been made)
Climate:
tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in
southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of
Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to
February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season
April to October
Terrain:
vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east
Natural resources:
cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold,
silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite,
iron ore, coal, hydropower potential
Land use:
arable land:
3%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
4%
forest and woodland:
78%
other:
15%
Irrigated land:
100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution;
deforestation
natural hazards:
periodic droughts in south
international agreements:
party to - Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Tropical Timber; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Environmental Modification
Note:
straddles Equator; very narrow strip of land that controls the lower
Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical
rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands
@Zaire, People
Population:
42,684,091 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.17% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
48.39 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
16.74 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
110.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
47.4 years
male:
45.57 years
female:
49.29 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.7 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Zairian(s)
adjective:
Zairian
Ethnic divisions:
over 200 African ethnic groups, the majority are Bantu; four largest
tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande
(Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population
Religions:
Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other
syncretic sects and traditional beliefs 10%
Languages:
French, Lingala, Swahili, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
72%
male:
84%
female:
61%
Labor force:
15 million (13% of the labor force is wage earners; 51% of the
population is of working age)
by occupation:
agriculture 75%, industry 13%, services 12% (1985)