Map of Iran | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: Known as Persia until 1935 Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88 Iran fought a bloody indecisive war with Iraq over disputed territory. The key current issue is how rapidly the country should open up to the modernizing influences of the outside world.


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Location: Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Middle East

Area
Total area total: 1.648 million km²
Land: 1.636 million km²
Comparative: slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries: total 5,440 km, Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan (north) 432 km, Azerbaijan (northwest) 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km

Coastline: 2,440 km
Note: Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: natural prolongation
Exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements, or median lines in the Persian Gulf
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Terrain: rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur

Land use
Arable land: 8%
Permanent crops: 0%
Meadows and pastures: 27%
Forest and woodland: 11%
Other: 54%

Irrigated land: 57,500 km² (1989 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography


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Population: 64,625,455 (July 1995 est.)
Growth rate: 2.29% (1995 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Iranian(s)
Adjective: Iranian

Ethnic groups: Persian 51%, Azerbaijani 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Languages: Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Baloch 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%

Religions: Shi'a Muslim 95%, Sunni Muslim 4%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 45% (female 14,113,933; male 14,995,015)
15-64 years: 51% (female 16,237,810; male 16,803,943)
65 years and over: 4% (female 1,197,869; male 1,276,885) (July 1995 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 2.29% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 34.85 births/1000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 6.85 deaths/1000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: -5.11 migrant(s)/1000 population (1995 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; inadequate supplies of potable water
Current issues natural hazards: periodic droughts, floods; duststorms, sandstorms; earthquakes along the Western border
Current issues international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 54.6 deaths/1000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 66.97 years
Male: 65.77 years
Female: 68.22 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.93 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1991)
Total population: 66%
Male: 74%
Female: 56%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran
Conventional short form: Iran
Local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran
Local short form: Iran

Government type: theocratic republic

Capital: Tehran

Administrative divisions: 24 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Azarbayjan-e Bakhtari (West Azerbaijan), Azarbayjan-e Khavari (East Azerbaijan), Bakhtaran, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohkiluyeh va Buyer Ahmadi, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan
Note: there may be a new province named Ardabil formed from a part of Azarbayjan-e Khavari (East Azerbaijan) which may have been renamed Azarbayjan-e Markazi (Central Azerbaijan); the name Bakhtaran may have been changed to Kermanshahan

Dependent areas

Independence: 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)

National holiday: Islamic Republic Day, 1 April (1979)

Constitution: 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership

Legal system: the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 15 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Supreme leader rahbar and functional chief of state: Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)
Head of government: President Ali Akbar Hashemi-RAFSANJANI (since 3 August 1989); election last held June 1993 (next to be held June 1997); results - Ali Akbar Hashemi-RAFSANJANI was elected with 63% of the vote
Cabinet: Council of Ministers; selected by the president with legislative approval

Legislative branch: unicameral
Islamic Consultative Assembly MajleseShurayeEslami: elections last held 8 April 1992 (next to be held April 1996); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (270 seats total) number of seats by party NA

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, DC
In the us chancery: Iranian Interests Section, 2,209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 965-4,990
From the us: protecting power in Iran is Switzerland

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in red is centered in the white band; Allah Alkbar (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. Over the past several years, the government has introduced several measures to liberalize the economy and reduce government intervention, but most of these changes have moved slowly because of political opposition. Iran has faced increasingly severe financial difficulties since mid-1992 due to an import surge that began in 1989 and general financial mismanagement. At yearend 1993 the Iranian Government estimated that it owed foreign creditors about $30 billion; an estimated $8 billion of this debt was in arrears. At yearend 1994, Iran rescheduled $12 billion in debt. Earnings from oil exports - which provide 90% of Iran's export revenues - are providing less relief to Iran than usual because of reduced oil prices.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: -2% (1994 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $4,720 (1994 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: accounts for about 20% of GDP; principal products - wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton, dairy products, wool, caviar; not self-sufficient in food

Industries: petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other building materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating, armaments and military equipment

Industrial production growth rate: 4.6% (1993 est.), accounts for almost 30% of GDP, including petroleum

Labor force: 15.4 million
By occupation agriculture: 33%
By occupation manufacturing: 21%
Note: shortage of skilled labor (1988 est.)

Unemployment rate: over 30% (1994 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $N/A
Expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: 21 March - 20 March

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $16 billion (f.o.b., FY92/93 est.)
Commodoties: petroleum 90%, carpets, fruits, nuts, hides
Partners: Japan, Italy, France, Netherlands, Belgium/Luxembourg, Spain, and Germany

Imports: $18 billion (c.i.f., FY92/93 est.)
Commodoties: machinery, military supplies, metal works, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, technical services, refined oil products
Partners: Germany, Japan, Italy, UK, UAE

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $30 billion (December 1993)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Iranian rials (IR) per US$1 - 1,749.04 (January 1995), 1,748.75 (1994), 1,267.77 (1993), 65.552 (1992), 67.505 (1991; black market rate:3,000 rials per US$1 (December 1994)


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Electricity
Capacity: 19,080,000 kW
Production: 50.8 billion kWh
Production consumption per capita: 745 kWh (1993)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system: 2,143,000 telephones; 35 telephones/1000 persons
Local: NA
Intercity: microwave radio relay extends throughout country; system centered in Tehran
International: 3 INTELSAT (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) earth stations; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber optic cable to UAE

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures: according to official Iranian data, Iran spent 1,785 billion rials, including $808 million in hard currency, in 1992 and budgeted 2,507 billion rials, including $850 million in hard currency, for 1993
Note: conversion of rial expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate could produce misleading results

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 261
With paved runways over 3047 m: 28
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 12
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 32
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 20
With paved runways under 914 m: 46
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2438 m: 18
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 101

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 904 km; the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 meters and is in use

Merchant marine
Total: 132 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,816,820 GRT/6,991,693 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 48, cargo 38, chemical tanker 5, combination bulk 2, liquefied gas tanker 1, oil tanker 26, refrigerated cargo 3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 1

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway; Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE:Tunb as Sughra (Arabic), Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek (Persian) or Lesser Tunb, and Tunb al Kubra (Arabic), Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg (Persian) or Greater Tunb; it jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE, Abu Musa (Arabic) or Jazireh-ye Abu Musa (Persian; in 1992 the dispute over Abu Musa and the Tunb islands became more acute when Iran unilaterally tried to control the entry of third country nationals into the UAE portion of Abu Musa island, Tehran subsequently backed off in the face of significant diplomatic support for the UAE in the region, but in 1994 it increased its military presence on the disputed islands; periodic disputes with Afghanistan over Helmand water rights; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of opium poppy for the domestic and international drug trade; produced 35-70 metric tons in 1993; net opiate importer but also a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe