Background: The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated to keep whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE the nation's first prime minister has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence.

Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 30 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 390,580 km²
Land: 386,670 km²
Water: 3,910 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than Montana

Land boundaries
Total: 3,066 km
Border countries: (4) Botswana 813 km; , Mozambique 1,231 km; , South Africa 225 km; , Zambia 797 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)

Terrain: mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld; mountains in east

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m
Extremes highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m

Natural resources: coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals

Land use
Arable land: 7%
Permanent crops: 0%
Permanent pastures: 13%
Forests and woodland: 23%
Other: 57% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 1,930 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare

Geography
Note: landlocked

Population: 11,163,160 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: 1.02% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: 25.5% (1990-91 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Zimbabwean(s)
Adjective: Zimbabwean

Ethnic groups: African 98% (Shona 71%, Ndebele 16%, other 11%), white 1%, mixed and Asian 1%

Languages: English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects

Religions: syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1%

Age structure
0-14 years: 43% (male 2,432,785; female 2,389,029)
15-64 years: 54% (male 2,986,531; female 3,059,186)
65 years and over: 3% (male 132,532; female 163,097) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.02% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 30.64 births/1000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 20.43 deaths/1000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: NA migrant(s)/1000 population
Note: there is a small but steady flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa in search of better paid employment

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd_once the largest concentration of the species in the world_has been significantly reduced by poaching
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 61.21 deaths/1000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 38.86 years
Male: 38.77 years
Female: 38.94 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.71 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write English
Total population: 85%
Male: 90%
Female: 80% (1995 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Zimbabwe
Conventional short form: Zimbabwe
Former: Southern Rhodesia

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital: Harare

Administrative divisions: 8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands

Independence: 18 April 1980 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 18 April (1980)

Constitution: 21 December 1979

Legal system: mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joshua M. NKOMO (since 6 August 1990); note_the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joshua M. NKOMO (since 6 August 1990); note_the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly
Elections: president nominated by the House of Assembly for a six-year term (if more than one nomination, an electoral college consisting of members of the House of Assembly elects the president); election last held 26-27 March 1996 (next to be held NA March 2002); co-vice presidents appointed by the president
Election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of electoral college vote_Robert Gabriel MUGABE 92.7%, Abel MUZOREWA 4.8%; Ndabaningi SITHOLE 2.4%

Legislative branch: unicameral parliament, called House of Assembly (150 seats_120 elected by popular vote for six-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors)
Elections: last held 8-9 April 1995 (next to be held NA April 2001)
Election results: percent of vote by party_NA; seats by party_ZANU-PF 117, ZANU-Ndonga 2, independent 1

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MONUA, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Amos Bernard Muvengwa MIDZI
In the us chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,009
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 332-7,100
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 483-9,326
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas McDONALD
From the us embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 3,340, Harare
From the us telephone: [263] (4) 794,521
From the us FAX: [263] (4) 796,488

Flag description: seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white equilateral triangle edged in black based on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle

Economy overview: The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles to consolidate earlier progress in developing a market-oriented economy. Its involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, has already drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. Badly needed support from the IMF suffers delays in part because of the country's failure to meet budgetary goals. Inflation rose from an annual rate of 25% in January 1998 to 47% in December and will almost certainly continue to increase in 1999. The economy is being steadily weakened by AIDS; Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of infection in the world. Per capita GDP, which is twice the average of the poorer sub-Saharan nations, will increase little if any in the near-term, and Zimbabwe will suffer continued frustrations in developing its agricultural and mineral resources.

Real gdp growth rate: 1.5% (1998 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity: $2,400 (1998 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 28%
Industry: 32%
Services: 40% (1997 est.)

Agriculture products: corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs

Industries: mining (coal, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), copper, steel, nickel, tin, wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages

Industrial production growth rate: 10% (1994)

Labor force: 5 million (1997 est.)
By occupation: NA

Unemployment rate: at least 45% (1994 est.)

Population below poverty line: 25.5% (1990-91 est.)

Budget
Revenues: $2.5 billion
Expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $279 million (FY96/97 est.)

Fiscal year: 1 July_30 June

Exports: $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Commodities: tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, cotton (1997)
Partners: South Africa 12%, UK 11%, Germany 8%, Japan 6%, US 6% (1997 est.)

Imports: $2 billion (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Commodities: machinery and transport equipment 39%, other manufactures 18%, chemicals 15%, fuels 10% (1997 est.)
Partners: South Africa 37%, UK 7%, US 6%, Japan 6% (1997 est.)

Debt external: $5 billion (1998)

Exchange rates: Zimbabwean dollars (Z$) per US$1_39.3701 (January 1999), 21.4133 (1998), 11.8906 (1997), 9.9206 (1996), 8.6580 (1995), 8.1500 (1994)

Electricity
Production: 8.5 billion kWh (1996)
Production by source fossil fuel: 71.76%
Production by source hydro: 28.24%
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (1996)
Consumption: 10.769 billion kWh (1996)
Exports: 1 million kWh (1996)
Imports: 2.27 billion kWh (1996)

Telephones: 301,000 (1990 est.)

Telephone system: system was once one of the best in Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance
Domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines, and radiotelephone communication stations
International: satellite earth station_1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $427 million (FY97/98)
Percent of gdp: 4.6% (FY97/98)

Airports: 467 (1998 est.)
With paved runways total: 18
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 9 (1998 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 449
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 220
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 225 (1998 est.)

Pipelines: petroleum products 212 km

Railways
Total: 2,759 km (1995)
Narrow gauge: 2,759 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified; 42 km double track) (1995 est.)

Waterways: the Mazoe and Zambezi rivers are used for transporting chrome ore from Harare to Mozambique

Disputes international: quadripoint with Botswana, Namibia, and Zambia is in disagreement

Illicit drugs: significant transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European markets