Background: Despite multiparty elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party winning a decisive victory the military junta ruling the country refused to hand over power. Key opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG San Suu Kyi under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 was again placed under house detention in September 2000; her supporters are routinely harassed or jailed.

Geographic coordinates: 22 00 N 98 00 E

Map reference: Southeast Asia

Area
Total: 678,500 km²
Land: 657,740 km²
Water: 20,760 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Texas

Land boundaries
Total: 5,876 km
Border countries: (5) Bangladesh 193 km; , China 2,185 km; , India 1,463 km; , Laos 235 km; , Thailand 1,800 km

Coastline: 1930 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

Climate: tropical monsoon; cloudy rainy hot humid summers (southwest monsoon June to September); less cloudy scant rainfall mild temperatures lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon December to April)

Terrain: central lowlands ringed by steep rugged highlands

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m

Natural resources: petroleum timber tin antimony zinc copper tungsten lead coal some marble limestone precious stones natural gas hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 15%
Permanent crops: 1%
Permanent pastures: 1%
Forests and woodland: 49%
Other: 34% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 10,680 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts

Geography
Note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes

Population
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2000 est.)
Growth rate: 0.6% (2000 est.)
Below poverty line: 23% (1997 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Burmese

Ethnic groups: Burman 68% Shan 9% Karen 7% Rakhine 4% Chinese 3% Mon 2% Indian 2% other 5%

Languages: Burmese minority ethnic groups have their own languages

Religions: Buddhist 89% Christian 4% (Baptist 3% Roman Catholic 1%) Muslim 4% animist 1% other 2%

Age structure
0-14 years: 29.14% (male 6,245,798; female 5,992,074)
15-64 years: 66.08% (male 13,779,571; female 13,970,707)
65 years and over: 4.78% (male 895,554; female 1,110,974) (2000 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.6% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 20.13 births/1000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 12.3 deaths/1000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.84 migrant(s)/1000 population (2000 est.)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; industrial pollution of air soil and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.04 male/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male/female
65 years and over: 0.81 male/female
Total population: 0.99 male/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 73.71 deaths/1000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 55.16 years
Male: 53.73 years
Female: 56.68 years (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.3 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 1.99% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 530,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 48,000 (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 83.1%
Male: 88.7%
Female: 77.7% (1995 est.)
Note: these are official statistics; estimates of functional literacy are likely closer to 30% (1999 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Union of Burma
Conventional short form: Burma
Local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar)
Local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw
Former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma

Government type: military regime

Capital: Rangoon (regime refers to the capital as Yangon)

Administrative divisions: 7 divisions* (yin-mya singular - yin) and 7 states (pyine-mya singular - pyine); Chin State Ayeyarwady* Bago* Kachin State Kayin State Kayah State Magway* Mandalay* Mon State Rakhine State Sagaing* Shan State Tanintharyi* Yangon*

Independence: 4 January 1948 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 4 January (1948)

Constitution: 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); national convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft a new constitution; progress has since been stalled

Legal system: has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992); note - the prime minister is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992); note - the prime minister is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); military junta, so named 15 November 1997, which initially assumed power 18 September 1988 under the name State Law and Order Restoration Council; the SPDC oversees the cabinet
Elections: none; the prime minister assumed power upon resignation of the former prime minister

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NLD 392, SNLD 23, NUP 10, other 60

Judicial branch: remnants of the British-era legal system are in place but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive

Political parties and leaders: National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE chairman AUNG SAN SUU KYI general secretary]; National Unity Party or NUP (proregime) [THA KYAW]; Shan Nationalities League for Democracy or SNLD [U KHUN TUN OO]; Union Solidarity and Development Association or USDA (proregime a social and political organization) [THAN AUNG general secretary]; and other smaller parties

International organization participation: ARF AsDB ASEAN CCC CP ESCAP FAO G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Intelsat (nonsignatory user) Interpol IOC ITU NAM OPCW UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador-designate U LINN MYAING
In the us chancery: 2,300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 332-9,044
In the us fax: [1] (202) 332-9,046
In the us consulates general: New York
From the us chief of mission: Permanent Charge d'Affaires Priscilla A. CLAPP
From the us embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (GPO 521)
From the us mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96,546
From the us telephone: [95] (1) 282,055, 282,182
From the us fax: [95] (1) 280,409

Flag description: red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing all in white 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions

Economy overview: Burma has a mixed economy with private activity dominant in agriculture light industry and transport and with substantial state-controlled activity mainly in energy heavy industry and the rice trade. Government policy in the 1990s has aimed at revitalizing the economy after three decades of tight central planning. Private activity markedly increased in the early to mid-1990s but began to decline in the past several years due to frustrations with the unfriendly business environment and political pressure from western nations. Published estimates of Burma's foreign trade are greatly understated because of the volume of black-market illicit and border trade. A major ongoing problem is the failure to achieve monetary and fiscal stability. Burma remains a poor Asian country and living standards for the majority have not improved over the past decade. Short-term growth will continue to be restrained because of poor government planning and minimal foreign investment.

Real gdp growth rate: 4.9% (2000 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1500 (2000 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 42%
Industry: 17%
Services: 41% (2000 est.)

Agriculture products: paddy rice corn oilseed sugarcane pulses; hardwood

Industries: agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood products; copper tin tungsten iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force: 19.7 million (FY98/99 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 65%
By occupation industry: 10%
By occupation services: 25% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 7.1% (official FY97/98 est.)

Population below poverty line: 23% (1997 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.8%
Highest 10: 32.4% (1998)

Budget
Revenues: $7.9 billion
Expenditures: $12.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (FY96/97)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices: 18% (1999)

Exports: $1.3 billion (f.o.b. 1999)
Commodities: apparel 36% foodstuffs 22% wood products 21% precious stones 5% (1999)
Partners note: official trade statistics do not include trade in illicit goods - such as narcotics, teak, and gems - or the largely unrecorded border trade with China and Thailand

Imports: $2.5 billion (f.o.b. 1999)
Commodities: machinery transport equipment construction materials food products
Partners: Singapore 28% Thailand 12% China 10% Japan 10% South Korea 9% (1999 est.)

Debt external: $6 billion (FY99/00 est.)

Exchange rates: kyats per US dollar - official rate - 6.5972 (January 2000) 6.5167 (2000) 6.2858 (1999) 6.3432 (1998) 6.2418 (1997) 5.9176 (1996); kyats per US dollar - black market exchange rate - 435 (yearend 2000)

Electricity
Production: 4.813 billion kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 68.56%
Production by source hydro: 31.44%
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (1999)
Consumption: 4.476 billion kWh (1999)
Exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 250,000 (2000)
Mobile cellular: 8,492 (1997)

Telephone system
General assessment: meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government; international service is good
Domestic: NA
International: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)

Internet
Country code: .mm
Service providers isps note: as of September 2000, Internet connections were legal only for the government, tourist offices, and a few large businesses (2000)
Users: 500 (2000)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $39 million (FY97/98)
Percent of gdp: 2.1% (FY97/98)

Airports: 80 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 9
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1 (2000 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 71
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 15
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 22
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 32 (2000 est.)

Heliports: 1 (2000 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 1343 km; natural gas 330 km

Railways
Total: 3,991 km
Narrow gauge: 3,991 km 1.000-m gauge

Waterways
Note: 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels

Merchant marine
Total: 37 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 411,181 GRT/632,769 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 11, cargo 20, container 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2
Note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Japan 2 (2000 est.)

Disputes international: sporadic border hostilities with Thailand over border alignment and ethnic Shan rebels operating in cross-border region