Coastline: 1,340 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March);
southwest monsoon (June to October)
Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central
interior
Natural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems,
phosphates, clay
Land use: arable land: 16% permanent crops: 17% meadows and pastures: 7% forest and woodland: 37% other: 23%
Irrigated land: 5,600 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations
threatened by poaching; coastal degradation from mining activities and
increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial
wastes and sewage runoff
natural hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands;
signed, but not ratified - Marine Life Conservation
Note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes