Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/40.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 10.5 KB | 378 lines

@node Geography (Burma)
@section Geography (Burma)

@display

Location:
  Southeast Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand
Map references:
  Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  678,500 km2
 land area:
  657,740 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries:
  total 5,876 km, Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235
  km, Thailand 1,800 km
Coastline:
  1,930 km
Maritime claims:
 contiguous zone:
  24 nm
 continental shelf:
  200 nm or to the edge of continental margin
 exclusive economic zone:
  200 nm
 territorial sea:
  12 nm
International disputes:
  none
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
Natural resources:
  petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some
  marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas
Land use:
 arable land:
  15%
 permanent crops:
  1%
 meadows and pastures:
  1%
 forest and woodland:
  49%
 other:
  34%
Irrigated land:
  10,180 km2 (1989)
Environment:
  subject to destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides
  common during rainy season (June to September); deforestation
Note:
  strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes



@end display

@node People (Burma)
@section People (Burma)

@display

Population:
  43,455,953 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  1.88% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  28.88 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  10.05 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  65.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  59.5 years
 male:
  57.5 years
 female:
  61.63 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  3.7 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  Burmese (singular and plural)
 adjective:
  Burmese
Ethnic divisions:
  Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%,
  other 5%
Religions:
  Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%,
  animist beliefs 1%, other 2%
Languages:
  Burmese; minority ethnic groups have their own languages
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
 total population:
  81%
 male:
  89%
 female:
  72%
Labor force:
  16.007 million (1992)
 by occupation:
  agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1%
  (FY89 est.)



@end display

@node Government (Burma)
@section Government (Burma)

@display

Names:
 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
Digraph:
  BM
Type:
  military regime
Capital:
  Rangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)
Administrative divisions:
  7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular - yin) and 7 states (pyine-mya, singular -,   pyine); Chin State,
Irrawaddy*, Kachin State, Karan State, Kayah State,,   Magwe*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Pegu*, Rakhine,
State, Rangoon*, Sagaing*, Shan,   State, Tenasserim*, Independence:
  4 January 1948 (from UK)
Constitution:
  3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); National Convention
  started on 9 January 1993 to draft chapter headings for a new constitution
Legal system:
  has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
  Independence Day, 4 January (1948)
Political parties and leaders:
  National Unity Party (NUP; proregime), THA KYAW; National League for
  Democracy (NLD), U AUNG SHWE; National Coalition of Union of Burma (NCGUB),
  SEIN WIN (which consists of individuals legitimately elected to parliament,
  but not recognized by military regime) fled to border area and joined with
  insurgents in December 1990 to form a parallel government
Other political or pressure groups:
  Kachin Independence Army (KIA); United Wa State Army (UWSA); Karen National
  Union (KNU - the only non-drug group); several Shan factions, including the
  Mong Tai Army (MTA)
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 People's Assembly:
  last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened; results - NLD 80%; seats
  - (485 total) NLD 396, the regime-favored NUP 10, other 79
Executive branch:
  chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council, State Law and Order
  Restoration Council
Legislative branch:
  unicameral People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw) was dissolved after the coup
  of 18 September 1988
Judicial branch:   none; Council of People's Justices was abolished after the coup of 18
  September 1988



@end display

@node Government (Burma 2. usage)
@section Government (Burma 2. usage)

@display

Leaders:
 Chief of State and Head of Government:
  Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. THAN SHWE
  (since 23 April 1992)
Member of:
  AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
  ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
  WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission:
  Ambassador U THAUNG
 chancery:
  2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
 telephone:
  [phone] through 9046
 consulate general:
  New York
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  (vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission, Charge d'Affaires Franklin P. HUDDLE, Jr.
 embassy:
  581 Merchant Street, Rangoon
 mailing address:
  GPO Box 521, AMEMB Box B, APO AP 96546
 telephone:
  [95] (1) 82055, 82181
 FAX:
  [95] (1) 80409
Flag:
  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



@end display

@node Economy (Burma)
@section Economy (Burma)

@display

Overview:
  Burma is a poor Asian country, with a per capita GDP of about $660. The
  nation has been unable to achieve any substantial improvement in export
  earnings because of falling prices for many of its major commodity exports.
  For rice, traditionally the most important export, the drop in world prices
  has been accompanied by shrinking markets and a smaller volume of sales. In
  1985 teak replaced rice as the largest export and continues to hold this
  position. The economy is heavily dependent on the agricultural sector, which
  generates about 40% of GDP and provides employment for 65% of the work
  force. Burma has been largely isolated from international economic forces
  and has been trying to encourage foreign investment, so far with little
  success.
National product:
  GDP - exchange rate conversion - $28 billion (1992)
National product real growth rate:
  1.3% (1992)
National product per capita:
  $660 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  50% (1992)
Unemployment rate:
  9.6% (FY89 est.) in urban areas
Budget:
  revenues $8.1 billion; expenditures $11.6 billion, including capital
  expenditures of $NA (1992)
Exports:
  $535.1 million (FY92)
 commodities:
  teak, rice, oilseed, metals, rubber, gems
 partners:
  China, India, Thailand, Singapore
Imports:
  $907.0 million (FY92)
 commodities:
  machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, food products
 partners:
  Japan, China, Singapore
External debt:
  $4 billion (1992)
Industrial production:
  growth rate 2.6% (FY90 est.); accounts for 10% of GDP
Electricity:
  1,100,000 kW capacity; 2,800 million kWh produced, 65 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
  agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood products;
  petroleum refining; mining of copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction
  materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer
Agriculture:
  accounts for 40% of GDP (including fish and forestry); self-sufficient in
  food; principal crops - paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses;
  world's largest stand of hardwood trees; rice and teak account for 55% of
  export revenues
Illicit drugs:
  world's largest illicit producer of opium poppy and minor producer of
  cannabis for the international drug trade; opium production has nearly
  doubled since the collapse of Rangoon's antinarcotic programs



@end display

@node Economy (Burma 2. usage)
@section Economy (Burma 2. usage)

@display

Economic aid:
  US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $158 million; Western (non-US)
  countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $3.9 billion;
  Communist countries (1970-89), $424 million
Currency:
  1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas
Exchange rates:   kyats (K) per US$1 - 6.0963 (January 1992), 6.2837 (1991), 6.3386 (1990),
  6.7049 (1989), 6.46 (1988), 6.6535 (1987); unofficial - 105
Fiscal year:
  1 April - 31 March



@end display

@node Communications (Burma)
@section Communications (Burma)

@display

Railroads:
  3,991 km total, all government owned; 3,878 km 1.000-meter gauge, 113 km
  narrow-gauge industrial lines; 362 km double track
Highways:
  27,000 km total; 3,200 km bituminous, 17,700 km improved earth or gravel,
  6,100 km unimproved earth
Inland waterways:
  12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels
Pipelines:
  crude oil 1,343 km; natural gas 330 km
Ports:
  Rangoon, Moulmein, Bassein
Merchant marine:
  62 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 940,264 GRT/1,315,156 DWT; includes 3
  passenger-cargo, 18 cargo, 5 refrigerated cargo, 4 vehicle carrier, 2
  container, 2 oil tanker, 3 chemical, 1 combination ore/oil, 23 bulk, 1
  combination bulk
Airports:
 total:
  83
 usable:
  78
 with permanent-surface runways:
  26
 with runways over 3,659 m:
  0
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  3
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  38
Telecommunications:
  meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and
  government; international service is good; 53,000 telephones (1986);
  radiobroadcast coverage is limited to the most populous areas; broadcast
  stations - 2 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (1985); 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station



@end display

@node Defense Forces (Burma)
@section Defense Forces (Burma)

@display

Branches:
  Army, Navy, Air Force
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 11,004,419; females age 15-49 10,945,899; males fit for
  military service 5,894,514; females fit for military service 5,847,958;
  males reach military age (18) annually 435,030; females reach military age
  (18) annually 420,487 (1993 est.); both sexes are liable for military
  service
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GDP (1992)



@end display