Country ranking for telephone system 2000

This entry includes a brief general assessment of the system with details on the domestic and international components. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:|Arabsat - Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia).|Autodin - Automatic Digital Network (US Department of Defense).|CB - citizen's band mobile radio communications.|Cellular telephone system - the telephones in this system are radio transceivers, with each instrument having its own private radio frequency and sufficient radiated power to reach the booster station in its area (cell), from which the telephone signal is fed to a telephone exchange.|Central American Microwave System - a trunk microwave radio relay system that links the countries of Central America and Mexico with each other.|Coaxial cable - a multichannel communication cable consisting of a central conducting wire, surrounded by and insulated from a cylindrical conducting shell; a large number of telephone channels can be made available within the insulated space by the use of a large number of carrier frequencies.|Comsat - Communications Satellite Corporation (US).|DSN - Defense Switched Network (formerly Automatic Voice Network or Autovon); basic general-purpose, switched voice network of the Defense Communications System (US Department of Defense).|Eutelsat - European Telecommunications Satellite Organization (Paris).|Fiber-optic cable - a multichannel communications cable using a thread of optical glass fibers as a transmission medium in which the signal (voice, video, etc.) is in the form of a coded pulse of light.|GSM - a global system for mobile (cellular) communications devised by the Groupe Special Mobile of the pan-European standardization organization, Conference Europeanne des Posts et Telecommunications (CEPT) in 1982.|HF - high frequency; any radio frequency in the 3,000- to 30,000-kHz range.|Inmarsat - International Maritime Satellite Organization (London); provider of global mobile satellite communications for commercial, distress, and safety applications at sea, in the air, and on land.|Intelsat - International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (Washington, DC).|Intersputnik - International Organization of Space Communications (Moscow); first established in the former Soviet Union and the East European countries, it is now marketing its services worldwide with earth stations in North America, Africa, and East Asia.|Landline - communication wire or cable of any sort that is installed on poles or buried in the ground.|Marecs - Maritime European Communications Satellite used in the Inmarsat system on lease from the European Space Agency.|Marisat - satellites of the Comsat Corporation that participate in the Inmarsat system.|Medarabtel - the Middle East Telecommunications Project of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) providing a modern telecommunications network, primarily by microwave radio relay, linking Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen; it was initially started in Morocco in 1970 by the Arab Telecommunications Union (ATU) and was known at that time as the Middle East Mediterranean Telecommunications Network.|Microwave radio relay - transmission of long distance telephone calls and television programs by highly directional radio microwaves that are received and sent on from one booster station to another on an optical path.|NMT - Nordic Mobile Telephone; an analog cellular telephone system that was developed jointly by the national telecommunications authorities of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden).|Orbita - a Russian television service; also the trade name of a packet-switched digital telephone network.|Radiotelephone communications - the two-way transmission and reception of sounds by broadcast radio on authorized frequencies using telephone handsets.|PanAmSat - PanAmSat Corporation (Greenwich, CT).|SAFE - South African Far East Cable|Satellite communication system - a communication system consisting of two or more earth stations and at least one satellite that provide long distance transmission of voice, data, and television; the system usually serves as a trunk connection between telephone exchanges; if the earth stations are in the same country, it is a domestic system.|Satellite earth station - a communications facility with a microwave radio transmitting and receiving antenna and required receiving and transmitting equipment for communicating with satellites.|Satellite link - a radio connection between a satellite and an earth station permitting communication between them, either one-way (down link from satellite to earth station - television receive-only transmission) or two-way (telephone channels).|SHF - super high frequency; any radio frequency in the 3,000- to 30,000-MHz range.|Shortwave - radio frequencies (from 1.605 to 30 MHz) that fall above the commercial broadcast band and are used for communication over long distances.|Solidaridad - geosynchronous satellites in Mexico's system of international telecommunications in the Western Hemisphere.|Statsionar - Russia's geostationary system for satellite telecommunications.|Submarine cable - a cable designed for service under water.|TAT - Trans-Atlantic Telephone; any of a number of high-capacity submarine coaxial telephone cables linking Europe with North America.|Telefax - facsimile service between subscriber stations via the public switched telephone network or the international Datel network.|Telegraph - a telecommunications system designed for unmodulated electric impulse transmission.|Telex - a communication service involving teletypewriters connected by wire through automatic exchanges.|Tropospheric scatter - a form of microwave radio transmission in which the troposphere is used to scatter and reflect a fraction of the incident radio waves back to earth; powerful, highly directional antennas are used to transmit and receive the microwave signals; reliable over-the-horizon communications are realized for distances up to 600 miles in a single hop; additional hops can extend the range of this system for very long distances.|Trunk network - a network of switching centers, connected by multichannel trunk lines.|UHF - ultra high frequency; any radio frequency in the 300- to 3,000-MHz range.|VHF - very high frequency; any radio frequency in the 30- to 300-MHz range.

1	Argentina	12000
2	Johnston Atoll	13 outgoing and 10 incoming commercial lines; adequate telecommunications
3	Nigeria	an inadequate system further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made
4	Norway	high-quality domestic and international telephone telegraph and telex services
5	Oman	modern system consisting of open wire microwave and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable
6	Pakistan	the domestic system is mediocre but improving; service is adequate for government and business use in part because major businesses have established their own private systems; since 1988 the government has promoted investment in the national telecommunications system on a priority basis significantly increasing network capacity; despite major improvements in trunk and urban systems telecommunication services are still not readily available to the majority of the rural population
7	Panama	domestic and international facilities well developed
8	Philippines	good international radiotelephone and submarine cable services; domestic and interisland service adequate
9	Angola	telephone service limited mostly to government and business use; HF radiotelephone used extensively for military links
10	Niger	small system of wire radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay links concentrated in southwestern area
11	Poland	0
12	Puerto Rico	modern system integrated with that of the US by high-capacity submarine cable and Intelsat with high-speed data capability
13	Qatar	modern system centered in Doha
14	Russia	the telephone system has undergone significant changes in the 1990s; there are more than 1000 companies licensed to offer communication services; access to digital lines has improved particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy
15	Rwanda	telephone system primarily serves business and government
16	Réunion	adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
17	Pitcairn Islands	party line telephone service on the island
18	Netherlands Antilles	generally adequate facilities
19	New Zealand	excellent international and domestic systems
20	Nepal	poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile cellular telephone network
21	Nauru	adequate local and international radiotelephone communications provided via Australian facilities
22	Mozambique	fair system of tropospheric scatter open-wire lines and microwave radio relay
23	Monaco	automatic telephone system
24	Moldova	inadequate outmoded poor service outside Chisinau some effort to modernize is under way
25	Mexico	highly developed system with extensive microwave radio relay links; privatized in December 1990; opened to competition January 1997
26	Mayotte	small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications
27	Mauritania	poor system of cable and open-wire lines minor microwave radio relay links and radiotelephone communications stations
28	Martinique	domestic facilities are adequate
29	Malta	automatic system satisfies normal requirements
30	Mali	domestic system poor but improving; provides only minimal service
31	Malaysia	international service good
32	Luxembourg	highly developed completely automated and efficient system mainly buried cables
33	Saint Kitts and Nevis	good interisland VHF/UHF/SHF radiotelephone connections and international link via Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Martin
34	Saudi Arabia	modern system
35	Sierra Leone	marginal telephone and telegraph service
36	Turkey	undergoing rapid modernization and expansion especially cellular telephones
37	Zambia	facilities are among the best in Sub-Saharan Africa
38	Yemen	since unification in 1990 efforts have been made to create a national telecommunications network
39	Wake Island	satellite communications; 1 DSN circuit off the Overseas Telephone System
40	Vietnam	while Vietnam's telecommunication sector lags far behind other countries in Southeast Asia Hanoi has made considerable progress since 1991 in upgrading the system; Vietnam has digitalized all provincial switch boards while fiber-optic and microwave transmission systems have been extended from Hanoi Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City to all provinces; the density of telephone receivers nationwide doubled from 1993 to 1995 but is still far behind other countries in the region
41	Venezuela	modern and expanding
42	Uzbekistan	antiquated and inadequate; in serious need of modernization
43	Uruguay	some modern facilities
44	United Kingdom	technologically advanced domestic and international system
45	United Arab Emirates	modern system consisting of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable; key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai
46	Ukraine	Ukraine's telecommunication development plan running through 2005 emphasizes improving domestic trunk lines and international connections and developing a mobile cellular system
47	Uganda	seriously inadequate; two cellular systems have been introduced but a sharp increase in the number of main lines is essential; e-mail and Internet services are available
48	Turks and Caicos Islands	fair cable and radiotelephone services
49	Turkmenistan	poorly developed
50	Tunisia	above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax Sousse Bizerte and Tunis; Internet access available
51	Singapore	good domestic facilities; good international service
52	Trinidad and Tobago	excellent international service; good local service
53	Togo	fair system based on network of microwave radio relay routes supplemented by open-wire lines and cellular system
54	The Netherlands	highly developed and well maintained
55	Thailand	service to general public adequate but investment in technological upgrades reduced by recession; bulk of service to government activities provided by multichannel cable and microwave radio relay network
56	Tajikistan	poorly developed and not well maintained; many towns are not reached by the national network
57	Syria	fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades including fiber-optic technology
58	Switzerland	excellent domestic and international services
59	Sweden	excellent domestic and international facilities; automatic system
60	Suriname	international facilities good
61	Sri Lanka	very inadequate domestic service particularly in rural areas; some hope for improvement with privatization of national telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good international service
62	Spain	generally adequate modern facilities
63	South Korea	excellent domestic and international services
64	South Africa	the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa
65	Somalia	the public telecommunications system was completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; all relief organizations depend on their own private systems
66	Lithuania	inadequate but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access
67	Libya	telecommunications system is being modernized; mobile cellular telephone system became operational in 1996
68	Liechtenstein	automatic telephone system
69	Burundi	primitive system
70	Djibouti	telephone facilities in the city of Djibouti are adequate as are the microwave radio relay connections to outlying areas of the country
71	Denmark	excellent telephone and telegraph services
72	Côte d'Ivoire	well-developed by African standards but operating well below capacity
73	Cyprus	excellent in both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot areas
74	Costa Rica	very good domestic telephone service
75	Congo	services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville Pointe-Noire and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out-of-order
76	Comoros	sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communication stations
77	China	domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities industrial centers and many towns
78	Chile	modern system based on extensive microwave radio relay facilities
79	Chad	primitive system
80	Central African Republic	fair system
81	Canada	excellent service provided by modern technology
82	Cameroon	available only to business and government
83	Bulgaria	more than two-thirds of the lines are residential
84	Equatorial Guinea	poor system with adequate government services
85	Brunei	service throughout country is excellent; international service good to Europe US and East Asia
86	British Virgin Islands	worldwide telephone service
87	British Indian Ocean Territory	separate facilities for military and public needs are available
88	Brazil	good working system
89	Botswana	sparse system
90	Bosnia and Herzegovina	telephone and telegraph network is in need of modernization and expansion; many urban areas are below average when compared with services in other former Yugoslav republics
91	Bolivia	new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities
92	Belize	above-average system
93	Belgium	highly developed technologically advanced and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities
94	Belarus	the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier
95	Bahrain	modern system; good domestic services and excellent international connections
96	Azerbaijan	Azerbaijan's telephone system is a combination of old Soviet era technology used by Azerbaijani citizens and small- to medium-size commercial establishments and modern cellular telephones used by an increasing middle class large commercial ventures international companies and most government officials; the average citizen waits on a 200000-person list for telephone service; Internet and e-mail service are available in Baku
97	Australia	excellent domestic and international service
98	Armenia	system inadequate; now 90% privately owned and undergoing modernization and expansion
99	Egypt	large system by Third World standards but inadequate for present requirements and undergoing extensive upgrading; Internet access available
100	Estonia	foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; Internet services available throughout most of the country; about 150000 unfilled subscriber requests
101	Liberia	telephone and telegraph service via microwave radio relay network; main center is Monrovia
102	Hungary	the telephone system has been modernized and is capable of satisfying all requests for telecommunication service
103	Lebanon	telecommunications system severely damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway
104	Laos	service to general public is poor but improving with over 20000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas
105	Kyrgyzstan	poorly developed; about 100000 unsatisfied applications for household telephones
106	Kuwait	the civil network suffered some damage as a result of the Gulf war but most of the telephone exchanges were left intact and by the end of 1994 domestic and international telecommunications had been restored to normal operation; the quality of service is excellent
107	Kenya	unreliable; little attempt to modernize
108	Kazakhstan	service is poor; equipment antiquated
109	Jordan	service has improved recently with the increased use of digital switching equipment but better access to the telephone system is needed in the rural areas and easier access to pay telephones is needed by the urban public
110	Jamaica	fully automatic domestic telephone network
111	Italy	modern well-developed fast; fully automated telephone telex and data services
112	Iraq	reconstitution of damaged telecommunication facilities began after the Gulf war; most damaged facilities have been rebuilt
113	Iran	inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages not presently connected
114	Indonesia	domestic service fair international service good
115	Iceland	adequate domestic service
116	Hong Kong	modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services
117	Faroe Islands	good international communications; good domestic facilities
118	Honduras	inadequate system
119	Holy See	automatic exchange
120	Guyana	fair system for long-distance calling
121	Guinea-Bissau	small system
122	Guatemala	fairly modern network centered in the city of Guatemala
123	Guadeloupe	domestic facilities inadequate
124	Grenada	automatic islandwide telephone system
125	Greece	adequate modern networks reach all areas; microwave radio relay carries most traffic; extensive open-wire network; submarine cables to off-shore islands
126	Gibraltar	adequate automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
127	Ghana	poor to fair system; Internet accessible; many rural communities not yet connected; expansion of services is underway
128	Germany	Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
129	France	highly developed
130	Finland	modern system with excellent service
131	Fiji	modern local interisland and international
132	Zimbabwe	system was once one of the best in Africa but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100000 outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number of installed but unused main lines

Country ranking for field: telephone system 2000