PROFILE

Geography
Location: North Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, southern border with Chad, Niger, and Sudan.
Area: 1,759,540 sq. km.
Cities: Tripoli (capital), Benghazi.
Terrain: Mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions.
Climate: Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior.
Land use: Arable land--1.03%; permanent crops--0.19%; other--98.78%.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Libyan(s).
Population (July 2010 est.): 6,461,454.
Annual population growth rate (2010 est.): 2.117%. Birth rate (2010 est.)--24.58 births/1,000 population. Death rate (2010 est.)--3.45 deaths/1,000 population.
Ethnic groups: Berber and Arab 97%; other 3% (includes Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, and Tunisians).
Religion: Sunni Muslim 97%, other 3%.
Languages: Arabic is the primary language. English and Italian are understood in major cities.
Education: Years compulsory--9. Attendance--90%. Literacy (age 15 and over who can read and write)--total population 82.6%; male 92.4%; female 72% (2003 est.).
Health (2010 est.): Infant mortality rate--20.87 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy--total population 77.47 yrs.; male 75.18 yrs.; female 79.88 yrs.
Work force (2010 est.): 1.686 million.

Government
Official name: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.
Type: "Jamahiriya" is a term Col. Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi coined and which he defines as a "state of the masses" governed by the populace through local councils. In practice, Libya is an authoritarian state.
Independence: Libya declared independence on December 24, 1951.
Revolution Day: September 1, 1969.
Constitution: No formal document. Revolutionary edicts establishing a government structure were issued on December 11, 1969 and amended March 2, 1977 to establish popular congresses and people's committees that constitute the Jamahiriya system.
Administrative divisions: 32 municipalities (singular--"shabiya", plural--"shabiyat"): Butnan, Darnah, Gubba, al-Jebal al-Akhdar, Marj, al-Jebal al-Hezam, Benghazi, Ajdabiya, Wahat, Kufra, Surt, Al Jufrah, Misurata, Murgub, Bani-Walid, Tarhuna and Msallata, Tripoli, Jfara, Zawiya, Sabratha and Surman, An Nuqat al-Khams, Gharyan, Mezda, Nalut, Ghadames, Yefren, Wadi Alhaya, Ghat, Sabha, Wadi Shati, Murzuq, Tajura and an-Nuwaha al-Arba'a.
Political system: Political parties are banned. According to the political theory of Col. Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi, multi-layered popular assemblies (people's congresses) with executive institutions (people's committees) are guided by political cadres (revolutionary committees).
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory.

Economy
Real GDP (2009 est.): $85.04 billion.
GDP per capita (PPP, 2009 est.): $13,400.
Real GDP growth rate (2009 est.): -0.7%.
Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, gypsum.
Agriculture: Products--wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle; approximately 75% of Libya's food is imported.
Industry: Types--petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement.
Trade: Exports (2009 est.)--$34.24 billion: crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas, chemicals. Major markets (2009 est.)--Italy (37.65%), Germany (10.11%), Spain (7.94%), France (8.44%), Switzerland (5.93%), U.S. (5.27%). Imports (2009 est.)--$22.11 billion: machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods, consumer products, semi-finished goods. Major suppliers (2009)--Italy (18.9%), China (10.54%), Turkey (9.92%), Germany (9.78%), Tunisia (5.25%), South Korea (4.02%).

PEOPLE
Libya has a small population in a large land area. Population density is about 50 persons per sq. km. (80/sq. mi.) in the two northern regions of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, but falls to less than one person per sq. km. (1.6/sq. mi.) elsewhere. Ninety percent of the people live in less than 10% of the area, primarily along the coast. More than half the population is urban, mostly concentrated in the two largest cities, Tripoli and Benghazi. Thirty-three percent of the population is estimated to be under age 15.

Native Libyans are primarily a mixture of Arabs and Berbers. Small Tebou and Tuareg tribal groups in southern Libya are nomadic or semi-nomadic. Among foreign residents, the largest groups are citizens of other African nations, including North Africans (primarily Egyptians and Tunisians), West Africans, and other Sub-Saharan Africans.

HISTORY
For most of their history, the peoples of Libya have been subjected to varying degrees of foreign control. The Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Vandals, and Byzantines ruled all or parts of Libya. Although the Greeks and Romans left impressive ruins at Cyrene, Leptis Magna, and Sabratha, little else remains today to testify to the presence of these ancient cultures.

The Arabs conquered Libya in the seventh century A.D. In the following centuries, most of the indigenous peoples adopted Islam and the Arabic language and culture. The Ottoman Turks conquered the country in the mid-16th century. Libya remained part of their empire, although at times virtually autonomous, until Italy invaded in 1911 and, in the face of years of resistance, made Libya a colony.

In 1934, Italy adopted the name "Libya" (used by the Greeks for all of North Africa, except Egypt) as the official name of the colony, which consisted of the Provinces of Cyrenaica, Tripolitania, and Fezzan. King Idris I, Emir of Cyrenaica, led Libyan resistance to Italian occupation between the two world wars. Allied forces removed Axis powers from Libya in February 1943. Tripolitania and Cyrenaica came under separate British administration, while the French controlled Fezzan. In 1944, Idris returned from exile in Cairo but declined to resume permanent residence in Cyrenaica until the removal in 1947 of some aspects of foreign control. Under the terms of the 1947 peace treaty with the Allies, Italy relinquished all claims to Libya.

On November 21, 1949, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution stating that Libya should become independent before January 1, 1952. King Idris I represented Libya in the subsequent UN negotiations. When Libya declared its independence on December 24, 1951, it was the first country to achieve independence through the United Nations and one of the first former European possessions in Africa to gain independence. Libya was proclaimed a constitutional and a hereditary monarchy under King Idris.

The discovery of significant oil reserves in 1959 and the subsequent income from petroleum sales enabled what had been one of the world's poorest countries to become extremely wealthy, as measured by per capita GDP. Although oil drastically improved Libya's finances, popular resentment grew as wealth was increasingly concentrated in the hands of the elite. This discontent continued to mount with the rise throughout the Arab world of Nasserism and the idea of Arab unity.

On September 1, 1969, a small group of military officers led by then 28-year-old army officer Mu'ammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi staged a coup d'etat against King Idris, who was subsequently exiled to Egypt. The new regime, headed by the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), abolished the monarchy and proclaimed the new Libyan Arab Republic. Qadhafi emerged as leader of the RCC and eventually as de facto head of state, a political role he still plays. The Libyan Government asserts that Qadhafi currently holds no official position, although he is referred to in government statements and the official press as the "Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution," among other honorifics.

The new RCC's motto became "freedom, socialism, and unity." It pledged itself to remedy "backwardness," take an active role in the Palestinian cause, promote Arab unity, and encourage domestic policies based on social justice, non-exploitation, and an equitable distribution of wealth.

An early objective of the new government was withdrawal of all foreign military installations from Libya. Following negotiations, British military installations at Tobruk and nearby El Adem were closed in March 1970, and U.S. facilities at Wheelus Air Force Base near Tripoli were closed in June 1970. That July, the Libyan Government ordered the expulsion of several thousand Italian residents. By 1971, libraries and cultural centers operated by foreign governments were ordered closed.

In the 1970s, Libya claimed leadership of Arab and African revolutionary forces and sought active roles in international organizations. Late in the 1970s, Libyan embassies were re-designated as "people's bureaus," as Qadhafi sought to portray Libyan foreign policy as an expression of the popular will. The people's bureaus, aided by Libyan religious, political, educational, and business institutions overseas, attempted to export Qadhafi's revolutionary philosophy abroad.

Qadhafi's confrontational foreign policies and use of terrorism, as well as Libya's growing friendship with the U.S.S.R., led to increased tensions with the West in the 1980s. Following a terrorist bombing at a discotheque in West Berlin frequented by American military personnel, in 1986 the U.S. retaliated militarily against targets in Libya, and imposed broad unilateral economic sanctions.

After Libya was implicated in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, UN sanctions were imposed in 1992. UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs) passed in 1992 and 1993 obliged Libya to fulfill requirements related to the Pan Am 103 bombing before sanctions could be lifted. Qadhafi initially refused to comply with these requirements, leading to Libya's political and economic isolation for most of the 1990s.

In 1999, Libya fulfilled one of the UNSCR requirements by surrendering two Libyans who were suspected to have been involved with the bombing for trial before a Scottish court in the Netherlands. One of these suspects, Abdel Basset Ali Mohamed al-Megrahi, was found guilty; the other was acquitted. Al-Megrahi's conviction was upheld on appeal in 2002. On August 19, 2009, al-Megrahi was released from Scottish prison on compassionate grounds due to a terminal illness and returned to Libya. In August 2003, Libya fulfilled the remaining UNSCR requirements, including acceptance of responsibility for the actions of its officials and payment of appropriate compensation to the victims' families. UN sanctions were lifted on September 12, 2003. U.S. International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA)-based sanctions were lifted September 20, 2004.

On December 19, 2003, Libya publicly announced its intention to rid itself of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR)-class missile programs. Subsequently, Libya cooperated with the U.S., the U.K., the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons toward these objectives. Libya has also signed the IAEA Additional Protocol and has become a State Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention. These were important steps toward full diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Libya.

Nationwide political violence erupted in February 2011, following the Libyan Government’s brutal suppression of popular protests against Libyan leader Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi. Opposition forces quickly seized control of Benghazi, Libya’s second-largest city, as well as significant portions of eastern Libya and some areas in western Libya. Drawing from the local opposition councils which formed the backbone of the “February 17” revolution, the Libyan opposition announced the formation of a Transitional National Council (TNC) on February 27, 2011. The Council has stated its desire to remove Qadhafi from power and establish a unified, democratic, and free Libya that respects universal human rights principles.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Libya's political system is in theory based on the political philosophy in Qadhafi's Green Book, which combines socialist and Islamic theories and rejects parliamentary democracy and political parties. In reality, Qadhafi exercises near-total control over major government decisions. During the first 7 years following the revolution, the Revolutionary Command Council, which included Colonel Qadhafi and 12 fellow army officers, began a complete overhaul of Libya's political system, society, and economy. In 1973, Qadhafi announced the start of a "cultural revolution" in schools, businesses, industries, and public institutions to oversee administration of those organizations in the public interest. On March 2, 1977, Qadhafi convened a General People's Congress (GPC) to proclaim the establishment of "people's power," change the country's name to the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, and to vest, theoretically, primary authority in the GPC.

The GPC is the legislative forum that interacts with the General People's Committee, whose members are secretaries of Libyan ministries. It serves as the intermediary between the masses and the leadership and is composed of the secretariats of some 600 local "basic popular congresses." The GPC secretariat and the cabinet secretaries are appointed by the GPC secretary general and confirmed by the annual GPC congress. These cabinet secretaries are responsible for the routine operation of their ministries, but Qadhafi exercises real authority directly or through manipulation of the peoples and revolutionary committees.

Qadhafi remained the de facto head of state and secretary general of the GPC until 1980, when he gave up his office. Although he holds no formal office, Qadhafi exercises power with the assistance of a small group of trusted advisers, who include relatives from his home base in the Sirte region, which lies between the traditional commercial and political power centers in Benghazi and Tripoli.

In the 1980s, competition grew between the official Libyan Government, military hierarchies, and the revolutionary committees. An abortive coup attempt in May 1984, apparently mounted by Libyan exiles with internal support, led to a short-lived reign of terror in which thousands were imprisoned and interrogated. An unknown number were executed. Qadhafi used the revolutionary committees to search out alleged internal opponents following the coup attempt, thereby accelerating the rise of more radical elements inside the Libyan power hierarchy.

In 1988, faced with rising public dissatisfaction with shortages in consumer goods and setbacks in Libya's war with Chad, Qadhafi began to curb the power of the revolutionary committees and to institute some domestic reforms. The regime released many political prisoners and eased restrictions on foreign travel by Libyans. Private businesses were again permitted to operate.

In the late 1980s, Qadhafi began to pursue an anti-Islamic fundamentalist policy domestically, viewing fundamentalism as a potential rallying point for opponents of the regime. Qadhafi's security forces launched a pre-emptive strike at alleged coup plotters in the military and among the Warfallah tribe in October 1993. Widespread arrests and government reshufflings followed, accompanied by public "confessions" from regime opponents and allegations of torture and executions. The military, once Qadhafi's strongest supporters, became a potential threat in the 1990s. In 1993, following a failed coup attempt that implicated senior military officers, Qadhafi began to purge the military periodically, eliminating potential rivals and inserting his own loyal followers in their place.

Qadhafi's strategy of frequent re-balancing of roles and responsibilities of his lieutenants makes it difficult for outsiders to understand Libyan politics. Several key political figures hold overlapping portfolios, and switch roles in a country where personalities and relationships often play more important roles than official titles. While high-ranking officials may have official portfolios, it is not uncommon for supposed subordinates to report directly to Qadhafi on issues thought to be within the purview of other officials. Foreign Minister Abdulati al-Obeidi was appointed to his position in March 2011, following the defection of his predecessor, Musa Kusa. Prime Minister al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi oversees the day-to-day operation of the Libyan cabinet, and plays a key role in setting financial and regulatory affairs, as well as domestic policies. Qadhafi’s sons play an important role in government circles. Qadhafi’s second son, Saif al-Islam al-Qadhafi, was previously viewed as a reformer but has emerged as a strong defender of the regime following the outbreak of political violence. His Qadhafi International Charity and Development Foundation (QDF) had served as a platform to advocate for greater respect for human rights, civil society development, and political and economic reforms. The QDF also played a key role in brokering dialogue with former Libyan Islamic Fighting Group members (LIFG), which led to their subsequent release from prison, and recantation of violence as a tool of jihad. Qadhafi’s younger sons, Khamis and Saadi, are commanding military units, while his fourth son, Mutassim, had served as National Security Adviser and continues to be involved in security and military relations.

The Libyan court system consists of three levels: the courts of first instance; the courts of appeals; and the Supreme Court, which is the final appellate level. The GPC appoints justices to the Supreme Court. Special "revolutionary courts" and military courts operate outside the court system to try political offenses and crimes against the state. "People's courts," another example of extrajudicial authority, were abolished in January 2005. Libya's justice system is nominally based on Shari'a law.

The Libyan Transitional National Council has set up a rival government in Benghazi. The 45-member Council includes representatives from throughout Libya and is headed by Chairman (and former Qadhafi Minister of Justice) Mustafa Abdul Jalil. The Council acts as the opposition’s legislative branch and has appointed an executive committee, headed by Mahmoud Jibril, to oversee interim governance issues. The TNC has stated repeatedly its desire to serve only as an interim body and has issued plans to draft a constitution and hold nationwide elections as soon as Qadhafi is removed from power.

Principal Government Officials
De facto Head of State--Mu'ammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi ("the Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution")
Secretary General of the General People's Committee (Prime Minister)--Al-Baghdadi Ali al-Mahmudi
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Foreign Liaison and International Cooperation (Foreign Minister)--Abdulati al-Obeidi

The Libyan People’s Bureau (embassy-equivalent) is located at 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Suite 705, Washington DC 20037 (tel. 202-944-9601, fax 202-944-9603). However, it suspended operations on March 16, 2011, at the behest of the U.S. State Department.

ECONOMY
The government dominates Libya's socialist-oriented economy through control of the country's oil resources, which account for approximately 95% of export earnings, 75% of government receipts, and 25% of gross domestic product. Oil production, previously constant at just below Libya’s Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota of 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd), ground to a halt following the outbreak of political violence in February 2011. Oil revenues constitute the principal source of foreign exchange. Much of the country's income over the years has been lost to waste, corruption, conventional armaments purchases, and attempts to develop weapons of mass destruction, as well as to large donations made to developing countries in attempts to increase Qadhafi's influence in Africa and elsewhere. Although oil revenues and a small population have given Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs in Africa, the government's mismanagement of the economy has led to high inflation and increased import prices. These factors resulted in a decline in the standard of living from the late 1990s through 2003, especially for lower and middle income strata of the Libyan society.

On September 20, 2004, President George W. Bush signed an Executive Order ending economic sanctions imposed under the authority of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Under the 2004 order, U.S. persons were no longer prohibited from working in Libya, and many American companies in diverse sectors actively sought investment opportunities in Libya. In 2008, the government announced ambitious plans to increase foreign investment in the oil and gas sectors to significantly boost production capacity from 1.2 million bpd to 3 million bpd by 2012, a target that the National Oil Corporation later estimated would to slip to 2017. In February 2011, the U.S. and UN imposed sanctions on Libya following the outbreak of political violence.

The government had been pursuing a number of large-scale infrastructure development projects such as highways, railways, air and seaports, telecommunications, water works, public housing, medical centers, shopping centers, and hotels. Despite efforts to diversify the economy and encourage private sector participation, extensive controls of prices, credit, trade, and foreign exchange have constrained growth. Import restrictions and inefficient resource allocations have caused periodic shortages of basic goods and foodstuffs, shortages that are worsening as the political unrest continues. Libya faces a long road ahead in liberalizing the socialist-oriented economy and recovering from the losses of the ongoing conflict, but initial steps, including applying for World Trade Organization (WTO) membership, reducing some subsidies, and announcing plans for privatization, have laid the groundwork for a transition to a more market-based economy. The non-oil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for more than 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food. Libya's primary agricultural water source remains the Great Manmade River Project, but significant resources have been invested in desalinization research to meet growing water demands. Government officials have also indicated interest in developing markets for alternative sources of energy, pharmaceuticals, health care services, and oil production byproducts.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Since 1969, Qadhafi has determined Libya's foreign policy. His principal foreign policy goals have been Arab unity, the incorporation of Israel and the Palestinian Territories into a single nation of "Isratine," advancement of Islam, support for Palestinians, elimination of outside, particularly Western, influence in the Middle East and Africa, and support for a range of "revolutionary" causes.

After the 1969 coup, Qadhafi closed American and British bases on Libyan territory and partially nationalized all foreign oil and commercial interests in Libya. He also played a key role in promoting the use of oil embargoes as a political weapon for challenging the West, hoping that an oil price rise and embargo in 1973 would persuade the West, especially the United States, to end support for Israel. Qadhafi rejected both Soviet communism and Western capitalism, and claimed he was charting a middle course.

Libya's relationship with the former Soviet Union involved massive Libyan arms purchases from the Soviet bloc and the presence of thousands of east bloc advisers. Libya's use, and heavy loss, of Soviet-supplied weaponry in its war with Chad was a notable breach of an apparent Soviet-Libyan understanding not to use the weapons for activities inconsistent with Soviet objectives. As a result, Soviet-Libyan relations reached a nadir in mid-1987.

After the fall of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union, Libya concentrated on expanding diplomatic ties with Third World countries and increasing its commercial links with Europe and East Asia. These ties significantly diminished after the imposition of UN sanctions in 1992. Following a 1998 Arab League meeting in which fellow Arab states decided not to challenge UN sanctions, Qadhafi announced that he was turning his back on pan-Arab ideas, which had been one of the fundamental tenets of his philosophy.

Instead, over the last decade, Libya pursued closer bilateral ties with North African neighbors Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, and greater Africa. It has sought to develop its relations with Sub-Saharan Africa, leading to Libyan involvement in several internal African disputes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Mauritania, Somalia, Central African Republic, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. Libya has also sought to expand its influence in Africa through financial assistance, granting aid donations to impoverished neighbors such as Niger and oil subsidies to Zimbabwe, and through participation in the African Union. Qadhafi has proposed a borderless "United States of Africa" to transform the continent into a single nation-state ruled by a single government. This plan has been greeted with skepticism. In recent years, Libya has played a helpful role in facilitating the provision of humanitarian assistance to Darfur refugees in Chad, contributing to efforts to forge a ceasefire between Chad and Sudan, and bringing an end to the conflict in Darfur.

One of the longest-standing issues in Libya's relationship with the European Union and the international community was resolved in July 2007 with the release of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor who had been convicted in 1999 of deliberately infecting over 400 children in a Benghazi hospital with the HIV virus. The six medics were sentenced to death in 2004, a sentence that was upheld by the Libyan Supreme Court, but commuted in July 2007 by the Higher Judicial Council to life in prison. Under a previous agreement with the Bulgarian Government on the repatriation of prisoners, the medics were allowed to return to Bulgaria to finish their sentence, where upon arrival the Bulgarian president pardoned all six. The Benghazi International Fund, established by the United States and its European allies, raised $460 million to distribute to the families of the children infected with HIV, each of whom received $1 million.

Following Libya’s 2003 decision to dismantle its WMD programs and renounce terrorism, it sought to actively reengage the international community through improved bilateral relations with the West, as well as seeking leadership positions within international organizations. Libya served on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors from 2007-2008. From 2008-2009, it served a 2-year non-permanent tenure on the UN Security Council representing the Africa group. In 2009, Libya became chair for 1 year of the African Union and played host to several AU summits. The same year, it assumed the UN General Assembly presidency. Libya took over the Arab League presidency in 2010 and hosted the March and October 2010 Arab League summits and an Arab-African summit in October 2010.

After 40 years in power, Qadhafi made his first trip to the United States in September 2009 to participate in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York City and deliver his country’s speech. Qadhafi’s UNGA speech reinforced Libya’s assimilation within the international community and its emerging importance on the African scene. The trip came on the heels of the release from Scotland and return to Libya of convicted Pan Am 103 bomber Abdel Basset Ali Mohamed al-Megrahi.

Libya’s relations with the rest of the world deteriorated sharply following Qadhafi’s brutal suppression of popular protests in February 2011. The UN quickly took action to try to end the violence, passing UNSCR 1970 on February 26, which called for a referral to the International Criminal Court, an arms embargo, a travel ban, an asset freeze, and sanctions. UNSCR 1973, adopted on March 17, authorized member states to take military action to protect civilians and civilian populated areas under threat of attack. Under the auspices of UNSCR 1973, the U.S., U.K., and France launched military action in Libya on March 20; NATO continued these efforts as “Operation Unified Protection.”

Working through the international Contact Group on Libya, key members of the international community, including the U.S., have joined together to increase pressure on the Qadhafi regime and support the TNC. Several countries, including France, Italy, Qatar, and the U.K., have recognized the TNC as Libya’s governing authority; countless others, including the U.S., have identified the TNC as the credible interlocutor of the Libyan people. More than 20 nations have diplomatic representation in Benghazi.

Terrorism
In 1999, the Libyan Government surrendered two Libyans suspected of involvement in the Pan Am 103 bombing, leading to the suspension of UN sanctions. On January 31, 2001, a Scottish court seated in the Netherlands found one of the suspects, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, guilty of murder in connection with the bombing, and acquitted the second suspect, Al-Amin Khalifa Fhima. Megrahi's conviction was upheld on March 14, 2002, but in October 2008 the Scottish High Court permitted Megrahi to appeal aspects of his case, formal hearings for which started in March 2009, when two separate requests for Megrahi’s release where concurrently considered by Scottish Justice authorities: the first involved Libya’s request for Megrahi’s transfer under the U.K.-Libya Prisoner Transfer Agreement, and the other for his release on compassionate grounds. After a Scottish medical committee announced that Megrahi’s life expectancy was less than 3 months (thereby falling under compassionate release guidelines), Scottish Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill granted Megrahi’s release from prison, and permitted him to return to Libya on August 20, 2009. The decision provoked widespread objections by the Lockerbie bombing victims’ families, who were particularly enraged by what appeared to be a “hero’s welcome” in Tripoli.

UN sanctions were lifted on September 12, 2003 following Libyan compliance with its remaining UNSCR requirements on Pan Am 103, including acceptance of responsibility for the actions of its officials and payment of appropriate compensation. Libya had paid compensation in 1999 for the death of British policewoman Yvonne Fletcher, a move that preceded the reopening of the British Embassy in Tripoli, and had paid damages to the non-U.S. families of the victims in the bombing of UTA Flight 772. With the lifting of UN sanctions in September 2003, each of the families of the victims of Pan Am 103 received $4 million of a maximum $10 million in compensation. After the lifting of U.S. IEEPA-based sanctions on September 20, 2004, the families received a further $4 million.

On November 13, 2001, a German court found four persons, including a former employee of the Libyan embassy in East Berlin, guilty in connection with the 1986 La Belle disco bombing, in which two U.S. servicemen were killed. The court also established a connection to the Libyan Government. The German Government demanded that Libya accept responsibility for the La Belle bombing and pay appropriate compensation. A compensation deal for non-U.S. victims was agreed to in August 2004.

By 2003, Libya appeared to have curtailed its support for international terrorism, although it may have retained residual contacts with some of its former terrorist clients. In an August 2003 letter to the UN Security Council, Libya took significant steps to mend its international image and formally renounced terrorism. In August 2004, the Department of Justice entered into a plea agreement with Abdulrahman Alamoudi, in which he stated that he had been part of a 2003 plot to assassinate Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah (now King Abdallah) at the behest of Libyan Government officials. In 2005, the Saudi Government pardoned the individuals accused in the assassination plot.

During the 2005 UN General Assembly session, Libyan Foreign Minister Abd al-Rahman Shalgam issued a statement that reaffirmed Libya's commitment to the statements made in its letter addressed to the Security Council on August 15, 2003, renouncing terrorism in all its forms and pledging that Libya would not support acts of international terrorism or other acts of violence targeting civilians, whatever their political views or positions. Libya also expressed its commitment to continue cooperating in the international fight against terrorism. On June 30, 2006, the U.S. rescinded Libya's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism.

In May 2008, the U.S. and Libya began negotiations on a comprehensive claims settlement agreement to resolve outstanding claims of American and Libyan nationals against each country in their respective courts. On August 4, 2008 President Bush signed into law the Libyan Claims Resolution Act, which Congress had passed on July 31. The act provided for the restoration of Libya’s sovereign, diplomatic, and official immunities before U.S. courts if the Secretary of State certified that the United States Government had received sufficient funds to resolve outstanding terrorism-related death and physical injury claims against Libya. Subsequently, both sides signed a comprehensive claims settlement agreement on August 14. On October 31, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice certified to Congress that the United States had received $1.5 billion pursuant to the U.S.-Libya Claims Settlement Agreement. These funds were sufficient to provide the required compensation to victims of terrorism under the Libyan Claims Resolution Act. Concurrently, President Bush issued an executive order to implement the claims settlement agreement.

In September 2009, several leading members of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) released a more than 400-page document in which they renounced violence and laid out what they claimed to be a clearer understanding of the ethics of Islamic Shari’a law and jihad, parting ways with Al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups whose violent methods they described as ignorant and illegitimate. The release of this revisionist manuscript shortly followed a public statement in August 2009, in which LIFG’s leaders apologized to the Libyan leader for their violent acts and pledged to continue working toward a complete reconciliation with remaining elements of LIFG in Libya or abroad. LIFG’s revised ideology and the subsequent release of many of its imprisoned members was due in large part to a 2-year initiative by Saif al-Islam al-Qadhafi, in his capacity as Chairman of the Qadhafi International Charity and Development Foundation, to broker the reconciliation between the Libyan Government and elements of LIFG leadership.

U.S.-LIBYAN RELATIONS
The United States supported the UN resolution providing for Libyan independence in 1951 and raised the status of its office in Tripoli from a consulate general to a legation. Libya opened a legation in Washington, DC in 1954. Both countries subsequently raised their missions to embassy level.

After Qadhafi's 1969 coup, U.S.-Libyan relations became increasingly strained because of Libya's foreign policies supporting international terrorism and subversion against moderate Arab and African governments. In 1972, the United States withdrew its ambassador. Export controls on military equipment and civil aircraft were imposed during the 1970s, and U.S. embassy staff members were withdrawn from Tripoli after a mob attacked and set fire to the embassy in December 1979. The U.S. Government designated Libya a "state sponsor of terrorism" on December 29, 1979. In May 1981, the U.S. Government closed the Libyan "people's bureau" (embassy) in Washington, DC, and expelled the Libyan staff in response to a general pattern of conduct by the people's bureau contrary to internationally accepted standards of diplomatic behavior.

In August 1981, two Libyan jets fired on U.S. aircraft participating in a routine naval exercise over international waters of the Mediterranean claimed by Libya. The U.S. planes returned fire and shot down the attacking Libyan aircraft. In December 1981, the State Department invalidated U.S. passports for travel to Libya and, for purposes of safety, advised all U.S. citizens in Libya to leave. In March 1982, the U.S. Government prohibited imports of Libyan crude oil into the United States and expanded the controls on U.S.-origin goods intended for export to Libya. Licenses were required for all transactions, except food and medicine. In March 1984, U.S. export controls were expanded to prohibit future exports to the Ras Lanuf petrochemical complex. In April 1985, all Export-Import Bank financing was prohibited.

Due to Libya's continuing support for terrorism, the United States adopted additional economic sanctions against Libya in January 1986, including a total ban on direct import and export trade, commercial contracts, and travel-related activities. In addition, Libyan Government assets in the United States were frozen. When evidence of Libyan complicity was discovered in the Berlin discotheque terrorist bombing that killed two American servicemen, the United States responded by launching an aerial bombing attack against targets near Tripoli and Benghazi in April 1986. Subsequently, the United States maintained its trade and travel embargoes and brought diplomatic and economic pressure to bear against Libya. This pressure helped to bring about the 2003 Lockerbie settlement and Libya's renunciation of WMD and MTCR-class missiles.

In 1991, two Libyan intelligence agents were indicted by federal prosecutors in the U.S. and Scotland for their involvement in the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103. In January 1992, the UN Security Council approved Resolution 731 demanding that Libya surrender the suspects, cooperate with the Pan Am 103 and UTA 772 investigations, pay compensation to the victims' families, and cease all support for terrorism. Libya's refusal to comply led to the approval of UNSC Resolution 748 on March 31, 1992, imposing sanctions designed to bring about Libyan compliance. Continued Libyan defiance led to passage of UNSC Resolution 883, a limited assets freeze and an embargo on selected oil equipment, in November 1993. UN sanctions were lifted on September 12, 2003, after Libya fulfilled all remaining UNSCR requirements, including renunciation of terrorism, acceptance of responsibility for the actions of its officials, and payment of appropriate compensation to the victims' families.

On December 19, 2003, Libya announced its intention to rid itself of WMD and MTCR-class missile programs. Subsequently, it cooperated with the U.S., the U.K., the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons toward these objectives. Libya has also signed the IAEA Additional Protocol and has become a State Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

In recognition of these actions, the U.S. began the process of normalizing relations with Libya. The U.S. terminated the applicability of the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act to Libya, and President Bush signed an Executive Order on September 20, 2004 terminating the national emergency with respect to Libya and ending IEEPA-based economic sanctions. This action had the effect of unblocking assets blocked under the Executive Order sanctions. Restrictions on cargo aviation and third-party code-sharing were lifted, as were restrictions on passenger aviation. Certain export controls remained in place.

U.S. diplomatic personnel reopened the U.S. Interest Section in Tripoli on February 8, 2004. The mission was upgraded to a U.S. Liaison Office on June 28, 2004, and to a full embassy on May 31, 2006. The establishment in 2005 of an American School in Tripoli demonstrated the increased presence of Americans in Libya and the normalization of bilateral relations. Libya re-established its diplomatic presence in Washington with the opening of an Interest Section on July 8, 2004, which was subsequently upgraded to a Liaison Office in December 2004 and to a full embassy on May 31, 2006.

On May 15, 2006, the State Department announced its intention to rescind Libya's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism in recognition of the fact that Libya had met the statutory requirements for such a move: it had not provided any support for acts of international terrorism in the preceding 6-month period, and had provided assurances that it would not do so in the future. On June 30, 2006, the U.S. rescinded Libya's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism.

In 2007, there were a series of senior-level meetings between U.S. and Libyan officials that focused on a broad array of issues, including regional security and counterterrorism cooperation. Secretary Rice, in her meeting with Foreign Minister Shalgam on the margins of the UN General Assembly, discussed the resolution of outstanding issues and charting a path for future cooperation. On July 11, President Bush nominated career diplomat Gene A. Cretz as U.S. Ambassador to Libya.

On January 3, 2008, Foreign Minister Shalgam made an official visit to Washington, the first official visit by a Libyan Foreign Minister since 1972. During that visit the United States and Libya signed a science and technology cooperation agreement, their first bilateral agreement since the downgrading of diplomatic relations.

In 2008, the U.S. and Libya concluded the U.S.-Libya Claims Settlement Agreement to resolve outstanding claims of American and Libyan nationals against each country in their respective courts. The same year, the Libyan Claims Resolution Act was signed into law by President Bush, providing for the restoration of Libya’s sovereign, diplomatic, and official immunities before U.S. courts.

Resolution of outstanding claims permitted full normalization of ties and the exchange of ambassadors in January 2009 for the first time since 1973. U.S. Ambassador Gene A. Cretz was sworn in on December 17, 2008 and submitted his credentials to the General People’s Committee on January 11, 2009. Libyan Ambassador Ali Suleiman Aujali submitted his credentials to President Bush on January 8, 2009. (He resigned on February 22, 2011 due to the Libyan Government’s suppression of popular protests and became the TNC’s representative to Washington.)

The normalization of relations provided the United States and Libya with increased opportunities to push for progress in areas of mutual concern, such as nonproliferation, counterterrorism, trade and investment, human rights, and economic development. On January 16, 2009, the U.S. and Libya signed a Defense Contacts and Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding. On April 21, 2009, National Security Adviser Mutassim al-Qadhafi visited Washington, DC and met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as other senior U.S. Government officials. In September 2009, Qadhafi visited the U.S. for the first time to participate in the UN General Assembly in New York. In May 2010, the U.S. and Libya signed a Trade Investment Framework Agreement.

Relations with Libya deteriorated sharply following the Qadhafi regime’s brutal suppression of popular protests. The U.S. suspended Embassy operations in Tripoli on February 25, 2011 and ordered the Libyan Government to suspend its Embassy operations in Washington on March 16. A mob overran and burned the U.S. Embassy on May 1. The U.S. imposed sanctions on Libya on February 25 and, in compliance with UNSCR 1970, froze more than $30 billion in Libyan Government assets. The U.S. appointed a special envoy to the Libyan opposition in March and has had a diplomatic presence in Benghazi since April 5, 2011.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Gene A. Cretz (currently in Washington)
Envoy to the Libyan Opposition--J. Christopher Stevens

The U.S. Embassy in Libya is located on Jeraba Street behind the Libyan British Clinic in Tripoli (tel. 218-91-220-3239), but it suspended operations on February 25, 2011. American citizens are warned against travel to Libya, and any U.S. citizens present in Libya are urged to depart immediately. Please direct inquiries regarding U.S. citizens in Libya to LibyaEmergencyUSC@state.gov. Callers in United States and Canada may dial the toll-free number 1-888-407-4747. Callers outside the United States and Canada may dial 1 -202-501-4444.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 1.14 million sq. km. (440,000 sq. mi.); about the size of California and Texas combined; fourth-largest country in South America.
Cities: Capital--Bogota (pop. 8.26 million; 2011). Other major cities include Medellin, Cali, Barranquilla, and Cartagena.
Terrain: Flat coastal areas, with extensive coastlines on the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, three rugged parallel mountain chains, central highlands, and flat eastern grasslands.
Climate: Tropical on coast and eastern grasslands, cooler in highlands.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Colombian(s).
Population (2011): 46.04 million.
Annual population growth: 1.2%.
Religion: 80% Catholic; 13.5% non-Catholic Christian; 4.5% other religious groups (including Seventh Day Adventist, Mormon, Jehovah’s Witness, Islam, and Judaism); 2% no religion.
Language: Spanish.
Education: Education is free and compulsory for the first 5 years; only 5 years of primary school are offered in many rural areas. Attendance--90% of children are enrolled in primary school; 74% in secondary schools. Literacy--93% (2009).
Health: Infant mortality rate--16/1,000. Life expectancy--total population 75 years, men 71.27 years, women 78.03 years.
Ethnic groups: Mestizo (58%), white (20%), mulatto (14%). The population of Afro-Colombians and indigenous groups is officially reported to be around 10%. Non-governmental groups (NGOs) and human rights groups estimate this number may actually be more than 25%.

Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: July 20, 1810 (from Spain).
Constitution: July 5, 1991.
Branches: Executive--president (head of state and government). Legislative--bicameral Congress. Judicial--Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, Council of State, Superior Judicial Council. The Prosecutor General is nominated (along with two other candidates) by the president and elected by the Supreme Court. This office is not a part of the executive branch; it is an independent agency.
Administrative divisions: 32 departments; Bogota, capital district.
Major political parties: Colombian Conservative Party, Colombian Liberal Party, Social Party of National Unity, Radical Change, Alternative Democratic Pole, Party of National Integration, and numerous smaller movements.
Suffrage: Universal, age 18 and over.

Economy
GDP (purchasing power parity; International Monetary Fund (IMF) 2010): $435.1 billion.
GDP (current prices; IMF): $285.5 billion.
Annual growth rate: 4%-6% (2011 projected); 5.1% (first quarter 2011).
Per capita GDP (purchasing power parity; IMF 2010 est.): $9,566.
Natural resources: Coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nickel, gold, silver, copper, platinum, emeralds.
Industry (14.4% of GDP): Types--textiles, garments, footwear, chemicals, metal products, cement, plastic resins and manufactures, beverages, wood products, pharmaceuticals, machinery, electrical equipment.
Agriculture (7.1% of GDP): Products--coffee, bananas, cut flowers, cotton, sugarcane, livestock, rice, corn, tobacco, potatoes, soybeans, sorghum, cocoa beans, oilseed.
Services (46% of GDP): Government services, financial services, commerce, transportation and communication, construction and public works, utilities.
Mining (7.8% of GDP): Main products--coal, gold, nickel.
Trade: Exports (2010 est.)--$39 billion: petroleum, coffee, coal, nickel, emeralds, apparel, bananas, cut flowers. Major markets--U.S., E.U., China, Ecuador. Imports (2010 est.)--$41 billion: machinery/equipment, grains, chemicals, transportation equipment, mineral products, consumer products, paper products, oil and gas industry equipment, electricity. Major suppliers--U.S., China, Mexico, Brazil, Germany.

PEOPLE
Colombia is the third-most populous country in Latin America, after Brazil and Mexico. Sixty-one cities have a population of 100,000 or more; four cities have a population of more than 1 million. Most of Colombia’s population is concentrated around the northern and western departments. The nine eastern lowlands departments, constituting about 54% of Colombia's area are sparsely populated (less than 3% of the population; density of less than one person per square kilometer).

Ethnic and cultural diversity in Colombia reflects the indigenous, European (mainly Spanish), and African heritages of its inhabitants. Today, only about 3% of the people identify themselves as indigenous. Afro-Colombians and indigenous groups have faced challenges related to their integration into mainstream Colombian society.

Around 45.5% of Colombians live below the poverty line, and the country continues to face large income disparities and inadequate social services. The history of the country, including decades-long violent conflict involving outlawed armed groups and drug cartels coupled with human rights violations, has complicated the advancement of government social programs to address these extensive problems. Colombia continues to make progress in improving the security of the country, which is an essential building block for stability and democracy.

HISTORY, GOVERNMENT, AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
During the pre-Columbian period, the area now known as Colombia was inhabited by indigenous societies situated at different stages of socio-economic development, ranging from hunters and nomadic farmers to the highly structured Chibchas, who are considered to have been one of the most developed indigenous groups in South America.

Santa Marta was the first permanent Spanish settlement founded in 1525. Santa Fe de Bogota was founded in 1538 and, in 1717, became the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Granada, which included what are now Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama. Bogota was one of three principal administrative centers of the Spanish possessions in the New World.

On July 20, 1810, the citizens of Bogota created the first representative council to defy Spanish authority. Full independence was proclaimed in 1813, and in 1819 the Republic of Greater Colombia was formed to include all the territory of the former Viceroyalty (Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama). Simon Bolivar was elected its first president with Francisco de Paula Santander as vice president. Conflicts between followers of Bolivar and Santander led to the formation of two political parties that have since dominated Colombian politics. Bolivar's supporters, who later formed the nucleus of the Conservative Party, sought strong centralized government, alliance with the Roman Catholic Church and a limited franchise. Santander's followers, forerunners of the Liberals, wanted a decentralized government, state control over education and other civil matters, and a broader suffrage.

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, each party held the presidency for roughly equal periods of time. Colombia maintained a tradition of civilian government and regular, free elections. Notwithstanding the country's commitment to democratic institutions, Colombia's history also has been characterized by widespread, violent conflict. Two civil wars resulted from bitter rivalry between the Conservative and Liberal parties: The War of a Thousand Days (1899-1903) claimed an estimated 100,000 lives and La Violencia (the Violence) (1946-1957) claimed about 300,000 lives.

La Violencia (The Violence) and the National Front
The assassination of Liberal leader Jorge Eliecer Gaitan in 1948 sparked the bloody conflict known as La Violencia. Conservative Party leader Laureano Gomez came to power in 1950, but was ousted by a military coup led by General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla in 1953. When Rojas failed to restore democratic rule and became implicated in corrupt schemes, he was overthrown by the military with the support of the Liberal and Conservative Parties.

In July 1957, an alliance between former Conservative President Laureano Gomez (1950-53) and former Liberal President Alberto Lleras Camargo (1945-46) led to the creation of the National Front. It established a power-sharing agreement between the two parties and brought an end to "La Violencia." The presidency would be determined by regular elections every 4 years and the two parties would have parity in all other elective and appointive offices. This system was phased out in 1978.

Post-National Front Years
During the post-National Front years, the Colombian Government made efforts to negotiate a peace with the persistent guerrilla organizations that flourished in Colombia's remote and undeveloped rural areas. In 1984, President Belisario Betancur, a Conservative, negotiated a cease-fire with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Democratic Alliance (M-19) that included the release of many imprisoned guerrillas. The National Liberation Army (ELN) rejected the government's cease-fire proposal at that time. The M-19 pulled out of the cease-fire when it resumed fighting in 1985. The army suppressed an M-19 attack on the Palace of Justice in Bogota in November 1985, during which 115 people were killed, including 11 Supreme Court justices. The government and the M-19 renewed their truce in March 1989, which led to a peace agreement and the M-19's reintegration into society and political life. The M-19 was one of the parties that participated in the process to enact a new constitution (see below), which took effect in 1991. The FARC ended the truce in 1990 after some 2,000-3,000 of its members who had demobilized had been murdered.

A new constitution in 1991 brought about major reforms to Colombia's political institutions. While the new constitution preserved a presidential, three-branch system of government, it created new institutions such as the Inspector General, a Human Rights Ombudsman, a Constitutional Court, and a Superior Judicial Council. The new constitution also reestablished the position of Vice President. Other significant constitutional reforms provide for civil divorce, dual nationality and the establishment of a legal mechanism ("Tutela") that allows individuals to appeal government decisions affecting their constitutional rights. The constitution also authorized the introduction of an accusatory system of criminal justice to be instituted gradually throughout the country, replacing the previous written inquisitorial system. A constitutional amendment approved in 2005 allows the president to hold office for two consecutive 4-year terms.

Colombian governments have had to contend with the combined terrorist activities of left-wing guerrillas, the rise of paramilitary self-defense forces in the 1990s, and the drug cartels. Narco-terrorists assassinated three presidential candidates during the election campaign of 1990. After Colombian security forces killed Medellin cartel leader Pablo Escobar in December 1993, indiscriminate acts of violence associated with his organization abated as the cartels were broken into multiple and smaller trafficking organizations that competed against each other in the drug trade. Guerrillas and paramilitary groups also entered into drug trafficking as a way to finance their military operations.

Pastrana Administration
The administration of Andres Pastrana (1998-2002), a Conservative, faced the challenges of increased countrywide attacks by the FARC and ELN, widespread drug production, and the expansion of paramilitary groups. The Pastrana administration unveiled its "Plan Colombia" in 1999 as a 6-year strategy to deal with these longstanding problems, and sought support from the international community. Plan Colombia was a comprehensive program to combat narco-terrorism, spur economic recovery, strengthen democratic institutions and respect for human rights, and provide humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons.

In November 1998, Pastrana ceded a sparsely populated area the size of Switzerland in south-central Colombia to the FARC's control to serve as a neutral zone where peace negotiations could take place. The FARC negotiated with the government only fitfully while continuing to mount attacks and expand coca production, seriously undermining the government's efforts to reach an agreement. Negotiations with the rebels in 2000 and 2001 were marred by rebel attacks, kidnappings and fighting between rebels and paramilitaries for control of coca-growing areas in Colombia. In February 2002, after the FARC hijacked a commercial aircraft and kidnapped a senator, Pastrana ordered the military to attack rebel positions and reassert control over the neutral zone. The FARC withdrew into the jungle and increased attacks against Colombia's infrastructure, while avoiding large-scale direct conflicts with the military.

Uribe Administration
Alvaro Uribe, an independent, was elected president in May 2002 on a platform to restore security to the country. Among his promises was to continue to pursue the broad goals of Plan Colombia within the framework of a long-term strategy. In the fall of 2002, Uribe released a democratic security strategy that employed political, economic, and military means to weaken all illegal armed groups. The Uribe government offered to negotiate a peace agreement with these groups with the condition that they would agree to a unilateral cease-fire and to end drug trafficking and kidnapping.

In December 2003, the Colombian United Self-Defense Forces (AUC) paramilitary group entered into a peace agreement with the government that has led to the collective demobilization of over 31,000 AUC members. In addition, more than 20,000 members of the FARC, AUC, ELN, and other illegal armed groups have individually surrendered their arms. In July 2005, President Uribe signed the Justice and Peace Law, which provides reduced punishments for the demobilized if they renounce violence and return illegal assets, which are to provide reparations to victims.

Colombian leaders presented a new strategy in January 2007 in order to consolidate gains under Plan Colombia and its follow-on programs. This strategy eventually became known as the National Consolidation Plan (Plan Nacional de Consolidacion, or PNC). The PNC is a civilian-led whole-of-government approach that builds upon successful Plan Colombia programs to establish state presence in traditionally ungoverned spaces. By improving access to social services--including justice, education, housing, and health--strengthening democracy, and supporting economic development through sustainable growth and trade, the Colombian Government seeks to permanently recover governance in Colombia's historically marginalized rural areas and break the cycle of guerilla violence.

Between 2002 and 2008, Colombia saw a decrease in homicides by 44%, kidnappings by 88%, terrorist attacks by 79%, and attacks on the country's infrastructure by 60%. In 2008, senior FARC commander Luis Edgar Devia-Silva, aka “Raul Reyes,” was killed during a Colombian Government operation; FARC Commander Manuel Munoz-Ortiz, aka “Ivan Rios,” was killed at the hands of his own chief of security; and FARC founding member Manuel Marulanda-Velez, aka “Tirofijo,” died from a reported heart attack. Since 2000, the FARC has not carried out large-scale multi-front attacks, although it has mounted some operations that indicate it has not yet been broken. Peace efforts with the FARC stalled in 2010.

Santos Administration
On August 7, 2010, Juan Manuel Santos was inaugurated as President of Colombia. He had previously served as Minister of National Defense for Uribe’s second presidential term, as Minister of Finance under President Andres Pastrana, and as Minister of Trade under President Cesar Gaviria.

The Santos administration has maintained positive trends in security consolidation. The Colombian police and military successfully coordinated operations that resulted in the death of top FARC military commander “Mono Jojoy” and ER-PAC (neo-paramilitary group) leader “Cuchillo”. Security forces captured, killed, or demobilized over 4,200 guerrillas and BACRIM (mafia-type organized criminals) in 2010. The number of FARC fighters has decreased from 16,000 in 2001 to approximately 8,000 in 2011. Over the past decade, more than 54,000 paramilitaries and guerrillas have demobilized, while kidnappings have fallen 90%, homicides 46%, and terrorist attacks 71%. Colombian law enforcement interdicted over 175 metric tons (MT) of cocaine and cocaine base in 2010. In addition, ridership on Colombia’s roads has doubled since 2000, and tourism has doubled since 2004 as a result of efforts to improve security nationwide.

President Santos has been active in addressing many human and labor rights concerns through increasing the budget for the government’s program to protect human rights defenders and labor leaders, engaging in frequent dialogues with non-governmental groups (NGOs) and unions, and reducing corruption in the government and military. President Santos has supported legislation to provide reparations for victims of violence, land restitution, and intelligence reforms. He has also created new presidential programs for Afro-Colombian and Indigenous issues. Vice President Angelino Garzon, a respected former labor leader, coordinates human and labor rights issues and has promptly condemned human rights abuses and threats against unions. Colombia has now established an accusatorial judicial system, which should resolve critical human rights cases, but the country still needs to implement reform legislation, provide more resources to the Prosecutor General, and show movement on priority cases.

Another important step taken by President Santos has been securing the passage of several critical laws including an anti-corruption law, victim’s reparation and land restitution laws, and labor formalization laws. He has also mandated ministry reorganization and executive branch reform (including dismantling the discredited Administrative Department of Security--DAS--intelligence service), natural resource royalty re-distribution, fiscal reform, and the implementation of more tools to improve citizen safety.

The Victims and Land Restitution Law, signed into law by Santos in June 2011, focuses on making reparations available to 4 million victims affected by the country’s ongoing civil conflict. This landmark law will offer monetary compensation to the victims of human rights violations such as forced disappearance or homicide. It will also offer monetary compensation or land restitution to people who lost their land as a result of the conflict. If the land is now uninhabitable because it is not secure or is now a natural park or other protected place, compensation will be made in the form of equivalent lands in another part of the country. If land restitution does not fully compensate for the loss of land, a monetary award will be made. Victims (and the families of these victims) who were guerillas or paramilitaries will not be eligible for compensation, and it is unclear whether victims of criminal bands or state violence will be eligible for compensation. The law will continue to aid past and current victims through 2021.

Building on the “democratic security” agenda of the previous administration, President Santos campaigned on “democratic prosperity,” focusing on economic development (jobs), security, and poverty reduction. The Santos administration recently passed a first employment and formalization law as the next logical step, which seeks to create 2.5 million jobs, formalize 500,000 informal jobs, and reduce annual unemployment to single digits, all by 2014. He has also submitted legislation to reduce the deficit through fiscal discipline measures.

At the end of 2010, 56% of Colombians held a favorable opinion of the United States, 59% approved of President Barack Obama, and 66% favored the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (CTPA). While security and counternarcotics continue to be key issues, the U.S. and Colombia are broadening their relationship. President Obama met with President Santos at the UN General Assembly in September 2010 and in Washington DC on April 7, 2011. In October 2010, over 40 U.S. officials met with their counterparts in Bogota for the first High-Level Partnership Dialogue on issues like energy, human rights, and scientific exchange. A second round was held in Washington DC in May 2011 and expanded to include issues such as culture and education, and social and economic reform.

Colombia has taken an active, prominent role in global and regional institutions like the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR). Colombia chairs the Iran and Sudan Sanctions Committees in the UNSC, contributes to three UN peacekeeping missions (Haiti, the Sinai, and Sierra Leone), and used its April 2011 UNSC presidency to focus on Haiti reconstruction efforts. Colombia is also conducting security and counternarcotics training for 14 countries across the Americas. Santos successfully reestablished relations with Venezuela and Ecuador, allowing for greater collaboration on counternarcotics, border security, and trade.

Principal Government Officials
President--Juan Manuel SANTOS Calderon
Vice President--Angelino GARZON
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Maria Angela HOLGUIN Cuellar
Minister of Defense--Rodrigo RIVERA Salazar
Minister of Interior and Justice--German VARGAS Lleras
Ambassador to the United States--Gabriel SILVA Lujan
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Luis Alfonso HOYOS Aristazabal
Ambassador to the United Nations--Nestor OSORIO Londono

Colombia maintains an embassy in the United States at 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-387-8338). Consulates are located in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, San Juan, and Washington DC.

DEFENSE
Colombia's Ministry of Defense is charged with the country's internal and external defense and security. This ministry, under a civilian Minister of Defense, exercises jurisdiction over an army, navy (including marines and coast guard), air force, and national police. Security forces number about 435,000 uniformed personnel--285,000 military and 150,000 police. Colombian military personnel often receive training in the United States or from U.S. instructors in Colombia. The United States provides training and equipment to the Colombian military and police through the military assistance programs, foreign military sales, and the international narcotics control program.

President Uribe instituted a wealth tax in 2002, which raised over $800 million, with 70% used to increase 2002-2003 defense spending. A similar tax imposed from 2007-2011 and levied on the country's wealthiest individuals and enterprises is expected to raise up to $3.7 billion. Real spending on defense has increased every year since 2000, but especially under President Uribe. Colombian spending on defense grew from $2.6 billion in 2001 to over $9 billion in 2009.

Narcotics and Narco-Trafficking
The United States and Colombia continue to enjoy a close counternarcotics partnership. Under Plan Colombia, significant U.S. funding, technical assistance, and material support has been provided to Colombian-led counternarcotics programs aimed at interdicting and eradicating drugs at the source as well as expanding the capacity of Colombian military, police, and judicial institutions.

North America is home to 40% of the world’s cocaine-using population, and the United States has the largest consumer market for cocaine. An estimated 90%-95% of the cocaine entering the United States is produced in Colombia, and approximately 90% of all U.S.-bound cocaine is transported across the U.S.-Mexico border by Mexican traffickers. The Colombian Government, with the help of U.S. support, has made real progress in weakening drug trafficking organizations, disrupting the supply of illicit drugs to the United States, and establishing a security presence in former conflict regions.

Colombia was responsible for about half of the world’s production of cocaine in 2008. The past decade has seen a 57% overall decrease in pure cocaine production in Colombia, mostly due to eradication efforts by the Colombian Government. In 2009-2010, eradication of coca plants decreased by 12% (101,000 hectares were sprayed and 44,775 hectares were manually eradicated). The capacity for cocaine production increased by 3% (10 metric tons), mainly due to higher yields and improved techniques by “cocaleros” (coca growers). Despite the recent reduction in eradication, Colombia remains committed to fighting both the production of drugs and narco-trafficking. In 2010, Colombian security forces seized 226 metric tons of cocaine and coca base, 262 metric tons of marijuana, and 350 kilos of heroin. Colombia also destroyed 2,400 drug laboratories in 2010, including 256 cocaine processing laboratories, 2,138 smaller coca base labs, and six heroin labs.

The involvement of Colombian terrorist groups, including the FARC, in narcotics production and trafficking increases the difficulty in addressing this problem. The United States is committed to helping Colombia improve the rule of law and prevent drugs from reaching the United States through strong interdiction, eradication, and alternative development programs. U.S. assistance has helped create economic opportunities for Colombians and has also helped promote a lifestyle change and supported state presence. With U.S. assistance, Colombian alternative development programs have supported the cultivation of over 650,000 hectares of agricultural, forestry plantation, and natural forest management activities. Over the last 10 years, the programs have also completed approximately 1,290 social and productive infrastructure projects with communities that agree to remain illicit-crop free. More than 400,000 families in 18 departments have benefited from these programs. Additionally, these projects have leveraged over $759 million in private and public sector funding for alternative development initiatives.

Colombia has traditionally maintained an excellent extradition relationship with the United States when it comes to narco-criminals. The Uribe administration extradited over 1,000 fugitives to the United States. Among those extradited were Cali Cartel leaders Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela and his brother Miguel; FARC leaders Juvenal Ovidio Palmera Pineda (aka "Simon Trinidad") and Omaira Rojas Cabrera (aka "Sonia"); and former AUC leaders Salvatore Mancuso and Diego Murillo. In 2009, 186 criminals were extradited to the U.S., including former AUC leader Hebert Veloza-Garcia (aka “HH”) and FARC member Gerardo Antonio Aguilar Ramirez (aka “Cesar”). In April 2011, President Santos agreed to extradite drug kingpin Walid Makled to Venezuela instead of the United States. Makled, aka "the Turk", is a Venezuelan citizen who was arrested on a U.S. warrant in Colombia in late 2010.

ECONOMY
Colombia is a free market economy with major commercial and investment ties to the United States. In 1990, the administration of President Cesar Gaviria (1990-94) initiated economic liberalization or "apertura," with tariff reductions, financial deregulation, privatization of state-owned enterprises, and adoption of a more liberal foreign exchange rate. These policies eased import restrictions and opened most sectors to foreign investment, although agricultural products remained protected.

The Uribe administration sought to maintain prudent fiscal policies and pursued tough economic reforms including tax, pension, and budget reforms. The Santos administration has been promoting economic growth by pursuing free trade agreements with other South American and Asian countries, as well as the U.S. and Canada. The average unemployment rate in 2011 is around 10%, down from 12% in 2009. Despite recent improvements in Colombia’s economy, the country continues to have a high rate of poverty (45.5%) and one of the highest levels of income disparity in the world.

Colombia's economic growth in the last decade can be attributed to an increase in security, resulting in greater foreign investment; economic reforms in the oil and gas sectors; prudent monetary policy; and export growth fueled in part by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) of 2002. Investments as a percentage of GDP were around 28% in mid-2011, which is higher than both Brazil and Chile.

First-quarter GDP growth for 2011 was 5.1%, and economists project growth levels between 4% and 6% in 2011. Per capita GDP has doubled since 2002, while unemployment fell from 15.7% in 2002 to 11.8% in 2010. Colombia has concluded or is pursuing free trade agreements (FTAs) with the U.S., EU, Canada, Switzerland, Turkey, Panama, South Korea, and Japan in addition to its existing trade agreements with Mexico, Chile, Central America, the Andean Community of Nations, and Mercosur.

Industry and Agriculture
As the most industrially diverse member of the Andean Community, Colombia has five major industrial centers--Bogota, Medellin, Cali, Barranquilla, and Bucaramanga--each located in a distinct geographical region. Colombia's industries include mining (coal, gold, and emeralds), oil, textiles and clothing, agribusiness (cut flowers, bananas, sugarcane, and coffee), beverages, chemicals and petrochemicals, cement, construction, iron and steel products, and metalworking. There is also a burgeoning service economy comprised of tourism and information technology exports (call centers, software development, animation).

Colombia's diverse climate and topography permit the cultivation of a wide variety of crops. In addition, all regions yield forest products, ranging from tropical hardwoods in the lowlands, to pine and eucalyptus in the colder areas. Cacao, sugarcane, coconuts, bananas, plantains, rice, cotton, tobacco, cassava, and most of the nation's beef cattle are produced in the hot regions from sea level to 1,000 meters elevation. The temperate regions--between 1,000 and 2,000 meters--are better suited for coffee, flowers, corn and other vegetables, pears, pineapples, and tomatoes. The cooler elevations--between 2,000 and 3,000 meters--produce wheat, barley, potatoes, cold-climate vegetables, flowers, dairy cattle, and poultry.

Labor
While Colombia faces challenges in terms of labor rights, it has committed to sweeping reforms under the Labor Action Plan announced by Presidents Obama and Santos on April 7, 2011. The Colombian Government recently began hiring 100 additional labor inspectors as part of a commitment to double the labor inspectorate by hiring 480 inspectors over the next 4 years. A significant number of these inspectors will be dedicated to addressing worker rights abuses in the palm oil, sugar, mines, ports, and flowers sectors, and preventive inspections in these sectors and for temporary service agencies have already begun. New legislation also establishes criminal penalties, including imprisonment, for employers that undermine the right to organize and bargain collectively or threaten workers who exercise their labor rights. Furthermore, the Government of Colombia has also secured legislation establishing a separate Labor Ministry to provide better institutional capacity to protect labor rights.

To address issues of impunity in crimes against labor unionists, the Colombian Government has exceeded its Action Plan commitments in appointing 100 full-time judicial police inspectors for labor violence cases, and has developed improved training for judicial police investigators and prosecutors on such cases. Priority labor violence cases do remain, but Colombia is showing a commitment to reduce the number of unresolved cases. The Colombian Government has also expanded its protection program for threatened union activists and reduced the backlog of risk assessments by 75% for those unionists applying for protection.

Trade
Colombia is the United States' third-largest export market in Latin America behind Mexico and Brazil. U.S. exports to Colombia in 2010 were $12.1 billion, up 26% from the previous year. U.S. imports from Colombia in 2010 were $15.6 billion, up 38% from 2009 due to high crude oil prices and a low dollar. Colombia's major exports are petroleum, coffee, coal, nickel, cut flowers, and bananas. The United States is Colombia's largest trading partner, representing about 41% of Colombia's exports and 27% of its imports.

Mining and Energy
Colombia has considerable mineral and energy resources, especially coal and natural gas reserves. Mining and energy-related investments have grown because of higher oil prices, increased demand, improved output, and pro-business reforms. These reforms have significantly liberalized Colombia’s petroleum sector, leading to an increase in exploration and production contracts from both large and small hydrocarbon industries.

Natural Gas. In 2010, natural gas reserves totaled 5.4 trillion cubic feet. Natural gas production totaled 1.090 million cubic feet per day on average during 2010.
Crude Oil. The country’s production of crude oil has nearly doubled since 2007, reaching 927,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in May 2011. Colombia had 1.9 billion barrels of proven crude oil reserves in 2010, the fifth-largest in South America.
Refining Capacity. The country's current oil-refining capacity is 325,000 bbl/d, and is expected to grow to 415,000 in 2016 according to the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
Coal. As of 2010, Colombia was the tenth-largest coal producing country and the fifth-largest coal exporting country in the world. It is the largest coal producer in Latin America (74.3 million tons in 2010). Colombia also is the largest exporter of coal to the U.S.
Gems. Colombia historically has been the world's leading producer of emeralds and after a short lull in production it has returned to being a leader in this field. Emerald production rose to 5.23 million carats in 2010, up from 2.12 million carats in 2008.
Precious Metals. Colombia is also a significant producer of gold (53.6 tons in 2010), silver (15.3 tons in 2010), and platinum (1 ton in 2010).

Foreign Investment
In 2010, total foreign direct investment (FDI) in Colombia was $6.8 billion, a slight decrease from the $7.2 billion in 2009. The Central Bank estimates that FDI in the first quarter of 2011 will be higher than the first quarter of 2010. On average, the United States has been the largest source of new FDI in Colombia, particularly in mining and hydrocarbon projects. The bulk of total new investment in Colombia is in the manufacturing, mining, and energy sectors. The only activities closed to foreign direct investment are defense, national security, and disposal of hazardous wastes.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
In 1969, Colombia, along with Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru, formed what is now the Andean Community. (Venezuela joined in 1973 and announced its departure in 2006; Chile left in 1976.) In the 1980s, Colombia broadened its bilateral and multilateral relations. The country joined the Contadora Group, the Group of Eight (now the Rio Group), and was the chair-country of the Non-Aligned Movement from 1994 until September 1998. In addition, it has signed free trade agreements with Chile, Canada, Mexico, Central America's Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras), Mercosur, and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

Colombia has traditionally played an active role in the United Nations and the Organization of American States and in their subsidiary agencies. Former President Gaviria became Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) in September 1994 and was re-elected in 1999. In March 2006, Bogota hosted the Sixth Regular Session of the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism. Colombia also hosted the 38th OAS General Assembly in Medellin in early June 2008.

Colombia has participated in all five Summits of the Americas (most recently in April 2009) and followed up on initiatives developed at the first two summits by hosting two post-summit, ministerial-level meetings on trade and science and technology. Cartagena, Colombia will be the site of the Sixth Summit of the Americas in April 2012. The International Labor Organization (ILO) elected two Colombian members to its Administrative Tribunal in June 2011; Colombians have not held these positions for the last 13 years.

U.S.-COLOMBIAN RELATIONS
In 1822, the United States became one of the first countries to recognize the republic of Colombia and to establish a resident diplomatic mission in the country.

During the Pastrana administration (1998-2002), relations with the United States improved significantly. The United States responded to the Colombian Government's request for international support for Plan Colombia (see above) by providing substantial assistance designed to increase Colombia's counternarcotics capabilities and expand and consolidate government presence. This assistance also went toward improving the livelihoods of the most vulnerable Colombians by providing sustainable social and economic opportunities, protecting human rights, strengthening rule of law, and making governance more transparent, participatory, and accountable.

Recognizing that terrorism and the illicit narcotics trade in Colombia are inextricably linked, in 2002 the U.S. Congress expanded statutory authorities that made U.S. assistance to Colombia more flexible in order to better support President Uribe’s campaign against narcotics and terrorism. The U.S. continues close cooperation with the current administration of Colombia on these issues.

Since 2007, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has invested nearly $740 million in socio-economic and humanitarian assistance to Colombia. On November 17, 2009, the U.S. Government signed a multi-year country assistance agreement with the Government of Colombia, allotting nearly $212 million and $214 million in funding for the first and second years, respectively. This agreement links the socio-economic and humanitarian assistance implemented by the U.S. Government with that provided by the public and private sectors of Colombia. The results thus far have been impressive, but much remains to be done.

U.S. policy toward Colombia supports the Colombian Government's efforts to strengthen its democratic institutions, promote respect for human rights and the rule of law, foster socio-economic development, address immediate humanitarian needs, and end the threats to democracy posed by narcotics trafficking and terrorism. Promoting security, stability, and prosperity in Colombia will continue to be long-term American interests in the region.

Today, the U.S. Government estimates that there are 60,000 U.S. citizens living in Colombia and 70,000-86,000 U.S. citizens visiting Colombia in any given month. Approximately 250 American businesses conduct operations in Colombia.

U.S.-Colombia Agreements
In 1995-97, the United States and Colombia signed important agreements dealing with environmental protection, asset sharing, and chemical control. A notable maritime ship-boarding agreement signed in 1997 allowed for searches of suspected drug-running vessels. In 2008, the countries signed a memorandum of understanding on renewable and clean energy. In June 2010, the U.S. and Colombia signed a Science and Technology Agreement to promote innovation in both countries. The two entered into an Open Skies Agreement in May 2011, marking the 100th Open Skies Agreement signed by the U.S. The U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement was signed in November 2006. If ratified by the U.S. Congress, the agreement would enable U.S. businesses to better compete with other countries that have already established FTAs with Colombia.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--P. Michael McKinley
Deputy Chief of Mission--Perry Holloway
Political Counselor--Mark A. Wells
Economic Counselor--Timothy Stater
Consul General--Raymond Baca
Commercial Counselor--Margaret Hanson-Muse
Management Counselor--Theresa M. Leech
Military Group Commander--COL Michael Brown
Narcotics Affairs Section Director--James Story
Defense Attache--COL Paul Murray
Public Affairs Officer--Mark Wentworth
Regional Security Officer--Robert Myers
USAID Director--Nadereh Lee (Acting)

U.S. Embassy
Calle 24, Bis #48-50
Bogota, Colombia
(tel: (571) 315-0811; fax: (571) 315-2197)
The mailing address is Carrera 45 No. 24B-27
(Internet: http://bogota.usembassy.gov/)

Other Contact Information
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520
(Main Switchboard: 202-647-4000)
(Internet: http://www.state.gov)

U.S. Department of Commerce, Trade Information Center, International Trade Administration
Mailing Address:
1401 Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20230
(tel: 800-USA-TRADE)
(Internet: http://www.trade.gov)

Colombian-American Chamber of Commerce
Calle 98, # 22-64, Oficina 1209
Apartado Aereo 8008
Bogota, Colombia
(tel: (571) 587-7278; fax: (571) 587-7278-2)
Chapters in Barranquilla, Cali, Cartagena, Medellin
 

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 56,785 sq. km.; slightly smaller than West Virginia.
Cities: Capital--Lome 1,593,000 (pop. 2009 est.). Other major cities--Sokode 111,200; Kara 104,900; Atakpame 77,300; Dapaong 53,600.
Terrain: Savannah divided from a coastal plain by a range of low hills.
Climate: Tropical.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective (sing. and pl.)--Togolese.
Population (2011 estimate): 6,771,993.
Annual population growth rate (2011 estimate): 2.762%.
Ethnic groups: Ewe, Mina, Kabye, Cotocoli, Moba, and others.
Religions (est.): Indigenous beliefs 51% Christian 29%, Muslim 20%.
Languages: French (official), local (Ewe, Mina, Kabye).
Education: Attendance (2006)--74.6% of age group 6-11 enrolled. Literacy (2006)--male 70%, female 44%.
Health: Life expectancy (2011)--male 60 years, female 65 years.
Work force: (1999 est.) Total--2 million (43% of the total population); rural work force (est.)--1,350,000; urban work force (est.)--650,000.

Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: April 27, 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship).
Constitution: Adopted 1992.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state); prime minister (head of government). Legislative--National Assembly. Judicial--Supreme Court.
Subdivisions: 30 prefectures.
Political parties: Rassemblement du Peuple Togolais (RPT); Union des Forces de Changement (UFC); Comite d'action pour le Renouveau (CAR), Pan-African Patriotic Convergence Party (CPP), Democratic Convention of the African People (CDPA); National Alliance for Change (ANC).
Suffrage: Universal adult.
National holiday: Independence Day, April 27.

Economy
GDP (2010): $5.92 billion.
Per capita income (2010): $900.
Natural resources: Phosphates, limestone, marble.
Agriculture (47% of 2009 GDP): Products--yams, cassava, corn, millet, sorghum, cocoa, coffee, rice, cotton.
Industry (25% of 2008 GDP): Types--mining, manufacturing, construction, energy.
Services: 27% of 2009 GDP.
Trade: (2010): Exports--$859 million: phosphates, cocoa, coffee, cotton. Imports--$1.54 billion: consumer goods, including foodstuffs, fabrics, clothes, vehicles, equipment. Major partners--Ghana, France, Burkina Faso, Germany, Mali, Netherlands, India, Belgium, Benin.

GEOGRAPHY
Togo is bounded by Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin, and the Gulf of Guinea. It stretches 579 kilometers (360 mi.) north from the gulf and is only 160 kilometers (100 mi.) wide at the broadest point. The country consists primarily of two savanna plains regions separated by a southwest-northeast range of hills (the Chaine du Togo).

Togo's climate varies from tropical to savanna. The south is humid, with temperatures ranging from 23^oC to 32^oC (75^oF to 90^oF). In the north, temperature fluctuations are greater--from 18^oC to more than 38^oC (65^oF to 100^oF).

PEOPLE
Togo's population of over 6 million people (2011 est.) is composed of more than 20 ethnic groups. The two major groups are the Ewe in the South and the Kabye in the North. Population distribution is very uneven due to soil and terrain variations. The population is generally concentrated in the south and along the major north-south highway connecting the coast to the Sahel. The ethnic groups of the coastal region, particularly the Ewes (about 21% of the population), constitute the bulk of the civil servants, professionals, and merchants, due in part to the former colonial administrations which provided greater infrastructure development in the south. The Kabye (16% of the population) live on marginal land and traditionally have emigrated south from their home area in the Kara region to seek employment. Their historical means of social advancement has been through the military and law enforcement forces, and they continue to dominate these services.

Most of the southern peoples use the Ewe or Mina languages, which are closely related and spoken in commercial sectors throughout Togo. French, the official language, is used in administration and documentation. The public primary schools combine French with Ewe or Kabye as languages of instruction, depending on the region. English is spoken in neighboring Ghana and is taught in Togolese secondary schools. As a result, many Togolese, especially in the south and along the Ghana border, speak some English.

HISTORY
The Ewes moved into the area which is now Togo from the Niger River valley between the 12th and 14th centuries. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Portuguese explorers and traders visited the coast. For the next 200 years, the coastal region was a major raiding center for Europeans in search of slaves, earning Togo and the surrounding region the name "The Slave Coast." In an 1884 treaty signed at Togoville, Germany declared a protectorate over a stretch of territory along the coast and gradually extended its control inland. Because it became Germany's only self-supporting colony, Togoland was known as its model possession. In 1914, Togoland was invaded by French and British forces and fell after brief resistance. Following the war, Togoland became a League of Nations mandate divided for administrative purposes between France and the United Kingdom.

After World War II, the mandate became a UN trust territory administered by the United Kingdom and France. During the mandate and trusteeship periods, western Togo was administered as part of the British Gold Coast. In 1957, the residents of British Togoland voted to join the Gold Coast as part of the new independent nation of Ghana.

By statute in 1955, French Togo became an autonomous republic within the French union, although it retained its UN trusteeship status. A legislative assembly elected by universal adult suffrage had considerable power over internal affairs, with an elected executive body headed by a prime minister responsible to the legislature. These changes were embodied in a constitution approved in a 1956 referendum. On September 10, 1956, Nicholas Grunitzky became prime minister of the Republic of Togo. However, due to irregularities in the plebiscite, an unsupervised general election was held in 1958 and won by Sylvanus Olympio. On April 27, 1960, in a smooth transition, Togo severed its constitutional ties with France, shed its UN trusteeship status, and became fully independent under a provisional constitution with Olympio as president.

A new constitution in 1961 established an executive president, elected for 7 years by universal suffrage, and a weak National Assembly. The president was empowered to appoint ministers and dissolve the assembly, holding a monopoly of executive power. In elections that year, from which Grunitzky's party was disqualified, Olympio's party won 90% of the vote and all 51 National Assembly seats, and he became Togo's first elected president.

During this period, four principal political parties existed in Togo: the leftist Juvento (Togolese Youth Movement); the Union Democratique des Populations Togolaises (UDPT); the Parti Togolais Du Progres (PTP), founded by Grunitzky but having limited support; and the Comite Unite Togolaise (CUT), the party of President Olympio. Rivalries between elements of these parties had begun as early as the 1940s, and they came to a head with Olympio dissolving the opposition parties in January 1962, ostensibly because of plots against the majority party government. Many opposition members, including Grunitzky, fled to avoid arrest.

On January 13, 1963, President Olympio was assassinated in an uprising of army non-commissioned officers dissatisfied with conditions following their discharge from the French army. Grunitzky returned from exile 2 days later to head a provisional government with the title of prime minister. On May 5, 1963, the Togolese adopted a new constitution which reinstated a multi-party system, chose deputies from all political parties for the National Assembly, and elected Grunitzky as president and Antoine Meatchi as vice president. Nine days later, President Grunitzky formed a government in which all parties were represented.

During the next several years, the Grunitzky government's power became insecure. On November 21, 1966, an attempt to overthrow Grunitzky, inspired principally by civilian political opponents in the CUT party, was unsuccessful. Grunitzky then tried to lessen his reliance on the army, but on January 13, 1967, Lt. Col. Etienne Eyadema (later Gen. Gnassingbe Eyadema) ousted President Grunitzky in a bloodless military coup. Political parties were banned, and all constitutional processes were suspended. The committee of national reconciliation ruled the country until April 14, when Eyadema assumed the presidency. In late 1969, a single national political party, the Rally of the Togolese People (RPT), was created, and President Eyadema was elected party president on November 29, 1969. In 1972, a national referendum, in which Eyadema ran unopposed, confirmed his role as the country's president.

In late 1979, Eyadema declared a third republic and a transition to greater civilian rule with a mixed civilian and military cabinet. He garnered 99.97% of the vote in uncontested presidential elections held in late 1979 and early 1980. A new constitution also provided for a national assembly to serve primarily as a consultative body. On September 23, 1986, a group of some 70 armed Togolese dissidents crossed into Lome from Ghana in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the Eyadema government. However, this failed and in December Eyadema was reelected to a third consecutive 7-year term with 99.5% of the vote in an uncontested election.

In 1989 and 1990, Togo, like many other countries, was affected by the winds of democratic change sweeping eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. On October 5, 1990, the trial of students for distributing antigovernment tracts sparked riots in Lome. Antigovernment demonstrations and violent clashes with the security forces marked the months that followed. In April 1991, the government began negotiations with newly formed opposition groups and agreed to a general amnesty that permitted exiled political opponents to return to Togo. After a general strike and further demonstrations, on June 12, 1991, the government and opposition signed an agreement to hold a "national forum".

The national forum, dominated by opponents of President Eyadema, opened in July 1991 and immediately declared itself to be a sovereign "National Conference." Although subjected to severe harassment from the government, the conference drafted an interim constitution calling for a 1-year transitional regime tasked with organizing free elections for a new government. The conference selected Joseph Kokou Koffigoh, a lawyer and human rights leader, as transitional prime minister but kept President Eyadema as chief of state for the transition, although with limited powers.

A test of wills between the president and his opponents followed over the next 3 years during which President Eyadema gradually gained the upper hand. Frequent political paralysis and intermittent violence marked this period. Following a vote by the transitional legislature (High Council of the Republic) to dissolve the President's political party--the RPT--in November 1991, the army attacked the prime minister's office on December 3 and captured the prime minister. Koffigoh then formed a second transition government in January 1992 with substantial participation by ministers from the President's party. Opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio, son of the slain president Sylvanus Olympio, was ambushed and seriously wounded, apparently by soldiers, on May 5, 1992.

In July and August 1992, a commission composed of presidential and opposition representatives negotiated a new political agreement. On September 27, the public overwhelmingly approved the text of a new, democratic constitution, formally initiating Togo's fourth republic. However, the democratic process was set back in October 1992, when elements of the army held the interim legislature hostage for 24 hours, effectively ending the interim legislature. In retaliation, on November 16, opposition political parties and labor unions declared a general strike intended to force President Eyadema to agree to satisfactory conditions for elections. The general strike largely shut down Lome for months and resulted in severe damage to the economy.

In January 1993, President Eyadema declared the transition at an end and reappointed Koffigoh as prime minister under Eyadema's authority. This set off public demonstrations, and, on January 25, members of the security forces fired on peaceful demonstrators, killing at least 19. In the ensuing days, several security force members were waylaid and injured or killed by civilian oppositionists. On March 25, 1993, armed Togolese dissident commandos based in Ghana attacked Lome's main military camp and tried unsuccessfully to kill President Eyadema. They inflicted significant casualties, however, which set off lethal reprisals by the military against soldiers thought to be associated with the attackers.

Under substantial domestic and foreign pressure and the burden of the ongoing general strike, the presidential faction entered negotiations with the opposition. Four rounds of talks led to the July 11, 1993 Ouagadougou agreement, which set forth conditions for upcoming presidential and legislative elections and ended the general strike as of August 3, 1993. The presidential elections were set for August 25, but hasty and inadequate technical preparations, concerns about fraud, and the lack of effective campaign organization by the opposition led the chief opposition candidates--former minister and Organization of African Unity (OAU) Secretary General Edem Kodjo and lawyer Yawovi Agboyibo--to drop out of the race before election day and to call for a boycott. President Eyadema won the elections by a 96.42% vote against token opposition. About 36% of the voters went to the polls; the others boycotted.

Ghana-based armed dissidents launched a new commando attack on military sites in Lome in January 1994. President Eyadema was unhurt, and the attack and subsequent reaction by the Togolese armed forces, including an 8-hour rampage in Lome, resulted in hundreds of deaths, mostly civilian. This provoked more than 300,000 Togolese to flee Lome for Benin, Ghana, or the interior of Togo. Most had returned by early 1996.

The government went ahead with legislative elections in February 1994. In generally free and fair polls as witnessed by international observers, the allied opposition parties UTD and Action Committee for Renewal (CAR) together won a narrow majority in the National Assembly. On April 22, President Eyadema named Edem Kodjo, the head of the smaller opposition party, the UTD, as prime minister instead of Yawovi Agboyibo, whose CAR party had far more seats. Kodjo's acceptance of the post of prime minister provoked the CAR to break the opposition alliance and refuse to join the Kodjo government.

Kodjo was then forced to form a governing coalition with the RPT. Kodjo's government emphasized economic recovery, building democratic institutions and the rule of law and the return of Togolese refugees abroad. In early 1995, the government made slow progress toward its goals, aided by the CAR's August 1995 decision to end a 9-month boycott of the National Assembly. However, Kodjo was forced to reshuffle his government in late 1995, strengthening the representation by Eyadema's RPT party, and he resigned in August 1996. Eyadema reemerged with a sure grip on power, controlling most aspects of government.

In the June 1998 presidential election, the government prevented citizens from effectively exercising the right to vote. The Interior Ministry declared Eyadema the winner with 52% of the vote in the 1998 election; however, serious irregularities in the government's conduct of the election strongly favored the incumbent and appear to have affected the outcome materially. Although the government did not obstruct the functioning of political opponents openly, the President used the strength of the military and his government allies to intimidate and harass citizens and opposition groups. The government and the state remained highly centralized: President Eyadema's national government appointed the officials and controlled the budgets of all subnational government entities, including prefectures and municipalities, and influenced the selection of traditional chiefs.

The second multi-party legislative elections of Eyadema's 33-year rule were held on March 21, 1999. However, the opposition boycotted the election, in which the ruling party won 79 of the 81 seats in the National Assembly. The remaining two seats went to candidates from little-known independent parties. Procedural problems and significant fraud, particularly misrepresentation of voter turnout, marred the legislative elections.

After the legislative election, the government announced that it would continue to pursue dialog with the opposition. In July 1999, the government and the opposition began discussions, and on July 29, 1999, all sides signed an accord called the "Lome Framework Agreement," which included a pledge by President Eyadema that he would respect the constitution and not seek another term as president after his current one expired in 2003. The accord also called for the negotiation of a legal status for opposition leaders, as well as for former heads of state (such as their immunity from prosecution for acts in office). In addition, the accord addressed the rights and duties of political parties and the media, the safe return of refugees, and the security of all citizens. The accord also contained a provision for compensating victims of political violence. The President agreed to dissolve the National Assembly in March and hold new legislative elections, which would be supervised by an Independent National Election Commission (CENI) and which would use the single-ballot method to protect against some of the abuses of past elections. However, the March 2000 date passed without presidential action, and new legislative elections were ultimately rescheduled for October 2001. Because of funding problems and disagreements between the government and opposition, the elections were again delayed, this time until 2002.

In May 2002 the government scrapped the CENI and appointed seven magistrates to oversee preparations for legislative elections. Not surprisingly, the opposition announced it would boycott them. The elections were held in October and the government party won more than two-thirds of the seats in the National Assembly. In December 2002, Eyadema's government used this rubber-stamp parliament to amend Togo's constitution, allowing President Eyadema to run for an "unlimited" number of terms. A further amendment stated that candidates must reside in the country for at least 12 months before an election, a provision that barred the participation in the upcoming presidential election of popular Union des Forces du Changement (UFC) candidate, Gilchrist Olympio, who had been in exile since 1992. The presidential election was held June 1, 2003. President Eyadema was re-elected with 57% of the votes, amid allegations of widespread vote rigging.

On April 14, 2004, the Government of Togo signed an agreement with the European Union (EU) that included 22 commitments the Government of Togo must honor as a precondition for resumption of EU aid. Two of the most important of these commitments were a constructive national dialogue between the Government of Togo and the traditional opposition parties and free and democratic legislative elections.

By November 2004, Togo had made modest progress on some commitments, releasing 500 prisoners, removing prison sentences from most provisions of the Press Code, and initiating a dialogue with the core opposition parties. Consultations were ongoing with the European Union with regard to when and how to resume development cooperation.

On February 5, 2005 President Gnassingbe Eyadema died. In an unconstitutional move, the military leadership swore in Faure Gnassingbe, the late President Eyadema's son, as president. Immediate condemnation by African leaders followed by sanctions of the Economic Community of West African States and the African Union combined with pressure from the international community led finally to a decision on February 25 for Faure Gnassingbe to step down. Protest efforts by the public included a large demonstration in Lome that was permitted to proceed peacefully. Prior to stepping down, Faure Gnassingbe was selected as leader of the ruling party and named as a candidate in the announced presidential elections to choose a successor to Eyadema. Abass Bonfoh, National Assembly Vice President, was selected to serve as Speaker of the National Assembly and therefore simultaneously became interim President. Real power apparently was retained by Faure Gnassingbe as he continued to use the offices of the President while the interim President operated from the National Assembly.

Deeply flawed elections held in April 2005 were marred by violence and widespread accusations of vote tampering, causing tens of thousands of Togolese to flee to neighboring Benin and Ghana. Faure Gnassingbe was pronounced the winner and was pressed by the international community--including regional heads of state--to form a government of national unity, including key opposition figures. After Faure Gnassingbe failed to reach agreement with the opposition, he named as Prime Minister Edem Kodjo of the Panafrican Patriotic Convergence party (CPP), an original founder of the ruling RPT and former OAU Secretary-General and Togolese Prime Minister. Kodjo subsequently named a cabinet that kept security-related ministries in the hands of the RPT and did not include any representatives from the genuine opposition.

In August 2006 President Faure Gnassingbe and members of the opposition signed the Global Political Agreement (GPA). The GPA provided for a transitional unity government whose primary purpose would be to prepare for benchmark legislative elections. CAR opposition party leader and human rights lawyer Yawovi Agboyibo was appointed Prime Minister of the transitional government in September 2006. Leopold Gnininvi, president of the Democratic Convention of the African People party (CDPA), was appointed Minister of State for Mines and Energy. The third opposition party, UFC, headed by Gilchrist Olympio, declined to join the government, but agreed to participate in the National Electoral Commission and the National Dialogue follow-up committee, chaired by Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore.

The legislative elections held on October 14, 2007, in which all opposition parties participated, were declared free and fair by international and national election observers. The RPT, with 50 seats, won a majority. The UFC took 27 seats, with the CAR receiving the remaining 4. RPT members were elected to all the internal leadership positions within the National Assembly.

On December 3, 2007, President Faure Gnassingbe appointed as the new Prime Minister Komlan Mally, an RPT member and former Minister of Urban Development. The President named the rest of his cabinet on December 13, 2007 from the RPT and a number of lesser parties. The number of ministries was reduced substantially, from 35 to 22. The other two parties elected to the National Assembly, the UFC and CAR, were not represented in the cabinet.

On September 5, 2008, Prime Minister Mally submitted his resignation to President Faure Gnassingbe, who named Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo, formerly of the United Nations Development Program, to the position 2 days later. The rest of the cabinet was named on September 16, 2008 and was composed of members of the RPT, the CDPA, the CPP, and civil society. The number of ministers rose from 22 to 26, plus two secretaries of state.

On March 4, 2010 Togo held its presidential election, in which President Faure Gnassingbe was re-elected with over 60% of the vote. Organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) with the financial support of the European Union and technical support of the United Nations, the election was peaceful and deemed relatively free and fair by the international community, despite some major irregularities. The international community and UN experts were unanimous in their finding that the irregularities did not have an impact on the final outcome. One major problem was the lack of experience and the politicization of the CENI. Composed of 17 members, 5 from parliamentary majority party (RPT), 5 parliamentary opposition (3 from the UFC and 2 from the CAR), 3 from the extra parliamentary opposition, 3 from civil society, and 1 representing the government, the CENI was supposed to be independent of political influence. Even though the CENI appeared to be balanced, in fact two of the members from the extra parliamentary opposition and two of the representatives of civil society were known to be allied with the RPT, thus giving the ruling party clear control over the CENI. As a result, the organization of the election was fraught with disagreement and delays.

Another problem was the lack of cohesion between the opposition parties. Initially committed to choosing a single candidate, they were never able to agree on whom that should be. The UFC insisted on having Gilchrist Olympio as their candidate, since he had been prohibited from running in previous elections, while the CAR felt that it was their turn as they had backed the UFC candidate in 2005. As a result, there were seven candidates running for president in the election, incumbent President Faure Gnassingbe and six opposition candidates. In addition, Gilchrist Olympio (by far the best known and most popular of the opposition candidates) was unable to run since, due to an accident while traveling in the United States, he did not submit his application within the legal deadline. Jean-Pierre Fabre, UFC’s Secretary General, replaced Gilchrist Olympio as the party’s candidate.

On March 6, the electoral commission released preliminary results announcing that President Faure Gnassingbe received roughly 60% of the vote. The nearest challenger, UFC candidate Jean-Pierre Fabre, only received about 33% of the vote. These results were confirmed by the Constitutional Court on March 18. However, even before the preliminary results were released, Jean Pierre Fabre proclaimed himself the winner and accused the RPT of stealing the election. Despite loud and frequent accusations of fraud, the opposition was unable to provide any evidence. Nonetheless, the opposition continued to express its disbelief of the results and organized numerous marches in the weeks following the election. Fortunately, these were predominately peaceful. In October 2010, Jean-Pierre Fabre resigned from the UFC and formed a new party, the National Alliance for Change (ANC).

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Now in his second term, President Faure Gnassingbe continues to face a significant challenge: balancing entrenched interests with the need to implement democratic reforms and revive Togo's deteriorating economy. Togo's long-suffering population has seen its living standards decline precipitously since the beginning of the 1990s.

The Togolese judiciary is modeled on the French system. For administrative purposes, Togo is divided into 30 prefectures, each having an appointed prefect.

Principal Government Officials
President--Faure Gnassingbe
Prime Minister--Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation--Elliot Ohin
Minister of Territorial Administration, Decentralization, and Local Authorities--Pascal Bodjona
Minister of Security and Civil Protection--Dokissima Gname Latta
Minister of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Fishing--Kossi Messan Ewovor

Next Elections Scheduled
Local elections--2011
Legislative--2012

ECONOMY
Subsistence agriculture and commerce are the main economic activities in Togo; the majority of the population depends on subsistence agriculture. Food and cash crop production employs the majority of the labor force and contributes about 47% to the gross domestic product (GDP). Coffee and cocoa are traditionally the major cash crops for export. Cotton cultivation increased rapidly in the 1990s, with 173,000 metric tons produced in 1999. After a disastrous harvest in 2001 (113,000 metric tons), production rebounded to 168,000 metric tons in 2002. However, cotton exports have plummeted in recent years due to arrears in payments to farmers, low cotton prices, and poor weather conditions; many cotton farmers have switched to other crops. As of December 2007, the Togolese Government had paid back all arrears to cotton farmers, and the industry is recovering slowly. Despite insufficient rainfall in some areas, the Togolese Government has achieved its goal of self-sufficiency in food crops--corn, cassava, yams, sorghum, millet, and groundnut. Small and medium-sized farms produce most of the food crop; farms range in size from one to three hectares.

Commerce is the most important economic activity in Togo after agriculture. Lome is an important regional trading center. Its deep water port operates 24 hours a day, mainly transporting goods to the inland countries of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. Lome's "Grand Marche" is known for its entrepreneurial market women, who have a stronghold on many areas of trade, notably in African cloth. In addition to textiles, Togo is an important center for re-export of alcohol, cigarettes, perfume, and used automobiles to neighboring countries. Political instability during the last decade has, however, eroded Togo's position as a trading center.

In the industrial sector, phosphates are Togo's most important commodity. The country has an estimated 60 million metric tons of phosphate reserves. From a high point of 2.7 million tons in 1997, production dropped to approximately 800,000 tons in 2007. The fall in production is partly the result of the depletion of easily accessible deposits and the lack of funds for new investment. The formerly state-run company benefited from private management, which took over in 2001, but the phosphate industry has all but collapsed in recent years. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommended a financial and strategic audit of the sector and that the government seek a new investor to take over. In September 2007 the government obtained a loan from the Islamic Development Bank to inject into the sector. The company produced 1.5 million tons of phosphates in 2009. Togo also has substantial limestone and marble deposits; limestone is becoming an increasingly important export.

When bilateral donors cut off assistance to Togo in the early 1990s as a result of the regime's poor democracy and human rights performance, the country was unable to service its debts to multilateral lenders, who ceased their programs as a result. As part of the Government of Togo's strategy to address donor concerns, in 2006 it undertook discussions with the IMF toward the resumption of a country program. Togo successfully completed an IMF Staff-Monitored Program in mid-2007, and the IMF resumed aid through a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility arrangement. After the successful legislative elections in October 2007, missions from the EU, IMF, and World Bank visited Togo to assess the financial state of the country. The EU, immediately after the elections, reinitiated assistance with a grant of 26 million Euros to be used for urban development and democracy projects. The World Bank forgave $135 million in arrears in February 2008 and re-engaged with Togo in May. The African Development Bank followed suit in July 2008 by forgiving $24 million in arrears. Togo developed an interim poverty reduction and growth strategy paper in April 2008, which, after another successful evaluation in October 2008, led to the decision that Togo qualified for Heavily Indebted Poor Country debt relief. The EU provided an additional $22 million for direct budget relief in 2009 and provided $12 million to finance the presidential election.

Togo is one of 16 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The ECOWAS development fund is based in Lome. Togo also is a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), which groups eight West African countries using the CFA franc; the eight countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. The West African Development Bank (BOAD), which is associated with UEMOA, is based in Lome. ECOBANK, a pan-African private bank, also has its headquarters in Lome. Togo long served as a regional banking center, but that position has been eroded by the political instability and economic downturn of the early 1990s. Historically, France has been Togo's principal trading partner, although other European Union countries are important to Togo's economy.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Although Togo's foreign policy is nonaligned, it has strong historical and cultural ties with western Europe, especially France and Germany, the former colonial powers. Togo recognizes the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and Cuba. It re-established relations with Israel in 1987.

Togo pursues an active foreign policy and participates in many international organizations. It is particularly active in West African regional affairs and in the African Union. Relations between Togo and neighboring states are generally good.

U.S.-TOGOLESE RELATIONS
Togo is a pro-Western, market-oriented country. The United States and Togo have had generally good relations since its independence, although the United States has never been one of Togo's major trade partners. U.S. exports to Togo have generally been used clothing and scrap textiles. Other important U.S. exports include rice, wheat, shoes, and tobacco products, and U.S. personal computers and other office electronics are becoming more widely available.

The Government of Togo, with the support of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), established an export processing zone (EPZ) in Togo in 1989. The zone has attracted private investors interested in manufacturing, assembling, and food processing, primarily for the export market. USAID closed its local office in 1994 and runs local development programs from its office in Accra through nongovernmental organizations in Togo. Contour Global, an American power company, built a new power plant in Lome that provides 100 megawatts of electricity. Plant operations began in October 2010. At a cost of over $200 million, it is the largest single private American investment in West Africa in over a decade and the largest electricity investment ever made in Togo.

Peace Corps began its work in Togo in 1962, and since that time has hosted more than 2,200 Peace Corps Volunteers. Currently there are approximately 100 Volunteers serving in Togo. Volunteers have a successful history of collaboration and involvement with the Togolese people at all levels. Their efforts build upon counterpart relationships and emphasize low-cost solutions that make maximum use of local resources. Partnering with local and international organizations is an important component of Volunteer project activities. Volunteers work to promote self-sufficiency in the areas of small business development, education, environment, and health. All Volunteers, regardless of sector, are trained in how to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Patricia M. Hawkins
Deputy Chief of Mission--Ellen Thorburn
Public Affairs Officer--Brenda Soya
Consular Officer--Arthur Bell
Political/Economic/Commercial Officers--Lanta Spencer, John Kmetz
Peace Corps Director--Carolina Cardona

The U.S. Embassy is located on Boulevard Eyadema, Lome (tel: 228-261-5470/1/2/3). The mailing address is B.P. 852, Lome, Togo (international mail) and AmEmbassy Lome, 2300 Lome Place, Washington, DC 20521-2300 (by diplomatic pouch).

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

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PROFILE

Geography
Area (including the island territories of Svalbard and Jan Mayen): 385,199 sq. km. (148,726 sq. miles); approximately the same size as New Mexico.
Cities (January 2011 est.): Capital--Oslo (pop. 599,230). Other cities--Bergen (260,392), Trondheim (173,486), Stavanger (126,021).
Terrain: Rugged with high plateaus, steep fjords, mountains, and fertile valleys.
Climate: Temperate along the coast, colder inland.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Norwegian(s).
Population (January 2011 est.): 4,937,000.
Annual population growth rate (2009): 1.3%.
Density (2009): 16 per sq. km. (excluding inland water).
Ethnic groups: Norwegian (Nordic, Alpine, Baltic); Sami, a racial-cultural minority; foreign nationals from Nordic and other countries.
Membership in nationally registered religions (2010): Church of Norway (Lutheran) 78%; Roman Catholic 1.3%; Pentecostal Christian 0.8%; other Christian 3.5%; Muslim 2.0%; other, none, or unknown 14.4%, including a Jewish community of approximately 818 people.
Languages: Bokmal Norwegian (official), Nynorsk Norwegian (official), small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities (Sami is official in six municipalities). English is widely spoken.
Education: Years compulsory--10. Literacy--100%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2010)--3.1 deaths/1,000. Life expectancy (2010 est.)--men 78.6 years; women 83.1 years.
Work force (2011, 3.6 million): Legislators, senior officials, and managers 6%; professionals 13%; technicians and associate professionals 25.3%; clerks 6.8%; service workers and market sales workers 24%; agricultural, forestry, and fishery workers 2.2%; craft and related trades workers 10.2%; plant and machine operators and assemblers 7.1%; other occupations and unspecified 5.2%.

Government
Type: Hereditary constitutional monarchy.
Independence: 1905.
Constitution: May 17, 1814.
Branches: Executive--king (chief of state), prime minister (head of government), Council of Ministers (cabinet). The Council is appointed by the monarch in accordance with the will of the Storting, to which the Council is responsible. Legislative--modified unicameral parliament (Storting, 169 members, elected for 4 years by universal adult suffrage). Judicial--Supreme Court, appellate courts, city and county courts. There are 19 Supreme Court judges, with one Chief Justice.
Political parties represented in the parliament: Labor, Progress, Conservative, Socialist Left, Christian Democratic, Center, Liberal.
Suffrage: Universal over 18.
Administrative subdivisions: 19 fylker (counties) and 430 municipalities, and Svalbard.

Economy
GDP (2011): $479 billion.
Annual growth rate (2011): 2.9%.
Per capita GDP (2010, purchasing power parity): $53,738.
Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, titanium, pyrites, nickel, fish, timber, hydropower.
Arable land: 2.7%.
Agriculture: Products--dairy, livestock, grain (barley, oats, wheat), potatoes and other vegetables, fruits and berries, furs, wool, pork, beef, veal, fish.
Industry: Types--petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products, aluminum, ferroalloys, iron and steel, nickel, zinc, nitrogen, fertilizers, petrochemicals, hydroelectric power, refinery products, timber, mining, textiles, fishing, transport equipment, electronics.
GDP by activity (2010): Oil and gas 22%; general government 16%; manufacturing, mining, electricity, building and construction 15%; value added tax (VAT), etc. 11%; commodities, vehicle repairs, etc. 7%; communication and transport 4%; agriculture, forestry, and fishing 1%; other services (commercial, housing, financial, private health/education, hotel and catering, etc.) 24%.
Trade (2010): Exports (f.o.b.)--$178 billion. Major markets--U.K. 27%, Netherlands 12%, Germany 11%, Sweden 7%, France 6%, U.S. 5%. Imports (f.o.b.)--$122 billion. Major suppliers--Sweden 14%, Germany 12.3%, China 8.4%, Denmark 6.1%, U.K. 5.9%, U.S. 5.2%.

GEOGRAPHY
Norway’s northern regions lie within the Arctic Circle, where there are borders with Finland and Russia, while much of the long border with Sweden runs through the Scandinavian mountains. This range, sloping to the south-east, is 1,530 km in length and has its highest areas in the south of Norway, where Galdhopiggen, Norway’s highest point, reaches a peak of 2,469 m (8,100 ft). Almost all of Norway is high ground; in the north the country becomes narrower, with mountains overlooking the fjords and the islands along the coast, and in the center and south the mountains form a high plateau, where there are permanent ice fields. The only area of low ground is around the Oslo fjord and along the coast to Stavanger. The principal rivers are the Glomma, the Lagen, and Tanaelv. Some 6% of Norway’s area is inland water--mostly long, thin lakes. Two-thirds of the country is tundra, rock, or snowfields, and one-quarter is forested, so good agricultural land is rare. Less than 3% of Norway is cultivated, and these areas are in the south-east and in the river valleys. The mountains of Norway are rich in minerals; there are deposits of iron ore, copper, titanium, coal, zinc, lead, nickel, and pyrites, and large offshore reserves of petroleum and natural gas.

Although Norway crosses the Arctic Circle, the climate is not as cold as might be expected, since the North Atlantic Drift brings warm, damp air to the whole country. The geographical conditions give rise to great climatic variation: it is cooler inland and to the north, where winters are long and dark with much snow, but where the sun shines day and night for part of the summer. It is wetter on the west coast, where about 2,000 mm (78.7 inches) of rain falls annually on Bergen; the mean annual rainfall in the capital, Oslo, is 730 mm, most of which falls during the summer. Temperatures in Oslo are highest in July, when the average is 17.3°C (64°F), and lowest in January, when the average falls to −4.7°C (24°F).

PEOPLE
Ethnic Norwegians speak a Germanic language. Northern Norway is also the traditional home of communities of Sami people who speak a non-Indo-European language. In recent years, Norway has become home to increasing numbers of immigrants, foreign workers, and asylum-seekers from various parts of the world. There are 600,900 immigrants and 100,000 Norwegian-born persons with immigrant parents living in Norway (as of January 2011). The majority of immigrants are from Poland, Sweden, Germany, and Iraq. Thirty-four percent of immigrants have Norwegian citizenship. Approximately 12.2% of Norway’s population is comprised of immigrants; the percentage is significantly higher in Oslo.

The constitution provides for freedom of religion, and other laws and policies contribute to the generally free practice of religion in Norway. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Norway, the state church, enjoys some benefits not available to other religious groups. Education is free through the university level and is compulsory from ages 6 to 16. At least 12 months of military service and training are required of every eligible male; approximately 40% are exempted from service for health or other reasons annually. Norway's health system includes free hospital care, physicians’ compensation, cash benefits during illness and pregnancy, and other medical and dental plans. There is a public pension system.

Norway is in the top rank of nations in the number of books printed per capita. Norway's most famous writer is the dramatist Henrik Ibsen. Artists Edvard Munch and Christian Krogh were Ibsen's contemporaries. Munch drew part of his inspiration from Europe and in turn exercised a strong influence on later European expressionists. Sculptor Gustav Vigeland has a permanent exhibition in the Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo. Musical development in Norway since Edvard Grieg has followed either native folk themes or, more recently, international trends.

HISTORY
The Viking period (9th to 11th centuries) was one of national unification and expansion. The unification of Viking settlements along the Norwegian coast was well advanced by the death, in 1030, of St. Olav, who had overseen the population’s conversion to Christianity. A period of civil war ended in the 13th century when Norway expanded its control overseas to parts of the British Isles, Iceland, and Greenland. Norwegian territorial power peaked in 1265, and the following year the Isle of Man and the Hebrides were ceded to Scotland. Competition from the Hanseatic League and the spread of the Black Death weakened the country. The Norwegian royal line died out in 1387, as the country underwent a period of union with Denmark under King Olaf; union with Sweden followed in 1397. Attempts to keep all three countries united failed, with Sweden finally breaking away in 1521. By 1586, Norway had become part of the Danish Kingdom. In 1814, as a result of the Napoleonic wars, Norway was separated from Denmark and combined with Sweden again.

The Napoleonic War saw Denmark side with France in 1807, following the British attack on Copenhagen. With Sweden joining the coalition against Napoleon in 1813, the Treaty of Kiel in 1814 transferred Norway to the Swedish King following Denmark’s defeat. The Norwegians ignored this international agreement and chose the Danish Prince as their king and adopted the liberal Eidsvoll Constitution on May 17, 1814 (May 17 later became Norway’s national holiday). After a few months a Swedish-Norwegian union was agreed under the Swedish crown, with Norway being granted its own parliament (Storting) and government. However, the Swedish King attempted unsuccessfully to revise this constitution in the 1820s and 1830s and parliamentary control over the executive was only obtained following a struggle during the 1870s and 1880s. Norwegian nationalism was associated with the creation of a national standard for written Norwegian based on dialects, rather than the Danish-based official language. There were numerous disputes between the Norwegian Government and Sweden, notably over requests for a Norwegian consular service to reflect the importance of Norway’s expanding merchant fleet. In 1905 the union between the two countries was dissolved following two plebiscites in Norway, one opting for independence and one for a constitutional monarchy. Danish Prince Carl was unanimously elected as King by the Storting in 1905 and took the name of Haakon VII (after the kings of independent Norway) on his arrival in Norway. Haakon died in 1957 and was succeeded by his son, Olav V, who died in January 1991. Upon Olav's death, his son Harald was crowned as King Harald V.

Norway was a nonbelligerent during World War I, but as a result of the German invasion and occupation during World War II, Norwegians generally became skeptical of the concept of neutrality and turned instead to collective security. During the period of Nazi German occupation, over 742 of Norway’s Jews were killed. More than 900 Jews survived mass deportation by hiding and escaping, many of them by crossing the border into Sweden. Norway was one of the signers of the North Atlantic Treaty in 1949 and was a founding member of the United Nations. The first UN Secretary General, Trygve Lie, was a Norwegian. Under the terms of the will of Alfred Nobel, the Storting (parliament) elects the five members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee who award the Nobel Peace Prize each year on December 10 to those who have “done the most or best work for fraternity between nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.” Norway held referenda on seeking entry into the European Union (EU) and its predecessor the European Community in 1972 and 1994, with the population rejecting membership both times. Today, a majority remains opposed to EU membership.

GOVERNMENT
The functions of the king are mainly ceremonial, but he has influence as the symbol of national unity. Although the 1814 constitution grants important executive powers to the king, these are almost always exercised by the Council of Ministers in the name of the king (King's Council). The Council of Ministers consists of a prime minister--chosen by the political parties represented in the Storting--and other ministers.

The 169 members of the Storting are elected from 19 fylker (counties) for 4-year terms according to a complex system of proportional representation.

The special High Court of the Realm hears impeachment cases; the regular courts include the Supreme Court (18 permanent judges and a Chief Justice), courts of appeal, city and county courts, the labor court, and conciliation councils. Judges attached to regular courts are appointed by the king in council after nomination by the Ministry of Justice.

Each fylke (county) is headed by a governor appointed by the king in council, with one governor exercising authority in both Oslo and the adjacent county of Akershus.

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Until the 1981 election, Norway had been governed by majority Labor Party governments since 1935, except for three periods (1963, 1965-71, and 1972-73). The Labor Party lost its majority in the Storting in the 1981 elections.

From 1981 to 2005, governments alternated between Labor minority governments and Conservative-led coalition governments. In the run-up to the 2005 election, Labor Party leader Jens Stoltenberg reached out to the Socialist Left (SV) party and agrarian Center party to form a “Red-Green” coalition government that commanded a majority of seats in parliament. Stoltenberg’s government was the first majority government in Norway in over 20 years, but the governing coalition has had to bridge substantial policy differences to build this majority. The 2005 election was historic because it was the first time the Labor Party was in a coalition government since the 1940s, the first time SV was ever in the national government, and the first time the Center Party joined with the socialist parties as opposed to the right-of-center parties. On September 14, 2009, the “Red-Green” coalition won reelection for 4 more years after winning 86 of the 169 seats in parliament.

The Stoltenberg-led coalition government that took office in October 2005 and was reelected in 2009 continued the northern policy laid down by the government led by Kjell Magne Bondevik (of the Christian Democratic Party) in 2003. This "High North" strategy has remained one of the constant themes of this government and encompasses many of the government’s highest priorities, including environmental protection, responsible development of energy resources, maintaining a security presence in the Arctic, and developing Norway’s relations with Russia. In 2010, Norway concluded bilateral agreements with Russia resolving the two countries’ long-disputed maritime boundary in the Barents Sea and Arctic Ocean and facilitating travel for border residents. Upon ratification, the maritime boundary agreement entered into force in 2011.

Principal Government Officials
King--Harald V
Prime Minister--Jens Stoltenberg
Minister of Education--Kristin Halvorsen
Minister of Local Government and Regional Development--Liv Signe Navarsete
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Jonas Gahr Stoere
Minister of Defense--Grete Faremo
Minister of Finance--Sigbjoern Johnsen
Minister of Trade and Industry--Trond Giske
Minister of Transport and Communications--Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa
Minister of Health and Care Services--Anne-Grete Stroem-Erichsen
Minister of the Environment and International Development--Erik Solheim
Minister of Justice--Knut Storberget
Minister of Petroleum and Energy--Ola Borten Moe
Minister and Chief of Staff at the Office of the Prime Minister--Karl Eirik Schjoett-Pedersen
Minister of Research and Higher Education--Tora Aasland
Minister of Culture--Anniken Huitfeldt
Minister of Agriculture and Food--Lars Peder Brekk
Minister of Government Administration and Reform--Rigmor Aasrud
Minister of Labor--Hanne Bjurstroem
Minister of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs--Lisbeth Berg-Hansen
Minister of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion--Audun Lysbakken
Ambassador to the United States--Wegger Christian Strommen
Ambassador to NATO--Vegard Ellefsen
Ambassador to the United Nations--Bente Angell-Hansen

Norway maintains an embassy in the United States at 2720 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-333-6000) and consulates in Houston, New York, and San Francisco. Norway closed its consulate in Minneapolis in 2008 but maintains an honorary consulate with Gary Gandrud as honorary consul general, along with an honorary consulate in the Bahamas with R. Craig Symonette as honorary consul.

ECONOMY
Norway is one of the world's richest countries in per capita terms. It has an important stake in promoting a liberal environment for foreign trade. Its large shipping fleet is one of the most modern among maritime nations. Metals, pulp and paper products, chemicals, shipbuilding, and fishing are the most significant traditional industries.

Norway's emergence as a major oil and gas producer in the mid-1970s transformed the economy. Large sums of investment capital poured into the offshore oil sector, leading to greater increases in Norwegian production costs and wages than in the rest of Western Europe up to the time of the global recovery of the mid-1980s. The influx of oil revenue also permitted Norway to expand an already extensive social welfare system. Norway established a petroleum fund (the Government Pension Fund Global) to save and invest the state’s oil and gas earnings. The fund reached a milestone of 3 trillion kroner (over $500 billion) in assets in October 2010. Thanks in part to prudent financial regulation and to high prices in world markets for its energy and fisheries exports, the global financial crisis has had only a limited impact on Norway. Norway’s unemployment rate increased slightly to 3.4% in April 2011. In recent years, labor costs have increased faster than in its major trading partners, eroding industrial competitiveness. Continued recovery and moderate growth were expected to continue in 2011.

Norway twice voted against joining the European Union, but, with the exception of the agricultural and fisheries sectors, Norway enjoys free trade with the EU under the framework of the European Economic Area. This agreement aims to apply the four freedoms of the EU's internal market (goods, persons, services, and capital) to Norway. As a result, Norway normally adopts and implements most EU directives. Norwegian monetary policy is aimed at maintaining a stable exchange rate for the krone against European currencies, of which the euro is a key operating parameter. Norway does not have a fixed exchange rate. Its principal trading partners are the EU, the United States, and China.

Energy Resources
Offshore hydrocarbon deposits were discovered in the 1960s, and development began in the 1970s. Production increased significantly in the 1990s as new fields came on stream. The growth of the petroleum sector has contributed significantly to Norwegian economic vitality. Current petroleum production capacity is approximately 2.6 million barrels per day. Production in gas has increased rapidly during the past several years as new fields are opened, with crude oil production in decline. Total production in 2010 was 2.15 million barrels of oil per day and 106 billion standard cubic meters (scm) of gas, totaling 230 million scm oil equivalents (o.e.). Hydropower provides nearly all of Norway's electricity, and all of the gas and most of the oil produced is exported. The Norwegian continental shelf's total recoverable petroleum resources have been estimated at 10.6 billion to 16.9 billion scm o.e.

Norway is the world's fifth-largest oil exporter and second-largest gas exporter in Europe (2010). Norway provides much of Western Europe's crude oil and gas requirements. In 2010, Norwegian oil and gas exports accounted for approximately 46% of total exports. In addition, offshore exploration and production have stimulated onshore economic activities. In 2011, 28% of state revenues were generated from the petroleum industry; taxes and direct ownership ensure high revenues. Foreign companies, including many American ones, participate actively in the petroleum sector. The oil industry directly employs roughly 40,000 people in core extraction activities. Over 250,000 are employed in petroleum-related activities.

Petroleum production peaked in the early 2000s, and the pace of discoveries has not been sufficient to reverse that trend. However, innovative use of extraction technologies has extended the lives of fields. Declines in petroleum extraction is to some degree offset by increased extraction of natural gas in both new and existing fields, such as Snohvit and Troll. Given the energy industry’s weight in the economy, diversification into other industries is a long-term challenge for Norway.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Norway supports international cooperation and the peaceful settlement of disputes, and recognizes the need for maintaining national defense through collective security. Accordingly, the cornerstones of Norwegian policy are active membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and support for the United Nations and its specialized agencies. Norway also pursues a policy of economic, social, and cultural cooperation with other Nordic countries--Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland--through the Nordic Council and bilaterally.

In addition to strengthening traditional ties with developed countries, Norway seeks to build friendly relations with developing countries and has undertaken humanitarian and development aid efforts with selected African, Asian, and Latin American nations. Norway also is dedicated to encouraging democracy, assisting refugees, promoting a global response to climate change, and protecting human rights throughout the world.

U.S.-NORWAY RELATIONS
The United States and Norway enjoy a long tradition of friendly relations, strengthened by the millions of Norwegian-Americans in the United States and by about 30,000 U.S. citizens who reside in Norway. The transatlantic relationship is based on democratic values and mutual respect. In 2002 the United States was the biggest export market (except oil and gas) for Norway; the United States provided 6% of Norway’s imports the same year. In 2010 the United States accounted for 5% of Norway's exports and more than 5% of Norway’s imports. The two countries benefit from an annual $15 billion two-way goods and services trade relationship as well as from active cultural exchange, both officially and privately. The United States and Norway share a commitment to promoting universal human rights and economic development, respect for the United Nations, and peaceful resolution of disputes around the globe. The two countries work closely together as NATO allies, including in Afghanistan and Libya. There is a strong shared interest in addressing the problems posed by climate change, particularly with respect to the Arctic and in building cooperation in the region through the Arctic Council. The United States and Norway launched a Global Issues Dialogue in Washington, DC on May 6, 2010 (http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2010/05/141581.htm), a second round of which was held on June 16, 2011 in Oslo.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Barry B. White
Deputy Chief of Mission--James T. Heg
Counselor for Political-Economic Affairs--Cherrie S. Daniels
Counselor for Public Affairs--Timothy Moore
Management Officer--Jennifer Christenson
Chief, Consular Section--Phillip Slattery, Jr.
Defense Attache--Capt. Jeffrey Coran, USN
Chief, Office of Defense Cooperation--Lt. Col. Nathan Rush, USMC
Labor Attache--David Fuller
Regional Security Officer--Bjorn Sunde
Head, Foreign Commercial Section--Vidar Keyn

The U.S. Embassy is located at Henrik Ibsens gate 48, 0244 Oslo (tel. 47-21-30-85-40; fax 47-22-43-07-77).

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 116,622 sq. km. (43,483 sq. mi.).
Cities: Capital--Porto-Novo (pop. 295,000). Political and economic capital--Cotonou (pop. 2 million).
Terrain: Mostly flat plains of 200 meters average elevation, but the Atacora Mountains extend along the northwest border, with the highest point being Mont Sokbaro 658 meters.
Climate: Tropical, average temperatures between 24^o and 31^oC. Humid in south; semiarid in north.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Beninese (singular and plural).
Population (2010): 9.05 million.
Annual population growth rate (2010 est.): 2.9%.
Ethnic groups: African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Xwla, Fon, Adja, Yoruba, and Bariba),
Europeans 5,500.
Religions: Indigenous beliefs (animist) 35%, Christian 35%, Muslim 20%, others 10%,
Languages: French (official), Fon, Mina, Goun, and Yoruba in the south; Nagot, Bariba, and Dendi in the north.
Education (2008): Literacy--total population 44%; men 48%, women 23%.
Health (2010): Infant mortality rate--61/1,000. Life expectancy--59 yrs.
Work force: The labor market is characterized by an increased reliance on informal employment, family helpers, and the use of apprentices. Training and job opportunities are not well matched.

Government
Type: Republic under multiparty democratic rule.
Independence: August 1, 1960.
Constitution: December 11, 1990.
Branches: Executive--President, elected by popular vote for 5-year term, renewable once, appoints the Cabinet. Legislative--Unicameral, 83-seat National Assembly directly elected by popular vote for 4-year term. Judicial--Constitutional Court, Supreme Court, High Court of Justice.
Subdivisions: Twelve departments: Borgou, Alibori, Atakora, Donga, Zou, Collines, Mono, Couffo, Oueme, Plateau, Atlantique, and Littoral.
Political parties (partial listing of major parties): La Renaissance du Benin (RB), Party of Democratic Renewal (PRD), Social-Democrat Party (PSD), African Movement for Development and Progress (MADEP), Action Front for Democratic Renewal (FARD-ALAFIA), African Congress for Renewal (CAR-DUNYA), Impulse for Progress and Democracy (IPD), Alliance for Democracy and Progress (ADP), National Union for Democracy and Progress (UNDP), National Party Together (PNE), Key Force (FC), Hope Force (FE) Union for the Relief (UPR), Rally for Progress and Renewal (RPR), Movement for the People Alternative (MAP), Communist Party of Benin (PCB).

Economy
GDP (2009): $6.4 billion.
GDP growth rate (2009): 3.2%.
Per capita GDP (2009): $1,500.
Inflation rate (2009): 4%.
Natural resources: Small offshore oil deposits, unexploited deposits of high quality marble limestone, and timber.
Agricultural: Products--corn, sorghum, cassava, tapioca, yams, beans, rice, cotton, palm oil, cocoa, peanuts, poultry, and livestock. Arable land--13%. Permanent crops 4%, permanent pastures 4%, forests and woodland 31%.
Business and industry: Textiles, cigarettes, food and beverages, construction materials, petroleum.
Trade: Exports--$1.024 billion: cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood. Imports--$1.54 billion: foodstuffs, tobacco, petroleum products, energy, and capital goods. Major trade partners--Nigeria, France, China, Italy, Brazil, Libya, Indonesia, U.K., Cote d'Ivoire.

GEOGRAPHY
Benin, a narrow, north-south strip of land in West Africa, lies between the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer. Benin's latitude ranges from 6^o30N to 12^o30N and its longitude from 10E to 3^o40E. Benin is bounded by Togo to the west, Burkina Faso and Niger to the north, Nigeria to the east, and the Bight of Benin to the south. With an area of 112,622 square kilometers, roughly the size of Pennsylvania, Benin extends from the Niger River in the north to the Atlantic Ocean in the south, a distance of 700 kilometers (about 500 mi.). Although the coastline measures 121 kilometers (about 80 mi.), the country measures about 325 kilometers (about 215 mi.) at its widest point. It is one of the smaller countries in West Africa: eight times smaller than Nigeria, its neighbor to the east. It is, however, twice as large as Togo, its neighbor to the west. A relief map of Benin shows that it has little variation in elevation (average elevation 200 meters).

The country can be divided into four main areas from the south to the north. The low-lying, sandy, coastal plain (highest elevation 10 meters) is, at most, 10 kilometers wide. It is marshy and dotted with lakes and lagoons communicating with the ocean. The plateaus of southern Benin (altitude between 20 meters and 200 meters) are split by valleys running north to south along the Couffo, Zou, and Oueme Rivers. An area of flat lands dotted with rocky hills whose altitude seldom reaches 400 meters extends around Nikki and Save. Finally, a range of mountains extends along the northwest border and into Togo; this is the Atacora, with the highest point, Mont Sokbaro, at 658 meters. Two types of landscape predominate in the south. Benin has fields of lying fallow, mangroves, and remnants of large sacred forests. In the rest of the country, the savanna is covered with thorny scrubs and dotted with huge baobab trees. Some forests line the banks of rivers. In the north and the northwest of Benin the Reserve du W du Niger and Pendjari National Park attract tourists eager to see elephants, lions, antelopes, hippos, and monkeys.

Benin's climate is hot and humid. Annual rainfall in the coastal area averages 36 cm. (14 in.), not particularly high for coastal West Africa. Benin has two rainy and two dry seasons. The principal rainy season is from April to late July, with a shorter less intense rainy period from late September to November. The main dry season is from December to April, with a short cooler dry season from late July to early September. Temperatures and humidity are high along the tropical coast. In Cotonou, the average maximum temperature is 31^oC (89^oF); the minimum is 24^oC (75^oF).

Variations in temperature increase when moving north through a savanna and plateau toward the Sahel. A dry wind from the Sahara called the Harmattan blows from December to March. Grass dries up, the vegetation turns reddish brown, and a veil of fine dust hangs over the country, causing the skies to be overcast. It also is the season when farmers burn brush in the fields.

PEOPLE
The majority of Benin's 9 million people live in the south. The population is young, with a life expectancy of 59 years. About 42 African ethnic groups live in this country; these various groups settled in Benin at different times and also migrated within the country. Ethnic groups include the Yoruba in the southeast (migrated from Nigeria in the 12th century); the Dendi in the north-central area (they came from Mali in the 16th century); the Bariba and the Fulbe (Peul) in the northeast; the Betammaribe and the Somba in the Atacora Range; the Fon in the area around Abomey in the South Central and the Mina, Xueda, and Aja (who came from Togo) on the coast.

Recent migrations have brought other African nationals to Benin that include Nigerians, Togolese, and Malians. The foreign community also includes many Lebanese and Indians involved in trade and commerce. The personnel of the many European embassies and foreign aid missions and of nongovernmental organizations and various missionary groups account for a large number of the 5,500 European population.

Several religions are practiced in Benin. Animism is widespread (35%), and its practices vary from one ethnic group to the other. Arab merchants introduced Islam in the north and among the Yoruba. European missionaries brought Christianity to the south and central areas of Benin. Muslims account for 20% of the population and Christians for 35%. Many nominal Muslims and Christians continue to practice animistic traditions. Voodoo originated in Benin and was introduced to Brazil and the Caribbean Islands by African slaves taken from this particular area of the Slave Coast.

HISTORY
Benin was the seat of one of the great medieval African kingdoms called Dahomey. Europeans began arriving in the area in the 18th century, as the kingdom of Dahomey was expanding its territory. The Portuguese, the French, and the Dutch established trading posts along the coast (Porto-Novo, Ouidah, Cotonou), and traded weapons for slaves. Slave trade ended in 1848. Then, the French signed treaties with Kings of Abomey (Guezo, Glele) and Hogbonou (Toffa) to establish French protectorates in the main cities and ports. However, King Behanzin fought the French influence, which cost him deportation to Martinique. As of 1900, the territory became a French colony ruled by a French Governor. Expansion continued to the North (kingdoms of Parakou, Nikki, Kandi), up to the border with former Upper Volta. On December 4, 1958, it became the Republique du Dahomey, self-governing within the French community, and on August 1, 1960, the Republic of Benin gained full independence from France.

Post-Independence Politics
Between 1960 and 1972, a succession of military coups brought about many changes of government. The last of these brought to power Major Mathieu Kerekou as the head of a regime professing strict Marxist-Leninist principles. The Revolutionary Party of the People of Benin (PRPB) remained in complete power until the beginning of the 1990s. Kerekou, encouraged by France and other democratic powers, convened a national conference that introduced a new democratic constitution and held presidential and legislative elections. Kerekou's principal opponent at the 1991 presidential poll, and the ultimate victor, was Prime Minister Nicephore Soglo. Supporters of Soglo also secured a majority in the National Assembly. In the 1996 presidential poll Kerekou defeated Soglo, and was reelected in 2001. At the end of his second term in 2006, Kerekou successfully handed power over to Boni Yayi, elected with 75% of the votes cast.

In December 2002, Benin held its first municipal elections since before the institution of Marxism-Leninism. The process was smooth with the significant exception of the 12th district council for Cotonou, the contest that would ultimately determine who would be selected for the mayoralty of the capital city. That vote was marred by irregularities, and the electoral commission was forced to repeat that single election. Nicephore Soglo's Renaisance du Benin (RB) party won the new vote, paving the way for the former president to be elected Mayor of Cotonou by the new city council in February 2002.

On April 20 and May 1, 2008, Benin held its second local and municipal elections, which were marred by fraud allegations and irregularities. Voters filed appeals with the Supreme Court, which nullified results in a number of communes and ordered new elections and recounting of votes in constituencies where results were contested.

Former West African Development Bank Director Boni Yayi won the March 2006 election for the presidency in a field of 26 candidates. International observers including the United Nations, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and others called the election free, fair, and transparent. President Kerekou was barred from running under the 1990 constitution due to term and age limits. President Yayi was inaugurated on April 6, 2006.

Benin held legislative elections on March 31, 2007 for the 83 seats in the National Assembly. The "Force Cowrie for an Emerging Benin" (FCBE), a coalition of parties closely linked to President Yayi, won a plurality of the seats in the National Assembly, providing the president with considerable influence over the legislative agenda. The “G-13” deputies from minor political parties who had joined the FCBE to help President Yayi obtain a majority in the National Assembly subsequently left this coalition and joined undeclared opposition parties, including G4 and Force Cle, forming an unstable though blocking majority.

Seeking to improve the electoral system, the Government of Benin, with the support of international donors, developed a permanent digital voter’s list in 2010. In the first election since the list was created, incumbent President Yayi won a second term with 53% of the vote in March 2011. The United Nations, ECOWAS, the African Union, and the international community praised Benin for once again holding fair and transparent elections. Legislative elections were held on April 30, 2011. The FCBE won 41 out of the 83 seats in the National Assembly.

Principal Government Officials
President of the Republic (Head of State and Head of the Government)--Boni Yayi
Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Integration, Francophonie and the Beninese Diaspora--Nassirou Bako-Arifari
Ambassador to the United States--Segbe Cyrille Oguin
Permanent Representative to the United Nations--Jean-Francis R. Zinsou

Benin maintains an embassy in the United States at 2124 Kalorama Road, Washington, DC 20008, tel. 202-232-6656. The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Benin to the United Nations is located at 4 East 73rd Street, New York, NY 10021, tel. 212-249-6014, fax 212-734-4735.

ECONOMY
Benin's economy is chiefly based on agriculture. Cotton accounts for 40% of GDP and roughly 80% of official export receipts. There also is production of textiles, palm products, and cocoa. Corn, beans, rice, peanuts, cashews, pineapples, cassava, yams, and other various tubers are grown for local subsistence. Benin began producing a modest quantity of offshore oil in October 1982. Production ceased in recent years but exploration of new sites is ongoing. A modest fishing fleet provides fish and shrimp for local subsistence and export to Europe. A number of formerly government-owned commercial activities are now privatized, and the government, consistent with its commitments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, has plans to continue on this path. Smaller businesses are privately owned by Beninese citizens, but some firms are foreign owned, primarily French and Lebanese. The private commercial and agricultural sectors remain the principal contributors to growth.

Economic Development
Since the transition to a democratic government in 1990, Benin has undergone a remarkable economic recovery. A large injection of external investment from both private and public sources has alleviated the economic difficulties of the early 1990s caused by global recession and persistently low commodity prices (although the latter continues to affect the economy). The manufacturing sector is confined to some light industry, which is mainly involved in processing primary products and the production of consumer goods. Benin is dependent on imported electricity, mostly from Ghana, which currently accounts for a significant proportion of the country's imports. Benin has several initiatives to attract foreign capital to build electricity generation facilities in Benin in order to break this dependency. The service sector has grown quickly, stimulated by economic liberalization and fiscal reform. Membership of the CFA franc zone offers reasonable currency stability. Benin's trading partners include Germany, Brazil, U.A.E., Spain, the United States, Singapore, India, Netherlands, Japan, and China. Benin also is a member of ECOWAS.

In March 2003, the World Bank and IMF agreed to support a comprehensive debt reduction package for Benin under the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. Debt relief under HIPC amounted to approximately $460 million. Benin received $27.1 million in 2002 and received $32.9 million in 2003. HIPC aimed to reduce Benin's debt-to-export ratio, freeing up considerable resources for education, health, and other anti-poverty programs.

Despite its growth, the economy of Benin still remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. Real economic growth for 2009 was 3.2%. Commercial and transport activities, which make up a large part of GDP, are vulnerable to developments in Nigeria, including fuel shortages.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Abroad, Benin has strengthened ties with France, the former colonial power, as well as the United States and the main international lending institutions. Benin also has adopted a mediating role in the political crises in Liberia, Guinea-Bissau, and Togo and provided a contribution to the UN force in Haiti. Benin currently has peacekeeping forces, under the UN aegis, in Cote d'Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Benin's democratic standing, stability, and positive role in international peacekeeping have helped Benin's international stature continue to grow. Benin enjoys stable relations with Nigeria, the main regional power. Benin held a seat on the UN Security Council; its membership term ended December 31, 2005.

U.S.-BENINESE RELATIONS
The United States and Benin have had an excellent history of relations in the years since Benin embraced democracy. The U.S. Government continues to assist Benin with the improvement of living standards that are key to the ultimate success of Benin's experiment with democratic government and economic liberalization, and are consistent with U.S. values and national interest in reducing poverty and promoting growth. The bulk of the U.S. effort in support of consolidating democracy in Benin is focused on long-term human resource development through U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) programs.

Efforts to pursue this national interest are spearheaded by USAID, which has effective programs focused on primary education, family health (including family planning), women's and children's health, and combating sexually transmitted diseases, especially the spread of HIV. USAID's Democracy and Governance program also emphasizes encouraging greater civil society involvement in national decisionmaking; strengthening mechanisms to promote transparency and accountability; improving the environment for decentralized private and local initiatives; and enhancing the electoral system and the national legislature. A panoply of military-to-military cooperation programs reinforces democratizing efforts. U.S.-Benin military cooperation has expanded, both bilaterally and within a broader regional framework.

In February 2006, the Government of Benin signed a 5-year $307 million Millennium Challenge Compact (MCC) to increase investment and private sector activity in Benin. The program removes key constraints to growth and supports improvements in physical and institutional infrastructures in four critical sectors: land, financial services, justice, and markets. The proposed projects reinforce each other, contributing to an economic rate of return of 17%.

The U.S. advances the ethos of law enforcement by working with Beninese authorities to crack down on crimes; help eradicate corruption; and promote good governance, the rule of law, and greater official accountability.

The U.S. Public Affairs Office in Cotonou leads the U.S.-Benin cultural, professional, and educational exchanges, with a focus on helping educate the Government of Benin and the public on the trade opportunities and advantages of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The PA Office also helps in expanding efforts to build a more responsible media.

The U.S. Peace Corps program in Benin provides ongoing opportunities for increased understanding between Beninese and Americans. The approximately 110 volunteers promote sustainable development through activities in health, education, the environment, and small enterprise development. The U.S. Peace Corps program in Benin is one of the most successful in Africa, in part because of Beninese receptivity and collaboration.

Currently, trade between Benin and the United States is small, but interest in American products is growing. The United States is interested in promoting increased trade with Benin in order to contribute to U.S. trade with Benin's neighbors, particularly Nigeria, Niger, and Burkina Faso, which receive large amounts of their own imports through the port of Cotonou. Such trade also is facilitated by Benin's membership in ECOWAS and in the CFA franc monetary zone. The U.S. Government also works to stimulate American investment in key sectors such as energy, telecommunications, and transportation. Benin has been eligible for AGOA since the program began in 2000. It qualified for AGOA textile and apparel benefits in January 2004.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--James A. Knight
Deputy Chief of Mission--Susan Tuller
Director, USAID Mission--Kevin Armstrong
Peace Corps Director--Robert Friedman
Public Affairs Officer--Rhonda Watson
Political-Military Affairs Officer--Mackenzie Rowe
Economic Officer--Yvon Accius
Consular Officer--Richard Kolker
Management Officer--Michael Margolies

The U.S. Embassy is located on rue Caporal Bernard Anani, 01 BP 2012, Cotonou, Benin, tel. 229-21-30-06-50, fax 229-21-30-14-39. For American citizen services and visa questions, the Embassy consular section fax number is 229-21-30-66-82.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 450,295 sq. km. (173,731 sq. mi.)--slightly larger than California.
Cities: Capital--Stockholm (city population: 809,072). Other cities--Goteborg (city population: 499,747), Malmo (city population: 285,801).
Terrain: Generally flat or rolling. Three of the principal rivers, the Ume, the Torne, and the Angerman, flow into the Gulf of Bothnia. The highest areas are found in the Kjolen mountain range along the border with Norway, where peaks rise to over 1,500 m; the highest point is at the northern tip of this range, at Kebnekaise, which reaches 2,111 m (6,926 ft.). South of the mountains is the lakeland area, where the Vanern, the largest lake in Western Europe--over twice the size of Luxembourg--is situated. South of the lakes is the infertile Smaland plateau, surrounded by the lowland plains that border the sea. The mountainous regions and some northern parts of Sweden are covered in snow for much of the year, and only 8% of the country is given over to agriculture.
Climate: Temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; sub-arctic in the north. The north of Sweden lies within the Arctic Circle, and continental influences also contribute to the cold climate. In northern areas, winters are usually long and cold. The south of Sweden benefits from maritime influences and the climate is milder. In the capital city of Stockholm, which lies on the south-east coast, daily average temperatures only fall to −3.1°C (27°F) in February, the coldest month, and are 17.8°C (64°F) in July. The mean annual rainfall in Stockholm is 22 in., with the largest amount of rain falling between July and September.

People
Nationality: Noun--Swedes; adjective--Swedish.
Population (July 2011 est.): 9,088,728.
Annual population growth rate (2011): 0.163%.
Ethnic groups: Indigenous Swedes, ethnic Finns, and ethnic Sami.
Immigrants (2010 est.): 14.1% of all people living in Sweden are born abroad. In 2009 102,280 people immigrated to Sweden. The immigrant groups are Finns, Iraqis, ex-Yugoslavia nationals, Somalis, Iranians, Norwegians, Danes, Turks, and Poles.
Religions: Lutheran (official Church of Sweden) (75%), other Protestant groups (5%), Muslim (5%), Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Orthodox, Baptist, Jewish, Buddhist.
Education: Years compulsory--9. Literacy--99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2010 est.)--2.75/1,000. Life expectancy (2010 est.)--men 78.59 years, women 83.26 years.
Work force (2009 est.): 4.93 million. Agriculture--1.1%; industry--28.2%; services--70.7%. Unemployment (May 2011)--7.9%.

Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: The Swedish Constitution is based on four fundamental laws: the Instrument of Government (originally dating from June 6, 1809), the Act of Succession (1810), the Freedom of the Press Act (1949), and the Riksdag Act. Following partial reforms in 1968 and 1969, a new Instrument of Government and a new Riksdag Act were adopted in 1973 and 1974, and the revised Constitution came into force on January 1, 1975, replacing the Acts of 1809, 1866, and 1949.
Branches: Executive--monarch (head of state); prime minister (head of government); Cabinet, responsible to Parliament. Legislative--unicameral Parliament (Riksdag--349 members). Judicial--84 district courts, 10 appeal courts and two superior courts.
Subdivisions: 21 counties, 18 county councils, 290 municipalities, and two regions.
Political parties represented in Parliament: the Moderate Party (conservative), the Liberal Party, the Center Party, the Christian Democratic Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Left Party, the Green Party, and the party of the Sweden Democrats.
Suffrage: Universal, 18 years of age. After 3 years of legal residence, immigrants may vote in county council and municipal elections, but not in national elections.

Economy
GDP (2010 est., nominal): $455.8 billion.
GDP (2010 est., per capita purchasing power parity): $39,100.
GNI (2009, per capita purchasing power parity): $38,560.
Annual GDP growth rate (2010): 5.5%.
Exchange rate (September 2010): Swedish kronor (SEK) per U.S. dollar = 7.073.
Exchange rate (January-September 2010 avg.): Swedish kronor (SEK) per U.S. dollar = 7.3475.
Inflation rate (2010 est.): 1.4%.
Natural resources: Forests, hydroelectric power, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber.
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing (2010): Approximately 1.7% of GDP. Products--dairy products, meat, grains (barley, wheat), sugar beets, potatoes, wood. Arable land--9 million acres.
Industry (2010): Approximately 26.1% of GDP. Types--machinery/metal products (iron and steel), electrical equipment, aircraft, paper products, precision equipment (bearings, radio and telephone parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed foods.
Services (2010): Approximately 72.2% of GDP. Types--telecommunications, computer equipment, biotech.
Trade: Exports (2010)--SEK 728.2 billion (U.S. $102.9 billion). Types--machinery and transport equipment, 44.1%; chemical and rubber products, 13.4%; food, clothing, textiles, and furniture, 12%; wood and paper products, 11.7%; minerals, 10.7%; mineral fuels and electric current, 8.1%. Major trading partners, exports (2010)--Germany 10.1%, Norway 9.9%, U.K. 7.6%, U.S. 7.3%, Denmark 6.5%, Finland 6.2%, France 5.1%, Netherlands 4.7%, Belgium 3.9%, China 3.1%. Imports (2010)--SEK 687.6 billion (U.S. $97.2 billion). Types--machinery and transport equipment, 41.8%; food, clothing, textiles and furniture, 19.6%; mineral fuels and electric current, 13.5%; chemicals and rubber products, 12.8%; minerals, 9.2%; wood and paper products, 3.1%. Major trading partners, imports (2010)--Germany 18.3%, Norway 8.7%, Denmark 8.5%, Netherlands 6.4%, U.K. 5.7%, Finland 5.2%, Russia 4.9%, France 4.8%, Belgium 3.9%, China 3.9%.

PEOPLE
Sweden has one of the world's longest life expectancies and lowest birth rates. The country counts at least 20,000 indigenous Sami among its population. About one in every five Swedes is an immigrant or has at least one foreign-born parent. The largest immigrant groups are from Finland, Iraq, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Somalia, Iran, Norway, Denmark, and Poland. This reflects Nordic immigration, earlier periods of labor immigration, and more recent refugee and family immigration.

Swedish is a Germanic language related to Danish and Norwegian but different in pronunciation and orthography. English is widely spoken, particularly by Swedes under the age of 50.

Sweden has an extensive child-care system that guarantees a place for all young children ages two through six in a public day-care facility. From ages seven to 16, children participate in compulsory education. After completing the ninth grade, 90% attend upper secondary school for either academic or technical education.

Swedes benefit from an extensive social welfare system, which provides childcare and maternity and paternity leave, a ceiling on health care costs, old-age pensions, and sick leave, among other benefits. Parents are entitled to a total of 480 days' paid leave at 80% of a government-determined salary cap between birth and the child's eighth birthday. The parents may split those days however they wish, but 60 of the days are reserved specifically for the father. The parents may also take an additional 5 months of unpaid leave.

HISTORY
During the seventh and eighth centuries, the Swedes were merchant seamen well known for their far-reaching trade. In the ninth century, Nordic Vikings raided and ravaged the European continent as far as the Black and Caspian Seas. During the 11th and 12th centuries, Sweden gradually became a unified Christian kingdom that later included Finland. Queen Margaret of Denmark united all the Nordic lands in the "Kalmar Union" in 1397. Continual tension within the countries and within the union gradually led to open conflict between the Swedes and the Danes in the 15th century. The union's final disintegration in the early 16th century brought on a long-lived rivalry between Norway and Denmark on one side and Sweden and Finland on the other.

In the 16th century, Gustav Vasa fought for an independent Sweden, crushing an attempt to restore the Kalmar Union and laying the foundation for modern Sweden. At the same time, he broke with the Catholic Church and established the Reformation. During the 17th century, after winning wars against Denmark, Russia, and Poland, Sweden-Finland (with scarcely more than 1 million inhabitants) emerged as a great power. Its contributions during the Thirty Years War under Gustav II Adolf (Gustavus Adolphus) determined the political as well as the religious balance of power in Europe. By 1658, Sweden ruled several provinces of Denmark as well as what is now Finland, Ingermanland (in which St. Petersburg is located), Estonia, Latvia, and important coastal towns and other areas of northern Germany.

Russia, Saxony-Poland and Denmark-Norway pooled their power in 1700 and attacked the Swedish-Finnish Empire. Although the young Swedish King Karl XII (also known as Charles XII) won spectacular victories in the early years of the Great Northern War, his plan to attack Moscow and force Russia into peace proved too ambitious; he fell in battle in 1718. In the subsequent peace treaties, the allied powers, joined by Prussia and England-Hanover, ended Sweden's reign as a great power.

Sweden suffered further territorial losses during the Napoleonic wars and was forced to cede Finland to Russia in 1809. The following year, the Swedish King's adopted heir, French Marshal Bernadotte, was elected Crown Prince as Karl Johan by the Riksdag (Parliament). In 1813, his forces joined the allies against Napoleon. The Congress of Vienna compensated Sweden for its lost German territory through a merger of the Swedish and Norwegian crowns in a dual monarchy. Sweden's last war was fought in 1814. A brief confrontation with Norway to restrain its demands for independence resulted in Norway entering into a union with Sweden, but with its own constitution and Parliament. The Sweden-Norway union was peacefully dissolved at Norway's request in 1905.

Sweden's predominantly agricultural economy shifted gradually from village to private, farm-based agriculture during the Industrial Revolution. This change failed to bring economic and social improvements commensurate with the rate of population growth; as a result about 1 million Swedes immigrated to the United States between 1850 and 1890.

In the 19th century liberal economic influences emerged, which ultimately led to the abolition of guild monopolies in favor of free enterprise. Other modernizing reforms included new taxation laws, voting reforms, and a national military service. This period of time also marked the birth of Sweden's three major political parties: the Social Democratic, Liberal and Conservative parties.

During and after World War I, in which Sweden remained neutral, the country benefited from the worldwide demand for Swedish steel, ball bearings, wood pulp, and matches. Postwar prosperity provided the foundations for the social welfare policies characteristic of modern Sweden. Foreign policy concerns in the 1930s centered on Soviet and German expansionism, which stimulated abortive efforts at Nordic defense cooperation. Sweden followed a policy of armed neutrality during World War II and currently remains nonaligned.

Sweden became a member of the European Union (EU) in 1995. In September 2003 Sweden held a referendum on entering the European Monetary Union. The Swedish people rejected participation, with 56% voting against and 42% for. No new referendum is currently planned.

GOVERNMENT
Sweden's government is a limited constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system. Popular government in Sweden rests upon ancient tradition. The Swedish Parliament (Riksdag) stems from tribal courts (Ting) and the election of kings during the Viking era. It became a permanent institution in the 15th century.

King Carl XVI Gustaf (Bernadotte) ascended to the throne on September 15, 1973. His authority is symbolic and representational. Executive authority is vested in the Cabinet, which consists of a prime minister and 22 ministers who run the governmental departments. The current "Alliance" government, led by Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, came to power in September 2006.

Sweden has three levels of government: national, regional, and local. In addition, there is a European level, which has acquired increasing importance following Sweden's entry into the EU and the EU’s adoption of the Lisbon Treaty. Parliamentary, municipal, and county council elections are held every 4 years. The 349-member unicameral Riksdag has legislative powers, and is in session generally from September through mid-June. Proposals for new laws are presented by the government, which also implements decisions made by the Riksdag. The government is assisted in its work by the Government Offices, comprising a number of ministries, and some 300 central government agencies and public administrations.

Sweden is divided into 21 counties (lan), 18 county councils (landsting), 290 municipalities (kommuner), and two semi-independent regions. Each county is headed by a governor, who is appointed by the central government. The counties coordinate administration with national political goals for the county. The county council (landsting) is a regional government that is popularly elected with particular responsibility for health and medical care. The municipalities are local governments that deal with issues such as education, public transportation and social welfare. Elected municipal councils are headed by executive committees roughly analogous to the boards of commissioners found in some U.S. cities.

Swedish law draws upon Germanic and Roman traditions. It is neither as codified as French law nor as dependent on judicial precedent as U.S. law. Legislative and judicial institutions include, in addition to the Riksdag, the Supreme Court, the Supreme Administrative Court, the Labor Court, the Law Council, District Courts and Courts of Appeal, and the Public Prosecutor's Office. The parliamentary ombudsmen and the Chancellor of Justice oversee the application of laws with particular attention to abuses of authority.

Principal Government Officials
Head of State--King Carl XVI Gustaf
Speaker of Parliament--Per Westerberg
Prime Minister (Head of Government)--Fredrik Reinfeldt
Minister for Finance--Anders Borg
Minister for the Environment--Andreas Carlgren
Minister for Justice--Beatrice Ask
Minister for Foreign Affairs--Carl Bildt
Minister for EU Affairs--Birgitta Ohlsson
Minister for Social Security--Ulf Kristersson
Minister for International Development Cooperation--Gunilla Carlsson
Minister for Health and Social Affairs--Goran Hagglund
Minister for Information Technology and Regional Affairs--Anna-Karin Hatt
Minister for Culture and Sports--Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
Minister for Children and the Elderly--Maria Larsson
Minister for Financial Markets--Peter Norman
Minister for Rural Affairs--Eskil Erlandsson
Minister for Enterprise and Energy--Maud Olofsson
Minister for Defense--Sten Tolgfors
Minister for Gender Equality--Nyamko Sabuni
Minister for Integration--Erik Ullenhag
Minister for Trade--Ewa Bjorling
Minister for Employment--Hillevi Engstrom
Minister for Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy--Tobias Billstrom
Minister for Communications--Catharina Elmsater-Svard
Minister for Public Administration and Housing--Stefan Attefall
Ambassador to the United States--Jonas Hafstrom
Ambassador to the United Nations--Marten Grunditz

Sweden maintains an Embassy in the United States at 2900 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20007. Telephone: 202-467-2600, Internet: http://www.swedenabroad.com/washington

Sweden has honorary consulates in 32 U.S. cities. Contact the Swedish Embassy for locations and telephone numbers.

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Ordinary general elections to the Swedish Parliament are held every fourth year on the third Sunday in September. County council and municipal council elections take place at the same time. A party must receive at least 4% of the votes in the entire country or 12% in a single electoral district to qualify for any seats in Parliament.

The most recent elections were held on September 19, 2010. The Alliance for Sweden (a coalition of four center-right parties--the Moderate Party, the Liberal Party, the Christian Democrats, and the Center Party) won 173 of the 349 seats, securing Moderate Fredrik Reinfeldt the position of Prime Minister. The 2010 election results for Sweden's major parties were as follows: the Social Democratic Party (30.66%; 112 seats), the Moderate Party (30.06%; 107 seats), the Green Party (7.34%; 25 seats), the Liberal Party (7.06%; 24 seats), the Center Party (6.56%; 23 seats), the Sweden Democrats (5.70%; 20 seats), the Left Party (5.60%; 19 seats), and the Christian Democrats (6.60%; 19 seats).

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has a base of blue-collar workers and public sector employees. It derives much of its power from strong links with the National Swedish Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), which represents blue-collar workers. The party program combines a commitment to social welfare programs and government direction of the economy. The Social Democratic Party has led the government for 65 of the 78 years since 1932; the 2006 election ended its most recent term of 12 consecutive years in office.

The Moderate Party emphasizes personal freedom, free enterprise, and reduction of the public-sector growth rate, while still supporting most of the social benefits introduced since the 1930s. The party also supports a strong military and Sweden's membership in the EU. Its voter base is urban business people and professionals, but the party also attracts young voters, main-street shop owners, and, some blue-collar workers. Moderate Party Leader Reinfeldt has remodeled his party as "New Moderates," moving away from the party's right-wing, upper-class roots to appeal to a large middle ground of voters. In 2006, Reinfeldt was instrumental in uniting into one party, the Alliance, the previously separate four center-right parties.

The Green Party is a left-leaning, environmentalist party that attracts young people. The Greens strongly support greater public transportation and environmental taxation, and replacing nuclear energy in Sweden with alternative, environmentally friendly energy sources.

The Liberal Party's platform is "social responsibility without socialism," which includes a commitment to a free-market economy combined with comprehensive Swedish social welfare programs. Foreign aid, education, and women's equality also are popular issues. The Liberal Party base is mainly centered in educated, middle-class voters, and is pro-EU.

The Center Party maintains close ties to rural Sweden. The main priorities of the party include providing a sound economic climate for business and job creation, rural development, climate change and environmental concerns, and health and welfare issues.

The Sweden Democrats gained representation in Parliament for the first time in 2010. It is a nationalist, right-wing party. Its main priority is to protect Swedish culture and values, mostly by reducing immigration to Sweden. In the 2010 elections, the Sweden Democrats were particularly successful in getting votes from the unemployed, laborers, men, and those between 18 and 30 years old.

The Left Party, formerly the Communist Party, focuses on feminist issues, employment in the public sector, and the environment. It opposes privatization, cuts in public expenditure, Swedish participation in NATO activities, and EU membership. Its voter base consists mainly of young people, public sector employees, feminists, journalists, and former social democrats.

The Christian Democrat Party is conservative and “value-oriented”. Its voter base is primarily among members of conservative churches and rural populations. Christian Democrats seek government support for families and better ethical practices to improve care for the elderly.

ECONOMY
The Swedish economy emerged from the financial crisis as one of the strongest in Europe. A high-tech local economy and a comprehensive system of welfare benefits allow Sweden to enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world. Sweden has one of the most globalized and competitive economies today.

From the early 1990s until 2008, Sweden enjoyed a sustained economic upswing fueled by strong exports and rising domestic demand. In the fourth quarter of 2008, Sweden entered a recession. Heavily dependent on exports of autos, telecommunications, construction equipment, and other investment goods, Sweden was hit hard by the contraction in external demand due to the global financial and economic crisis. As a result, GDP fell 4.9% in 2009.

GDP grew by 5.5% in 2010, beating expectations. It is expected to grow 4.2% in 2011. The Swedish economy bounced back more quickly than other similar economies due to strong public sector finances and a reliable export-driven economy. Main Swedish exports include machinery and transport equipment, chemical and rubber products, food, clothing, textiles and furniture, and wood products. Exports and investments are rapidly increasing, and the Swedish export market is expected to grow by 8% each year through 2013.

Central Bank policy is guided by inflation targeting to keep the Consumer Price Index (CPI) at or around 2% on an annual basis. To meet the monetary policy target, the Central Bank recently raised the main steering rate to 2%.

One of Sweden’s tools in maintaining solid public figure finances is a budget process that calls for Parliamentary-designated spending ceilings. The ceilings are set for SEK 1.024 trillion (U.S. $144.7 billion) in 2010, SEK 1.063 trillion (U.S. $150.3 billion) in 2011, SEK 1.083 trillion (U.S. $153.1 billion) in 2012, and SEK 1.093 trillion (U.S. $154.5 billion) in 2013. While spending ceilings can technically be surpassed, they represent a promise the government makes to the people and they are adhered to.

Sweden entered the financial crisis with a budget surplus due to prior economic growth and conservative fiscal policy. This was a key factor that allowed Sweden to ride out the crisis better than most other economies. In 2008, Sweden had a surplus of SEK 58 billion (U.S. $8.2 billion). By 2009, the surplus dipped into a deficit of SEK 176 billion (U.S. $24.8 billion). The budget showed only a slight deficit for 2010, and the budget will go back into surplus again for the full year 2011. The Swedish Government released a conservative budget for 2011 aimed at reestablishing a surplus and consolidating the economic recovery. The budget contains new spending aimed at job creation, maintaining the welfare state, promoting exports and tackling climate change. A series of additional reforms, such as lowering taxes on low and middle income earners, may be implemented if economic conditions allow.

One of the ways Sweden stimulates growth and raises revenue is through the sale of public assets. The government set a goal of selling some $31 billion in state assets between 2007 and 2010. Major sales have included selling V&S (Vin & Sprit AB) to French Pernod Ricard for some $8.3 billion, and the Swedish OMX stock exchange to Borse Dubai/Nasdaq for $318 million. Additionally, the government sold most of its 946 apoteket (pharmacy) stores and eliminated its monopoly on pharmacies. The government has also approved the sale of Svensk Bilprovning (the Swedish Motor Vehicle Inspection Company).

The Swedish banking sector is highly concentrated, with the four large banking groups (Nordea, Svenska Handelsbanken, Swedbank, and SEB) accounting for roughly 80% of sector assets. Swedish banks are heavily invested in the Baltic states, some of the countries hardest hit during the financial crisis. Swedish banks suffered considerably as a result, forcing authorities to respond with a bank support package in 2008. The package included guarantees for new debt insurance, increased deposit insurance, and a fund that would provide up to $6 billion in equity injection to systemically important institutions. In August 2010, the government revoked the license of the embattled HQ Bank, as risky securities deals and an over-valued trading portfolio threatened its survival. The bank was subsequently purchased by investment bank Carnegie. Despite this, the Swedish banking industry is strong. All Swedish banks passed summer 2010 EU stress tests with wide margins.

Profit returned to the Baltic states in the third quarter of 2010, as the economies stabilized and funding costs to Swedish banks in the Baltic region decreased. Swedbank, one of the Swedish banks most heavily invested in the Baltics, showed a net interest income rise in the third quarter of 2010, the same time that the Baltic market began to turn. This was the first such rise in six quarters and growth has continued.

Unemployment is slowly falling and was at 7.9% as of May 2011. Continued decline is expected, to an estimated 7.2% in 2012 and 6.4% in 2013. Youth unemployment is disproportionately high at around 28% for those between 15 and 24. The 2011 budget includes programs designed to better prepare young people to enter the work force and bring the economy into full employment.

Over 70% of the Swedish labor force is unionized; however, membership is decreasing. For most unions there is a counterpart employers' organization for businesses. The unions and employer organizations are independent of both the government and political parties, although the largest federation of unions, the National Swedish Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), always has maintained close links to the largest political party, the Social Democrats. There is no national minimum wage. Instead, wages are set by collective bargaining.

The World Bank ranked Sweden 18th in “ease of doing business” and 43rd in “ease of starting a business” in 2010. Starting a business in Sweden takes 15 days and costs 0.57% of GNI per capita. The World Bank ranking data set included 183 economies worldwide, including 27 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) high-income economies. As of 2009, there were 1,100 American companies operating in Sweden. American companies in Sweden employed 101,700 Swedes in 2008--the largest number of employees of all foreign countries doing business in Sweden. The majority of employees in Swedish-controlled affiliates abroad are in Europe and America, although the number of employees in America was decreasing as of 2008.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
For much of the last 2 centuries, Swedish foreign policy had been based on the premise that national security was best served by staying out of military alliances in peacetime in order to remain neutral in the event of war. However, Sweden has been redefining this position in recent years. In its 2010 Foreign Policy Statement, the Swedish Government said that membership in the European Union means that Sweden is part of a political alliance and that Sweden accepts its share of responsibility for European security. This echoes a 2007 statement that Sweden would not remain passive if another EU or Nordic nation suffers a disaster or an attack and Sweden expects these countries to act the same way. Internationally, the Swedish Government gives special focus to disarmament, arms control, and nuclear nonproliferation. Sweden has greatly contributed to numerous international peacekeeping operations under UN, EU, and NATO auspices, including the NATO-led peacekeeping forces in the Balkans (KFOR). The country contributes to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, and in March 2006 assumed leadership of the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Mazar-e-Sharif. Sweden currently has about 500 troops deployed with ISAF. Sweden also has troops serving in Kosovo (KFOR) and in the EU anti-piracy mission ATLANTA off the coast of Somalia.

Sweden is an active and vocal participant in the United Nations, the World Bank, World Trade Organization (WTO), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Labor Organization (ILO), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Health Organization (WHO), and other international institutions. In January 1995 Sweden became a full member of the European Union after a referendum was passed with a 52.3% majority. Sweden became a member partially because it was increasingly isolated outside the economic framework of the Maastricht Treaty. Sweden is a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace (PFP). Sweden also cooperates closely with its Nordic neighbors, formally in economic and social matters through the Nordic Council of Ministers and informally in political matters through direct consultation.

Government leaders focus political and financial attention on fostering democracy in developing countries, paying particular attention to key African nations. During the Cold War, Sweden was suspicious of the superpowers, which it saw as making decisions affecting small countries without always consulting those countries.

U.S.-SWEDEN RELATIONS
Friendship and cooperation between the United States and Sweden is strong and close. The United States welcomes Sweden's membership in NATO's PFP and the countries' ongoing cooperation in promoting global democracy and freedom. Swedish-American friendship is buttressed by the presence of nearly 14 million Americans of Swedish heritage. In 1988, both countries celebrated the 350th anniversary of the first Swedish settlement in the United States.

Embassy Stockholm’s Clean Technology and Environmental Sustainability Initiatives
In 2006, Embassy Stockholm launched a U.S.-Sweden alternative energy partnership that led to around $200 million in commercial partnerships. In 2010, the Embassy and the Swedish Government widened that partnership into the Swedish-American Green Alliance (SAGA), which expands cooperation in “sustainability” in the broadest sense: including clean technology; low carbon development; water; environment; commercial partnerships; sustainable forestry; electric vehicles; and energy efficiency. SAGA also seeks to engage the full range of actors in environmental sustainability, including government agencies, researchers, entrepreneurs, policy makers, journalists, legislators, activists, industry leaders, academics, non-governmental groups (NGOs), and more.

On February 18, 2010, the Embassy launched a website, www.sagastory.blogspot.com, to foster partnerships by enabling people to share stories about what is happening with environmental sustainability in Sweden and United States. During SAGA's first year, among other things, a memorandum of cooperation was generated between the United States and Sweden on sustainable transportation; Sweden joined the Clean Energy Ministerial forum; and the U.S. National League of Cities and the National Association of Swedish Eco-municipalities signed an agreement to collaborate on urban sustainability. The partnership encompasses 1,700 cities in Sweden and the United States.

Principal U.S. Officials
Charge d’Affaires--William R. Stewart
Acting Deputy Chief of Mission--Laura Kirkconnell
Political Counselor--Angela Bryan
Economic Counselor--Laura Kirkconnell
Public Affairs Counselor--Christopher Dunnett
Management Officer--William Boyle
Commercial Counselor--Frank Carrico
Defense Attache--Col. Jon Klaus
Consul--Martin Tatuch
Information Management Officer--Joel H. Wisner
Regional Security Officer (acting)--Patrick Colwell

The U.S. Embassy in Stockholm is at Dag Hammarskjolds Vag 31, SE-115 89 Stockholm, Sweden. Telephone: 46-8-783-5300, Fax: 46-8-661-1964, Internet: http://stockholm.usembassy.gov/

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 243,610 sq. km. (94,058 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than Oregon.
Cities: Capital--London (metropolitan pop. about 8.615 million). Other cities--Birmingham, Glasgow, West Yorkshire, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bradford, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Belfast.
Terrain: 30% arable, 50% meadow and pasture, 12% waste or urban, 7% forested, 1% inland water.
Land use: 25% arable, 46% meadows and pastures, 10% forests and woodland, 19% other.
Climate: Generally mild and temperate; weather is subject to frequent changes but not often to temperature extremes.

People
Nationality: Noun--Briton(s). Adjective--British.
Population (July 2011 est.): 62,698,362.
Annual population growth rate (2011 est.): 0.557%.
Major ethnic groups (2001 census): White 92.1% (of which English 83.6%, Scottish 8.6%, Welsh 4.9%, Northern Irish 2.9%), black 2%, Indian 1.8%, Pakistani 1.3%, mixed 1.2%, other 1.6%.
Major religions (2001 census): Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1%.
Major languages: English, Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic.
Education: Years compulsory--12. Attendance--nearly 100%. Literacy--99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--4.62 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2011 est.)--males 77.95 years; females 82.25 years; total 80.05 years.
Work force (2009, 31.25 million): Services 80.4%; industry 18.2%; agriculture 1.4%.

Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: Unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice.
Branches: Executive--monarch (head of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Parliament: House of Commons, House of Lords; Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly. Judicial--magistrates' courts, county courts, high courts, appellate courts, House of Lords, Supreme Court.
Subdivisions: Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland (municipalities, counties, and parliamentary constituencies).
Political parties: Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, UK Independence Party, British National Party, Green Party. Also, in Scotland, Scottish National Party; in Wales, Plaid Cymru (Party of Wales); in Northern Ireland, Ulster Unionist Party, Social Democratic and Labour Party, Democratic Unionist Party, Sinn Fein, Alliance Party, Progressive Unionist Party.
Suffrage: British subjects and citizens of other Commonwealth countries and the Irish Republic resident in the U.K., at 18.

Economy
GDP (at current market prices; International Monetary Fund (IMF), 2010): $2.247 trillion.
Annual growth rate (IMF, 2010): +1.25%.
Per capita GDP (at current market prices; IMF, 2010): $36,120.
Natural resources: Coal, oil, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica.
Agriculture (0.8% of GDP; U.K. Office for National Statistics (ONS), 2009): Products--cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables, cattle, sheep, poultry, fish.
Industry (15.9% of GDP; ONS, 2009): Types--steel, heavy engineering and metal manufacturing, textiles, motor vehicles and aircraft, construction (23.8% of GDP), electronics, chemicals.
Services (83.3% of GDP; ONS, 2009): Types--financial, business, distribution, transport, communication, hospitality.
Trade (at current prices, 2010 exchange rates; ONS, 2010): Exports of goods and services--$664.3 billion. Major goods exports--manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals, food, beverages, tobacco. Major export markets--U.S., European Union. Imports of goods and services--$740.8 billion. Major goods imports--manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, foodstuffs. Major import suppliers--U.S., European Union, and China.

PEOPLE
The United Kingdom's population in 2011 surpassed 62 million. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's prosperous and fertile southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban--with about 8.615 million in the capital of London, which remains the largest city in Europe. The United Kingdom's high literacy rate (99%) is attributable to universal public education introduced for the primary level in 1870 and secondary level in 1900. Education is mandatory from ages 5 through 16. The Church of England and the Church of Scotland are the official churches in their respective parts of the country, but most religions found in the world are represented in the United Kingdom.

A group of islands close to continental Europe, the British Isles have been subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries. Contemporary Britons are descended mainly from the varied ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century. The pre-Celtic, Celtic, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse influences were blended in Britain under the Normans, Scandinavian Vikings who had lived in Northern France. Although Celtic languages persist in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, the predominant language is English, which is primarily a blend of Anglo-Saxon and Norman French.

HISTORY
The Roman invasion of Britain in 55 B.C. and most of Britain's subsequent incorporation into the Roman Empire stimulated development and brought more active contacts with the rest of Europe. As Rome's strength declined, the country again was exposed to invasion--including the pivotal incursions of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes in the fifth and sixth centuries A.D.--up to the Norman conquest in 1066. Norman rule effectively ensured Britain's safety from further intrusions; certain institutions, which remain characteristic of Britain, could develop. Among these are a political, administrative, cultural, and economic center in London; a separate but established church; a system of common law; distinctive and distinguished university education; and representative government.

Union
Both Wales and Scotland were independent kingdoms that resisted English rule. The English conquest of Wales succeeded in 1282 under Edward I, and the Statute of Rhuddlan established English rule 2 years later. To appease the Welsh, Edward's son (later Edward II), who had been born in Wales, was made Prince of Wales in 1301. The tradition of bestowing this title on the eldest son of the British Monarch continues today. An act of 1536 completed the political and administrative union of England and Wales.

While maintaining separate parliaments, England and Scotland were ruled under one crown beginning in 1603, when James VI of Scotland succeeded his cousin Elizabeth I as James I of England. In the ensuing 100 years, strong religious and political differences divided the kingdoms. Finally, in 1707, England and Scotland were unified as Great Britain, sharing a single Parliament at Westminster.

Ireland's invasion by the Anglo-Normans in 1170 led to centuries of strife. Successive English kings sought to conquer Ireland. In the early 17th century, large-scale settlement of the north from Scotland and England began. After its defeat, Ireland was subjected, with varying degrees of success, to control and regulation by Britain.

The legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was completed on January 1, 1801, under the name of the United Kingdom. However, armed struggle for independence continued sporadically into the 20th century. The Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 established the Irish Free State, which subsequently left the Commonwealth and became a republic after World War II. Six northern Irish counties, predominantly Protestant, have remained part of the United Kingdom.

British Expansion and Empire
Begun initially to support William the Conqueror's (c. 1029-1087) holdings in France, Britain's policy of active involvement in continental European affairs endured for several hundred years. By the end of the 14th century, foreign trade, originally based on wool exports to Europe, had emerged as a cornerstone of national policy.

The foundations of sea power were gradually laid to protect English trade and open up new routes. Defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 firmly established England as a major sea power. Thereafter, its interests outside Europe grew steadily. Attracted by the spice trade, English mercantile interests spread first to the Far East. In search of an alternate route to the Spice Islands, John Cabot reached the North American continent in 1498. Sir Walter Raleigh organized the first, short-lived colony in Virginia in 1584, and permanent English settlement began in 1607 at Jamestown, Virginia. During the next 2 centuries, Britain extended its influence abroad and consolidated its political development at home.

Great Britain's industrial revolution greatly strengthened its ability to oppose Napoleonic France. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, the United Kingdom was the foremost European power, and its navy ruled the seas. Peace in Europe allowed the British to focus their interests on more remote parts of the world; during this period, the British Empire reached its zenith. British colonial expansion reached its height largely during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901). Queen Victoria's reign witnessed the spread of British technology, commerce, language, and government throughout the British Empire, which, at its greatest extent, encompassed roughly one-fifth to one-quarter of the world's area and population. British colonies contributed to the United Kingdom's extraordinary economic growth and strengthened its voice in world affairs. Even as the United Kingdom extended its imperial reach overseas, it continued to develop and broaden its democratic institutions at home.

20th Century
By the time of Queen Victoria's death in 1901, other nations, including the United States and Germany, had developed their own industries. The United Kingdom's comparative economic advantage had lessened, and the ambitions of its rivals had grown. The losses and destruction of World War I, the depression of the 1930s, and decades of relatively slow growth eroded the United Kingdom's preeminent international position of the previous century.

Britain's control over its empire loosened during the interwar period. Ireland, with the exception of six northern counties, gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1921. Nationalism became stronger in other parts of the empire, particularly in India and Egypt.

In 1926, the United Kingdom, completing a process begun a century earlier, granted Australia, Canada, and New Zealand complete autonomy within the empire. They became charter members of the British Commonwealth of Nations (now known as the Commonwealth), an informal but closely-knit association that succeeded the empire. Beginning with the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, the remainder of the British Empire was almost completely dismantled. Today, most of Britain's former colonies belong to the Commonwealth, almost all of them as independent members. There are, however, 14 former British colonies--including Bermuda, Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands, and others--which have elected to continue their political links with London and are known as British Overseas Territories.

Although often marked by economic and political nationalism, the Commonwealth offers the United Kingdom a voice in matters concerning many developing countries. In addition, the Commonwealth helps preserve many institutions deriving from British experience and models, such as parliamentary democracy, in those countries.

GOVERNMENT
The United Kingdom does not have a written constitution. The equivalent body of law is based on statute, common law, and "traditional rights." Changes may come about formally through new acts of Parliament, informally through the acceptance of new practices and usage, or by judicial precedents. Although Parliament has the theoretical power to make or repeal any law, in actual practice the weight of 700 years of tradition restrains arbitrary actions.

Executive power rests nominally with the monarch but actually is exercised by a committee of ministers (cabinet) traditionally selected from among the members of the House of Commons and, to a lesser extent, the House of Lords. The prime minister is normally the leader of the largest party in the Commons, and the government is dependent on its support.

Parliament represents the entire country. It legislates for the entire country in matters that are not devolved to the legislatures in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, such as foreign policy, energy policy, immigration and border control, and monetary policy. The devolved legislatures in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales have varying degrees of legislative authority over other matters. England does not have its own separate legislative body and Parliament can therefore legislate in all fields for England. As of May 2010, the maximum parliamentary term was 5 years, and the prime minister could ask the monarch to dissolve Parliament and call a general election at any time. Following the May 6, 2010 election, however, the newly-formed Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government announced plans to institute fixed 5-year Parliament terms, in which the only way to remove a government between elections would be a vote of no confidence with the support of 55% of members of Parliament (MPs). This proposed legislation has not yet been enacted. The focus of legislative power is the 650-member House of Commons, which has sole jurisdiction over finance. The House of Lords, although shorn of most of its powers, can still review, amend, or delay temporarily any bills except those relating to the budget. The House of Lords has more time than the House of Commons to pursue one of its more important functions--debating public issues. In 1999, the government removed the automatic right of hereditary peers to hold seats in the House of Lords. The current house consists of appointed life peers who hold their seats for life and 92 hereditary peers who will hold their seats only until final reforms have been agreed upon and implemented. The judiciary is independent of the legislative and executive branches but cannot review the constitutionality of legislation.

Following approval of referenda by Scottish and Welsh voters in 1997, the British Government established a Scottish Parliament and a Welsh Assembly, both of which were launched in 1999. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland now each have legislative and executive bodies that legislate on and administer many matters, though there is significant variation in the extent of powers enjoyed by each of the devolved governments. The devolved governments have taken over many of the functions previously performed by the Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Ireland offices, whose primary purpose now is to coordinate between Westminster and the devolved administrations and to represent their interests in non-devolved matters. Scotland has always maintained different systems of law (Scots Law), education, local government, judiciary, and national church (the Church of Scotland instead of the Church of England).

Northern Ireland had its own Parliament and prime minister from 1921 to 1973, when the British Government imposed direct rule in order to deal with the deteriorating political and security situation. From 1973, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, based in London, was responsible for the region, including efforts to resolve the issues that lay behind the "the troubles."

By the mid-1990s, gestures toward peace encouraged by successive British and Irish governments and by President Bill Clinton began to open the door for restored local government in Northern Ireland. A Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) cease-fire and nearly 2 years of multiparty negotiations, led by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell, resulted in the Belfast Agreement (also known as the Good Friday Agreement) of April 10, 1998, which was subsequently approved by majorities in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Key elements of the agreement include devolved government, a commitment of the parties to work toward "total disarmament of all paramilitary organizations," police reform, and enhanced mechanisms to guarantee human rights and equal opportunity. The Good Friday Agreement also called for formal cooperation between the Northern Ireland institutions and the Government of the Republic of Ireland, and it established the British-Irish Council, which includes representatives of the British and Irish Governments as well as the devolved Governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Devolved government was reestablished in Northern Ireland in December 1999, although certain key functions, such as policing and justice powers, remained under Westminster control.

The Good Friday Agreement provides for a 108-member elected Assembly, overseen by a 12-minister Executive Committee (cabinet) in which unionists and nationalists share leadership responsibility. Northern Ireland elects 18 representatives to the Westminster Parliament in London. However, the five Sinn Fein members of Parliament, who won seats in the last election, follow an abstentionist policy in which they refuse to take their seats, although they do maintain offices and perform constituency services. Progress has been made on each of the key elements of the Good Friday Agreement. Most notably, a new, more-representative police service has been instituted, and PIRA and the other main republican and loyalist paramilitary groups have decommissioned their weapons. However, a small number of splinter republican groups continue to oppose the peace process and engage in violence, particularly against the police, U.K. military, and the justice sector. Disagreements over the implementation of elements of the agreement and allegations about PIRA's continued engagement in paramilitary activity troubled the peace process for several years. In October 2002, Northern Ireland's devolved institutions were suspended amid allegations of IRA intelligence gathering at Stormont, the seat of Northern Ireland's government. Assembly elections scheduled for May 2003 were postponed. Elections were held in November 2003, but the Assembly remained suspended. Finally, in 2007, the parties signed the St. Andrews Agreement, which paved the way for the Northern Ireland Government to stand up and for the devolution of powers to Belfast to occur. Responsibility for police and justice issues in Northern Ireland were the last component of devolution to take place; the transfer of these powers from London to Belfast occurred on April 12, 2010, having been provided for by the signing of the Hillsborough Agreement on February 4, 2010. The United States remains firmly committed to the peace process in Northern Ireland and to the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements, which it views as the best means to ensure lasting peace. The United States has condemned all acts of terrorism and violence, perpetrated by any group.

The United States also is committed to Northern Ireland's economic development, and appointed an Economic Envoy for Northern Ireland in September 2009 to work with the Northern Ireland Government and private sectors in fostering new opportunities for trade and investment. The United States has also been a strong supporter of the International Fund for Ireland, which provides grants and loans to businesses to improve the economy, redress inequalities of employment opportunity, and improve cross-border business and community ties.

Principal Government Officials
Head of State--Queen Elizabeth II
Prime Minister (Head of Government)--David Cameron (Conservative Party)
Deputy Prime Minister--Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat Party)
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs--William Hague
Ambassador to the U.S.--Nigel Sheinwald
Ambassador to the UN--Mark Lyall Grant

The United Kingdom maintains an embassy in the United States at 3100 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-588-6500; fax 202-588-7870).

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
The Labour government that had been in power since 1997, first under Prime Minister Tony Blair and then under his successor, Gordon Brown, lost its majority in the House of Commons in the May 6, 2010 election. For the first time since 1974, however, no party was able to win a full majority in the Commons, which led to several days of intense negotiations between the Conservatives (Tories), who won the most seats, and the Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems), who placed third in number of seats won. On May 11, when it became clear that Labour would be unable to form a government, Prime Minister Gordon Brown resigned, and David Cameron became the new Prime Minister. Cameron subsequently announced a formal coalition with the Liberal Democrats, which would ensure Liberal Democrat support for a Conservative-led government in exchange for five Liberal Democrat cabinet seats and policy compromises. As part of the coalition deal, Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg became the Deputy Prime Minister. The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition has a 78-seat majority in the House of Commons, and the Labour Party forms the opposition. Gordon Brown resigned as Labour leader on May 11, and was succeeded by Ed Miliband in a September 2010 Labour party election.

DEFENSE AND FOREIGN RELATIONS
The United Kingdom is a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and is one of NATO's major European maritime, air, and land powers; it ranks third among NATO countries in total defense expenditure. The United Kingdom has been a member of the European Community (now European Union) since 1973. In the United Nations, the United Kingdom is a permanent member of the Security Council. The U.K. held the Presidency of the G-8 during 2005; it held the EU Presidency from July to December 2005.

The British Armed Forces are charged with protecting the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, promoting Britain's wider security interests, and supporting international peacekeeping efforts. The 37,000-member Royal Navy, which includes 6,000 Royal Marine commandos, is in charge of the United Kingdom's independent strategic nuclear arm, which consists of four Trident missile submarines. The British Army, consisting of approximately 99,200 personnel, the Royal Air Force, with 42,000 personnel, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, are active and regular participants in NATO and other coalition operations. Approximately 9% of the British Armed Forces is female, and 4% of British forces represent ethnic minorities.

The United Kingdom stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the U.S., and its military forces are, after U.S. forces, the second-largest contingent of the coalition force in Afghanistan. The U.K. force in Afghanistan stood at approximately 10,000 as of June 2011, and the Prime Minister recently announced the departure of 450 personnel as part of the drawdown of NATO forces and the transition to Afghanistan taking the lead on security. U.K. forces are primarily based in the Helmand region, where they are on the front line in the war against continued Taliban operations. In addition, the U.K. has committed over £700 million ($1.1 billion) to development in Afghanistan over the next 4 years, making it the second-largest donor after the United States. The U.K. was the United States' main coalition partner in Operation Iraqi Freedom; its combat forces withdrew from Iraq in July 2009.

ECONOMY
The United Kingdom has the sixth-largest economy in the world, has the second-largest economy in the European Union, and is a major international trading power. A highly developed, diversified, market-based economy with extensive social welfare services provides most residents with a high standard of living.

The United Kingdom’s economy continues to recover from turmoil in the financial markets. It entered a recession in the third quarter of 2008 and exited recession in the fourth quarter of 2009. The final quarter of 2010 saw the economy contract again by 0.5% over the quarter, but this has been largely attributed to higher temporary factors, and growth resumed in the first quarter of 2011. In response to the financial crisis, the British Government implemented a wide-ranging stability and recovery plan that included a fiscal stimulus package, bank recapitalization, and credit stimulus schemes. Extraordinary monetary policy measures, including very low interest rates (0.5%) and a quantitative easing program, remain in place. Despite this, domestic demand remains weak and unemployment has yet to return to pre-recession levels, standing at 7.7% in April 2011. However, the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government that took power in May 2010 has initiated a 5-year austerity program, which aims to lower the U.K.’s budget deficit from over 11% of GDP in 2010 to near 1% by 2015.

As a leading international financial center, London was severely impacted by the financial crisis in 2008. U.K. banks laid off thousands of workers and scaled back their international operations during the crisis, although many are now rehiring. Two U.K. banks, Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley, were nationalized, and the British Government took significant shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group. In June 2011, the U.K. announced plans to re-privatize Northern Rock. In spite of the damage caused by the financial crisis, London’s financial exports contribute greatly to the United Kingdom’s gross domestic product and will continue to do so. Over 1 million people in the U.K. work in financial services, nearly 4% of total U.K. employment. About one-third are employed in London. The U.K.’s financial services industry contributed £124 billion ($200 billion) to U.K. GDP in 2009, accounting for 10% of total economic output. London is a global leader in emissions trading, a center for Islamic banking, and home to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

U.S.-UNITED KINGDOM RELATIONS
The United Kingdom is one of the United States' closest allies, and British foreign policy emphasizes close coordination with the United States. Bilateral cooperation reflects the common language, ideals, and democratic practices of the two nations. Relations were strengthened by the United Kingdom's alliance with the United States during both World Wars, in the Korean conflict, in the Persian Gulf War, in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and in Afghanistan, as well as through its role as a founding member of NATO. The United Kingdom and the United States continually consult on foreign policy issues and global problems and share major foreign and security policy objectives.

The United Kingdom is the fifth-largest market for U.S. goods exports after Canada, Mexico, China, and Japan, and the sixth-largest supplier of U.S. imports after China, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Germany. U.S. exports of goods and services to the United Kingdom in 2010 totaled $48.5 billion, while U.S. imports from the U.K. totaled $49.8 billion (U.S. Census Bureau). The United Kingdom is a large source of foreign tourists in the United States. In 2010, 2.67 million U.S. residents visited the United Kingdom, while 3.15 million U.K. residents visited the United States.

The United States and the United Kingdom share the world's largest foreign direct investment partnership. U.S. investment in the United Kingdom reached $421 billion in 2008, while U.K. direct investment in the U.S. totaled $454 billion. This investment sustains more than 1 million American jobs.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Louis B. Susman
Deputy Chief of Mission--Barbara Stephenson
Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs--Robin Quinville
Minister-Counselor for Commercial Affairs--Dorothy Lutter
Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs--Richard Albright
Minister-Counselor for Public Affairs--Thomas Leary (arrival August 2011)
Minister-Counselor for Management Affairs--Thomas J. Tiernan
Minister-Counselor for Consular Affairs--David Stewart
Regional Security Officer--Mark J. Hipp
U.S. Consul General in Belfast--Kamala S. Lakhdhir
Principal Officer in Edinburgh--Dana M. Linnet

The U.S. Embassy in the United Kingdom is located at 24 Grosvenor Sq., W1A 1AE, London (tel. [44] (0)20 7499-9000; fax [44] (0)20 7409-1637). The U.S. also maintains Consulate Generals in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Edinburgh, Scotland.

Consulate General Belfast is located at Danesfort House, 223 Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5GR (tel. [44] (0)28 9038 6100; fax [44] (0)28 9068 1301).

Consulate General Edinburgh is located at 3 Regent Terrace, Edinburgh EH7 5BW (tel. [44] (0)131 556 8315; fax [44] (0)131 557 6023).

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 652,230 sq. km. (251,827 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than Texas.
Cities: Capital--Kabul. Other cities--Kandahar, Herat, Mazar-e-Sharif, Jalalabad, Konduz.
Terrain: Landlocked; mostly mountains and desert.
Climate: Dry, with cold winters and hot summers.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Afghan(s).
Population (July 2009 est.): 28.396 million. More than 3 million Afghans live outside the country, mainly in Pakistan and Iran, although over 5 million have returned since the removal of the Taliban.
Annual population growth rate (2009 est.): 2.629%.
Main ethnic groups: Pashtun, Tajik, Hazara, Uzbek, Turkmen, Aimaq, Baluch, Nuristani, Kizilbash.
Religions: Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, other 1%.
Main languages: Dari (Afghan Farsi), Pashto.
Education: Approximately 6 million children, of whom some 35% are girls. Literacy (2008 est.)--28.1% (male 43%, female 12%), but real figures may be lower given breakdown of education system and flight of educated Afghans during 3 decades of war and instability.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2009 est.)--151.95 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2009 est.)--44.47 yrs. (male); 44.81 yrs. (female).

Government
Type: Islamic Republic.
Independence: August 19, 1919.
Constitution: January 4, 2004.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state). Legislative--bicameral National Assembly; Wolesi Jirga (lower house)--249 seats, Meshrano Jirga (upper house)--102 seats. Judicial--Supreme Court, High Courts, and Appeals Courts.
Political subdivisions: 34 provinces.
Suffrage: Universal at 18 years.

Economy
GDP (2009 est., purchasing power parity): $27 billion.
GDP growth: 22.5% (2009-2010); 11% (2010-2011).
GDP per capita (2009 est.): $800.
Natural resources: Natural gas, oil, coal, petroleum, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones.
Agriculture (estimated 31% of GDP): Products--wheat, opium, sheepskins, lambskins, corn, barley, rice, cotton, fruit, nuts, karakul pelts, wool, and mutton.
Industry (estimated 26% of GDP): Types--small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement; hand-woven carpets; natural gas, coal, and copper.
Services (estimated 43% of GDP): Transport, retail, and telecommunications.
Trade (2009 est.): Exports--$547 million (does not include opium): fruits and nuts, hand-woven carpets, wool, cotton, hides and pelts, precious and semiprecious gems. Major markets--Central Asian republics, United States, Russia, Pakistan, India. Imports--$5.3 billion: food, petroleum products, textiles, machinery, and consumer goods. Major suppliers--Central Asian republics, Pakistan, United States, India, Germany.
Currency: The currency is the afghani, which was reintroduced as Afghanistan's new currency in January 2003. At present, $1 U.S. equals approximately 50 afghanis.

PEOPLE
Afghanistan's ethnically and linguistically mixed population reflects its location astride historic trade and invasion routes leading from Central Asia into South and Southwest Asia. While population data is somewhat unreliable for Afghanistan, Pashtuns make up the largest ethnic group at 42% of the population, followed by Tajiks (27%), Hazaras (9%), Uzbek (9%), Aimaq, Turkmen, Baluch, and other small groups. Dari (Afghan Farsi) and Pashto are official languages. Dari is spoken by more than one-third of the population as a first language and serves as a lingua franca for most Afghans, though Pashto is spoken throughout the Pashtun areas of eastern and southern Afghanistan. Tajik and Turkic languages are spoken widely in the north. Smaller groups throughout the country also speak more than 70 other languages and numerous dialects.

Afghanistan is an Islamic country. An estimated 80% of the population is Sunni, following the Hanafi school of jurisprudence; the remainder of the population--and primarily the Hazara ethnic group--is predominantly Shi'a. Despite attempts during the years of communist rule to secularize Afghan society, Islamic practices pervade all aspects of life. In fact, Islam served as a principal basis for expressing opposition to communism and the Soviet invasion. Islamic religious tradition and codes, together with traditional tribal and ethnic practices, have an important role in personal conduct and dispute settlement. Afghan society is largely based on kinship groups, which follow traditional customs and religious practices, though somewhat less so in urban areas.

HISTORY
Afghanistan, often called the crossroads of Central Asia, has had a turbulent history. In 328 BC, Alexander the Great entered the territory of present-day Afghanistan, then part of the Persian Empire, and established a Hellenistic state in Bactria (present-day Balkh). Invasions by the Scythians, White Huns, and Turks followed in succeeding centuries. In AD 642, Arabs invaded the entire region and introduced Islam.

Arab rule gave way to the Persians, who controlled the area until conquered by the Turkic Ghaznavids in 998. Following Mahmud's short-lived dynasty, various princes attempted to rule sections of the country until the destructive Mongol invasion of 1219 led by Genghis Khan.

Following Genghis Khan's death in 1227, a succession of petty chiefs and princes struggled for supremacy until late in the 14th century, when one of his descendants, Tamerlane, incorporated Afghanistan into his own vast Asian empire.

In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of what is known today as Afghanistan, established his rule. A Pashtun, Durrani was elected king by a tribal council after the assassination of the Persian ruler Nadir Shah at Khabushan in the same year. Throughout his reign, Durrani consolidated chieftainships, petty principalities, and fragmented provinces into one country. His rule extended from Mashad in the west to Kashmir and Delhi in the east, and from the Amu Darya (Oxus) River in the north to the Arabian Sea in the south.

European Influence
During the 19th century, collision between the expanding British Empire in the subcontinent and czarist Russia significantly influenced Afghanistan in what was termed "The Great Game." British concern over Russian advances in Central Asia and growing influence in Persia precipitated two Anglo-Afghan wars in 1839 and again in 1878. The first resulted in the destruction of a British army. The latter conflict brought Amir Abdur Rahman to the Afghan throne. During his reign (1880-1901), the British and Russians officially established the boundaries of what would become modern Afghanistan through the demarcation of the Durand Line. The British retained effective control over Kabul's foreign affairs.

Habibullah, Abdur Rahman's son and successor, was assassinated in 1919. His third son, Amanullah, regained control of Afghanistan's foreign policy after launching the third Anglo-Afghan war with an attack on India in the same year. During the ensuing conflict, the war-weary British relinquished their control over Afghan foreign affairs by signing the Treaty of Rawalpindi in August 1919. In commemoration of this event, Afghans celebrate August 19 as their Independence Day.

Reform and Reaction
King Amanullah (1919-29) moved to end his country's traditional isolation. He established diplomatic relations with most major countries and introduced several reforms intended to modernize Afghanistan. Some of these, such as the abolition of the traditional Muslim veil for women and the opening of a number of co-educational schools, quickly alienated many tribal and religious leaders. Faced with overwhelming armed opposition, Amanullah was forced to abdicate in January 1929 after Kabul fell to forces led by Bacha-i-Saqao, a Tajik brigand. Prince Nadir Khan, a cousin of Amanullah's, in turn defeated Bacha-i-Saqao in October of the same year and, with considerable Pashtun tribal support, was declared King Nadir Shah. Four years later, however, he was assassinated in a revenge killing by a Kabul student.

Mohammad Zahir Shah, Nadir Khan's 19-year-old son, succeeded to the throne and reigned from 1933 to 1973. In 1964, King Zahir Shah promulgated a liberal constitution providing for a two-chamber legislature to which the king appointed one-third of the deputies. Although Zahir's "experiment in democracy" produced few lasting reforms, it permitted the growth of unofficial extremist parties on both the left and the right. These included the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA), which had close ideological ties to the Soviet Union. In 1967, the PDPA split into two major rival factions: the Khalq (Masses) faction headed by Nur Muhammad Taraki and Hafizullah Amin and supported by elements within the military, and the Parcham (Banner) faction led by Babrak Karmal. The split reflected ethnic, class, and ideological divisions within Afghan society.

Zahir's cousin, Sardar Mohammad Daoud, served as his Prime Minister from 1953 to 1963. During his tenure as Prime Minister, Daoud solicited military and economic assistance from both Washington and Moscow and introduced controversial social policies of a reformist nature. Daoud's alleged support for the creation of a Pashtun state in the Pakistan-Afghan border area heightened tensions with Pakistan and eventually resulted in Daoud's dismissal in March 1963.

Daoud's Republic (1973-78) and the April 1978 Coup
Amid charges of corruption and malfeasance against the royal family and poor economic conditions, former Prime Minister Daoud seized power in a military coup on July 17, 1973. Zahir Shah fled the country, eventually finding refuge in Italy. Daoud abolished the monarchy, abrogated the 1964 constitution, and declared Afghanistan a republic with himself as its first President and Prime Minister. His attempts to carry out badly needed economic and social reforms met with little success, and the new constitution promulgated in February 1977 failed to quell chronic political instability.

Seeking to exploit more effectively mounting popular disaffection, the PDPA reunified with Moscow's support. On April 27, 1978, the PDPA initiated a bloody coup, which resulted in the overthrow and murder of Daoud and most of his family. Nur Muhammad Taraki, Secretary General of the PDPA, became President of the Revolutionary Council and Prime Minister of the newly established Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.

Opposition to the Marxist government emerged almost immediately. During its first 18 months of rule, the PDPA brutally imposed a Marxist-style "reform" program, which ran counter to deeply rooted Afghan traditions. In addition, thousands of members of the traditional elite, the religious establishment, and the intelligentsia were imprisoned, tortured, or murdered. Conflicts within the PDPA also surfaced early and resulted in exiles, purges, imprisonments, and executions.

By the summer of 1978, a revolt began in the Nuristan region of eastern Afghanistan and quickly spread into a countrywide insurgency. In September 1979, Hafizullah Amin, who had earlier been Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, seized power from Taraki. Over the next 2 months, instability plagued Amin's regime as he moved against perceived enemies in the PDPA. By December, party morale was crumbling, and the insurgency was growing.

The Soviet Invasion
In December 1978, Moscow signed a new bilateral treaty of friendship and cooperation with Afghanistan, and the Soviet military assistance program increased significantly. The regime's survival increasingly was dependent upon Soviet assistance as the insurgency spread and the Afghan army began to collapse.

By October 1979, however, relations between Afghanistan and the Soviet Union were tense as Hafizullah Amin refused to take Soviet advice on how to stabilize and consolidate his government. Faced with a deteriorating security situation, on December 24, 1979, large numbers of Soviet airborne forces began to land in Kabul. They killed Hafizullah Amin and installed Babrak Karmal, exiled leader of the Parcham faction, as Prime Minister.

Following the invasion, the Karmal regime, although backed by 120,000 Soviet troops, was unable to establish authority outside Kabul. As much as 80% of the countryside, including parts of Herat and Kandahar, eluded effective government control. An overwhelming majority of Afghans opposed the communist regime, either actively or passively. Afghan fighters (mujahideen) made it almost impossible for the regime to maintain a system of local government outside major urban centers. Poorly armed at first, in 1984 the mujahideen began receiving substantial assistance in the form of weapons and training from the U.S. and other outside powers.

In May 1985, the seven principal Peshawar-based guerrilla organizations formed an alliance to coordinate their political and military operations against the Soviet occupation. Late in 1985, the mujahideen were active in and around Kabul. The failure of the Soviet Union to win over a significant number of Afghan collaborators or to rebuild a viable Afghan army forced it to bear an increasing responsibility for fighting the resistance and for civilian administration.

Soviet and popular displeasure with the Karmal regime led to its demise in May 1986. Karmal was replaced by Muhammad Najibullah, former chief of the Afghan secret police (KHAD). As Prime Minister, Najibullah was ineffective and highly dependent on Soviet support. Undercut by deep-seated divisions within the PDPA, regime efforts to broaden its base of support proved futile.

The Geneva Accords and Their Aftermath
By the mid-1980s, the tenacious Afghan resistance movement was exacting a high price from the Soviets, both militarily within Afghanistan and by souring the U.S.S.R.'s relations with much of the Western and Islamic world. Informal negotiations for a Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan had been underway since 1982. In 1988 the Geneva accords were signed, which included a timetable that ensured full Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan by February 15, 1989. About 14,500 Soviet and an estimated one million Afghan lives were lost between 1979 and the Soviet withdrawal in 1989.

Significantly, the mujahideen were party neither to the negotiations nor to the 1988 agreement and, consequently, refused to accept the terms of the accords. As a result, the civil war continued after the Soviet withdrawal, which was completed in February 1989. Najibullah's regime was able to remain in power until 1992 but collapsed after the defection of Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostam and his Uzbek militia in March. However, when the victorious mujahideen entered Kabul to assume control over the city and the central government, a new round of internecine fighting began between the various militias. With the demise of their common enemy, the militias' ethnic, clan, religious, and personality differences surfaced, and the civil war continued.

Seeking to resolve these differences, the leaders of the Peshawar-based mujahideen groups established an interim Islamic Jihad Council in mid-April 1992 to assume power in Kabul. Moderate leader Prof. Sibghatullah Mojaddedi was to chair the council for 2 months, after which a 10-member leadership council composed of mujahideen leaders and presided over by the head of the Jamiat-i-Islami, Prof. Burhanuddin Rabbani, was to be set up for 4 months. During this 6-month period, a Loya Jirga, or grand council of Afghan elders and notables, would convene and designate an interim administration which would hold power up to a year, pending elections.

But in May 1992, Rabbani prematurely formed the leadership council, undermining Mojaddedi's fragile authority. In June, Mojaddedi surrendered power to the Leadership Council, which then elected Rabbani as President. Nonetheless, heavy fighting broke out in August 1992 in Kabul between forces loyal to President Rabbani and rival factions, particularly those who supported Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami. After Rabbani extended his tenure in December 1992, fighting in the capital flared up in January and February 1993. The Islamabad Accord, signed in March 1993, which appointed Hekmatyar as Prime Minister, failed to have a lasting effect. A follow-up agreement, the Jalalabad Accord, called for the militias to be disarmed but was never fully implemented. Through 1993, Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami forces, allied with the Shi'a Hezb-i-Wahdat militia, clashed intermittently with Rabbani and Masood's Jamiat forces. Cooperating with Jamiat were militants of Sayyaf's Ittehad-i-Islami and, periodically, troops loyal to ethnic Uzbek strongman Abdul Rashid Dostam. On January 1, 1994, Dostam switched sides, precipitating large-scale fighting in Kabul and in northern provinces, which caused thousands of civilian casualties in Kabul and elsewhere and created a new wave of displaced persons and refugees. The country sank even further into anarchy, forces loyal to Rabbani and Masood, both ethnic Tajiks, controlled Kabul and much of the northeast, while local warlords exerted power over the rest of the country.

Rise and Fall of the Taliban
The Taliban had risen to power in the mid-1990s in reaction to the anarchy and warlordism that arose after the withdrawal of Soviet forces. Many Taliban had been educated in madrassas in Pakistan and were largely from rural southern Pashtun backgrounds. In 1994, the Taliban developed enough strength to capture the city of Kandahar from a local warlord and proceeded to expand its control throughout Afghanistan, occupying Kabul in September 1996. By the end of 1998, the Taliban occupied about 90% of the country, limiting the opposition largely to a small mostly Tajik corner in the northeast and the Panjshir valley.

The Taliban sought to impose an extreme interpretation of Islam--based upon the rural Pashtun tribal code--on the entire country and committed massive human rights violations, particularly directed against women and girls. The Taliban also committed serious atrocities against minority populations, particularly the Shi'a Hazara ethnic group, and killed noncombatants in several well-documented instances. In 2001, as part of a drive against relics of Afghanistan's pre-Islamic past, the Taliban destroyed two huge Buddha statues carved into a cliff face outside of the city of Bamiyan.

From the mid-1990s the Taliban provided sanctuary to Osama bin Laden, a Saudi national who had fought with the mujahideen resistance against the Soviets, and provided a base for his and other terrorist organizations. Bin Laden provided both financial and political support to the Taliban. Bin Laden and his Al-Qaida group were charged with the bombing of the U.S. Embassies in Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam in 1998, and in August 1998 the United States launched a cruise missile attack against bin Laden's terrorist camp in southeastern Afghanistan. Bin Laden and Al-Qaida have acknowledged their responsibility for the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States.

Following the Taliban's repeated refusal to expel bin Laden and his group and end its support for international terrorism, the U.S. and its partners in the anti-terrorist coalition began a military campaign on October 7, 2001, targeting terrorist facilities and various Taliban military and political assets within Afghanistan. Under pressure from U.S. military and anti-Taliban forces, the Taliban disintegrated rapidly, and Kabul fell on November 13, 2001.

Afghan factions opposed to the Taliban met at a United Nations-sponsored conference in Bonn, Germany in December 2001 and agreed to restore stability and governance to Afghanistan--creating an interim government and establishing a process to move toward a permanent government. Under the "Bonn Agreement," an Afghan Interim Authority was formed and took office in Kabul on December 22, 2001 with Hamid Karzai as Chairman. The Interim Authority held power for approximately 6 months while preparing for a nationwide "Loya Jirga" (Grand Council) in mid-June 2002 that decided on the structure of a Transitional Authority. The Transitional Authority, headed by President Hamid Karzai, renamed the government as the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan (TISA). One of the TISA's primary achievements was the drafting of a constitution that was ratified by a Constitutional Loya Jirga on January 4, 2004. On December 7, 2004, the country was renamed the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
On October 9, 2004, Afghanistan held its first national democratic presidential election. More than 8 million Afghans voted, 41% of whom were women. Hamid Karzai was announced as the official winner on November 3 and inaugurated on December 7 for a 5-year term as Afghanistan's first democratically elected president.

An election was held on September 18, 2005 for the "Wolesi Jirga" (lower house) of Afghanistan's new bicameral National Assembly and for the country's 34 provincial councils. Turnout for the election was about 53% of the 12.5 million registered voters. The Afghan constitution provides for indirect election of the National Assembly's "Meshrano Jirga" (upper house) by the provincial councils and by reserved presidential appointments. The first democratically elected National Assembly since 1969 was inaugurated on December 19, 2005. Younus Qanooni and Sigbatullah Mojadeddi were elected Speakers of the Wolesi Jirga and Meshrano Jirga, respectively.

The second national democratic presidential and provincial council elections were held in August 2009, and National Assembly elections were held September 2010. Hamid Karzai's main competitor, Abdullah Abdullah, forced a presidential run-off to be scheduled, but then withdrew. On November 2, 2009, officials of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) declared Hamid Karzai President of Afghanistan for another 5-year term. Unlike previous election cycles, the elections were coordinated by the IEC, with assistance from the UN. NATO officials announced in March 2009 that 15.6 million voters had registered to vote, roughly half of the country's population, and that 35% to 38% of registered voters were women.

The government's authority is growing, although its ability to deliver necessary social services remains largely dependent on funds from the international donor community. U.S. assistance for Afghanistan's reconstruction from fiscal year 2001 to the present totals over $40 billion. Donors pledged continued assistance for the rebuilding of the country at the June 2008 international Afghanistan support conference in Paris. Overall, the international community has made multi-year reconstruction and security assistance pledges to Afghanistan totaling over $50 billion.

With international community support, including more than 40 countries participating in Operation Enduring Freedom and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), the government's capacity to secure Afghanistan's borders and maintain internal order is increasing. As of January 2010, Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) had reached approximately 107,000 Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers, and over 99,000 police, including border and civil order police, had received training. Reform of the army and police, to include training, is an extensive and ongoing process, and the U.S. is working with NATO and international partners to further develop Afghanistan's National Security Forces. As of March 2010, training and equipping programs for the ANSF remained at a steady pace to meet objectives of having 134,000 ANA and 109,000 Afghan National Police (ANP) by October 2010.

Principal Government Officials
President--Hamid Karzai
First Vice President--Mohammad Qasim Fahim
Second Vice President--Abdul Karim Khalili
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Zalmay Rassoul
Minister of Defense--Abdul Raheem Wardak
Minister of Interior--Bismillah Khan Mohammadi
Minister of Finance--Omar Zakhilwal
Ambassador to the United States--vacant; Charge d'Affaires is Khojesta Fana Ebrahimkhel

Afghanistan maintains an embassy in the United States at 2341 Wyoming Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel: 202-483-6410; email: info@embassyofafghanistan.org).

Governance
There are 34 provinces in Afghanistan. Each province is divided into small districts. There are approximately 364 districts although this number fluctuates. There are approximately 153 municipalities. Provincial line departments have basic service delivery responsibility in key sectors (health, education). Provincial governors are generally nominated by the Independent Directorate of Local Governance and appointed by the president. On March 22, 2010, the Sub National Governance Policy was approved by the Afghan cabinet. If this strategy is fully implemented, it will clarify the roles and responsibilities of and interrelationships between the major subnational governance actors, strengthen the role of governors and provincial councils, introduce some elements of provincial budgeting and potentially increase public accountability. This represents a significant step forward in subnational governance if fully realized.

Operation Moshtarak in Marjah (February 2010) represents the initial implementation of the Afghan Government-led District Development Program (DDP) developed by the District Development Working Group comprising the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development; Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Education; and Directorate for Independent and Local Governance.

ECONOMY
In the 1930s, Afghanistan embarked on a modest economic development program. The government founded banks; introduced paper money; established a university; expanded primary, secondary, and technical schools; and sent students abroad for education. Historically, there has been a dearth of information and reliable statistics about Afghanistan's economy. The 1979 Soviet invasion and ensuing civil war destroyed much of the country's limited infrastructure and disrupted normal patterns of economic activity. Gross domestic product fell substantially because of loss of labor and capital and disruption of trade and transport. Continuing internal strife hampered both domestic efforts at reconstruction as well as international aid efforts. However, Afghanistan's economy has grown at a fast pace since the 2001 fall of the Taliban, albeit from a low base. GDP growth exceeded 12% in 2007 and 3.4% in 2008; growth for 2009-2010 was 22.5%. Despite these increases, unemployment remains around 40% and factors such as corruption, security, and shortage of skilled workers constrains development and the conduct of business. In June 2006, Afghanistan and the International Monetary Fund agreed on a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility program for 2006-2009 that focused on maintaining macroeconomic stability, boosting growth, and reducing poverty. Afghanistan is also rebuilding its banking infrastructure through the Da Afghanistan National Central Bank.

Agriculture
An estimated 85% of Afghans are dependent on agriculture and related agribusinesses for their livelihoods. Opium poppy production and the opium trade continue to have a significant monetary share of the country’s agricultural economy. However, both this share and the number of farmers growing poppy continue to decline, as more farmers are taking advantage of opportunities to produce and market alternative crops. Licit commercial agriculture is playing a significant role in increasing the income of rural populations. The major food crops produced are: corn, rice, barley, wheat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. The major industrial crops are: cotton, tobacco, madder, castor beans, and sugar beets. Agricultural production is constrained by an almost total dependence on erratic winter snows and spring rains for water; irrigation is primitive. Relatively little use is made of machines, chemical fertilizer, or pesticides.

Afghan farmers need financing to buy quality seeds, fertilizer, and equipment. The United States and the international community are helping to restore banking and credit services to rural lenders, which now administer loans in nearly two-thirds of the country’s provinces. As of September 2009, more than 52,300 agricultural loans ranging from approximately $200 to $2 million had gone to small businesses, with a repayment rate of 94%. Of these, 49% of loans had gone to women-owned businesses, and 27,700 borrowers were women. The program’s success has encouraged commercial banks to extend revolving loans for agribusinesses. Funds have been provided for leases and to promote agro-processing and support for crop exports.

In 2009, the United States significantly revised its counter-narcotics strategy for Afghanistan, ending direct involvement in eradication of poppy and increasing support for licit agriculture and interdiction. The new strategy puts heavy focus on going after those targets where there is a strong nexus between the insurgency and the narcotics trade, to deny resources to the Taliban. Poppy is easy to cultivate and opium is easily transported. Afghanistan produced a record opium poppy crop in 2007, supplying 93% of the world's opium. Much of Afghanistan's opium production is refined into heroin and is either consumed by a growing regional addict population or exported, primarily to Western Europe.

Trade and Industry
Afghanistan is endowed with natural resources, including extensive deposits of natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, and precious and semiprecious stones. Unfortunately, ongoing instability in certain areas of the country, remote and rugged terrain, and an inadequate infrastructure and transportation network have made mining these resources difficult, and there have been few serious attempts to further explore or exploit them. The first significant investment in the mining sector is expected to commence soon, with the development of the Aynak copper deposit in east-central Afghanistan. This project tender, awarded to a Chinese firm and valued at over $2.5 billion, is the largest international investment in Afghanistan to date. The Ministry of Mines also plans to move forward with oil, gas, and possibly iron ore tenders in 2010.

The most important resource has been natural gas, first tapped in 1967. At their peak during the 1980s, natural gas sales accounted for $300 million a year in export revenues (56% of the total). Ninety percent of these exports went to the Soviet Union to pay for imports and debts. However, during the withdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, Afghanistan's natural gas fields were capped to prevent sabotage by the mujahidin. Restoration of gas production has been hampered by internal strife and the disruption of traditional trading relationships following the collapse of the Soviet Union. In addition, efforts are underway to create Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZs). ROZs stimulate badly needed jobs in underdeveloped areas where extremists lure fighting-age young men into illicit and destabilizing activities. ROZs encourage investment by allowing duty-free access to the U.S. for certain goods produced in Afghanistan.

Transportation
Restoration of the “Ring Road” that links Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat with the northern cities of Mazar-e-Sharif and Kunduz continues. Much of the road has now been completed, including economically vital stretches linking Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat.

Landlocked Afghanistan has no functioning railways, but the Amu Darya (Oxus) River, which forms part of Afghanistan's border with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, has barge traffic. During their occupation of the country, the Soviets completed a bridge across the Amu Darya. The Shirkan Bandar bridge, reconstructed with U.S. assistance, reopened in 2007 and has opened vital trade routes between Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

The Hairatan to Mazar-e-Sharif railway project is also in progress. The project aims to increase trade between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, reduce transport costs, increase vehicle operation savings, and create job opportunities in the project area. It will improve Hairatan's marshaling yard and railway station, construct a new single-track railway line of about 75 km from Hairatan to Mazar-e-Sharif, construct a new transshipment terminal facility at Mazar-e-Sharif, install signaling and telecommunication systems, install safety features for efficient operation, develop institutional capacity of the railway sector, and provide construction supervision and project management consultancy.

Afghanistan's national airline, Ariana, operates domestic and international routes, including flights to New Delhi, Islamabad, Dubai, Moscow, Istanbul, and Tehran. Civil aviation has been expanding rapidly and several private airlines now offer an alternative to Ariana and operate a domestic and international route network. The first, Kam Air, commenced domestic operations in November 2003.

Power
For nearly 3 decades, the availability of secure energy supplies in Afghanistan was significantly disrupted by conflict. Much of the country's power generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure was destroyed, and what remained was stretched far beyond capacity. More than 90% of the population had no access to electricity. In January 2009, with the help of the Asian Development Bank and the Indian Government, electricity began to flow into Kabul along a newly constructed transmission line running from neighboring Uzbekistan. For the first time in more than a generation, the majority of the capital's 4 million people enjoy the benefits of power. In 2001, Afghanistan produced 430 megawatts of electricity. Today the country produces more than 754 megawatts. International statistics maintained by the World Bank indicate the ratio of gross domestic product (GDP) growth to electrical production is approximately $1,000 to 300 kwh. The Afghan Government's current power plan sets a goal to deliver sufficient electricity to meet the needs of an economic growth rate of 9% per year. Additionally, the Afghan Government anticipates approximately 90% of urban businesses will have access to electrical power by the end of 2010. Finally, the plan's objective is to provide access to electricity to 65% of urban and 25% of rural households by the end of 2010.

The United States has provided considerable assistance to help develop new electricity generation capacity and provide 24-hour power in key cities including Kabul, Lashkar Gah, and Kandahar. Major projects carried out include refurbishment of power generation capacity at Kajaki Dam in the south and opening the Kabul power plant. Under the U.S. and partners’ supervision, the Afghan Government has transferred all assets, liabilities, and personnel from the troubled, state-run power utility Da Afghanistan Breshna Mosesa (DABM) to the new corporatized national electricity utility Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS). The move was a significant breakthrough in Afghan Government and donor efforts to modernize and begin to commercialize the national electricity sector.

Reliable, affordable electricity is vitally important to Afghan economic growth, prosperity, and stability. The energy infrastructure continues to be a priority for the U.S. and other donor nations.

Demining
Landmines and other explosive remnants of war affect virtually every province in Afghanistan, a tragic legacy of nearly 3 decades of continuous conflict. On average, according to the Landmine Monitor program, as many as 83 people are injured or killed each month in Afghanistan by these hidden hazards, with children involved in more than half of these incidents. As in many countries struggling to recover from conflicts, landmines and unexploded ordnance inhibit development, disrupt markets and production, prevent the delivery of goods and services, and generally obstruct reconstruction and stabilization efforts. Removing these deadly hazards enables socio-economic development that could further the larger goal of promoting stability and security in Afghanistan and the wider region.

Many Afghan non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as Organization for Mine Clearance and Afghan Rehabilitation (OMAR), Afghan Technical Consultants (ATC), Demining Agency for Afghanistan (DAFA), Mine Clearance Planning Agency (MCPA), and Mine Detection Center Afghanistan (MDC) have hard-won demining expertise and experience. The United States works with a wide array of international partners in mine action efforts in Afghanistan, but the majority of U.S. financial assistance for demining in Afghanistan goes directly to Afghan-run NGOs, which have pioneered an approach called “community-based demining.”

In community-based demining, Afghan NGOs recruit, train, and employ local workers, in close partnership with community leaders, to survey and clear explosives. Training local Afghan demining technicians offers a new skill, allowing the country to build self-sufficient capabilities to continue resolving its own issues, as well as lend support to other countries recovering from conflict in the future.

Community-based demining represents a new and unique opportunity to link Afghan and U.S. humanitarian, development, and counterinsurgency objectives. It furnishes jobs that keep young men employed, establishes trust with local leaders, and enables local personnel to participate in taking back their community, thus reinforcing local governance and reducing insurgent influence.

Since 1993, the United States has provided more than $165 million for humanitarian mine action in Afghanistan, making it the largest international donor to Afghanistan for this type of assistance. International and Afghan partners have used these funds to clear more than 160 million square meters of land and are now extending these efforts through community-based demining.

Refugees and Internally Displaced People
Afghanistan has had the largest refugee repatriation in the world in the last 30 years. Over 5 million Afghan refugees have returned to the country since 2002, with 4.4 million receiving repatriation assistance from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation (MORR) leads the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in assisting its citizens in returning from exile. The UNHCR leads the international community's response, in coordination with the International Organization of Migration (IOM), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Program (WFP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and a number of other national and international NGOs and donors.

In February 2009, UNHCR reported 235,833 internally displaced people (IDPs) in the country. The United States channels a significant amount of aid to refugees, returnees, IDPs, and other vulnerable conflict victims through agencies such as UNHCR, the international Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the World Food Program, and numerous non-governmental organizations. The U.S. also supports various organizations in providing assistance and protection to the 3.6 million Afghan refugees residing outside Afghanistan. While anchoring returnees in Afghanistan will remain a priority for U.S. assistance programs, the U.S. will also continue to support refugee assistance and protection inside countries of asylum. Since September 2001, the United States has contributed over $718 million to these programs.

Health
Afghanistan has one of the highest mortality rates in the world: one in five children dies before the age of five and one out of every eight Afghan women die from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth each year. Life expectancy is only 44 years for both men and women. While these statistics are tragic, there has been progress. Recent reports indicate that 85% of the population has access to basic health services within 1 hour of travel to a health facility (68% for those on foot)--up from 9% in 2002. More than 1,650 professional midwives are employed by the ministry of public health, providing health care and childbirth services across Afghanistan. This has helped reduce infant mortality rates by 23%, saving 80,000 newborn lives each year. Child mortality has also fallen; down 26% since 2002. The U.S. through various agencies and in conjunction with the Afghan Government has implemented health programs to help meet the immediate health care needs of the population by strengthening the health care service delivery system; addressing the management leadership and stewardship capacity of the Afghan health care system at the central, provincial, district, and community levels; and increasing demand for and access to quality health products and services through the private sector--60% of the population receive health care from the private sector.

Insecurity along the border, especially in the south, has led to a lack of health workers and an increase in polio cases from seven in 2004 to at least 24 in 2009. The U.S. supports the national Polio Eradication Initiative to strengthen Afghanistan’s immunization communication, service delivery, and surveillance networks. As a result of this assistance, more than 7 million Afghan children, or 90% of children under the age of five, have been vaccinated against polio. The United Sates also supports tuberculosis (TB) detection, treatment, and control efforts in 13 target provinces using the Directly Observed Therapy, Short Course (DOTS) methodology. Globally recognized as the best way to cure TB and control its spread, DOTS is a 6- to 8-month program in which health providers directly administer medication and closely monitor patient progress.

To strengthen the private sector and foster best practices, the U.S. is supporting private hospitals, pharmacists, and pharmaceutical manufacturers in the development of professional associations.

Education
Afghanistan has made impressive advances in increasing basic education. More than 10,000 schools are providing education services to 6.3 million children, a six-fold enrollment growth since 2001. During the Taliban regime no girls were registered in schools. Today, 36.3% of the student population is girls. Similarly, the number of teachers has increased seven-fold to 142,500, of whom nearly 40,000 are women.

Adult literacy activities increased rapidly in 2009. Learning centers grew from 1,100 to 6,865, and activities expanded from 9 to 20 provinces, bringing literacy and financial services to over 169,000 beneficiaries (62% female). From a situation of total illiteracy, these learners can now read, write, form simple sentences, and do basic mathematical calculations. Ongoing support of literacy and basic education is paramount, as well as the quality and preparation of teachers in order to close the literacy gap left by 30 years of conflict.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Afghanistan is an active member of the international community, and has diplomatic relations with countries around the world. In December 2002, the six nations that border Afghanistan signed a 'Good Neighbor' Declaration, in which they pledged to respect Afghanistan's independence and territorial integrity. Afghanistan and its South Asia neighbors meet annually at the Regional Economic Cooperation Conference (RECC), promoting intra-regional relations and economic cooperation.

Pakistan
During the war against the Soviet occupation, Pakistan served as the primary logistical conduit for the Afghan resistance. Pakistan initially developed close ties to the Taliban regime, and extended recognition in 1997. However, after September 11, 2001 Pakistan altered its policy in support of coalition efforts to remove the Taliban. Although frictions and suspicions persist, Afghanistan and Pakistan are engaged in dialogue to resolve bilateral issues such as border security, immigration, and trade. Regular meetings are held at the head of state and ministerial levels through a trilateral dialogue between Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. Pakistan is also seeking to repatriate its Afghan refugee population, which is concentrated mostly in the Northwestern Frontier Province.

Iran
Afghanistan's relations with Iran have fluctuated over the years, with periodic disputes over the water rights of the Helmand River as the main issue of contention. Following the Soviet invasion, which Iran opposed, relations deteriorated. Iran supported the cause of the Afghan resistance and provided financial and military assistance to rebel leaders who pledged loyalty to the Iranian vision of Islamic revolution. Following the emergence of the Taliban and their harsh treatment of Afghanistan's Shi'a minority, Iran stepped up assistance to the Northern Alliance. Relations with the Taliban deteriorated further in 1998 after Taliban forces seized the Iranian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif and executed Iranian diplomats. Since the fall of the Taliban, Afghanistan's relations with Iran have improved. Iran has been active in Afghan reconstruction efforts, particularly in the western portion of the country.

Central Asia
In order to diversify supply routes to Afghanistan to meet immediate military needs, U.S. military planners have adopted the Northern Distribution Network (NDN), a commercially based logistical corridor connecting Baltic and Black Sea ports with Afghanistan via Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. Its establishment also offers an opportunity for the United States to help facilitate intraregional trade. Such commerce can provide sustainable income for Afghanistan and Central Asia, deepen Afghanistan's integration with neighboring states, and contribute to regional stability.

Over the past few years, Afghanistan and its northern neighbors have opened several fronts on which to build trust and economic cooperation. In 2003 the Central Asia Trans State Share Company founded AFCAT--a joint Uzbek-Afghan cargo transportation company. At last count, 122 Afghan enterprises were registered in Uzbekistan, 39 of which operated with 100% Afghan investment. Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are in various stages of supplying electricity to northern Afghanistan and Kabul. Turkmenistan and Afghanistan are seeking closer cooperation through a broad package of mutual cooperation that includes reiteration of support for a trans-Afghan gas pipeline, transit of Turkmen electricity to neighboring countries of Afghanistan, extension of a Turkmen rail network to Afghanistan, and a common struggle against narcotics and terrorism. Efforts are underway by the Central Asian countries to stem the flow of drugs and fighters crossing in and out of Afghanistan while facilitating the movement of licit goods and services.

UN Efforts
The UN has played an important role in Afghanistan for more than 20 years, assisting in the repatriation of Afghan refugees and providing humanitarian aid. The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), launched in October 2001, was instrumental in helping restore peace and stability in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban, organizing the Afghan presidential elections held in October 2004 and National Assembly elections held in 2005.

On March 22, 2010, the 15-member UN Security Council unanimously approved UN Security Council Resolution 1917, renewing the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). Resolution 1917 recognized the key role the UN plays in coordinating international efforts in Afghanistan and the critical support UNAMA provides to the Afghan Government on matters of security, governance, and regional cooperation. The UN is expected to play a critical role implementing the commitments made by the Afghan Government and the international community at the January 2010 London Conference. A new Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Afghanistan (SRSG), Staffan de Mistura of Sweden, was appointed on January 28, 2010. Resolution 1917 mandates that UNAMA and the SRSG continue to lead international civilian efforts on the rule of law, transitional justice, anti-corruption, realizing the Afghan Government’s development and governance priorities, and strengthening cooperation between ISAF and the NATO Civilian Representative to improve civilian-military coordination. UNAMA website: http://unama.unmissions.org

U.S.-AFGHAN RELATIONS
After the fall of the Taliban, the U.S. supported the emergence of a broad-based government, representative of all Afghans, and actively encouraged a UN role in the national reconciliation process in Afghanistan. The U.S. has made a long-term commitment to help Afghanistan rebuild itself after years of war. The U.S. and others in the international community currently provide resources and expertise to Afghanistan in a variety of areas, including humanitarian relief and assistance, capacity-building, security needs, counter-narcotic programs, and infrastructure projects.

During his December 1, 2009 speech at West Point, President Barack Obama laid down the core of U.S. goals in Afghanistan, which are to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al-Qaeda and its safe havens in Pakistan, and to prevent their return to Afghanistan. While the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan is not open-ended, the United States plans to remain politically, diplomatically, and economically engaged in Afghanistan for the long term. The United States is willing to support fully the ambitious agenda set out by the recently re-elected Afghan president, focusing on reintegration, economic development, improving relations with Afghanistan’s regional partners, and steadily increasing the security responsibilities of Afghan security forces. Rapid progress on this agenda is important and requires international support. Toward this end, the U.S. is encouraging the Afghan Government to take strong actions to combat corruption and improve governance, and to provide better services for the people of Afghanistan, while maintaining and expanding on the important democratic reforms and advances in women’s rights that have been made since 2001.

Principal U.S. Official
Ambassador--Karl Eikenberry

The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan is at the Great Masoud Road, Kabul (tel: (00 93) (20) 230-0436; fax: (00 93) (20) 230-1364).

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 2.8 million sq. km. (1.1 million sq. mi.); about the size of the U.S. east of the Mississippi River; second-largest country in South America and eighth-largest country in the world.
Climate: Varied; predominantly temperate, with extremes ranging from subtropical in the north to arid/sub-Antarctic in far south.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Argentine(s).
Population (2011 est.): 41.770 million.
Annual population growth rate (2010 est.): 1.017%.
Ethnic groups: European 97%, mostly of Spanish and Italian descent; mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3%.
Religions: Roman Catholic 92%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%.
Language: Spanish.
Education: Compulsory until age 18. Adult literacy (2008)--98%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--10.81/1,000. Life expectancy (2011 est.)--76.95 years.
Work force (2009 est.): Industry and commerce--23%; agriculture--5%; services--72%.

Government
Type: Republic.
Constitution: 1853; revised 1994.
Independence: 1816.
Branches: Executive--president, vice president, cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Congress (72-member Senate, 257-member Chamber of Deputies). Judicial--Supreme Court, federal and provincial trial courts.
Administrative subdivisions: 23 provinces and one autonomous district (Federal Capital).
Political parties: Peronist (Justicialist, PJ), Radical Civic Union (UCR), numerous smaller national and provincial parties.
Suffrage: Compulsory for adults aged 18-70; optional for those over 70.

Economy
GDP (2010): $380 billion.
Annual real growth rate (2010 est.): 7.5%.
Per capita GDP (2010 est.): $9,400.
Natural resources: Fertile plains (pampas); minerals--lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron, manganese, oil, and uranium.
Agriculture (8.5% of GDP; including agribusiness, about 58% of exports by value): Products--oilseeds and by-products, grains, livestock products.
Industry (31.6% of GDP): Types--food processing, oil refining, machinery and equipment, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals.
Trade: Exports ($68.5 billion)--oilseed by-products, vegetable oils, cars, fuels, grains. Major markets--Brazil 18.78%; EU 17.7%; China 9.26%; U.S. 6.38%; Chile 7.11%. Imports ($56.44 billion)--machinery, vehicles and transport products, chemicals, petroleum and natural gas, plastics. Major suppliers (2009 est.)--Brazil 31.12%; U.S. 13.69%; China 10.26%; Germany 4.69%.

PEOPLE
Argentines are a fusion of diverse national and ethnic groups, with descendants of Italian and Spanish immigrants predominant. Waves of immigrants from many European countries arrived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Syrian, Lebanese, and other Middle Eastern immigrants number about 500,000 to 600,000, mainly in urban areas. Argentina's population is overwhelmingly Catholic, but it also has the largest Jewish population in Latin America, estimated at between 250,000 and 300,000. In recent years, there has been a substantial influx of immigrants from neighboring countries, particularly Paraguay, Bolivia, and Peru. The indigenous population, estimated at 700,000, is concentrated in the provinces of the north, northwest, and south. Eighty percent of the population resides in cities or towns of more than 2,000, and over one-third lives in the greater Buenos Aires area.

HISTORY
Europeans arrived in the region with the 1502 voyage of Amerigo Vespucci. Spanish navigator Juan Diaz de Solias visited what is now Argentina in 1516. Spain established a permanent colony on the site of Buenos Aires in 1580, although initial settlement was primarily overland from Peru. The Spanish further integrated Argentina into their empire by establishing the Vice Royalty of Rio de la Plata in 1776, and Buenos Aires became a flourishing port. Argentina formally declared independence from Spain on July 9, 1816. Argentines revere Gen. Jose de San Martin--who campaigned in Argentina, Chile, and Peru--as the hero of their national independence. Following the defeat of the Spanish, centralist and federalist groups waged a lengthy conflict between themselves to determine the future of the nation. A modern constitution was promulgated in 1853, and a national unity government was established in 1861.

Two forces combined to create the modern Argentine nation in the late 19th century: the introduction of modern agricultural techniques and integration of Argentina into the world economy. Foreign investment and immigration from Europe aided this economic revolution. Investment, primarily from Britain, came in such fields as railroads and ports. As in the United States during this same period, the migrants who worked to develop Argentina's resources--especially the western pampas--came principally from throughout Europe.

From 1880 to 1930, Argentina became one of the world's 10 wealthiest nations as a result of the rapid expansion of agriculture and foreign investment in infrastructure. The Great Depression brought a halt to this period of booming expansion, and combined with other social and political changes to usher in a period of less stable governance. The governments of the 1930s attempted to contain the currents of economic and political change that eventually led to a military coup and the subsequent emergence of Juan Domingo Peron (b. 1897). New social and political forces were seeking political power, including a modern military and labor movements that emerged from the growing urban working class.

The military ousted Argentina's constitutional government in 1943. Peron, then an army colonel, was one of the coup's leaders, and he soon became the government's dominant figure as Minister of Labor. Elections carried him to the presidency in 1946. He created the Partido Unico de la Revolucion, which became more commonly known as the Peronist or Justicialista party (PJ). He aggressively pursued policies aimed at empowering the working class and greatly expanded the number of unionized workers. In 1947, Peron announced the first 5-year plan based on the growth of industries he nationalized. He helped establish the powerful General Confederation of Labor (CGT). Peron's dynamic wife, Eva Duarte de Peron, known as Evita (1919-52), played a key role in developing support for her husband. Peron won re-election in 1952, but the military sent him into exile in 1955. In the 1950s and 1960s, military and civilian administrations traded power, trying, with limited success, to deal with diminished economic growth and continued social and labor demands. When military governments failed to revive the economy and suppress escalating domestic terrorism in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the way was open for Peron's return.

On March 11, 1973, Argentina held general elections for the first time in 10 years. Peron was prevented from running, but voters elected his stand-in, Dr. Hector Campora, as President. Peron's followers also commanded strong majorities in both houses of Congress. Campora resigned in July 1973, paving the way for new elections. Peron won a decisive victory and returned as President in October 1973 with his third wife, Maria Estela Isabel Martinez de Peron, as Vice President. During this period, extremists on the left and right carried out violent acts with a frequency that threatened public order. The government resorted to a number of emergency decrees, including the implementation of special executive authority to deal with violence. This allowed the government to imprison persons indefinitely without charge.

Peron died on July 1, 1974. His wife succeeded him in office, but a military coup removed her from office on March 24, 1976, and the armed forces formally exercised power through a junta composed of the three service commanders until December 10, 1983. The armed forces applied harsh measures against those they considered extremists and many others suspected of being their sympathizers. While they were able to gradually restore basic order, the human costs of what became known as "El Proceso," or the "Dirty War," were high. Official sources have identified approximately 9,000 persons who were "disappeared" during the 1976-83 military dictatorship, while some human rights groups put the figure as high as 30,000. Serious economic problems, mounting charges of corruption, public revulsion in the face of human rights abuses and, finally, the country's 1982 defeat by the United Kingdom in an unsuccessful attempt to seize the Falklands/Malvinas Islands all combined to discredit the Argentine military regime. The junta lifted bans on political parties and gradually restored basic political liberties.

Democracy returned to Argentina in 1983, with Raul Alfonsin of the country's oldest political party, the Radical Civic Union (UCR), winning the presidency in elections that took place on October 30, 1983. He began a 6-year term of office on December 10, 1983. The UCR-led government took steps to resolve some of the nation's most pressing problems, including accounting for those who disappeared during military rule, establishing civilian control of the armed forces, and consolidating democratic institutions. However, inability to resolve endemic economic problems eventually undermined public confidence in the Alfonsin government, which left office 6 months early after Justicialista Party (PJ) candidate Carlos Saul Menem won the 1989 presidential elections.

President Menem imposed peso-dollar parity (convertibility) in 1992 to break the back of hyperinflation and adopted far-reaching market-based policies. Menem's accomplishments included dismantling a web of protectionist trade and business regulations and reversing a half-century of statism by implementing an ambitious privatization program. These reforms contributed to significant increases in investment and growth with stable prices through most of the 1990s. Unfortunately, persistent allegations of corruption also accompanied many of the reforms, eventually undermining public confidence in the government and economy. Neither Menem nor his successor President Fernando De la Rua, who won election in 1999 at the head of a UCR-led coalition of center and center-left parties known as the "Alianza", were able to maintain public confidence and the recovery weakened. Also, while convertibility defeated inflation, its permanence undermined Argentina's export competitiveness and created chronic deficits in the current account of the balance of payments, which were financed by massive borrowing. The contagion effect of the Asian financial crisis of 1998 precipitated an outflow of capital that gradually mushroomed into a 4-year depression that culminated in a financial panic in November 2001. In December 2001, amidst bloody riots, President De la Rua resigned.

After a period of political turmoil and several provisional presidents, a legislative assembly elected Eduardo Duhalde (PJ) President on January 1, 2002 to complete the term of former President De la Rua. Duhalde--differentiating himself from his three predecessors--quickly abandoned the peso's 10-year-old link with the dollar, a move that was followed by a sharp currency depreciation and rising inflation. In the face of increasing poverty and continued social unrest, Duhalde moved to bolster the government's social programs and to contain inflation. He stabilized the social situation and advanced presidential elections by 6 months in order to pave the way for a new president elected with a popular mandate.

In the first round of the presidential election on April 27, 2003, former President Carlos Menem (PJ) won 24.3% of the vote, Santa Cruz Governor Nestor Kirchner (PJ) won 22%, followed by smaller party/alliance candidates Ricardo Lopez Murphy with 16.4% and Elisa Carrio with 14.2%. Menem withdrew from the May 25 runoff election after polls showed overwhelming support for Kirchner in the second round of elections. After taking office, Kirchner focused on consolidating his political strength and alleviating social problems. He pushed for changes in the Supreme Court and military and undertook popular measures such as raising government salaries, pensions, and the minimum wage. On October 23, 2005, President Kirchner, bolstered by Argentina's rapid economic growth and recovery from its 2001-2002 crisis, won a major victory in the midterm legislative elections, giving him a strengthened mandate and control of a legislative majority in both the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.

Although Kirchner enjoyed approval ratings of over 60%, he announced in July 2007 that he would not seek re-election and backed his wife, then-Senator Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, as the candidate to succeed him. Fernandez de Kirchner had a decades-long pedigree in politics, having served in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. She won 45% of the vote in the October 2007 presidential election and defeated her closest competitor, Elisa Carrio of the Civic Coalition, by 22.25 points. Thus, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner became the first Argentine woman elected to the presidency. "Cristina," as Argentines often refer to her, was sworn into office on December 10, 2007.

Argentina held mid-term congressional elections in June 2009, in which the ruling PJ Victory Front (FpV) lost its majority in both houses of Congress. The new Congress convened in December 2009. The next presidential elections will be held on October 23, 2011; a runoff, if needed, will be held on November 20. Fernandez de Kirchner is seeking re-election, competing against a varied field of opponents, including Ricardo Alfonsin (UCR), former president Eduardo Duhalde, Santa Fe Governor Hermes Binner (Socialist), Elisa Carrio (Civic Coalition), and San Luis Governor Alberto Rodriguez Saa.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Argentina's constitution of 1853, as revised in 1994, mandates a separation of powers into executive, legislative, and judicial branches at the national and provincial level. Each province also has its own constitution, roughly mirroring the structure of the national constitution. The president and vice president are directly elected to 4-year terms. Both are limited to two consecutive terms; they are allowed to stand for a third term or more after an interval of at least one term. The president appoints cabinet ministers, and the constitution grants the office considerable power, including authority to enact laws by presidential decree under conditions of "urgency and necessity" and the line-item veto.

Since 2001, senators have been directly elected, with each province and the Federal Capital represented by three senators. Senators serve 6-year terms. One-third of the Senate stands for re-election every 2 years. Members of the Chamber of Deputies are directly elected to 4-year terms. Voters elect half the members of the lower house every 2 years. Both houses are elected via a system of proportional representation. By decree, one-third of the candidates for both houses of Congress must be women. As a result, Argentina's female representation in Congress ranks among the world's highest, with representation comparable to European Union (EU) countries such as Austria and Germany.

The constitution establishes the judiciary as an independent government entity. The president appoints members of the Supreme Court with the consent of the Senate after a public vetting process. The president, on the recommendation of a magistrates' council, appoints other federal judges. The Supreme Court has the power to declare legislative acts unconstitutional.

Political Parties
The two largest traditional political parties are the Justicialist Party (PJ--also called Peronist), founded in 1945 by Juan Domingo Peron, and the Union Civica Radical (UCR), or Radical Civic Union, founded in 1891. New political forces and alliances tend to form during each election cycle. Notable examples in recent years include the Civic Coalition (CC) and the Republican Proposal (Propuesta Republicana, or PRO), both concentrated in the urban centers and working to build national party structures. PRO is mostly based in the city of Buenos Aires, where its leader, Mauricio Macri, won the 2007 mayoral election and won the most votes in the 2011 mayoral election's first round.

Historically, organized labor--largely tied to the Peronist Party--and the armed forces also have played significant roles in national life. However, the Argentine military's public standing suffered as a result of its perpetration of human rights abuses, economic mismanagement, and defeat by the United Kingdom during the period of military rule (1976-83). The Argentine military today is a volunteer force fully subordinate to civilian authority.

Principal Government Officials
President--Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Hector Timerman
Ambassador to the United States--Alfredo Chiaradia
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Martin Gomez Bustillo (interim representative)
Ambassador to the United Nations--Jorge Arguello

Argentina maintains an embassy in the United States at 1600 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington DC 20009; tel. (202) 238-6400; fax (202) 332-3171.

ECONOMY
Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly educated population, a globally competitive agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. The move after the 2001-2002 crisis to a more flexible exchange rate regime, along with sustained global and regional growth, a boost in domestic aggregate demand via monetary, fiscal, and income distribution policies, and favorable international commodity prices and interest rate trends were catalytic factors in supporting 5 consecutive years of greater than 8% annual GDP growth between 2003 and 2007. That economic recovery enabled the government to accumulate substantial official reserves (over $51 billion as of late August 2010). The reserves, combined with the absence of fresh borrowing from the international capital markets, helped insulate the economy from external shocks. A higher tax burden, improved tax collection efforts, and the recovery's strong impact on tax revenues supported the government's successful efforts to maintain primary fiscal surpluses since 2003.

Global financial turmoil and rapid declines in world commodity prices and economic growth during 2008 and 2009 resulted in diminished domestic growth in 2008 and a mild recession in 2009. These factors as well as some changes in trade policy in late 2008 and in 2009 had an impact on foreign trade, with imports and exports falling 32% and 20% annually, respectively, in 2009. While the economic downturn was less severe in Argentina than elsewhere, the deterioration of both domestic and international demand complicated the fiscal situations of both the federal government and the provinces. The global economy’s current recovery is helping to ameliorate some of those pressures.

Official figures show that Argentine GDP reached U.S. $380 billion in 2010, approximately U.S. $9,400 per capita, with investment increasing an estimated 10% for the year and representing approximately 22% of GDP. Analysts estimate that 2010 GDP growth was 7.5%. Government of Argentina statistics showed unemployment was 9.7% in 2010. Poverty dropped in the aftermath of the economic crisis of 2001-2002, after it reached a record high of over 50%. In 2010, the official poverty level was 12%. Some unofficial estimates suggest that unemployment and poverty levels may be higher.

Argentina's exchange rate policy is based on a managed float, with an average exchange rate of 3.89 pesos per dollar in 2010. The rate in early June 2011 was 4.10 pesos per dollar. According to market analysts, the peso's real exchange rate has been undervalued in previous years, which, when combined with high global commodity prices, helped lift export volumes and values to record levels. Argentina had a $1.82 billion trade surplus in early 2011.

Foreign trade was approximately 31% of GDP in 2009 (up from only 10% in 1990) and played an increasingly important role in Argentina's economic development. Exports totaled approximately 18% of GDP in 2009 (up from 15% in 2002), and key export markets included Brazil (18.78%), EU (17.7%), China (9.26%), U.S. (6.38%), and Chile (7.11%). Two-way trade in goods with the U.S. in 2009 totaled about $9.4 billion according to the U.S. International Trade Commission. Total two-way trade in services in 2009 was $5.1 billion (according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce). The production of grains, cattle, and other agricultural goods continues to be the backbone of Argentina's export economy. High-technology goods and services are emerging as significant export sectors.

Continuing Argentine arrears to international creditors and a large number of arbitration claims filed by foreign companies are legacies of the 2001-2002 economic crisis that remain to be resolved. Outstanding external debts included over $6.3 billion (not including interest and penalties) owed to official creditors according to Government of Argentina statistics, including about $500 million owed to the United States. From May to June 2010, the Government of Argentina offered a debt restructuring for private holders of defaulted bonds. Two-thirds of the private bondholders participated, leaving approximately $6 billion in private default claims still outstanding.

Nearly 500 U.S. companies are currently operating in Argentina, employing over 155,000 Argentine workers. U.S. investment in Argentina is concentrated in the manufacturing, information, and financial sectors.

NATIONAL SECURITY
The president, through a civilian minister of defense, commands the Argentine armed forces. The Security Ministry controls the Federal Police, the Gendarmeria (border police), the Prefectura Naval (coast guard), and the Airport Security Police.

The Ministry of Defense has pursued an aggressive restructuring program based on the 1988 Argentine defense law. Priorities include emphasis on joint operations and peacekeeping. There has been minimal recapitalization due to budget constraints experienced over the past 5 years. The Ministry of Security was created in 2010 and has pursued various reforms of the public security sector.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Argentina's foreign policy priorities are focused on increasing regional partnerships, including consolidating and expanding the MERCOSUR regional trade bloc and more deeply institutionalizing the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR). Argentina is an active member of the United Nations system and served a 3-year term on the UN Human Rights Council ending June 2011. Argentina currently has approximately 700 peacekeeping troops in Haiti in support of the UN peacekeeping operation (MINUSTAH), reflecting its traditionally strong support of UN peacekeeping operations. As a member of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Argentina has been a strong voice in support of nuclear non-proliferation efforts.

U.S.-ARGENTINE RELATIONS
The bilateral relationship between the United States and Argentina is based on many shared interests, including non-proliferation; cooperation on transnational issues such as counternarcotics, counterterrorism, and human trafficking; issues of regional peace and stability, including shared support for multilateral peacekeeping operations; and commercial ties.

U.S.-Argentine cooperation also includes significant science and technology initiatives in the fields of space, peaceful uses of nuclear energy, agricultural research, medicine, and the environment. The first of what is expected to be annual bilateral joint science and technology working group meetings was held in September 2010. In June 2007, the U.S. and Argentina modernized a bilateral civil aviation agreement to update safety and security safeguards and allow a significant increase in flight frequencies between the two countries, which hold excellent potential for increased tourism and business travel. An active media, together with widespread interest in American culture and society, make Argentina a receptive environment for the information and cultural exchange work of the U.S. Embassy. The Fulbright scholarship program has more than tripled the annual number of U.S. and Argentine academic grantees since 1994, and the U.S. Embassy is actively working to increase other education exchanges.

U.S. Embassy Functions
The U.S. Mission in Buenos Aires carries out the traditional diplomatic function of representing the U.S. Government and people in discussions with the Argentine Government, and more generally, in relations with the people of Argentina. The Embassy is focused on increasing people-to-people contacts, and promoting outreach and exchanges on a wide range of issues. Political, economic, and science officers deal directly with the Argentine Government in advancing U.S. interests but are also available to brief U.S. citizens on general conditions in the country. Officers from the U.S. Foreign Service, Foreign Commercial Service, and Foreign Agricultural Service work closely with the hundreds of U.S. companies that do business in Argentina, providing information on Argentine trade and industry regulations and assisting U.S. companies starting or maintaining business ventures in Argentina.

The Embassy's Consular Section monitors the welfare and whereabouts of some 34,000 U.S. citizen residents of Argentina and almost 400,000 U.S. tourists each year. Consular personnel also provide American citizens passport, voting, notary, Social Security, and other services. With the end of Argentine participation in the visa waiver program in February 2002, Argentine tourists, students, and those who seek to work in the United States must have nonimmigrant visas. The Consular Section processes nonimmigrant visa applications for persons who wish to visit the United States for tourism, studies, temporary work, or other purposes, and immigrant visas for persons who qualify to make the United States a permanent home.

Attaches accredited to Argentina from the Department of Justice (including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation), the Department of Homeland Security (including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Customs and Border Protection), the Federal Aviation Administration, and other federal agencies work closely with Argentine counterparts on international law enforcement cooperation, aviation security, and other issues of concern. The Department of Defense is represented by the U.S. Military Group and the Defense Attache Office. These organizations ensure close military-to-military contacts, and defense and security cooperation with the armed forces of Argentina.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Vilma Martinez
Deputy Chief of Mission--Jefferson Brown
Political Counselor--Alexis Ludwig
Economic Counselor--John Fennerty
Public Affairs Counselor--Marcia Bosshardt
Commercial Counselor--James Rigassio
Consul General--Daniel Perronne
Science, Technology and Environment Counselor--Marc Cullinane
Management Counselor--James Dayringer
Defense Attache--Col. Mark Alcott
U.S. Military Group Commander--Col. Edwin Passmore
Legal Attache--Beth McConn
Drug Enforcement Administration Country Attache--John Cohen
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Attache--Raul Aguilar
Agricultural Counselor--David Mergen

The U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is located at 4300 Colombia Avenue in the Palermo district of Buenos Aires. Mission offices can be reached by phone at (54)(11) 5777-4533/34 or by fax at (54)(11) 5777-4240. Mailing addresses: U.S. Embassy Buenos Aires, APO AA 34034; or 4300 Colombia, 1425 Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Other Contact Information
American Chamber of Commerce in Argentina
Viamonte 1133, 8th floor
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tel (54)(11) 4371-4500; Fax (54)(11) 4371-8400

U.S. Department of Commerce
Office of Latin America and the Caribbean
International Trade Administration
1401 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20230
Tel (202) 482-3872; Fax (202) 482-4157
Internet: http://trade.gov/

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 143,100 sq. km.
Capital: Dushanbe.
Terrain: Pamir and Alay mountains dominate landscape; western Ferghana valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest.
Climate: Mid-latitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid to polar in Pamir mountains.

People (data from CIA World Factbook unless otherwise noted)
Population (July 2010 estimate): 7,627,200.
Population growth rate (2010 estimate): 1.846%.
Ethnic groups: Tajik 80%, Uzbek 15%, Russian and others 5%.
Religion (2010 Embassy est.): Sunni Muslim 85%, Shi'a Muslim 5%, other 10%.
Language: Tajik (the official state language as of 1994, with followup legislation in 2009); Russian is widely used in government and business; 74% of the population lives in rural communities where mostly Tajik is spoken.
Education: Literacy--99.5%. The Tajik education system has been struggling through a period of decline since independence, however, and some evidence suggests functional literacy is much lower.
Health (2010 est.): Life expectancy--62.97 years men; 69.25 years women. Infant mortality rate--38.54 deaths/1,000 live births.

Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: September 9, 1991 (from Soviet Union).
Constitution: November 6, 1994.
Branches: Executive--chief of state: President Emomali RAHMON since November 6, 1994; head of state and Supreme Assembly Chairman since November 19, 1992; head of government (appointed by the president): Prime Minister Oqil OQILOV since January 20, 1999; Oqilov has reached mandatory retirement age, but has not yet been replaced. Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Supreme Assembly. Elections: president elected by popular vote for a 7-year term; election last held November 6, 2006. Election results: Emomali RAHMON 79.3%, Olimjon BOBOYEV 6.2%, Amir QARAQULOV 5.3%, Ismoil TALBAKOV 5.1%, Abduhalim GHAFFOROV 2.8%. Legislative--bicameral Supreme Assembly or Majlisi Oli consists of the Assembly of Representatives or Majlisi Namoyanandagon (lower chamber; 63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve 5-year terms) and the National Assembly or Majlisi Milli (upper chamber; 34 seats; members are indirectly elected by popular vote to serve 5-year terms, 25 selected by local deputies, 8 appointed by the president, plus former presidents of Tajikistan--currently there is one; all serve 5-year terms). Elections: last held February 28, 2010 for the Assembly of Representatives. Official election results: percent of vote by party--People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan 71.04%, Islamic Revival 8.20%, Communist Party 7.01%, other 13.75%. Judicial--Supreme Court; judges are appointed by the president.
Political parties and leaders: People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan or PDPT [Emomali RAHMON]; Islamic Revival Party or IRPT [Muhiddin KABIRI]; Tajik Communist Party or CPT [Shodi SHABDOLOV]; Democratic Party or DPT [Masud Sobirov heads government-recognized faction; Mahmadruzi ISKANDAROV, currently serving 23-year prison term, is chairman of original DPT; Rahmatullo VALIYEV is deputy]; Social Democratic Party or SDPT [Rahmatullo ZOYIROV]; Socialist Party of Tajikistan or SPT [Abdukhalim GAFFOROV; Murhuseyn NARZIEV heads the original SPT party that is currently unrecognized by the government]; Agrarian Party or APT [Amir Birievich QARAQULOV]; Party of Economic Reform or PERT [Olimjon BOBOYEV].
Suffrage: 18 years of age, universal.
Defense (2010 est.): Military manpower (availability) 1,980,000.

Economy (data from IMF unless otherwise noted)
Nominal GDP: $5.64 billion (2010); $6.83 billion (2011 est.).
Nominal per capita GDP (2010): $752.
Per capita GDP (purchasing power parity, 2009): $2,104.
GDP real growth rate: 6.5% (2010); 5.8% (2011 est.).
Headline CPI inflation rate (end-of-year): 9.8% (2010); 12.6% (2011 est.).
Natural resources: Hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, gold, mercury, brown coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten.
Work force (2010, CIA World Factbook): The official work force is 2.1 million. The actual number of working age citizens is closer to 4 million. As many as half of all working age males, and an increasing number of females, seek jobs outside of the country, primarily in Russia.
Official unemployment rate (2009, CIA World Factbook): 2.2%. The official rate is estimated based on the number of registered unemployment benefit recipients; it does not take into account the significant number of people who seek work abroad. According to the State Statistics Agency, 11.5% of the working age population is unemployed. Underemployment also is very high--possibly as high as 40% of the work force; 53% live below the poverty line according to the World Bank.
Agriculture: Products--cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats.
Industry: Types--aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil, textiles, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers.
Trade (World Bank data): Imports (2009)--$2.8 billion: aluminum, electricity, cotton, gold, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles. Main import partners include Russia, China, Iran, Uzbekistan. Exports (2009)--$1.2 billion: electricity, petroleum products, aluminum oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs. Export partners include Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, China, Ukraine, and Turkmenistan.
Total public and publicly guaranteed external debt: $1.941 billion (2010); $2.261 billion (2011 projection).
Debt/GDP ratio: 33.4% (2010 est.); 33.1% (2011 est.).

GEOGRAPHY
At 36'40' northern latitude and 41'14' eastern longitude, Tajikistan is located between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to the north and west, China to the east, and Afghanistan to the south. Tajikistan is home to some of the highest mountains in the world, including the Pamir and Alay ranges. Ninety-three percent of Tajikistan is mountainous with altitudes ranging from 984 feet to 24,589 feet, with nearly 50% of Tajikistan's territory above 10,000 feet. Earthquakes of varying degrees are frequent. The massive mountain ranges are cut by hundreds of canyons and gorges; at the bottom of these run streams which flow into larger river valleys where the majority of the country's population lives and works. The principal rivers of Central Asia, the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, both flow through Tajikistan, fed by melting snow and glaciers in the mountains of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Flooding and landslides sometimes occur during the annual spring thaw.

PEOPLE
Contemporary Tajiks are the descendants of various ancient Iranian inhabitants of Central Asia, in particular the Soghdians and the Bactrians, and possibly other groups, with an admixture of Mongols and Turkic peoples. The largely Shi’a inhabitants of the Pamir mountains speak a number of mutually unintelligible eastern Iranian dialects quite distinct from the Tajik spoken in the rest of the country. Until the 20th century, people in the region tended to identify themselves more by way of life--nomadic versus sedentary--and place of residence than by ethnic group. The distinction between ethnic Tajiks and Uzbeks was not always precise, and people in the region often used--and continue to use--each other's languages. The Soviets tended to reify ethnicity, and drew Central Asian republican boundaries so that they balanced ethnic representation in fertile areas such as the Ferghana Valley while also making large-scale ethnic mobilization difficult.

HISTORY
The current Tajik Republic hearkens back to the Samanid Empire (A.D. 875-999), which ruled what is now Tajikistan as well as territory to the south and west, as its role model and name for its currency. During their reign, the Samanids supported the revival of the written Persian language in the wake of the Arab Islamic conquest in the early 8th century and played an important role in preserving the culture of the pre-Islamic Persian-speaking world. They were the last Persian-speaking empire to rule Central Asia.

The expanding Russian Empire encompassed the territory that is now Tajikistan, along with most of the rest of Central Asia, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Russian rule collapsed briefly after the Russian Revolution of 1917, as the Bolsheviks consolidated their power and were embroiled in a civil war in other regions of the former Russian Empire. As the Bolsheviks attempted to regain Central Asia in the 1920s, an indigenous Central Asian resistance movement based in the Ferghana Valley, the "Basmachi movement," resisted but was largely eliminated by 1925. Tajikistan became fully established under Soviet control with the creation of Tajikistan as an autonomous Soviet socialist republic within Uzbekistan in 1924, and as an independent Soviet socialist republic in 1929. The northern Sughd region, previously part of the Uzbek republic, was added to the Tajik republic at this time.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
The Republic of Tajikistan gained its independence during the breakup of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) on September 9, 1991 and soon fell into a civil war. From 1992 to 1997 internal fighting ensued between old-guard regionally based ruling elites and disenfranchised regions, democratic liberal reformists, and Islamists loosely organized in a United Tajik Opposition (UTO). Other combatants and armed bands that flourished in this civil chaos simply reflected the breakdown of central authority rather than loyalty to a political faction. The height of hostilities occurred between 1992 and 1993. By 1997, the predominantly Kulyabi-led Tajik Government and the UTO had negotiated a power-sharing peace accord and implemented it by 2000. Once guaranteed 30% of government positions, former oppositionists have almost entirely been removed from government as President Rahmon has consolidated power.

The last Russian border guards protecting Tajikistan's 1,344 km border with Afghanistan completed their withdrawal in July 2005. Russia maintains its military presence in Tajikistan with the basing of the Russian 201st Motorized Rifle Division that never left Tajikistan when it became independent. Most of these Russian-led forces, however, are local Tajik noncommissioned officers and soldiers.

Tajikistan's 2010 parliamentary elections and its 2006 presidential election were considered to be flawed and unfair but peaceful. The parliamentary elections, in which the ruling party secured 55 of the 63 seats, failed to meet many key Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) standards on democratic elections, and some observers saw them as even worse than the flawed 2005 elections. In June 2003, Tajikistan held a flawed referendum to enact a package of constitutional changes, including a provision to allow President Rahmon the possibility of re-election to up to two additional 7-year terms after his term expired in 2006.

After the November 6, 2006 presidential election in which President Rahmon secured a new 7-year term in office, the OSCE determined that democratic practices were not fully tested "due to the absence of genuine competition, which provided voters with only nominal choice." There were four other candidates on the ballot but no strong opposition candidate. The strongest opposition party, the IRPT, decided not to field a candidate and two other parties (the DPT and SDPT) boycotted the election.

Lack of transparency in the legislative process and significant concerns regarding due process demonstrate the weakness of civil society in the country. Corruption is pervasive, and numerous observers have noted that power has been consolidated into the hands of a relatively small number of individuals.

Principal Government Officials
President--Emomali Rahmon
Prime Minister--Oqil Oqilov
Foreign Minister--Khamrokhon Zarifi
Ambassador to the United States--Abdujabbor Shirinov
Permanent Representative to the United Nations--Sirojiddin Aslov

Tajikistan established an embassy in Washington, DC in temporary offices in February 2003, and formally opened its first permanent chancery building in March 2004. Tajikistan's embassy in the United States is at 1005 New Hampshire Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037 (tel.: 202-223-6090; fax: 202-223-6091).

ECONOMY
Tajikistan is the poorest Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) country and one of the poorest countries in the world. Foreign revenue is precariously dependent upon exports of cotton and aluminum, and on remittances from Tajik migrant workers abroad, mainly in Russia. The economy is highly vulnerable to external shocks. Despite this, Tajikistan managed modest growth during the height of the recent economic crisis, and growth picked up again in 2010.

Tajikistan has great hydropower potential, and has focused on attracting investment for projects for internal use and electricity exports. Meanwhile, the country faces severe electricity shortages, particularly during the winter and beyond, when most of Tajikistan's inhabitants receive little or no electricity for weeks at a time. The government sees the construction of the massive Roghun hydroelectric dam as the solution to the country’s chronic energy woes, but the dam has been a source of increasing friction with Uzbekistan.

Tajikistan has followed a relatively strict fiscal and monetary policy, which has resulted in macroeconomic stability. However, government interference in the economy and massive corruption stifle economic growth and private investment. The government has attracted state-led investment for major infrastructure projects, particularly from China, rather than implementing the necessary economic reforms to attract private investors. Two-thirds of the workforce of Tajikistan is in agriculture, where wages are abysmally low, and sometimes non-existent. Tajikistan struggles to implement agricultural reforms that would allow many farmers to grow the crop of their choice, rather than being forced to grow cotton, as has been the practice from Soviet times. Income from narcotics trafficking, while difficult to quantify, has an increasingly visible impact on the Tajik economy.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Afghanistan continues to represent the primary security concern in Tajikistan's immediate neighborhood, although 2010 violence in Kyrgyzstan caused concern. With the ouster of the former Taliban government from Afghanistan, Tajikistan now has much friendlier relations with its neighbor to the south. The Taliban-allied Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), a U.S. Government-declared terrorist organization formerly active in Afghanistan and Tajikistan, has also been greatly diminished as a threat to Tajikistan's domestic stability. Rampant illicit trafficking of Afghan opium and heroin through Tajikistan remains a serious long-term threat to Tajikistan's stability and development, fostering corruption, violent crime, and economic distortions.

Tajikistan has a difficult relationship with Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan is concerned about Tajikistan's plans to develop hydropower, which Uzbekistan views as a threat to downstream irrigation. Border disagreements arise sporadically between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan and the Kyrgyz Republic. For the most part these are minor disagreements concerning people moving across mostly unmarked borders, but occasionally disputes develop into situations where gunfire is exchanged. For the most part relations are strained but peaceful.

U.S.-TAJIK RELATIONS
The United States remains committed to assisting Tajikistan in its economic and political development, as Tajikistan continues to recover from its civil war legacy. U.S. assistance efforts are evolving away from humanitarian aid and political reconciliation, as those needs increasingly have been met. Instead, U.S. efforts are targeted toward broader goals of democratic, social sector, and economic reform.

U.S.-Tajik relations have developed considerably since September 11, 2001. The two countries now have a broad-based relationship, cooperating in such areas as counter-narcotics, counterterrorism, non-proliferation, and regional growth and stability. In light of the Russian border forces' withdrawal from the Tajik-Afghan border, the U.S. Government leads an international donor effort to enhance Tajikistan's territorial integrity; prevent the transit of narcotics and material or technology related to weapons of mass destruction (WMD); and support a stable, peaceful Tajikistan in order to prevent the spread of influence and activities of radical groups and terrorists. In February 2010, the U.S. and Tajikistan launched an annual bilateral consultation process to enhance cooperation on a broad range of policy and assistance issues.

The U.S. continues to assist Tajikistan on economic reforms and integration into the broader global marketplace, for example in pursuing World Trade Organization (WTO) accession. U.S. assistance also supports health and education, as well as democracy, media, and local governance. Tajikistan has been a strong supporter of U.S. efforts on counterterrorism and in promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan.

A U.S. Government-funded $36 million bridge over the Pyanzh River connecting Sher Khan, Afghanistan with Nizhniy Pyanzh, Tajikistan opened for commercial traffic in October 2007 and about 200 trucks cross daily. Since the opening, trade volume has more than tripled. The bridge and related customs facilities will continue to enhance economic and commercial opportunities on both sides of the river, allowing goods and people to move across more easily. On the Afghan side, the bridge road will connect to the Afghan Ring Road.

The United States recognized Tajikistan on December 25, 1991, the day the U.S.S.R. dissolved, and opened a temporary embassy in a hotel in the capital, Dushanbe, in March 1992. After the bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa in 1998, Embassy Dushanbe American personnel were temporarily relocated to Almaty, Kazakhstan, due to heightened Embassy security standards. American Embassy Dushanbe has since returned to full operations and in July 2006 moved into a purpose-built embassy compound.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Ken Gross
Deputy Chief of Mission--Necia Quast
Management Officer--Gregory S. Slotta
Political/Economic Section Chief--Manuel Micaller
Public Affairs Officer--Henry Scott (acting)
Consular Officer--Mary C. Ermel
Defense Attache--LTC Joseph J. Roberts
USAID Country Representative--Jeffrey Lehrer

The U.S. Embassy is located at 109-A Ismoili Somoni Avenue, Dushanbe, Tajikistan 734019. Embassy phone: [992] (37) 229-20-00, Consular section phone: [992] (37) 229-23-00, Embassy fax: [992] (37) 229-20-50. Website: dushanbe.usembassy.gov

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 108,890 sq. km. (42,042 sq. mi.); about the size of Tennessee.
Cities: Capital--Guatemala City (metro area pop. 2.5 million). Other major cities--Quetzaltenango, Escuintla.
Terrain: Mountainous, with fertile coastal plain.
Climate: Temperate in highlands; tropical on coasts.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Guatemalan(s).
Population (2011 est.): 14.7 million.
Annual population growth rate (2011 est.): 2.4%.
Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed Spanish-Indian), indigenous.
Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant, traditional Mayan.
Languages: Spanish, 24 indigenous languages (principally Kiche, Kaqchikel, Q'eqchi, and Mam).
Education: Years compulsory--6. Attendance--41%. Literacy--80.5% (2009, Ministry of Education statistics).
Health: Infant mortality rate (2011 est.)--26.02/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2011 est.)--70.88 yrs.
Work force salaried breakdown: Services--42%; industry and commerce--37%; agriculture--14%; construction, mining, utilities, transportation, and communications--7%. Fifty percent of the population engages in some form of agriculture, often at the subsistence level outside the monetized economy.

Government
Type: Constitutional democratic republic.
Constitution: May 1985; amended November 1993.
Independence: September 15, 1821.
Branches: Executive--president (4-year term; one-term limit). Legislative--unicameral 158-member Congress (4-year term). Judicial--13-member Supreme Court of Justice (5-year term).
Subdivisions: 22 departments (appointed governors); 333 municipalities with elected mayors and city councils.
Major political parties: National Unity of Hope (UNE); Grand National Alliance (GANA); Patriot Party (PP); Guatemalan Republican Front (FRG); National Advancement Party (PAN); Unionists (PU); Encounter for Guatemala (EG); Vision with Values (VIVA); Commitment, Renovation and Order (CREO); Renewed Democratic Liberty (LIDER).
Suffrage: Universal for adults 18 and over who are not serving on active duty with the armed forces or police. A variety of procedural obstacles have historically reduced participation by poor, rural, and indigenous people, but implementation in 2007 of voting reform legislation nearly doubled the number of polling places, resulting in higher participation in rural areas, including among indigenous people.

Economy
Real GDP (2011 est.): $24.7 billion.
Real GDP growth (2011 est.): 3%.
Per capita GDP (2011 est.): $4,965.
Natural resources: Oil, timber, nickel, gold.
Agriculture (13.3% of GDP): Products--coffee, sugar, bananas, cardamom, vegetables, flowers and plants, timber, rice, rubber.
Manufacturing (18.1% of GDP): Types--prepared food, clothing and textiles, construction materials, tires, pharmaceuticals.
Trade (2010): Exports--$8.5 billion: coffee, bananas, sugar, crude oil, chemical products, clothing and textiles, vegetables. Major markets--U.S. 38.5%, Central American Common Market (CACM) 28.3%, Mexico 5.3%. Imports--$13.8 billion: machinery and equipment, fuels, mineral products, chemical products, vehicles and transport materials, plastic materials and products. Major suppliers--U.S. 37%, CACM 10.8%, Mexico 11.1%, China 7.1%.

PEOPLE
More than half of Guatemalans are descendants of indigenous Mayan peoples. Westernized Mayans and mestizos (mixed European and indigenous ancestry) are known as Ladinos. Most of Guatemala's population is rural, though urbanization is accelerating. The predominant religion is Roman Catholicism, into which many indigenous Guatemalans have incorporated traditional forms of worship. Protestantism and traditional Mayan religions are practiced by an estimated 40% and 1% of the population, respectively. Though the official language is Spanish, it is not universally understood among the indigenous population. The peace accords signed in December 1996 provide for the translation of some official documents and voting materials into several indigenous languages.

HISTORY
The Mayan civilization flourished throughout much of Guatemala and the surrounding region long before the Spanish arrived, but it was already in decline when the Mayans were defeated by Pedro de Alvarado in 1523-24. The first colonial capital, Ciudad Vieja, was ruined by floods and an earthquake in 1542. Survivors founded Antigua, the second capital, in 1543. Antigua was destroyed by two earthquakes in 1773. The remnants of its Spanish colonial architecture have been preserved as a national monument. The third capital, Guatemala City, was founded in 1776.

Guatemala gained independence from Spain on September 15, 1821; it briefly became part of the Mexican Empire, and then for a period belonged to a federation called the United Provinces of Central America. From the mid-19th century until the mid-1980s, the country passed through a series of dictatorships, insurgencies (particularly beginning in the 1960s), coups, and stretches of military rule with only occasional periods of representative government.

1944 to 1986
In 1944, Gen. Jorge Ubico's dictatorship was overthrown by the "October Revolutionaries," a group of dissident military officers, students, and liberal professionals. A civilian President, Juan Jose Arevalo, was elected in 1945 and held the presidency until 1951. Social reforms initiated by Arevalo were continued by his successor, Col. Jacobo Arbenz. Arbenz permitted the communist Guatemalan Labor Party to gain legal status in 1952. The army refused to defend the Arbenz government when a U.S.-backed group led by Col. Carlos Castillo Armas invaded the country from Honduras in 1954 and quickly took over the government. Gen. Miguel Ydigoras Fuentes took power in 1958 following the murder of Colonel Castillo Armas.

In response to the increasingly autocratic rule of Ydigoras Fuentes, a group of junior military officers revolted in 1960. When they failed, several went into hiding and established close ties with Cuba. This group became the nucleus of the forces that were in armed insurrection against the government for the next 36 years. Four principal left-wing guerrilla groups--the Guerrilla Army of the Poor (EGP), the Revolutionary Organization of Armed People (ORPA), the Rebel Armed Forces (FAR), and the Guatemalan Labor Party (PGT)--conducted economic sabotage and targeted government installations and members of government security forces in armed attacks. These organizations combined to form the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity (URNG) in 1982.

Shortly after President Julio Cesar Mendez Montenegro took office in 1966, the army launched a major counterinsurgency campaign that largely broke up the guerrilla movement in the countryside. The guerrillas then concentrated their attacks in Guatemala City, where they assassinated many leading figures, including U.S. Ambassador John Gordon Mein in 1968. Between 1966 and 1982, there was a series of military or military-dominated governments.

On March 23, 1982, army troops commanded by junior officers staged a coup to prevent the assumption of power by Gen. Angel Anibal Guevara, the hand-picked candidate of outgoing President and Gen. Romeo Lucas Garcia. They denounced Guevara's electoral victory as fraudulent. The coup leaders asked retired Gen. Efrain Rios Montt to negotiate the departure of Lucas and Guevara.

Rios Montt was at this time a lay pastor in the evangelical protestant "Church of the Word." He formed a three-member military junta that annulled the 1965 constitution, dissolved Congress, suspended political parties, and canceled the electoral law. After a few months, Rios Montt dismissed his junta colleagues and assumed the de facto title of "President of the Republic."

Guerrilla forces and their leftist allies denounced Rios Montt. Rios Montt sought to defeat the guerrillas with military actions and economic reforms; in his words, "rifles and beans." The government began to form local civilian defense patrols (PACs). Participation was in theory voluntary, but in reality, many Guatemalans, especially in the heavily indigenous northwest, had no choice but to join either the PACs or the guerrillas. Rios Montt's conscript army and PACs recaptured essentially all guerrilla territory--guerrilla activity lessened and was largely limited to hit-and-run operations. However, Rios Montt won this partial victory at an enormous cost in civilian deaths, in what was probably the most violent period of the 36-year internal conflict, resulting in about 200,000 deaths of mostly unarmed indigenous civilians.

On August 8, 1983, Rios Montt was deposed by his own Minister of Defense, Gen. Oscar Humberto Mejia Victores, who succeeded him as de facto President of Guatemala. Rios Montt survived to found a political party (the Guatemalan Republican Front) and to be elected President of Congress in 1995 and 2000. Awareness in the United States of the conflict in Guatemala, and its ethnic dimension, increased with the 1983 publication of the book I, Rigoberta Menchu, An Indian Woman in Guatemala.

General Mejia allowed a managed return to democracy in Guatemala, starting with a July 1, 1984 election for a Constituent Assembly to draft a democratic constitution. On May 30, 1985, after 9 months of debate, the Constituent Assembly finished drafting a new constitution, which took effect immediately. Vinicio Cerezo, a civilian politician and the presidential candidate of the Christian Democracy Party, won the first election held under the new constitution with almost 70% of the vote, and took office on January 14, 1986.

1986 to 2007
Upon its inauguration in January 1986, President Cerezo's civilian government announced that its top priorities would be to end the political violence and establish the rule of law. Reforms included new laws of habeas corpus and amparo (injunction), the creation of a legislative human rights committee, and the establishment in 1987 of the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman. Cerezo survived coup attempts in 1988 and 1989, and the final 2 years of Cerezo's government were also marked by a failing economy, strikes, protest marches, and allegations of widespread corruption.

Presidential and congressional elections were held on November 11, 1990. After a runoff ballot, Jorge Serrano was inaugurated on January 14, 1991, thus completing the first transition from one democratically-elected civilian government to another.

The Serrano administration's record was mixed. It had some success in consolidating civilian control over the army, replacing a number of senior officers and persuading the military to participate in peace talks with the URNG. Serrano took the politically unpopular step of recognizing the sovereignty of Belize. The Serrano government reversed the economic slide it inherited, reducing inflation and boosting real growth.

On May 25, 1993, Serrano illegally dissolved Congress and the Supreme Court and tried to restrict civil freedoms, allegedly to fight corruption. The "autogolpe" (or self-initiated coup) failed due to unified, strong protests by most elements of Guatemalan society, international pressure, and the army's enforcement of the decisions of the Court of Constitutionality, which ruled against the attempted takeover. Serrano fled the country.

On June 5, 1993, the Congress, pursuant to the 1985 constitution, elected the Human Rights Ombudsman, Ramiro De Leon Carpio, to complete Serrano's presidential term. De Leon, not a member of any political party and lacking a political base but with strong popular support, launched an ambitious anticorruption campaign to "purify" Congress and the Supreme Court, demanding the resignations of all members of the two bodies.

Despite considerable congressional resistance, presidential and popular pressure led to a November 1993 agreement brokered by the Catholic Church between the administration and Congress. This package of constitutional reforms was approved by popular referendum on January 30, 1994. In August 1994, a new Congress was elected to complete the unexpired term.

Under De Leon, the peace process, now brokered by the United Nations, took on new life. The government and the URNG signed agreements on human rights (March 1994), resettlement of displaced persons (June 1994), historical clarification (June 1994), and indigenous rights (March 1995). They also made significant progress on a socioeconomic and agrarian agreement. National elections for president, the Congress, and municipal offices were held in November 1995. With almost 20 parties competing in the first round, the presidential election came down to a January 7, 1996 runoff in which National Advancement Party (PAN) candidate Alvaro Arzu defeated Alfonso Portillo of the Guatemalan Republican Front (FRG) by just over 2% of the vote. Under the Arzu administration, peace negotiations were concluded, and the government signed peace accords ending the 36-year internal conflict in December 1996. The human rights situation also improved during Arzu's tenure, and steps were taken to reduce the influence of the military in national affairs.

In a December 1999 presidential runoff, Alfonso Portillo (FRG) won 68% of the vote to 32% for Oscar Berger (PAN). Portillo's impressive electoral triumph, with two-thirds of the vote in the second round, gave him a claim to a mandate from the people to carry out his reform program. In February 2004, after his 2000-2004 term ended, Portillo fled to Mexico to escape corruption charges. In October 2008, Mexican authorities extradited him to Guatemala to face corruption charges. In March 2010, a Guatemalan court ruled to approve Portillo’s extradition to the United States to face money-laundering charges after domestic charges are resolved.

Oscar Berger, representing the Grand National Alliance (GANA) party, won the November 9, 2003 presidential election, receiving 54.1% of the vote. His opponent, Alvaro Colom Caballeros of the National Unity of Hope (UNE) party, received 45.9% of the vote.

Alvaro Colom of the National Unity of Hope (UNE) party won the November 4, 2007 presidential election against retired General Otto Perez Molina with 52.8% of the vote versus 47.2%. The next presidential election is scheduled for September 11, 2011.

GOVERNMENT
Guatemala's 1985 constitution provides for a separation of powers among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. The 1993 constitutional reforms included an increase in the number of Supreme Court justices from 9 to 13. The reforms reduced the terms of office for president, vice president, and congressional representatives from 5 years to 4 years, and for Supreme Court justices from 6 years to 5 years; they increased the terms of mayors and city councils from 2-1/2 years to 4 years.

The president and vice president are directly elected through universal suffrage and limited to one term. A vice president can run for president after 4 years out of office. The Supreme Court consists of 13 justices who are elected by the Congress from a list of 26 qualifying candidates submitted by the bar association, law school deans, a university rector, and appellate judges. The Supreme Court and local courts handle civil and criminal cases. There also is a separate Constitutional Court.

Members of Congress are elected through a modified proportional representation system via the D’Hondt method; 127 members are chosen from lists in 23 electoral districts, and 31 members are chosen from a national list. Guatemala City and 332 other municipalities are governed by similarly elected mayors or councils. Guatemala has 22 administrative subdivisions (departments) administered by governors appointed by the president.

Principal Government Officials
President--Alvaro COLOM Caballeros
Vice President--Rafael ESPADA
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Haroldo RODAS
Minister of Government--Carlos MENOCAL Chavez
Minister of Defense--Juan Jose RUIZ Morales

Ambassador to the U.S.--Julio Armando MARTINI Herrera
Ambassador to the UN--Gert ROSENTHAL
Ambassador to the OAS--Jorge SKINNER-KLEE

The Guatemalan embassy is located at 2220 R Street, NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-745-4952; email: INFO@Guatemala-Embassy.org). Consulates are in Washington, New York, Miami, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Denver, and Los Angeles, and honorary consuls in Montgomery, San Diego, Ft. Lauderdale, Atlanta, Leavenworth, Lafayette, New Orleans, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Juan, Providence, Memphis, San Antonio, and Seattle. See the State Department Web page: http://www.state.gov/s/cpr/rls/fco/

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Congressional, municipal, and first-round presidential elections were held on September 9, 2007. The final round of presidential elections was on November 4, 2007. The inauguration of the new president and the new Congress took place on January 14, 2008. The 2011 presidential election is scheduled for September 11.

Common and violent crime, aggravated by a legacy of violence and vigilante justice, presents a serious challenge. Impunity remains a major problem, primarily because democratic institutions, including those responsible for the administration of justice, have developed only a limited capacity to cope with this legacy. Guatemala's judiciary is independent; however, it suffers from inefficiency, corruption, and intimidation.

In early December 2006, the government and the UN agreed to the creation of the joint International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). On August 1, 2007, the Guatemalan Congress approved the agreement, and on January 11, 2008, Guatemala and the United Nations inaugurated the work of CICIG. In July 2009, the Guatemalan Congress approved an extension of CICIG’s mandate to September 4, 2011, and in January 2011, CICIG’s mandate was further extended to September 3, 2013. The UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) ceased its 10-year project of monitoring peace accord implementation and human rights problems in November 2004 with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan declaring Guatemala had made "enormous progress in managing the country's problems through dialogue and institutions."

ECONOMY
Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America. After the signing of the final peace accord in December 1996, Guatemala was well-positioned for rapid economic growth over the next several years, until a financial crisis in 1998 disrupted the course of improvement. The subsequent collapse of coffee prices left what was once the country's leading export sector in depression and had a severe impact on rural income. Economic growth fell in 2009 as export demand from U.S. and other Central American markets declined and foreign investment slowed amid the global recession, but the economy recovered gradually in 2010 and will likely return to more normal growth rates by 2012. On a more positive note, Guatemala's macroeconomic management is historically sound, preserving stability and mitigating the slowdown in growth brought on by the global economic crisis in late 2008. While Guatemala’s foreign debt levels are modest, recent deficit spending and low tax collection have limited the space for further accumulation of debt. President Colom has continued programs initiated by prior governments to promote foreign investment, enhance competitiveness, and expand investment in the export and tourist sectors. These programs and the implementation of the U.S.-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) led to increases in foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows from $592 million in 2006 to $753 million in 2008. According to official projections, FDI inflows declined 20.4% in 2009 to $600 million as a result of the global economic crisis. FDI increased 14.5% in 2010 to $686 million, but this amount is 8.9% lower than FDI in 2008.

Guatemala's economy is dominated by the private sector, which generates nearly 90% of GDP. Agriculture contributes 13.3% of GDP and accounts for 26% of exports. Most manufacturing is light assembly and food processing, geared to the domestic, U.S., and Central American markets. Over the past several years, tourism and exports of textiles, apparel, and nontraditional agricultural products such as winter vegetables, fruit, and cut flowers have boomed, while more traditional exports such as sugar, bananas, and coffee continue to represent a large share of the export market.

The United States is the country's largest trading partner, providing 37% of Guatemala's imports and receiving 38.5% of its exports. The government's involvement is small, with its business activities limited to public utilities--some of which have been privatized--ports and airports, and several development-oriented financial institutions.

Guatemala ratified the U.S.-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) on March 10, 2005, and the agreement entered into force between Guatemala and the U.S. on July 1, 2006. CAFTA-DR eliminates customs tariffs on as many categories of goods as possible; opens services sectors; and creates clear and readily enforceable rules in areas such as investment, government procurement, intellectual property protection, customs procedures, electronic commerce, the use of sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures to protect public health, and resolution of business disputes. It also provides for protection of internationally recognized labor rights and environmental standards.

At only 10.5% of GDP in 2010, Guatemala’s tax collection is low compared to the Latin American average of 13.9%. In addition to raising overall tax revenues, continuing priorities include increasing transparency and accountability in public finances, broadening the tax base, strengthening the enforcement of tax laws, and completing implementation of financial sector reforms.

The United States, along with other donor countries--especially Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy, Spain, Germany, and Japan--the European Union, and the international financial institutions, have increased development project financing since the signing of the peace accords. However, donor support remains contingent upon Guatemalan Government reforms and counterpart financing.

According to the World Bank, Guatemala has one of the most unequal income distributions in the hemisphere. The wealthiest 20% of the population consumes 51% of Guatemala’s GDP. As a result, about 51% of the population lives on less than $2 a day and 15% on less than $1 a day. Guatemala's social development indicators, such as infant mortality, chronic child malnutrition, and illiteracy, are among the worst in the hemisphere. The United States has provided disaster assistance and food aid in response to natural disasters including Hurricane Stan, which caused extensive mudslides in Guatemala in October 2005; in response to El Nino-related drought in 2009 and 2010; and following severe flooding from Tropical Storm Agatha and other heavy rainfall in late 2010.

NATIONAL SECURITY
Guatemala is a signatory to the Rio Pact and is a member of the Conference of Central American Armed Forces (CFAC). Guatemala has deployed its troops to UN peacekeeping operations in Haiti and the Congo and has observers in several other locations. The president is commander in chief. The Minister of Defense is responsible for policy. Day-to-day operations are the responsibility of the military chief of staff and the national defense staff.

An agreement signed in September 1996, which is one of the substantive peace accords, mandated that the mission of the armed forces change to focus exclusively on external threats. However, Presidents Colom, Berger, Portillo, and Arzu used a constitutional clause to order the army to temporarily support the police in response to violent crime.

The 1996 accord calls for a one-third reduction in the army's authorized strength and budget--achieved under President Berger--and for a constitutional amendment to permit the appointment of a civilian Minister of Defense. A constitutional amendment to this end was defeated as part of a May 1999 plebiscite, but discussions on how to achieve this objective continue between the executive and legislative branches.

As of March 2010, the army numbered around 16,100 troops, having gone well beyond its accord-mandated target of reducing its strength from 50,000 to 33,000 troops. (President Colom has set the cap on troop levels at 20,000.) Not only was this reduction the most profound transformation of any Central American military in the last 50 years, it also indicates the effective control the civilian government has over the military. President Berger tasked the Ministry of Defense with increasing the professional skills of all soldiers, but military budgets remained limited and troop levels fell as far as 15,500. As part of the army downsizing, the operational structure of 19 military zones was eliminated. Currently, there are 6 brigades with contiguous areas of responsibility throughout the country. The air force operates three main air bases; the navy has two primary port bases. Additionally, steps have been taken to redefine the military's mission--the military doctrine has been rewritten, and there has been an increase in cooperation with civil society to help bring about this reform.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Guatemala's major diplomatic interests are regional security, sustainable development, and economic integration. Guatemala participates in several regional groups, particularly those related to trade and the environment.

The Council of Central American Ministers of Trade meets on a regular basis to work on regional approaches to trade issues. The council signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with the U.S. in 1998, and was part of the negotiations that led to the creation of CAFTA-DR. Guatemala joined Honduras and El Salvador in signing a free trade agreement with Mexico in 2000, which went into effect the following year. Guatemala also originated the idea for, and is the seat of, the Central American Parliament (PARLACEN).

The U.S. and Central American countries signed the CONCAUSA (Conjunto Centroamerica-USA) agreement at the Summit of the Americas in December 1994. CONCAUSA is a cooperative plan of action to promote clean, efficient energy use; conserve the region's biodiversity; strengthen legal and institutional frameworks and compliance mechanisms; and improve and harmonize environmental protection standards.

Guatemala has a long-standing claim to a large portion of Belize; the territorial dispute caused problems with the United Kingdom and later with Belize following its 1981 independence from the U.K. In December 1989, Guatemala sponsored Belize for permanent observer status in the Organization of American States (OAS). In September 1991, Guatemala recognized Belize's independence and established diplomatic ties, while acknowledging that the boundaries remained in dispute. In anticipation of an effort to bring the border dispute to an end in early 1996, the Guatemalan Congress ratified two long-pending international agreements governing frontier issues and maritime rights. In 2001, Guatemala and Belize agreed to a facilitation process led by the OAS to determine the land and maritime borders separating the two countries. National elections in Guatemala put a temporary halt to progress, but discussions resumed in November 2005. After being named Foreign Minister in 2008, Haroldo Rodas made clear his intention to reinvigorate discussions with Belize, and the two countries signed an agreement to submit the dispute to the International Court of Justice at The Hague for resolution. The agreement is pending ratification by simultaneous plebiscites in both countries.

U.S.-GUATEMALAN RELATIONS
Relations between the United States and Guatemala traditionally have been close, although at times strained by human rights and civil/military issues. U.S. policy objectives in Guatemala include:

• Supporting the institutionalization of democracy and implementation of the peace accords;
• Encouraging respect for human rights and the rule of law, and the efficient functioning of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG);
• Supporting broad-based economic growth and sustainable development and maintaining mutually beneficial trade and commercial relations, including ensuring that benefits of CAFTA-DR reach all sectors of the Guatemalan populace;
• Cooperating to combat money laundering, corruption, narcotics trafficking, alien-smuggling, and other transnational crime, including through programs funded under the Central American Regional Security Initiative; and
• Supporting Central American integration through support for resolution of border/territorial disputes.

The United States, as a member of "the Friends of Guatemala," along with Colombia, Mexico, Spain, Norway, and Venezuela, played an important role in the UN-moderated peace accords, providing public and behind-the-scenes support. The U.S. strongly supports the six substantive and three procedural accords, which, along with the signing of the December 29, 1996 final accord, form the blueprint for profound political, economic, and social change. To that end, the U.S. Government has committed approximately $462 million to support peace implementation.

Violent criminal activity continues to be a problem in Guatemala, including murder, rape, and armed assaults against persons of all nationalities. In recent years the number of violent crimes reported by U.S. citizens has steadily increased, though the number of Americans traveling to Guatemala has also increased.

Most U.S. assistance to Guatemala is provided through the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) offices for Guatemala. USAID/Guatemala's current program builds on the gains of the peace process that followed the signing of the peace accords in December 1996, as well as on the achievements of its 1997-2004 peace program. The current program works to advance U.S. foreign policy objectives by focusing on Guatemala's potential as Central America's largest economy and trading partner of the United States, but also recognizes the country's lagging social indicators and high rate of poverty. The three areas of focus for USAID/Guatemala's program are modeled after the Millennium Challenge Account areas--ruling justly, economic freedom, and investing in people. USAID/Guatemala also implements important U.S. Government initiatives such as Feed the Future (FtF), the Global Health Initiative (GHI), U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Central America Regional Security Initiative (CARSI), and the Global Climate Change Initiative (GCCI). The focus areas of USAID/Guatemala are as follows:

More responsive, transparent governance, through:

• Greater state and society capacity to prevent and combat violence and serious crime; and
• Greater transparency and accountability of governments.

Open, diversified, and expanding economies, through:

• Laws, policies, and regulations that promote trade and investment;
• More competitive, market-oriented private enterprises; and
• Broader access to financial markets and services.

Healthier, better-educated people, through:

• Increased and improved quality of social sector (health and education) investments;
• Increased use of quality maternal-child and reproductive health services, particularly in rural areas; and
• Increased equitable access to quality education, with special focus on reducing gender disparities and historic inequalities between indigenous and non-indigenous populations.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Stephen G. McFarland
Deputy Chief of Mission--Bruce Williamson
Political and Economic Counselor--Jean Preston
Management Officer--Paula Bravo
Senior Defense Official--Col. Pedro Orona
Consul General--Christopher Lamora
Regional Security Officer--Dean Shear
Public Affairs Officer--Lillian deValcourt-Ayala
Agricultural Attache--Barnett Sporkin-Morrison
Commercial Attache--vacant (contact Agricultural Attache Barnett Sporkin-Morrison)
USAID Mission Director--Kevin Kelly

The U.S. Embassy in Guatemala is located at Avenida la Reforma 7-01, Zone 10, Guatemala City (tel. [502] 2326-4000; fax [502] 2334-8477).

Other Contact Information
U.S. Department of Commerce
International Trade Administration
Trade Information Center
14th and Constitution, NW
Washington, DC 20230
Tel: 800-USA-TRADE
Internet: http://trade.gov

American Chamber of Commerce in Guatemala
5a avenida 5-55 zona 14 Europlaza, Torre I Nivel 5
01014 Guatemala City, Guatemala
Tel: (502) 2333-3899
Fax: (502) 2368-3536
E-Mail: trade@amchamguate.com

Caribbean/Latin American Action (C/LAA)
1818 N Street, NW, Suite 310
Washington, DC 20036
Tel.: 202-466-7464

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 3.29 million sq. km. (1.27 million sq. mi.); about one-third the size of the U.S.
Cities: Capital--New Delhi (pop. 12.8 million, 2001 census). Other major cities--Mumbai, formerly Bombay (16.4 million); Kolkata, formerly Calcutta (13.2 million); Chennai, formerly Madras (6.4 million); Bangalore (5.7 million); Hyderabad (5.5 million); Ahmedabad (5 million); Pune (4 million).
Terrain: Varies from Himalayas to flat river valleys and deserts in the west.
Climate: Alpine to temperate to subtropical monsoon.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Indian(s).
Population (2010 est): 1.17 billion; urban 29%.
Annual growth rate: 1.376%.
Density: 324/sq. km.
Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, others 3%. While the national census does not recognize racial or ethnic groups, it is estimated that there are more than 2,000 ethnic groups in India.
Religions: Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi within 1.8%, unspecified 0.1% (2001 census).
Languages: Hindi, English, and 16 other official languages.
Education: Years compulsory--K-10. Literacy--61%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--49.13/1,000. Life expectancy--66.46 years (2009 est.).
Work force (est.): 467 million. Agriculture--52%; industry and commerce--14%; services and government--34%.

Government
Type: Federal republic.
Independence: August 15, 1947.
Constitution: January 26, 1950.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), prime minister (head of government), Council of Ministers (cabinet). Legislative--bicameral parliament (Rajya Sabha or Council of States, and Lok Sabha or House of the People). Judicial--Supreme Court.
Political parties: Indian National Congress (INC), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Communist Party of India-Marxist, and numerous regional and small national parties.
Political subdivisions: 28 states,* 7 union territories (including National Capital Territory of Delhi).
Suffrage: Universal over 18.

Economy
GDP (FY 2009 est): $1.095 trillion ($1,210 billion).
Real growth rate (2009 est.): 6.5%.
Per capita GDP (PPP, FY 2008): $3,100.
Natural resources: Coal, iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, chromite, thorium, limestone, barite, titanium ore, diamonds, crude oil.
Agriculture: 17% of GDP. Products--wheat, rice, coarse grains, oilseeds, sugar, cotton, jute, tea.
Industry: 28.2% of GDP. Products--textiles, jute, processed food, steel, machinery, transport equipment, cement, aluminum, fertilizers, mining, petroleum, chemicals, and computer software.
Services and transportation: 54.9% of GDP.
Trade: Exports (FY 2009 est)--$164.3 billion; engineering goods, petroleum products, precious stones, cotton apparel and fabrics, gems and jewelry, handicrafts, tea. Services exports $101.2 billion in 2008-09, represent more than one third of India's total exports.

Software exports--$35.76 billion. Imports (FY 2009 est)--$268.4 billion; petroleum, machinery and transport equipment, electronic goods, edible oils, fertilizers, chemicals, gold, textiles, iron and steel. Major trade partners--U.S., China, U.A.E., EU, Russia, Japan.

PEOPLE
Although India occupies only 2.4% of the world's land area, it supports over 15% of the world's population. Only China has a larger population. India's median age is 25, one of the youngest among large economies. About 70% live in more than 550,000 villages, and the remainder in more than 200 towns and cities. Over the thousands of years of its history, India has been invaded from the Iranian plateau, Central Asia, Arabia, Afghanistan, and the West; Indian people and culture have absorbed and modified these influences to produce a remarkable racial and cultural synthesis.

Religion, caste, and language are major determinants of social and political organization in India today. However, with more job opportunities in the private sector and better chances of upward social mobility, India has begun a quiet social transformation in this area. The government has recognized 18 official languages; Hindi, the national language, is the most widely spoken, although English is a national lingua franca. Although 81% of its people are Hindu, India also is the home of more than 138 million Muslims--one of the world's largest Muslim populations. The population also includes Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Parsis.

The Hindu caste system reflects Indian occupational and socially defined hierarchies. Ancient Sanskrit sources divide society into four major categories, priests (Brahmin), warriors (Kshatriya), traders/artisans (Vaishya) and farmers/laborers (Shudra). Although these categories are understood throughout India, they describe reality only in the most general terms. They omit, for example, the tribal people and those outside the caste system formerly known as "untouchables”, or dalits. In reality, Indian society is divided into thousands of jatis--local, endogamous groups based on occupation--and organized hierarchically according to complex ideas of purity and pollution. Discrimination based on caste is officially illegal, but remains prevalent, especially in rural areas. Nevertheless, the government has made strong efforts to minimize the importance of caste through active affirmative action and social policies. Moreover, caste is often diluted if not subsumed in the economically prosperous and heterogeneous cities, where an increasing percentage of India's population lives. In the countryside, expanding education, land reform and economic opportunity through access to information, communication, transport, and credit are helping to lessen the harshest elements of the caste system.

HISTORY
The people of India have had a continuous civilization since 2500 B.C.E., when the inhabitants of the Indus River valley developed an urban culture based on commerce and sustained by agricultural trade. The Harappan Civilization, as it came to be known, declined around 1500 B.C.E., most likely due to ecological changes.

During the second millennium B.C.E., pastoral, Aryan-speaking tribes migrated from the northwest into the subcontinent, settled in the middle Ganges River valley, and adapted to antecedent cultures. Alexander the Great expanded across Central Asia during the 4th century B.C.E., exposing India to Grecian influences. The Maurya Empire came to dominate the Indian subcontinent during the 3rd century B.C.E., reaching its greatest height under Emperor Ashoka.

The political map of ancient and medieval India was made up of myriad kingdoms with fluctuating boundaries. At the height of the Roman Empire under Emperor Hadrian during the 2nd century C.E., the Kushan Empire, originating in ancient Bactria, conquered north India and the trans-Indus region ushering in a period of trade and prosperity. In the 4th and 5th centuries C.E., northern India was unified under the Gupta Dynasty. During this period, known as India's Golden Age, Hindu culture and political administration reached new heights.

Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established the Delhi Sultanate. In the early 16th century, Babur, a Turkish-Mongol adventurer and distant relative of Timurlane and Genghis Khan, established the Mughal Dynasty, which lasted for 200 years. South India followed an independent path, but by the 17th century large areas of South India came under the direct rule or influence of the expanding Mughal Empire. While most of Indian society in its thousands of villages remained untouched by the political struggles going on around them, Indian courtly culture evolved into a unique blend of Hindu and Muslim traditions.

The first British outpost in South Asia was established by the English East India Company in 1619 at Surat on the northwestern coast. Later in the century, the Company opened permanent trading stations at Madras (now Chennai), Bombay (now Mumbai), and Calcutta (now Kolkata), each under the protection of native rulers.

The British expanded their influence from these footholds until, by the 1850s, they controlled most of present-day India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. In 1857, an unsuccessful rebellion in north India led by Indian soldiers seeking the restoration of the Mughal Emperor led the British Parliament to transfer political power from the East India Company to the Crown. Great Britain began administering most of India directly and maintained both political and economic control, while controlling the rest through treaties with local rulers. Imperial India became the “crown jewel” of the rapidly expanding British Empire.

In the late 1800s, the first steps were taken toward self-government in British India with the appointment of Indian councilors to advise the British Viceroy and the establishment of Provincial Councils with Indian members; the British subsequently widened participation in Legislative Councils. Beginning in 1920, Indian leader Mohandas K. Gandhi transformed the Indian National Congress political party into a mass movement to campaign against British colonial rule. The party used both parliamentary and nonviolent resistance and non-cooperation to agitate for independence. During this period, however, millions of Indians served with honor and distinction in the British Indian Army, including service in both World Wars and countless other overseas actions in service of the Empire.

With Indians increasingly united in their quest for independence, a war-weary Britain led by Labor Prime Minister Clement Attlee began in earnest to plan for the end of its suzerainty in India. On August 15, 1947, India became a dominion within the Commonwealth, with Jawaharlal Nehru as Prime Minister. Strategic colonial considerations, as well as political tensions between Hindus and Muslims, led the British to partition British India into two separate states: India, with a Hindu majority; and Pakistan, which consisted of two "wings," East and West Pakistan--currently Bangladesh and Pakistan--with Muslim majorities. India became a republic, but chose to continue as a member of the British Commonwealth, after promulgating its constitution on January 26, 1950.

After independence, the Indian National Congress, the party of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, ruled India under the leadership first of Nehru and then his daughter (Indira Gandhi) and grandson (Rajiv Gandhi), with the exception of brief periods in the 1970s and 1980s and during a short period in 1996. From 1998-2004, a coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party governed.

Prime Minister Nehru governed the nation until his death in May 1964. Nehru was succeeded by Lal Bahadur Shastri, who also died in office in January 1966. In one month, power passed to Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister from 1966 to 1977. In June 1975, beset with deepening political and economic problems, Mrs. Gandhi declared a state of emergency and suspended many civil liberties. Seeking a mandate at the polls for her policies, she called for elections in March 1977, only to be defeated by Morarji Desai, who headed the Janata Party, an amalgam of five opposition parties.

In 1979, Desai's government crumbled. Charan Singh formed an interim government, which was followed by Mrs. Gandhi's return to power in January 1980. On October 31, 1984, Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards, which led to the killings of thousands of Sikhs in New Delhi. Her son, Rajiv, was chosen by the Congress (I)--for "Indira"--Party to take her place. His Congress government was plagued with allegations of corruption resulting in an early call for national elections in November 1989.

Although Rajiv Gandhi's Congress Party won more seats than any other single party in the 1989 elections, he was unable to form a government with a clear majority. The Janata Dal, a union of opposition parties, then joined with the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the right and the Communists on the left to form the government. This loose coalition collapsed in November 1990, and the Janata Dal, supported by the Congress (I), came to power for a short period, with Chandra Shekhar as Prime Minister. That alliance also collapsed, resulting in national elections in June 1991.

While campaigning in Tamil Nadu on behalf of his Congress (I) party, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991 by Tamil extremists from Sri Lanka unhappy with India's military intervention in that country’s civil war. In the elections, Congress (I) won 213 parliamentary seats and returned to power at the head of a coalition, under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao. This Congress-led government, which served a full 5-year term, initiated a gradual process of economic liberalization under then-Finance Minister Manmohan Singh. These reforms opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. India's domestic politics also took new shape, as the nationalist appeal of the Congress Party gave way to traditional caste, creed, regional, and ethnic alignments, leading to the founding of a plethora of small, regionally based political parties.

The final months of the Rao-led government in the spring of 1996 were marred by several major corruption scandals, which contributed to the worst electoral performance by the Congress Party in its history. The Hindu-nationalist BJP emerged from the May 1996 national elections as the single-largest party in the Lok Sabha but without a parliamentary majority. Under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the subsequent BJP coalition lasted only 13 days. With all political parties wishing to avoid another round of elections, a 14-party coalition led by the Janata Dal formed a government known as the United Front, under the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, H.D. Deve Gowda. His government collapsed after less than a year, when the Congress Party withdrew its support in March 1997. Inder Kumar Gujral replaced Deve Gowda as the consensus choice for Prime Minister at the head of a 16-party United Front coalition.

In November 1997, the Congress Party again withdrew support from the United Front. In new elections in February 1998, the BJP won the largest number of seats in Parliament--182--but fell far short of a majority. On March 20, 1998, the President approved a BJP-led coalition government with Vajpayee again serving as Prime Minister. On May 11 and 13, 1998, this government conducted a series of underground nuclear tests, spurring U.S. President Bill Clinton to impose economic sanctions on India pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act.

In April 1999, the BJP-led coalition government fell apart, leading to fresh elections in September-October. The National Democratic Alliance--a new coalition led by the BJP--won a majority to form the government with Vajpayee a Prime Minister in October 1999. The NDA government was the first coalition in many years to serve a full 5-year term, providing much-needed political stability.

The Kargil conflict in May-July 1999 and an attack by terrorists on the Indian Parliament in December 2001 led to increased tensions with Pakistan.

Hindu nationalists supportive of the BJP agitated to build a temple on a disputed site in Ayodhya, destroying a 17th century mosque there in December 1992, and sparking widespread religious riots in which thousands, mostly Muslims, were killed. In February 2002, 57 Hindu volunteers returning from Ayodhya were burnt alive when their train caught fire. Alleging that the fire was caused by Muslim attackers, anti-Muslim rioters throughout the state of Gujarat killed over 2,000 people and left 100,000 homeless. The Gujarat state government and the police were criticized for failing to stop the violence and in some cases for participating in or encouraging it.

The ruling BJP-led coalition was defeated in a five-stage election held in April and May of 2004. The Congress Party, under the leadership Sonia Gandhi, the widow of Rajiv Gandhi, formed a coalition government, known as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). It took power on May 22 with Dr. Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. The UPA's victory was attributed to dissatisfaction among poorer rural voters that the prosperity of the cities had not filtered down to them, and rejection of the BJP's Hindu nationalist agenda.

The Congress-led UPA government has continued many of the BJP's foreign policies, particularly improving relations with the U.S. Prime Minister Singh and President George W. Bush concluded a landmark U.S.-India strategic partnership framework agreement on July 18, 2005. In March 2006, President Bush visited India to further the many initiatives that underlie the new agreement. The strategic partnership is anchored by a historic civil nuclear cooperation initiative and includes cooperation in the fields of space, high-technology commerce, health issues, democracy promotion, agriculture, and trade and investment.

In July 2008, the UPA won a confidence motion with 275 votes in its favor and 256 against.

In late November 2008, terrorists killed at least 164 people in a series of coordinated attacks around Mumbai. Prime Minister Singh promised a thorough investigation and Home Minister Chidambaram pledged significant reforms to improve India’s counterterrorism agencies.

The Congress-led UPA coalition gained a more stable majority following the May 2009 elections, riding mainly on the support of rural voters. Manmohan Singh became the first Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full 5-year term. In July 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton traveled to India to launch the “Strategic Dialogue,” which called for collaboration in a number of areas, including climate change, trade, education, and counterterrorism. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is visiting Washington, DC in late November 2009 for the first state visit of the Obama administration.

GOVERNMENT
According to its constitution, India is a "sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic." Like the United States, India has a federal form of government. However, the central government in India has greater power in relation to its states, and has adopted a British-style parliamentary system.

The government exercises its broad administrative powers in the name of the president, whose duties are largely ceremonial. A special electoral college elects the president and vice president indirectly for 5-year terms. Their terms are staggered, and the vice president does not automatically become president following the death or removal from office of the president.

Real national executive power is centered in the Cabinet (senior members of the Council of Ministers), led by the prime minister. The president appoints the prime minister, who is designated by legislators of the political party or coalition commanding a parliamentary majority in the Lok Sabha (lower house). The president then appoints subordinate ministers on the advice of the prime minister.

India's bicameral Parliament consists of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The Council of Ministers is responsible to the Lok Sabha.

The legislatures of the states and union territories elect 233 members to the Rajya Sabha, and the president appoints another 12. The members of the Rajya Sabha serve 6-year terms, with one-third up for election every 2 years. The Lok Sabha consists of 545 members, who serve 5-year terms; 543 are directly elected, and two are appointed.

India's independent judicial system began under the British, and its concepts and procedures resemble those of Anglo-Saxon countries. The Supreme Court consists of a chief justice and 25 other justices, all appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister.

India has 28 states* and 7 union territories. At the state level, some legislatures are bicameral, patterned after the two houses of the national parliament. The states' chief ministers are responsible to the legislatures in the same way the prime minister is responsible to Parliament.

Each state also has a presidentially appointed governor, who may assume certain broad powers when directed by the central government. The central government exerts greater control over the union territories than over the states, although some territories have gained more power to administer their own affairs. Local governments in India have less autonomy than their counterparts in the United States. Some states are trying to revitalize the traditional village councils, or Panchayats, to promote popular democratic participation at the village level, where much of the population still lives. Over half a million Panchayats exist throughout India.

Principal Government Officials
President--Pratibha D. Patil
Vice President--Mohammed Hamid Ansari
Prime Minister--Manmohan Singh
Home Minister--P. Chidambaram
Minister of External Affairs--Pranab Mukherjee
Ambassador to the U.S.--Meera Shankar
Ambassador to the UN--Hardeep Singh Puri

India maintains an embassy in the United States at 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-939-7000, fax 202-265-4351, email indembwash@indiagov.org and consulates general in New York, Chicago, Houston, and San Francisco. The embassy's web site is http://www.indianembassy.org/.

POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Emerging as the nation's single largest party in the May 2009 Lok Sabha election, Congress currently leads a coalition UPA government under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Party President Sonia Gandhi was re-elected by the Party National Executive in May 2005. Also a Member of Parliament, she heads the Congress Lok Sabha delegation. Congress prides itself as being a secular, left of center party, with a long history of political dominance. Although its performance in national elections had steadily declined during the previous 12 years, its surprise victory in 2004 was a result of recruiting strong allies into the UPA, the anti-incumbency factor among voters, and its courtship of India's many poor, rural and Muslim voters. Congress political fortunes suffered badly in the 1990s, as many traditional supporters were lost to emerging regional and caste-based parties, such as the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party, but have rebounded since its May 2004 ascension to power. It currently rules either directly or in coalition with its allies in 10 states. In November 2005, the Congress regained the Chief Ministership of Jammu and Kashmir state, under a power-sharing agreement.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Shri Nitinn Gadkari, holds the second-largest number of seats in the Lok Sabha. Sushma Swaraj is Leader of the Opposition. The Hindu-nationalist BJP draws its political strength mainly from the "Hindi Belt" in the northern and western regions of India. Former Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh was expelled from the party in August 2009 after authoring a book which portrayed the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali-Jinnah, in a positive light, though he was allowed to rejoin in June 2010. 

The party holds power without outside support in the states of Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh; it is part of ruling coalitions in few other states including Bihar, Orissa and Punjab. Popularly viewed as the party of the northern upper caste and trading communities, the BJP made strong inroads into lower castes in recent national and state assembly elections. The party must balance the competing interests of Hindu nationalists, (who advocate construction of a temple on a disputed site in Ayodhya, and other primarily religious issues including the propagation of anti-conversion laws and violence against religious minorities), and center-right modernizers who see the BJP as a party of economic and political reform.

Four Communist and Marxist parties are united in a bloc called the "Left Front," which controls 59 parliamentary seats. The Left Front rules the states of West Bengal and Kerala. The Left Front provided external support to the UPA government until a July 2008 confidence vote. It advocates a secular and Communist ideology and opposes many aspects of economic liberalization and globalization, resulting in dissonance with Prime Minister Singh's liberal economic approach. The Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgency continues to be a major internal security threat, affecting large parts of eastern India. Since the Communists have been in a retreat in West Bengal the Trinamool Congress Party is likely to perform well in the upcoming 2011 state elections.

ECONOMY
India has fared the global financial crisis remarkabley well. Despite the 2008-2009 downturn, the government expects the annual GDP growth to return to around 9%. India's population is estimated at more than 1.1 billion and is growing at 1.55% a year. It has the world's 12th largest economy--and the third largest in Asia behind Japan and China--with total GDP in 2008 of around $1.21 trillion ($1,210 billion). Services, industry, and agriculture account for 54%, 29%, and 18% of GDP respectively. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers, but more than half of the population depends on agriculture for its livelihood. 700 million Indians live on $2 per day or less, but there is a large and growing middle class of more than 50 million Indians with disposable income ranging from 200,000 to 1,000,000 rupees per year ($4,166-$20,833). Estimates are that the middle class will grow ten-fold by 2025.

India continues to move forward, albeit haltingly, with market-oriented economic reforms that began in 1991. Reforms include increasingly liberal foreign investment and exchange regimes, industrial decontrol, reductions in tariffs and other trade barriers, opening and modernization of the financial sector, significant adjustments in government monetary and fiscal policies, and more safeguards for intellectual property rights.

The economy has posted an average growth rate of more than 7% in the decade since 1997, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India achieved 9.6% GDP growth in 2006, 9.0% in 2007, and 6.6% in 2008, significantly expanding manufactures through late 2008. Growth for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009 was initially expected to be between 8.5-9.0%, but has been revised downward by a number of economists to 7.0% or less because of the financial crisis and resulting global economic slowdown. Foreign portfolio and direct investment inflows have risen significantly in recent years. They contributed to the $283.5 billion in foreign exchange reserves by December 2009. Government receipts from the 34-day 3G auction were $14.6 billion.

Economic growth is constrained by inadequate infrastructure, a cumbersome bureaucracy, corruption, labor market rigidities, regulatory and foreign investment controls, the "reservation" of key products for small-scale industries, and high fiscal deficits. The outlook for further trade liberalization is mixed, and a key World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Ministerial in July 2008 was unsuccessful due to differences between the U.S. and India (as well as China) over market access. India eliminated quotas on 1,420 consumer imports in 2002 and has incrementally lowered non-agricultural customs duties in recent successive budgets. However, the tax structure is complex, with compounding effects of various taxes.

U.S.-India bilateral merchandise trade in 2008 topped nearly $50 billion. Principal U.S. exports are diagnostic or lab reagents, aircraft and parts, advanced machinery, cotton, fertilizers, ferrous waste/scrap metal, and computer hardware. Major U.S. imports from India include textiles and ready-made garments, Internet-enabled services, agricultural and related products, gems and jewelry, leather products, and chemicals.

The rapidly growing software sector is boosting service exports and modernizing India's economy. Software exports crossed $35 billion in FY 2009, while business process outsourcing (BPO) revenues hit $14.8 billion in 2009. Personal computer penetration is 14 per 1,000 persons. The number of cell phone users is expected to rise to nearly 300 million by 2010.

The United States is India's largest investment partner, with a 13% share. India's total inflow of U.S. direct investment was estimated at more than $16 billion through 2008. Proposals for direct foreign investment are considered by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board and generally receive government approval. Automatic approvals are available for investments involving up to 100% foreign equity, depending on the kind of industry. Foreign investment is particularly sought after in power generation, telecommunications, ports, roads, petroleum exploration/processing, and mining.

India's external debt was nearly $230 billion by the end of 2008, up from $126 billion in 2005-2006. Foreign assistance was approximately $3 billion in 2006-2007, with the United States providing about $126 million in development assistance. The World Bank plans to double aid to India to almost $3 billion a year, with focus on infrastructure, education, health, and rural livelihoods.

DEFENSE
The supreme command of the Indian armed forces is vested in the president of India. Policies concerning India's defense, and the armed forces as a whole, are formulated and confirmed by the Cabinet.

The Indian Army numbers over 1.4 million strong and fields 34 divisions. Its primary task is to safeguard the territorial integrity of the country against external threats. The Army has been heavily committed in the recent past to counterterrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as the in the Northeast. Its current modernization program focuses on obtaining equipment to be used in combating terror. The Army often provides aid to civil authorities and assists the government in organizing relief operations.

The Indian Navy is by far the most capable navy in the region. The Navy's primary missions are the defense of India and of India's vital sea lines of communication. India relies on the sea for 90% of its oil and natural gas and over 90% of its foreign trade. The Navy currently operates one aircraft carrier with two on order, 15 submarines, and 15 major surface combatants. It is capable of projecting power within the Indian Ocean basin and occasionally operates in the South China Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Arabian Gulf. Fleet introduction of the Brahmos cruise missile, the possible lease of nuclear submarines from Russia, and the introduction of a new aircraft carrier in 2012 will add significantly to the Indian Navy's flexibility and striking power.

Although small, the Indian Coast Guard has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Indian Navy officers typically fill top Coast Guard positions to ensure coordination between the two services. India's Coast Guard is responsible for control of India's huge exclusive economic zone.

Fielding nearly 900 combat aircraft, the Indian Air Force is the world’s fourth largest. It is rapidly becoming a 21st century force through modernization, new tactics and the acquisition of modern aircraft, such as the SU-30MKI, a new advanced jet trainer (BAE Hawk) and the indigenously produced advanced light helicopter (Dhruv). In April 2008 six firms submitted proposals to the Indian Government to manufacture 126 multi-role combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
India's size, population, and strategic location give it a prominent voice in international affairs, and its growing economic strength, military prowess, and scientific and technical capacity give it added weight. The end of the Cold War dramatically affected Indian foreign policy. India remains a leader of the developing world and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). India is now strengthening its political and commercial ties with the United States, Japan, the European Union, Iran, China, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. India is an active member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

Always an active member of the United Nations, India now seeks a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Starting in 2011, India will be a non-permanent member of the Security Council. India has a long tradition of participating in UN peacekeeping operations.

Bilateral and Regional Relations:
Pakistan. India and Pakistan have been locked in a tense rivalry since the partition of the subcontinent based on the “two-nations theory” upon achieving independence from Great Britain in 1947. The principal source of contention has been Kashmir, whose Hindu Maharaja at that time chose to join India, although a majority of his subjects were Muslim. India maintains that his decision and subsequent elections in Kashmir have made it an integral part of India. This dispute triggered wars between the two countries in 1947 and 1965 and provoked the Kargil conflict in 1999.

Pakistan and India fought a war in December 1971 following a political crisis in what was then East Pakistan and the flight of millions of Bengali refugees to India. The brief conflict left the situation largely unchanged in the west, where the two armies reached an impasse, but a decisive Indian victory in the east resulted in the creation of Bangladesh.

Since the 1971 war, Pakistan and India have made slow progress toward normalization of relations. In July 1972, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto met in the Indian hill station of Simla. They signed an agreement by which India would return all personnel and captured territory in the west and the two countries would "settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations." Diplomatic and trade relations were re-established in 1976.

The 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan caused new strains between India and Pakistan. Pakistan supported the Afghan resistance, while India implicitly supported the Soviet occupation. In the following eight years, India voiced increasing concern over Pakistani arms purchases, U.S. military aid to Pakistan, and Pakistan's nuclear weapons program. In an effort to curtail tensions, the two countries formed a joint commission. In December 1988, Prime Ministers Rajiv Gandhi and Benazir Bhutto concluded a pact not to attack each other's nuclear facilities and initiated agreements on cultural exchanges and civil aviation.

In 1997, high-level Indo-Pakistani talks resumed after a three-year pause. The Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan met twice, and the foreign secretaries conducted three rounds of talks. In June 1997 at Lahore, the foreign secretaries identified eight "outstanding issues" around which continuing talks would be focused. The dispute over the status of Jammu and Kashmir, an issue since partition, remains the major stumbling block in their dialogue. India maintains that the entire former princely state is an integral part of the Indian union, while Pakistan insists upon the implementation of UN resolutions calling for self-determination for the people of the state.

In September 1997, the talks broke down over the structure of how to deal with the issues of Kashmir and peace and security. Pakistan advocated that separate working groups treat each issue. India responded that the two issues be taken up along with six others on a simultaneous basis. In May 1998 India, and then Pakistan, conducted nuclear tests. Attempts to restart dialogue between the two nations were given a major boost by the February 1999 meeting of both Prime Ministers in Lahore and their signing of three agreements. These efforts were stalled by the intrusion of Pakistani-backed forces into Indian-held territory near Kargil in May 1999 (that nearly turned into full scale war), and by the military coup in Pakistan that overturned the Nawaz Sharif government in October the same year. In July 2001, Mr. Vajpayee and General Pervez Musharraf, leader of Pakistan after the coup, met in Agra, but talks ended after two days without result.

After an attack on the Indian Parliament in December 2001, India-Pakistan relations cooled further as India accused Pakistan of involvement. Tensions increased, fueled by killings in Jammu and Kashmir, peaking in a troop buildup by both sides in early 2002.

Prime Minister Vajpayee's April 18, 2003 speech in Srinagar (Kashmir) revived bilateral efforts to normalize relations. In November 2003, Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf agreed to a ceasefire, which still holds, along the Line-of-Control in Jammu and Kashmir. After a series of confidence building measures, Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf met on the sidelines of the January 2004 SAARC summit in Islamabad and agreed to commence a Composite Dialogue addressing outstanding issues between India and Pakistan, including Kashmir.

In February 2004, India and Pakistan agreed to restart the "2+6" Composite Dialogue formula, which provides for talks on Peace and Security and Jammu and Kashmir, followed by technical and Secretary-level discussions on six other bilateral disputes: Siachen Glacier, Wuller Barrage/Tulbul Navigation Project, Sir Creek estuary, Terrorism and Drug Trafficking, Economic and Commercial cooperation, and the Promotion of Friendly Exchanges in various fields. The restart of the Composite Dialogue process was especially significant given the almost six years that had transpired since the two sides agreed to this formula in 1997-1998. The UPA government continued the Composite Dialogue with Pakistan. Following the October 2005 earthquake in Kashmir, the two governments coordinated relief efforts and opened access points along the Line-of-Control to allow relief supplies to flow from India to Pakistan and to allow Kashmiris from both sides to visit one another.

The Foreign Secretary talks resumed in November 2006, after a three-month delay following the July 11, 2006 terrorist bombings in Mumbai. The meeting generated modest progress, with the two sides agreeing to establish a joint mechanism on counterterrorism. Since 2006, India and Pakistan have continued to take part in the Composite Dialogue process in an effort to maintain the peace process and strengthen bilateral relations. Since Pakistani elections in February 2008 the Indian Minister of External Affairs and the Indian Foreign Secretary have met with their new counterparts to advance the Composite Dialogue talks, reaffirming a commitment to maintain the ceasefire along the Line-of-Control as well as increasing people-to-people connections through improving cross-border bus services. The July 2008 bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul and the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November 2008 have increased tensions between India and Pakistan.  Though Prime Minister Singh and Prime Minister Gilani agreed to resume talks following the 2010 SAARC Summit. India continues to insist that Pakistan must do its part to dismantle terror networks operating from its territory and prosecute those who had a hand in planning the Mumbai attacks.

SAARC. Certain aspects of India's relations within the subcontinent are conducted through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Its members are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, with the People's Republic of China, Iran, Japan, European Union, Republic of Korea, and the U.S. as observers. Established in 1985, SAARC encourages cooperation in agriculture, rural development, science and technology, culture, health, population control, narcotics, and terrorism.

SAARC has intentionally stressed these "core issues" and avoided those which could prove divisive, although political dialogue is often conducted on the margins of SAARC meetings. In 1993, India and its SAARC partners signed an agreement gradually to lower tariffs within the region. Forward movement in SAARC had slowed because of tension between India and Pakistan, and the SAARC summit scheduled for 1999 was not held until January 2002. In addition, to boost the process of normalizing India's relationship with Pakistan, the January 2004 SAARC summit in Islamabad produced an agreement to establish a South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA). All the member governments have ratified SAFTA, which was slated to come into force on January 1, 2006, with a series of graduated tariff cuts through 2015. As of December 2006, however, the FTA partners were still negotiating sensitive product lists, rules of origin, and technical assistance. India hosted the 2007 SAARC summit, which called for greater regional cooperation on trade, environmental, social, and counterterrorism issues. At the 2008 SAARC summit in Sri Lanka, the SAFTA member countries signed a protocol for Afghanistan’s accession and several countries (Including India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) agreed to drop some items from their sensitive product lists.

China. Despite suspicions remaining from a 1962 border conflict between India and China and continuing territorial/boundary disputes, Sino-Indian relations have improved gradually since 1988. Both countries have sought to reduce tensions along the frontier, expand trade and cultural ties, and normalize relations. Their bilateral trade reached $24 billion in 2006. China is India's second-largest trading partner behind the U.S.

A series of high-level visits between the two nations has improved relations. In December 1996, Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited India on a tour of South Asia. While in New Delhi, he and the Indian Prime Minister signed a series of confidence-building measures along the disputed border, including troop reductions and weapons limitations.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao invited Prime Minister Vajpayee to visit China in June 2003. They recognized the common goals of both countries and made the commitment to build a "long-term constructive and cooperative partnership" to peacefully promote their mutual political and economic goals without encroaching upon their good relations with other countries. In Beijing, Prime Minister Vajpayee proposed the designation of special representatives to discuss the border dispute at the political level, a process that is still under way.

In November 2006, President Hu Jintao made an official state visit to India, further cementing Sino-Indian relations. India and China are building on growing economic ties to improve other aspects of their relationship such as counterterrorism, energy, and trade. In another symbol of improved ties, the two countries opened the Nathu La Pass to bilateral trade in July 2006 for the first time in 40 years. Though it is the first direct land trade route in decades, trade is expected to be local and small since the pass is open only four months a year.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met Chinese President Hu Jintao in January 2008 in Beijing in an effort to reinforce their confidence to further develop ties, vowing to promote their relations to a higher level. The meetings cemented a shared vision for the 21st century, agreeing to raise the annual volume of bilateral trade to $60 billion by 2010. Despite flare-ups over border issues, China-India relations remain stable at the strategic level. 2010 has seen a large number of high level visits from Indian government officials including National Security Advisor Menon, External Affairs Minister Krishna, and President Patil.

Former Soviet Union. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the emergence of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) had major repercussions for Indian foreign policy. India's substantial trade with the region plummeted after the Soviet collapse and has yet to recover. Longstanding military supply relationships were similarly disrupted due to questions over financing. Russia nonetheless remains India's largest supplier of military systems and spare parts.

Russia and India have not renewed the 1971 Indo-Soviet Peace and Friendship Treaty and follow what both describe as a more pragmatic, less ideological relationship. The visit of Russian President Boris Yeltsin to India in January 1993 helped cement this new relationship. The pace of high-level visits has since increased, as has discussion of major defense purchases. UPA leader Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Singh visited Russia in July 2005. President Vladimir Putin traveled to India in January 2007 to attend an Indo-Russia Summit and was the guest of honor at India's Republic Day celebrations. President Medvedev visited India in December 2008 and signed a civil nuclear agreement.

U.S.-INDIA RELATIONS
Recognizing India as a key to strategic U.S. interests, the United States has sought to strengthen its relationship with India. The two countries are the world's largest democracies, both committed to political freedom protected by representative government. India is also moving gradually toward greater economic freedom. The U.S. and India have a common interest in the free flow of commerce and resources, including through the vital sea lanes of the Indian Ocean. They also share an interest in fighting terrorism and in creating a strategically stable Asia.

There were some differences, however, including over India's nuclear weapons programs and the pace of India's economic reforms. In the past, these concerns may have dominated U.S. thinking about India, but today the U.S. views India as a growing world power with which it shares common strategic interests. A strong partnership between the two countries will continue to address differences and shape a dynamic and collaborative future.

In late September 2001, President Bush lifted sanctions imposed under the terms of the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act following India's nuclear tests in May 1998. The nonproliferation dialogue initiated after the 1998 nuclear tests has bridged many of the gaps in understanding between the countries. In a meeting between President Bush and Prime Minister Vajpayee in November 2001, the two leaders expressed a strong interest in transforming the U.S.-India bilateral relationship. High-level meetings and concrete cooperation between the two countries increased during 2002 and 2003. In January 2004, the U.S. and India launched the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership (NSSP), which was both a milestone in the transformation of the bilateral relationship and a blueprint for its further progress.

In July 2005, President Bush hosted Prime Minister Singh in Washington, DC. The two leaders announced the successful completion of the NSSP, as well as other agreements which further enhance cooperation in the areas of civil nuclear, civil space, and high-technology commerce. Other initiatives announced at this meeting include: an U.S.-India Economic Dialogue, Fight Against HIV/AIDS, Disaster Relief, Technology Cooperation, Democracy Initiative, an Agriculture Knowledge Initiative, a Trade Policy Forum, Energy Dialogue and CEO Forum. President Bush made a reciprocal visit to India in March 2006, during which the progress of these initiatives were reviewed, and new initiatives were launched.

In December 2006, Congress passed the historic Henry J. Hyde United States-India Peaceful Atomic Cooperation Act, which allows direct civilian nuclear commerce with India for the first time in 30 years. U.S. policy had opposed nuclear cooperation with India because the country had developed nuclear weapons in contravention of international conventions and never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The legislation clears the way for India to buy U.S. nuclear reactors and fuel for civilian use.

In July 2007, the United States and India reached a historic milestone in their strategic partnership by completing negotiations on the bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation, also known as the "123 agreement." This agreement, signed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and External Affairs Minister Mukherjee on October 10, 2008, governs civil nuclear trade between the two countries and opens the door for American and Indian firms to participate in each other's civil nuclear energy sector.

In July 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton traveled to India to launch the “Strategic Dialogue,” which called for collaboration in a number of areas, including energy, climate change, trade, education, and counterterrorism. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Washington, DC in late November 2009 for the first state visit of the Obama administration. The inaugural session of the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue was held June 1-4, 2010 in Washington, D.C. The event was very successful and showed progress in teh U.S. India relationship. The President expected to visit India in the Fall of 2010.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Timothy Roemer
Deputy Chief of Mission--Steven White
Public Affairs--Michael Pelletier
Political Affairs--Uzra Zeya
Economic, Environmental, and Scientific Affairs--Blair Hall
Commercial Affairs--Carmine D'Aloisio
Regional Security Officer--Earl Miller
Agricultural Affairs--Holly Higgins
Management Affairs--Gerri O'Brien
Consular Affairs--James Herman
USAID Mission Director--Erin Soto

Consuls General
Mumbai (formerly Bombay)--Paul Folmsbee
Kolkata (formerly Calcutta)--Beth Payne
Chennai (formerly Madras)--Andrew Simkin
Hyderabad--Cornelis Keur

The U.S. Embassy in India is located on Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021 (tel. 91-11-2419-8000; fax: 91-11-24190017, website http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov). Embassy and consulate working hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Visa application hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

*This number includes the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The United States considers all of the former princely state of Kashmir to be disputed territory. India, Pakistan, and China each control parts of Kashmir.

NOTE
Travel: Please consult Consular Affairs.
Business Information: Please consult the Department of Commerce.
 

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 46,500 sq. km.
Cities: Capital--Thimphu (pop. approx. 55,000) Other significant cities--Paro, Phoentsholing, Punakha, Bumthong.
Terrain: Mountainous, from the Himalayas to lower-lying foothills and some savannah.
Climate: Alpine to temperate to subtropical with monsoon season from June to September.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Bhutanese.
Population: Approximately 672,425 (according to the 2005 census). Domestic and international estimates of the population vary greatly.
Annual population growth rate (2007 est.): 2.082%. Density--45 per sq. km.
Ethnic groups: Drukpa 50% (which is also inclusive of Sharchops), as well as ethnic Nepalese (Lhotsampas) 35%, and indigenous or migrant tribes 15%.
Religions: Lamaistic Buddhist 75% (state religion), Indian- and Nepalese-influenced Hinduism 25%.
Languages: Dzongkha (official language), Bumthang-kha, English (medium of instruction), Sharchop-kha, Nepali.
Education: Years compulsory--11. Literacy--59.5% (Ministry of Education General Statistics 2007). Primary school net enrollment rate 82.1% (UNDP). Women's literacy--59.5% (2007).
Health: Infant mortality rate (2007 est.)--total: 96.37 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 94.09 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 98.77 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy --total population 67 years; male 69.1 years; female 59.5 years (Ministry of Education General Statistics 2007).
Work force (2005): Agriculture--94%; industry--1%; services--5%. The unemployment rate is 3.1% (2005 est.).

Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: The Royal Government, prompted by the King, initiated a draft constitution in 2003, which was published in 2005. On July 18, 2008, the parliament formally adopted the constitution, marking the final step in Bhutan's historic transition from absolute monarchy to parliamentary democracy.
Branches: Executive--prime minister, cabinet. Legislative--parliament (National Council and National Assembly). The king appoints five members of the National Council and the remaining members are elected. Elections for the National Council (upper house) took place in December 2007. The 47-member National Assembly (lower house) was elected in March 2008. Judicial--High Court (Thrimkhang Gogma), District Courts, and local area arbitration.
National Day: December 17 (1907).
Administrative subdivisions (dzongkhags): 20.
Political parties: Two. Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) and People's Democratic Party (PDP).
Suffrage: Registered resident with legitimate citizenship, age 18 and above.

Economy
GDP (purchasing power parity 2007 est.): U.S. $3.359 billion.
Real growth rate (2007): 8.5%.
Per capita GDP PPP (2007 est.): U.S. $5,200.
Natural resources: hydroelectricity, timber, limestone, clay, and slate.
Sectors as percent of GDP (all figures, 2006-2007): Agriculture--22.3%; industry--37.9%; services--39.8%.
Trade: Principal exports (2006-2007)--electricity 26.5%, recorded media 16.8%, palm oil 7.4%, copper wire 6.2%. Principal imports (2006-2007)--diesel fuel 7.9%, copper wires 7.3%, crude palm oil 5.5%, petrol 3.1%. Major trade partners--India, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, Singapore, and Thailand.

PEOPLE
The people of Bhutan can be divided into three broad ethnic categories--Ngalops, Sharchops, and Lhotsampas. The Ngalops make up the majority of the population, living mostly in the western and central areas. The Ngalops are thought to be of Tibetan origin, arriving in Bhutan during the 8th and 9th centuries A.D. and bringing Buddhism with them. Most Ngalops follow the Drukpa Kagyupa discipline of Mahayana Buddhism. In a country that is deeply rooted within the Buddhist religion, many people's sect of religion, as opposed to their ethnic group, characterizes them. The Ngalops predominate in the government, and the civil service and their cultural norms have been declared by the monarchy to be the standard for all citizens.

The Sharchops, who live in the eastern section of Bhutan, are considered to be descendants of the earliest major group to inhabit Bhutan. Most follow the Ningmapa discipline of Mahayana Buddhism. Sharchop is translated as "people of the east." The Ngalops, Sharchops, and the indigenous tribal people are collectively known as Drukpas and account for about 65% of the population. The national language is Dzongkha, but English is the language of instruction in schools and an official working language for the government.

The Lhotsampas are people of Nepali descent, currently making up 35% of the population. They came to Bhutan in the 19th and 20th centuries, mostly settling in the southern foothills to work as farmers. They speak a variety of Nepali dialects and are predominantly Hindu.

HISTORY
Bhutan's early history is steeped in mythology and remains obscure. It may have been inhabited as early as 2000 B.C., but not much was known until the introduction of Tibetan Buddhism in the 9th century A.D. when turmoil in Tibet forced many monks to flee to Bhutan. In the 12th century A.D., the Drukpa Kagyupa school was established and remains the dominant form of Buddhism in Bhutan today. The country's political history is intimately tied to its religious history and the relations among the various monastic schools and monasteries.

The consolidation of Bhutan occurred in 1616 when Ngawana Namgyal, a lama from Tibet, defeated three Tibetan invasions, subjugated rival religious schools, codified an intricate and comprehensive system of law, and established himself as ruler (shabdrung) over a system of ecclesiastical and civil administrators. After his death, infighting and civil war eroded the power of the shabdrung for the next 200 years when in 1885, Ugyen Wangchuck was able to consolidate power and cultivated closer ties with the British in India.

In 1907, Ugyen Wangchuck was elected as the hereditary ruler of Bhutan, crowned on December 17, 1907, and installed as the head of state Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King). In 1910, King Ugyen and the British signed the Treaty of Punakha which provided that British India would not interfere in the internal affairs of Bhutan if the country accepted external advice in its external relations. When Ugyen Wangchuck died in 1926, his son Jigme Wangchuck became the next ruler, and when India gained independence in 1947, the new Indian Government recognized Bhutan as an independent country. In 1949, India and Bhutan signed the Treaty of Peace and Friendship, which provided that India would not interfere in Bhutan's internal affairs but would be guided by India in its foreign policy. Succeeded in 1952 by his son Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, Bhutan began to slowly emerge from its isolation and began a program of planned development. Bhutan became a member of the United Nations in 1971, and during his tenure the National Assembly was established and a new code of law, as well as the Royal Bhutanese Army and the High Court.

In 1972, Jigme Singye Wangchuck ascended the throne at age 16. He emphasized modern education, decentralization of governance, the development of hydroelectricity and tourism and improvements in rural developments. He was perhaps best known internationally for his overarching development philosophy of "Gross National Happiness." It recognizes that there are many dimensions to development and that economic goals alone are not sufficient. Satisfied with Bhutan's transitioning democratization process, he abdicated in December 2006 rather than wait until the promulgation of the new constitution in 2008. His son, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, became King upon his abdication.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Traditionally a decentralized theocracy and, since 1907, a monarchy, Bhutan completed its successful transition to a constitutional monarchy in 2008. Bhutanese officials began preparations for the first-ever elections in 2006, shortly before King Jigme Singye Wangchuck abdicated in December 2006. The National Council of the new bicameral parliament was elected in December 2007, and National Assembly elections followed in March 2008. The Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) won 44 out of 47 seats in the latter election in which 80% of the 320,000 registered voters cast a ballot.

Migration by Nepalis into southern Bhutan began in the early 19th century. Currently these and other ethnic Nepalis, referred to as Lhotsampas, comprise 35% of Bhutan's population. In 1988, the government census led to the branding of many ethnic Nepalis as illegal immigrants. Local Lhotshampa leaders responded with anti-government rallies demanding citizenship and attacks against government institutions. Between 1988-1993, thousands of ethnic Nepalis fled to refugee camps in Nepal alleging ethnic and political repression. As of January 20, 2010, 85,544 refugees resided in seven camps. Bhutan and Nepal have been working for over seven years to resolve the refugee problem and repatriate certain refugees living in Nepal. The resettlement of Bhutanese refugees from the camps in Nepal to the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand is proceeding, with over 26,000 refugees repatriated to third countries (over 23,000 are now settled in the U.S.). The transition to democracy may improve the situation: of its 47 candidates, the DPT fielded nine Nepali speakers. Officials from both the DPT and PDP have said that resolving the grievances of ethnic Nepalis is a priority.

The spiritual head of Bhutan, the Je Khempo--the only person besides the king who wears the saffron scarf, an honor denoting his authority over all religious institutions--is nominated by monastic leaders and appointed by the king. The Monk Body is involved in advising the government on many levels.

Bhutan is divided into 20 districts or dzongkhags, each headed by a district officer (dzongda) who must be elected. Larger dzongkhags are further divided into subdistricts called dungkhags. A group of villages are grouped to form a constituency called gewog, administered by a locally elected leader entitled a gup. There are 201 elected gups. In 2002, the National Assembly created a new structure for local governance at the geog level. Each local area is responsible for creating and implementing its own development plan, in coordination with the district.

Principal Government Officials
Head of State--King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
Prime Minister--Jigme Y. Thinley
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Ugyen Tshering
Minister for Economic Affairs--Khandu Wangchuk
Minister for Trade and Industry--Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba
Minister for Home and Cultural Affairs--Minjur Dorji
Minister for Finance--Wangdi Norbu
Minister for Education--Thakur Singh Powdyel
Minister for Health--Zangley Dukpa
Minister for Labor and Human Resources--Dorji Wangdi
Minister for Works and Human Settlements--Yeshey Zimba
Minister for Information and Communications--Nandalal Rai
Minister for Agriculture--Pema Gyamtsho
Ambassador to the United Nations Headquarters--Lyonpo Daw Penjo

The United States and the Kingdom of Bhutan have not established formal diplomatic relations; however, the two governments have warm informal relations.

Bhutan maintains a Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York. The address is 763 First Avenue, New York, NY 10017; tel: 212-682-2268, fax: 212-661-0551.

ECONOMY
The economy, one of the world's smallest and least developed, is based on hydroelectricity, tourism, agriculture, and forestry. Rugged terrain makes it difficult to develop roads and other infrastructure. Despite this constraint, hydroelectricity and construction continue to be the two major industries of growth for the country. As these two economic sectors contribute to increased productivity, Bhutan's development prospects are positive. The Tala hydroelectric project, completed March 2007, has bolstered government revenue and exports, and will continue to do so for the next several years. In late 2009, Bhutan signed four memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with India to prepare four additional hydroelectric projects in Bhutan.

The Bhutanese Government expects the tourism sector to expand as well; however, restrictions on visitor numbers and minimum per-day spending requirements will impede rapid growth.

Bhutan's tenth five-year plan (2008-2013) focuses on ways to manage the country's new-found wealth with special emphasis on three development areas: rural, regional, and private-sector. India has pledged to support the plan and promised to double the amount of aid given to Bhutan in the previous five-year plan. The parliament had not yet finalized the tenth five-year plan as of October 2008; it intended to do so during the next session later in 2008.

Bhutan's economy has been on an upturn due to recent subregional economic cooperation efforts. Already this plan has strengthened the current trade relations with India, as well as opened an avenue of trade with Bangladesh. In May 2003, the Bilateral Free Trade Agreement between Bangladesh and Bhutan was re-signed. Bangladesh is Bhutan's second largest trade partner, after India. In January 2004, as a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Bhutan also joined the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA); Bhutan will host the SAARC summit in Thimphu in April 2010. In February 2004 Bhutan joined the Bangladesh, Indian, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand Economic Cooperation Forum (BIMSTEC). Bhutan has applied for membership in the World Trade Organization and is in the process of developing clear legal and regulatory systems designed to promote business development

FOREIGN RELATIONS

India
India is Bhutan's largest trade and development partner, providing significant amounts of foreign aid and investment. Traditionally, the 1949 Treaty of Peace and Friendship governed relations between the countries. In February 2007, India and Bhutan signed a new treaty removing the clause that India will "guide" Bhutan's foreign policy and allowing Bhutan to purchase military equipment from other countries. However, bilateral ties remain close, demonstrated by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's May 2008 visit to Thimpu during which he addressed the newly elected parliament. Prime Minister Jigme Thinley returned the gesture when he made his first official trip abroad as prime minister to New Delhi in July 2008; King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck also visited India in December 2009.

In recent years, insurgents on the Indian side of the border from the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and the Bodos have used Bhutan as a safe haven. In December 2003, Bhutan military troops expelled Indian insurgents from Assam. Through this joint effort with India, Bhutan strengthened border security and continued cooperation with the Indian military.

China
Bhutan and China do not have diplomatic relations, although they have engaged in 19 rounds of high-level talks regarding a border dispute over three Chinese-built roads which the Bhutanese Government alleges encroach on its territory. Although the current official trade between the countries is minimal, the Chinese Government announced that trade had increased by 3,000% from 2006 to 2007.

Nepal
Bhutan and Nepal established diplomatic relations in 1983 and are still negotiating a solution to a protracted refugee situation, in which over 85,000 refugees reside in seven UNHCR camps in Nepal. Most of the refugees claim Bhutanese citizenship, while Bhutan alleges that they are non-nationals or "voluntary emigrants," who forfeited their citizenship rights. In 2003, a joint Bhutan-Nepal verification team categorized refugees from one camp into four groups, but progress remains stalled. Out of these refugee camps have arisen several insurgent groups, such as the Bhutan Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist-Maoist), the Bhutan Tiger Force, and the United Revolutionary Front of Bhutan. Bhutanese security forces blamed these groups for a series of bombings targeting the country in the lead-up to the 2008 parliamentary elections.

United Nations
Bhutan became a member of the United Nations in 1971. Bhutan does not have diplomatic relations with any of the permanent members of the UN Security Council. Bhutan was elected to the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2003 and served until 2006.

Other Countries
Bhutan enjoys diplomatic relations with seven European nations, which form The "Friends of Bhutan" group, together with Japan. These countries are Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Finland, and Austria. Also known as donor nations, they contribute generously to Bhutanese development and social programs. Bhutan also has diplomatic relations with South Korea, Canada, Australia, Kuwait, Thailand, Bahrain, Bangladesh, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.

DEFENSE
Bhutan has 8,000 members in five military branches: the Royal Bhutan Army, Royal Bodyguard, National Militia, Royal Bhutan Police, and Forest Guards. In FY 2002, the Bhutanese Government spent 1.9% of its GDP on the military or U.S. $9.3 million. India maintains a permanent military training presence in Bhutan through IMTRAT, the Indian Military Training Team.

U.S.-BHUTAN RELATIONS
The U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, India, has consular responsibilities for Bhutan, but U.S. citizens also may request assistance from U.S. Embassies in Kathmandu, Nepal, or Dhaka, Bangladesh. The United States and Bhutan do not have diplomatic relations, and the United States does not give foreign assistance to Bhutan. Informal contact is maintained through the U.S. Embassy and the Bhutanese Embassy in New Delhi. Bhutan does participate in a regional program for South Asia sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) that helps countries develop their power infrastructure (SARI-E). A few Bhutanese military officers have attended courses at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. The U.S. Government annually brings several Bhutanese participants to United States through its International Visitors and Fulbright Programs.

Principal U.S. Officials (U.S. Embassy, India)
Ambassador--Timothy J. Roemer
Deputy Chief of Mission--Steven White
Public Affairs--Michael Pelletier
Political Affairs--Uzra Zeya
Economic and Scientific Affairs--Blair Hall
Commercial Affairs--Carmine D'Aloisio
Agricultural Affairs--Holly Higgins
Management Affairs--Gerri O'Brien
Consular Affairs--James Herman
USAID Mission, Director--Erin Soto
 

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
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The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

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Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 130,370 sq. km. (50,336 sq. mi.); slightly larger than New York State.
Cities: Capital--Managua (pop. 1.7 million). Other major cities--Bluefields, Chinandega, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Masaya, Matagalpa, and Rivas.
Terrain: Extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes.
Climate: Tropical in lowlands; cooler in highlands.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Nicaraguan(s).
Population (July 2011 est.): 5.6 million; density--42 per sq. km.
Annual population growth rate (2011 est.): 1.09%.
Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, and Amerindian 5%.
Religion: Predominantly Roman Catholic, with rapidly growing Evangelical congregations, some Moravian churches on the Caribbean coast.
Languages: Spanish (official), English and indigenous languages on Caribbean coast.
Education: Years compulsory--none enforced (28% of first graders eventually finish sixth grade). Literacy--67.5% (2011 est.).
Health: Life expectancy--71.9 yrs. Infant mortality rate (2011 est.)--22.64 deaths/1,000 live births.
Work force (2010 est.): 2.34 million.

Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: 1821.
Constitution: The 1987 Sandinista-era constitution was amended in 1995 to provide for a more even distribution of power among the four branches of government and again in 2000 to increase the size of the Supreme Court and the Controller General's Office and to make changes to the electoral laws. The changes in 2000 allowed for the president to be elected with 35% of the popular vote so long as there was at least a five percentage point difference between the first and second place candidates in order to avoid a second round of voting.
Branches: Executive--president and vice president. Legislative--National Assembly (unicameral). Judicial--Supreme Court and subordinate appeals, district, and local courts, as well as separate labor and administrative tribunals. Electoral--Supreme Electoral Council, responsible for organizing and holding elections.
Administrative subdivisions: 15 departments and two autonomous regions on the Atlantic coast; 153 municipalities.
National political parties and leaders: Conservative Party or PC (Alejandro Bolanos Davis); Independent Liberal Party or PLI (Indalecio Rodriguez); Liberal Constitutionalist Party or PLC (Jorge Castillo-Quant); Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance or ALN (Alejandro Mejia-Ferreti); Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN (Daniel Ortega-Saavedra); Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS (Enrique Saenz-Navarrete).
Suffrage: Universal at 16.

Economy
GDP (2010): $6.55 billion.
GDP real growth rate (2010): 4.5%.
Per capita GDP (2010): $1,126.
Components of GDP (2010): Agriculture 17.5%, industry 26.5%, services 56%.
Inflation rate (2010): 4.7%.
Natural resources: Arable land, fresh water, fisheries, gold, timber, hydro and geothermal power potential.
Trade (2010): National exports--$3.182 billion: coffee, shrimp and lobster, beef, sugar, industrial goods, gold, bananas. Free trade zone exports--$972.2 million: mostly textiles and apparel, automobile wiring harnesses, cigars. Markets--United States, Central American Common Market, European Union (EU), Mexico, Japan. Imports--$4.7 billion: primarily consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products. Free trade zone imports--$830.6 million. Suppliers--United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Guatemala, El Salvador.

PEOPLE
Most Nicaraguans are of both European and indigenous ancestry, and the culture of the country reflects the mixed Ibero-European and indigenous heritage of its people. Only the indigenous of the eastern half of the country remain ethnically distinct and retain their tribal customs and languages. A large black minority, of Afro-Caribbean origin, is concentrated along the Caribbean coast. In the mid-1980s, the central government divided the eastern half of the country--the former department of Zelaya--into two autonomous regions and granted the people of the region limited self-rule under an elected regional council of 45 deputies and an indirectly-elected governor.

Roman Catholicism is the dominant religion, but Evangelical Protestantism has experienced rapid growth over the past 10 years. There are strong Anglican and Moravian communities on the Caribbean coast, and a small Muslim population exists in Managua and in the larger cities along the Pacific coast. Buddhist and Jewish communities are small. Most Nicaraguans live in the Pacific lowlands and the adjacent interior highlands. The population is 58% urban.

HISTORY
Nicaragua takes its name from Nicarao, chief of the indigenous tribe that lived around present-day Lake Nicaragua during the late 1400s and early 1500s. In 1524, Hernandez de Cordoba founded the first Spanish permanent settlements in the region, including two of Nicaragua's principal towns: Granada on Lake Nicaragua, and Leon, located west of Lake Managua. Nicaragua gained independence from Spain in 1821, briefly becoming a part of the Mexican Empire and then a member of a federation of independent Central American provinces. In 1838, Nicaragua became an independent republic.

Much of Nicaragua's political history since independence has been characterized by the rivalry between the Liberal elite of Leon and the Conservative elite of Granada, which frequently led to civil war. Initially invited by the Liberals in 1855 to join their struggle against the Conservatives, an American named William Walker and his "Filibusterers" seized the presidency in 1856. Walker’s troops and Nicaraguan troops fought a historic battle at San Jacinto hacienda on September 14, 1856, which is now celebrated as a national holiday. In 1857, the Liberals and Conservatives united to drive Walker out of office. Three decades of Conservative rule followed. In 1893, Jose Santos Zelaya took advantage of divisions within the Conservative ranks and led a Liberal revolt that carried him to power. Zelaya ended a longstanding dispute with Britain over the Caribbean coast in 1894, and formally reincorporated that region into Nicaragua, establishing Nicaragua’s present-day boundaries.

By 1909, political differences and rivalries again emerged over plans for a trans-isthmian canal and concessions granted to American investors in Nicaragua. In 1909 the United States provided political support to Conservative-led forces rebelling against President Zelaya and intervened militarily to protect American lives and property. With the exception of a 9-month period in 1925-26, the United States maintained troops in Nicaragua from 1912 until 1933. From 1927 until 1933, U.S. Marines stationed in Nicaragua engaged in an effort to capture rebel forces led by Augusto Sandino, a Liberal general who had rejected a 1927 negotiated agreement brokered by the United States to end the conflict between Liberals and Conservatives.

After the departure of U.S. troops in 1933, National Guard Commander Anastasio Somoza Garcia outmaneuvered his political opponents--including Sandino, who was assassinated by National Guard officers--and took over the presidency in 1936. Somoza and his two sons who succeeded him sought to maintain close ties with the United States. The Somoza dynasty, beset by corruption, ended in 1979 with a massive uprising led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), which had conducted a low-scale guerrilla war against the Somoza regime since the early 1960s.

Soon after taking power the FSLN pushed out rival factions and established an authoritarian dictatorship under leadership of Daniel Ortega. U.S.-Nicaraguan relations deteriorated rapidly as the regime nationalized many private industries, confiscated private property, supported Central American guerrilla movements, and maintained links to international terrorists, including the Colombian guerrilla group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the Basque Homeland and Freedom (ETA) separatist group, and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The United States suspended aid to Nicaragua in 1981. Later the Ronald Reagan administration provided assistance to the Nicaraguan resistance (Contras) and in 1985 imposed an embargo on U.S.-Nicaraguan trade.

In response to both domestic and international pressure, Ortega’s Sandinista regime entered into negotiations with the Nicaraguan resistance leaders and ultimately agreed to nationwide elections in February 1990. In these elections, Nicaraguans elected as their President the National Opposition Union (UNO) candidate, Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, widow of the slain journalist and editor of the daily newspaper La Prensa, Pedro Joaquin Chamorro. She defeated Ortega, the Sandinista Party candidate.

During President Chamorro's nearly 7 years in office, her government achieved major progress toward consolidating democratic institutions, advancing national reconciliation, stabilizing the economy, privatizing state-owned enterprises, and reducing human rights violations. Despite a number of irregularities--which were due largely to logistical difficulties and a complicated electoral law--the October 20, 1996 presidential, legislative, and mayoral elections were judged free and fair by international observers and by the national electoral observer group Etica y Transparencia (Ethics and Transparency). This time Nicaraguans elected former Managua Mayor Arnoldo Aleman, leader of the center-right Liberal Alliance. Aleman defeated Sandinista Party candidate Daniel Ortega.

The first transfer of power in modern Nicaraguan history from one democratically-elected president to another took place on January 10, 1997, when the Aleman government was inaugurated. Aleman’s administration was marred by graft and corruption. At the end of his term, Aleman entered into a political pact (el Pacto) with Daniel Ortega to divide control of state institutions between them and perpetuate themselves in power.

Nicaragua held presidential and legislative elections in November 2001. Enrique Bolanos of the Liberal Constitutional Party was elected to the Nicaraguan presidency on November 4, 2001, defeating Sandinista candidate Daniel Ortega by 14 percentage points. President Bolanos was inaugurated on January 10, 2002. His administration sought to deliver on campaign promises to reinvigorate the economy, create jobs, fight corruption, and support efforts against terrorism. However, political attacks from both the left and the right severely blunted his administration’s efforts to shrink traditional sources and bases of political patronage and corruption.

FSLN candidate Daniel Ortega won the presidential elections of November 5, 2006, with 38% of the vote, defeating a divided opposition. ALN candidate Eduardo Montealegre garnered 29%; Jose Rizo of the PLC received 26%; and MRS' Edmundo Jarquin polled fourth with 6%. Ortega was inaugurated on January 10, 2007.

The November 2008 municipal elections were marred by a number of serious irregularities and were denounced domestically and internationally as severely flawed. Official results released by the Supreme Electoral Council awarded 105 of Nicaragua’s 153 municipalities to the ruling FSLN. As a result of the electoral fraud, Nicaragua lost over $100 million in international assistance. A subsequent regional council election in March 2010 on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast was also marred by election fraud that favored the FSLN.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Nicaragua is a constitutional democracy with executive, legislative, judicial, and electoral branches of government. In 1995, the executive and legislative branches negotiated a reform of the 1987 Sandinista constitution, which gave extensive new powers and independence to the legislature--the National Assembly--including permitting the Assembly to override a presidential veto with a simple majority vote and eliminating the president's ability to pocket-veto a bill.

Nicaragua's constitution guarantees freedom of speech, peaceful assembly and association, religion, and movement within the country, as well as foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation. In the run-up to the November 2008 municipal elections the government made attempts to limit some of these rights, including limiting free and open discussion in the media and academia, and peaceful assembly. The constitution prohibits discrimination based on birth, nationality, political belief, race, gender, language, religion, opinion, national origin, and economic or social condition. All public and private sector workers, except the military, public safety workers, and police, are entitled to form and join unions of their own choosing. Most of Nicaragua’s labor force is involved in the informal service and agricultural sectors and is not unionized. However, the formal manufacturing and government/public sectors are heavily unionized. About 65% of unions are affiliated with the Sandinistas. Workers have the right to strike. Collective bargaining is becoming more common in the private sector.

The president and the members of the unicameral National Assembly are elected to concurrent 5-year terms. The National Assembly consists of 92 total deputies (90 elected from party lists drawn at the regional and national levels, plus the outgoing president and the second-place finisher in the most recent presidential election).

The Supreme Court supervises the functioning of the still largely ineffective, often partisan, and overburdened judicial system. In 2000, the Ortega-Aleman pact orchestrated expansion of the Supreme Court from 12 to 16 justices. The National Assembly elects Supreme Court justices to staggered 5-year terms. Led by a council of seven magistrates, the Supreme Electoral Council (CSE) is the co-equal branch of government responsible for organizing and conducting elections, plebiscites, and referendums. The National Assembly elects the CSE magistrates and their alternates to 5-year terms. A 2000 constitutional amendment expanded the number of CSE magistrates from five to seven and gave the PLC and the FSLN a freer hand to name party activists to the Council, prompting allegations that both parties were politicizing electoral institutions and processes and excluding smaller political parties.

The constitution provides the Assembly with sole power to elect Supreme Court judges, CSE magistrates, and other national level public officials. However, in January 2010 President Ortega issued a decree that indefinitely extended the terms of these incumbent officials. As a result, as of May 2010 about two dozen of these officials remained in their positions despite the fact that their terms had expired, including several Supreme Court judges. After Liberal judges boycotted the Supreme Court for several months, Ortega replaced them in August 2010 with five Sandinista and two Liberal justices.

Political Parties
The 2006 national elections resulted in the following distribution of the 92 seats in the National Assembly (installed January 9, 2007): FSLN--38; PLC--25; ALN--24; MRS--5. The political parties have since reorganized and the makeup of the Assembly is now FSLN--38; PLC--21; BDN--12; ALN--7; MRS--4; BUN-6, and Independent--4.

Principal Government Officials
President--Jose Daniel Ortega Saavedra
Vice President--Jaime Morales Carazo
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Samuel Santos
Minister of Finance--Alberto Jose Guevara Obregon
Minister of Industry and Commerce--Orlando Solorzano Delgadillo
Minister of Government--Ana Isabel Morales
Secretary General of the Ministry of Defense--Ruth Tapia Roa
Chief of the Armed Forces--General Julio Cesar Aviles Castillo
Chief of Naval Forces--Captain Roger Antonio Gonzalez Diaz
Ambassador to the United States--Francisco Obadiah Campbell Hooker
Ambassador to the United Nations--Maria Eugenia Rubiales de Chamorro
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Denis Ronaldo Moncada Colindres

Nicaragua maintains an embassy in the United States at 1627 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 (tel. 202-939-6570). Nicaragua has consulates in Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, New Orleans, and San Francisco. Contact information: http://www.state.gov/s/cpr/rls/fco/index.htm

ECONOMY
With a gross domestic product (GDP) of $6.55 billion and a per capita income of $1,126 in 2010, Nicaragua is the second-poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. In 2010, the economy grew by 4.5%, according to official government sources, largely due to an increase in demand for Nicaraguan exports abroad and increased consumer spending at home. Official unemployment in 2010 was 8%, but 65% of all workers earn a living in the informal sector, where underemployment is high. In 2010, Nicaraguans received $823 million in remittances from abroad, the majority from the United States and Costa Rica. Total exports are equivalent to 48% of GDP.

Because Nicaragua has abundant arable land and water resources, agriculture will always be an important component of the economy. Thirty-one percent of GDP is derived from agriculture, timber, and fishing. Opportunities exist in food and timber processing and preparation for export. Currently, most agriculture is small-scale and labor intensive. Livestock and dairy production have seen steady growth over the past decade and have taken the greatest advantage of free trade agreements. Many export products, especially coffee and gold, have benefited from the recent rise in international commodity prices.

Social indicators for Nicaragua have improved since 1991. The current population of Nicaragua is 5.6 million; life expectancy at birth is 71.9 years. Prenatal care coverage has steadily improved and infant mortality has dropped from 52 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1991 to 22.64 per 1,000 in 2011. The country has achieved 85% vaccination coverage, and since 2004, infectious disease has fallen from fourth to fifth place among the leading causes of death, with the number of such deaths down nearly 50% since 1996. In 2007, the Minister of Education reported school enrollment as 86.5%. Nicaragua's score on the United Nations Human Development Index rose by 25% from 1990 to 2010 (from 0.454 to 0.565). Despite these statistical gains, the benefits of economic development have been uneven. Blackouts, water shortages, and high energy prices disproportionately affect the poorest in the population. About 46% of the population lives on less than $1.15 a day.

President Ortega’s stated objective is to implement socialism in Nicaragua, which he further defines as a mixed economy, guided by Christian and socialist ideals. He has used funds provided by Venezuela through the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) to increase the role of the FSLN party in the economy, including the purchase of a hotel, cattle ranch, television station, gasoline filling stations, construction equipment, and electricity generators. At the same time, President Ortega has maintained many of the legal and regulatory underpinnings of the market-based economic model of his predecessors, despite rhetoric decrying the "neo-liberal economic model," and along with it capitalism and the United States, which he refers to as the imperial power.

Nicaragua signed a 3-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in October 2007. As part of the IMF program, the Government of Nicaragua agreed to implement free market policies linked to targets on fiscal discipline, poverty spending, and energy regulation. The lack of transparency surrounding ALBA funds, channeled through state-run enterprises rather than the official budget, has become a serious issue for the IMF and international donors. In November 2010, the IMF approved a 1-year extension of the arrangement. The extension allows for the disbursement of the remaining $36 million dollars in 2011, but the program is contingent on the publication of additional information about off-budget expenditures.

Nicaragua has stayed current with the U.S.-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), which entered into force for Nicaragua on April 1, 2006. Nicaraguan exports to the United States, which account for two-thirds of Nicaragua’s total exports, were $2.0 billion in 2010, up 70% since 2005. Textiles and apparel account for about half of all exports to the United States, while automobile wiring harnesses add another 10%. Other leading export products are coffee, meat, cigars, gold, sugar, ethanol, and fresh fruit and vegetables, all of which have seen remarkable growth since CAFTA-DR went into effect. U.S. exports to Nicaragua, meanwhile, were $924 million in 2010, up 57% from 2005.

Despite important protections for investment included in CAFTA-DR, the investment climate has steadily worsened since Ortega took office. President Ortega's decision to support radical regimes such as Iran and Cuba, his harsh rhetoric against the United States and capitalism, and his use of government institutions to persecute political enemies and their businesses have had a negative effect on perceptions of country risk. The government reported foreign investment inflows of $500 million in 2010, mostly in energy and telecommunications. There are over 100 companies operating in Nicaragua with some relation to a U.S. company, either as wholly or partly-owned subsidiaries, franchisees, or exclusive distributors of U.S. products. The largest are in energy, financial services, textiles/apparel, manufacturing, and fisheries.

Poor enforcement of property rights deters both foreign and domestic investment, especially in real estate development and tourism. Conflicting claims and weak enforcement of property rights has invited property disputes and litigation. The court system is widely believed to be corrupt and subject to political influence. Establishing verifiable title history is often entangled in legalities relating to the expropriation of 28,000 properties by the revolutionary government that Ortega led in the 1980s. Authorities seldom challenge illegal property seizures by private parties, occasionally undertaken in collaboration with corrupt municipal officials.

The U.S. Embassy's Economic and Commercial Section advances U.S. economic and business interests by briefing U.S. firms on opportunities and challenges to trade and investment in Nicaragua, encouraging key Nicaraguan decision makers to work with U.S. firms, helping to resolve problems that affect U.S. commercial interests, and working to change local economic and trade ground rules in order to afford U.S. firms a level playing field on which to compete. U.S. businesses may access key Embassy economic reports at http://nicaragua.usembassy.gov/econ.html.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Nicaragua traditionally pursues an independent foreign policy. Since returning to power in 2007, Daniel Ortega has sought to build closer ties with Iran, Russia, and the ALBA states, especially Venezuela. Immediately after his inauguration Ortega formally joined ALBA. In 2008, Ortega made Nicaragua the second country to grant diplomatic recognition to South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the breakaway “independent republics” of Georgia.

Nicaragua submitted three territorial disputes--one with Honduras, one with Costa Rica, and the other with Colombia--to the International Court at The Hague for resolution. The dispute with Honduras was resolved by The Hague in October 2007, and President Ortega and Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales met on October 8, 2007 to recognize the finality of the decision. Also in 2007, Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador reached an agreement on fishing rights in the Gulf of Fonseca, though the actual border demarcation remains unresolved, by mutual agreement. In December 2007, The Hague issued an interim decision on the Colombia-Nicaragua dispute that granted sovereignty of the San Andres archipelago to Colombia, but urged both parties to work toward a mutually satisfactory resolution regarding the surrounding waters.

Costa Rica and Nicaragua have long-disputed issues related to their boundary. An 1858 treaty fixed the boundary on the river’s southern bank, and a subsequent arbitration finding validated that treaty. A 2009 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision also accepted the river’s southern bank as the boundary. In October 2010, Costa Rica accused Nicaraguan troops of invading Costa Rican territory and protested Nicaragua’s dredging operations in the San Juan River, claiming that the dredging was causing irreparable environmental damage. In a provisional ruling, the ICJ allowed dredging operations to continue but asked that both parties remove security forces from the disputed territory. A final ruling could take several years.

At the 1994 Summit of the Americas, Nicaragua joined six Central American neighbors in signing the Alliance for Sustainable Development, known as the Conjunta Centroamerica-USA, or CONCAUSA, to promote sustainable economic development in the region.

Nicaragua belongs to the United Nations and several specialized and related agencies, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Trade Organization (WTO), UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Labor Organization (ILO), and UN Human Rights Commission (UNHRC). Nicaragua also is a member of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the Central American Armed Forces Conference (CFAC), the Non-aligned Movement (NAM), the International Atomic Energy Commission (IAEA), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI).

U.S.-NICARAGUAN RELATIONS
U.S. policy supports the preservation of the democratic process initiated in Nicaragua with the 1990 election of President Chamorro. The United States has promoted national reconciliation, encouraging Nicaraguans to resolve their problems through dialogue and compromise. It recognizes as legitimate all political forces that abide by the democratic process and eschew violence. U.S. assistance is focused on strengthening democratic institutions, stimulating sustainable economic growth, and supporting the health and basic education sectors.

Section 527 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995, prohibits U.S. assistance and support to any country in which U.S. citizens have not received adequate and effective compensation for outstanding claims against the government for confiscated property, as is the case in Nicaragua. The law provides authority to the President, which is delegated to the Secretary of State, to waive the prohibition when it is in the national interest. In 2011, the Secretary issued the 18th waiver of the Section 527 prohibition based upon Nicaragua's progress in resolving U.S. citizen claims.

Other key U.S. policy goals for Nicaragua are:

• Improving respect for human rights and resolving outstanding high-profile human rights cases;
• Developing a free market economy with respect for property and intellectual property rights; and
• Increasing the effectiveness of Nicaragua's efforts to combat transnational crimes, including narcotics trafficking, money laundering, illegal alien smuggling, international terrorist and criminal organizations, and trafficking in persons.

Since 1990, the United States has provided over $2 billion in assistance to Nicaragua. About $489 million of that was for debt relief, and another $488 million was for balance-of-payments support. The United States also provided $94 million in 1999, 2000, and 2001 as part of its overall response to Hurricane Mitch. In response to Hurricane Felix, the United States provided over $15 million in direct aid to Nicaragua to support humanitarian relief and recovery operations from the damage inflicted in September 2007. Aside from funding for Hurricanes Mitch and Felix, the levels of assistance have fallen incrementally to reflect the improvements in Nicaragua. Assistance has been focused on promoting more citizen political participation, compromise, and government transparency; stimulating sustainable growth and income; and fostering better-educated and healthier families.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation's (MCC) 5-year, $175 million compact with the Republic of Nicaragua entered into force on May 26, 2006. The Millennium Challenge compact sought to reduce poverty and spur economic growth by funding projects in the regions of Leon and Chinandega aimed at reducing transportation costs and improving access to markets for rural communities; increasing wages and profits from farming and related enterprises in the region; and attracting investment by strengthening property rights. In June 2009, the MCC Board terminated portions of the compact when the Government of Nicaragua refused to address credible accusations of fraud related to the November 2008 municipal elections. In May 2011, the MCC announced the compact's completion, having implemented the portions not affected by the partial termination.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--vacant
Charge d’Affaires--Robert Downes
Economic/Commercial Counselor--Gary Clements
Political Counselor--Matthew Roth
Management Counselor--Jeffrey Spence
Public Affairs Officer--Kathleen Boyle
Consul General--Robert Batchelder
Labor Attache--Daniel Carroll
Regional Security Officer--Patrick Leonard
Senior Defense Official--Col. Edward Bonfoey, U.S. Army
Drug Enforcement Administration--Brian Conneely
Acting USAID Mission Director--Kirk Dahlgren
Peace Corps Director--Carol Barrick

The U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua is located at Kilometer 5.5, Carretera Sur, Managua (tel. country code 505, phone 2252-7100). Letters to the Embassy mailed in the U.S. should be addressed to American Embassy Managua, DPO AA 34021. Regular hours of operation are M-F from 7:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. local time. Embassy Managua maintains a Facebook page.

Other Information
The World Factbook provides profiles on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for over 266 countries and territories around the world.

The Department of State submits an annual Human Rights reports for most countries. The report covers civil, political, and workers’ rights as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. See the 2010 Human Rights Report for Nicaragua.

The International Religious Freedom Report supplements the Human Rights Report with additional information on religious freedom around the world. See the 2010 International Religious Freedom Report for Nicaragua.

The International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) is an annual report issued by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs that covers the efforts of key countries to combat international drug trafficking. See the 2011 INCSR Report for Nicaragua.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 1.1 million sq. km. (425,000 sq. mi.); about the size of Texas and California combined.
Cities (2010 est.): Capital--La Paz (administrative--pop. 840,209); Sucre (constitutional--306,754). Other major cities--Santa Cruz (1,651,436), Cochabamba (618,384), El Alto (960,767).
La Paz is the highest of the world’s capital cities--3,600 meters (11,800 ft.) above sea level. The adjacent city of El Alto, at 4,200 meters (13,800 ft.), is one of the fastest-growing in the hemisphere. Santa Cruz, the nation’s industrial and commercial hub in the eastern lowlands, is also experiencing rapid population and economic growth.
Terrain: High plateau (altiplano), temperate and semi-tropical valleys, and tropical lowlands.
Climate: Varies with altitude--from humid and tropical to semi-arid and cold.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Bolivian(s).
Population (2011 est.): 10,426,154.
Annual population growth rate (2010): 1.69%.
Religions: Predominantly Roman Catholic; minority Protestant.
Languages: Spanish, Quechua, Aymara, Guarani.
Education (2007): Years compulsory--ages 7-14; literacy--90.74%.
Health (2010): Infant mortality rate--41.65 per 1,000 births.
Work force (2010, 4.2 million): Agricultural sector 1.55 million; mining 84,000; services 1.47 million; public administration 546,000.
Ethnic groups (2001): 55% indigenous (primarily Aymara and Quechua), 30% mestizo or mixed, 15% European.

Government
Type: Plurinational state.
Independence: August 6, 1825.
Constitution: 1967; revised 1994; voters approved a new constitution on January 25, 2009, which went into effect on February 7, 2009.
Branches: Executive--president and cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Congress (Plurinational Assembly). Judicial--five levels of jurisdiction, headed by Supreme Court with a separate Constitutional Tribunal, and a Supreme Electoral Tribunal which rules on matters related to the electoral process.
Subdivisions: Nine departments (similar to states), headed by elected governors.
Major political parties: Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), National Unity (UN), Fearless Movement (MSM), Social Alliance (AS), and several smaller, regional citizen movements.
Suffrage: Universal adult (age 18), compulsory.

Economy (2010 est.)
GDP: $19.78 billion.
Annual growth rate: 4.1%.
Per capita income: $1,849.
Natural resources: Hydrocarbons (natural gas, petroleum); minerals (14.1% of GDP--zinc, silver, lead, gold, and iron).
Agriculture (10.4% of GDP): Major products--soybeans, cotton, potatoes, corn, sugarcane, rice, wheat, coffee, beef, barley, and quinoa. Arable land--2.7%.
Manufacturing (11.3% of GDP): Types--food and beverages, textiles, wood.
Transportation and communications: 9.0% of GDP.
Public administration services: 11.9% of GDP.
Trade: Exports (2010 est.)--$7.03 billion. Major export products--natural gas, tin, zinc, coffee, silver, wood, gold, jewelry, soybeans, and soy products. Major export markets--Brazil (34.29%), U.S. (9.99%), Argentina (8.22%), Japan (6.54%), Peru (5.70%), Belgium (5.40%), and South Korea (5.22%). Imports (2009 est.)--$5.36 billion. Major products--machinery and transportation equipment, consumer products, construction and mining equipment. Major suppliers--Brazil (18.58%), U.S. (13.19%), Argentina (12.98%), China (9.96%), Peru (7.21%), Japan (5.88%), Chile (5.63%), and Venezuela (5.54%).

PEOPLE
According to the 2001 census, Bolivia’s ethnic distribution is estimated to be 55% indigenous, 15% European, and 30% mixed or mestizo (all categories are self-identified and answers vary widely depending on how questions are phrased). The largest of the approximately three dozen indigenous groups are the Quechua (29% or 2.5 million), Aymara (24% or 2 million), Chiquitano (1% or 180,000), and Guarani (1% or 125,000). No other indigenous groups represent more than 0.5% of the population. German, Croatian, Serbian, Asian, Middle Eastern, and other minorities also live in Bolivia. Many of these minorities descend from families that have lived in Bolivia for several generations.

Bolivia is one of the least developed countries in South America. Almost two-thirds of its people, many of whom are subsistence farmers, live in poverty. Population density ranges from less than one person per square kilometer in the southeastern plains to about 10 per square kilometer (25 per sq. mi.) in the central highlands. The annual population growth rate is about 1.69% (2010).

The great majority of Bolivians are Roman Catholic, although Protestant denominations are expanding rapidly. Many indigenous communities interweave pre-Columbian and Christian symbols in their religious practices.

Approximately 90% of the children attend primary school but often for a year or less. The literacy rate is low in many rural areas. Under President Morales, a number of areas have been declared “illiteracy free” but the level of literacy is often quite basic, restricted to writing one’s name and recognizing numbers.

The socio-political development of Bolivia can be divided into three distinct periods: pre-Columbian, colonial, and republican. Important archaeological ruins, gold and silver ornaments, stone monuments, ceramics, and weavings remain from several important pre-Columbian cultures. Major ruins include Tiwanaku, Samaipata, Incallajta, and Iskanwaya. The country abounds in other sites that are difficult to reach and have seen little archaeological exploration.

The Spanish brought a tradition of religious art which, in the hands of local indigenous and mestizo builders and artisans, developed into a rich and distinctive style of architecture, painting, and sculpture known as “Mestizo Baroque.” The colonial period produced the paintings of Perez de Holguin, Flores, Bitti, and others as well as the skilled work of unknown stonecutters, woodcarvers, goldsmiths, and silversmiths. An important body of native baroque religious music from the colonial period was recovered and has been performed internationally to wide acclaim since 1994.

Important 20th-century Bolivian artists include, among others, Guzman de Rojas, Arturo Borda, Maria Luisa Pacheco, and Marina Nunez del Prado. Bolivia has rich folklore. Its regional folk music is distinctive and varied. The “devil dances” at the annual Oruro carnival are among the great South American folkloric events, as is the lesser known carnival at Tarabuco.

HISTORY
The Andean region has probably been inhabited for some 20,000 years. Around 2000 B.C., the Tiwanakan culture developed at the southern end of Lake Titicaca. The Tiwanakan culture centered around and was named after the great city Tiwanaku. The people developed advanced architectural and agricultural techniques before disappearing about 1200 A.D., probably because of extended drought. Roughly contemporaneous with the Tiwanakan culture, the Moxos in the eastern lowlands and the Mollos north of present-day La Paz also developed advanced agricultural societies that had dissipated by the 13th century. Around 1450, the Quechua-speaking Incas entered the area of modern highland Bolivia and added it to their empire. They controlled the area until the Spanish conquest in 1525.

During most of the Spanish colonial period, this territory was called “Upper Peru” or “Charcas” and was under the authority of the Viceroy of Lima. Local government came from the Audiencia de Charcas located in Chuquisaca (La Plata--modern-day Sucre). Bolivian silver mines produced much of the Spanish empire’s wealth. Potosi, site of the famed Cerro Rico--“Rich Mountain”--was, for many years, the largest city in the Western Hemisphere. As Spanish royal authority weakened during the Napoleonic wars, sentiment against colonial rule grew. Independence was proclaimed in 1809. Sixteen years of struggle followed before the establishment of the republic, named after Simon Bolivar, on August 6, 1825.

Independence did not bring stability. For nearly 60 years, short-lived, weak institutions and frequent coups characterized Bolivian politics. The War of the Pacific (1879-83) demonstrated Bolivia’s weakness when it was defeated by Chile. Chile took lands that contained rich nitrate fields and removed Bolivia’s access to the sea.

An increase in world silver prices brought Bolivia prosperity and political stability in the late 1800s. Tin eventually replaced silver as the country’s most important source of wealth during the early part of the 20th century. Successive governments controlled by economic and social elites followed laissez-faire capitalist policies through the first third of the century.

Indigenous living conditions remained deplorable. Forced to work under primitive conditions in the mines and in nearly feudal status on large estates, indigenous people were denied access to education, economic opportunity, or political participation. Bolivia’s defeat by Paraguay in the Chaco War (1932-35) marked a turning point. Great loss of life and territory discredited the traditional ruling classes, while service in the army produced stirrings of political awareness among the indigenous people and more of a shared national identity generally. From the end of the Chaco War until the 1952 revolution, the emergence of contending ideologies and the demands of new groups convulsed Bolivian politics.

Revolution and Turmoil
Bolivia’s first modern and broad-based political party was the Nationalist Revolutionary Movement (MNR). Denied victory in the 1951 presidential elections, the MNR led a successful revolution in 1952. Under President Victor Paz Estenssoro, the MNR introduced universal adult suffrage, carried out a sweeping land reform, promoted rural education, and nationalized the country’s largest tin mines.

Twelve years of tumultuous rule left the MNR divided. In 1964, a military junta overthrew President Paz Estenssoro at the outset of his third term. The 1969 death of President Rene Barrientos, a former junta member elected president in 1966, led to a succession of weak governments. The military, the MNR, and others installed Col. (later General) Hugo Banzer Suarez as president in 1971. Banzer ruled with MNR support from 1971 to 1974. Then, impatient with schisms in the coalition, he replaced civilians with members of the armed forces and suspended political activities.

The economy grew impressively during most of Banzer’s presidency, but human rights violations and fiscal crises undercut his support. He was forced to call elections in 1978, and Bolivia again entered a period of political turmoil. Elections in 1978, 1979, and 1980 were inconclusive and marked by fraud. There were coups, counter-coups, and caretaker governments.

In 1980, Gen. Luis Garcia Meza carried out a ruthless and violent coup. His government was notorious for human rights abuses, narcotics trafficking, and economic mismanagement. Later convicted in absentia for crimes, including murder, Garcia Meza was extradited from Brazil and began serving a 30-year sentence in 1995 in a La Paz prison.

After a military coup forced Garcia Meza out of power in 1981, three separate military governments in 14 months struggled unsuccessfully to address Bolivia’s growing problems. Unrest forced the military to convoke the Congress elected in 1980 and allow it to choose a new chief executive. In October 1982--22 years after the end of his first term of office (1956-60)--Hernan Siles Zuazo again became president. Severe social tension, exacerbated by hyperinflation and weak leadership, forced him to call early elections and relinquish power a year before the end of his constitutional term.

Return to Democracy
In the 1985 elections, Gen. Banzer’s Nationalist Democratic Action Party (ADN) won a plurality of the popular vote (33%), followed by former President Paz Estenssoro’s MNR (30%) and former Vice President Jaime Paz Zamora’s Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR, at 10%). With no majority, the Congress had constitutional authority to determine who would be president. In the congressional run-off, the MIR sided with MNR, and Paz Estenssoro was selected to serve a fourth term as president. When he took office in 1985, he faced a staggering economic crisis. Economic output and exports had been declining for several years. Hyperinflation meant prices grew at an annual rate of 24,000%. Social unrest, chronic strikes, and drug trafficking were widespread.

In 4 years, Paz Estenssoro’s administration achieved a measure of economic and social stability. The military stayed out of politics; all major political parties publicly and institutionally committed themselves to democracy. Human rights violations, which tainted some governments earlier in the decade, decreased significantly. However, Paz Estenssoro’s accomplishments came with sacrifice. Tin prices collapsed in October 1985. The collapse came as the government moved to reassert control of the mismanaged state mining enterprise and forced the government to lay off over 20,000 miners. Although this economic “shock treatment” was highly successful from a financial point of view and tamed devastatingly high rates of hyperinflation, the resulting social dislocation caused significant unrest.

MNR candidate Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada finished first in the 1989 elections (23%), but no candidate received a majority of popular votes. Again, Congress would determine the president. The Patriotic Accord (AP) between Gen. Banzer’s ADN and Jaime Paz Zamora’s MIR, the second- and third-place finishers (at 22.7% and 19.6%, respectively), led to Paz Zamora’s assuming the presidency.

Even though Paz Zamora had been a Marxist in his youth, he governed as a moderate, center-left president, and marked his time in office with political pragmatism. He continued the economic reforms begun by Paz Estenssoro. Paz Zamora also took a fairly hard line against domestic terrorism, authorizing a 1990 attack on terrorists of the Nestor Paz Zamora Committee and the 1992 crackdown on the Tupac Katari Guerrilla Army (EGTK).

The 1993 elections continued the growing tradition of open, honest elections and peaceful democratic transitions of power. The MNR defeated the ruling coalition, and Gonzalo “Goni” Sanchez de Lozada was named president by a coalition in Congress.

Sanchez de Lozada pursued an aggressive economic and social reform agenda, relying heavily on successful entrepreneurs-turned-politicians like him. The most dramatic program--“capitalization,” a form of privatization under which investors acquired 50% ownership and management control of the state oil corporation, telecommunications system, airlines, railroads, and electric utilities--was used to generate funds for a new pension and healthcare system called BonoSol. BonoSol funding was popular in the country but the concept of capitalization was strongly opposed by certain segments of society, with frequent and sometimes violent protests from 1994 through 1996. During his term, Sanchez de Lozada also created the "Popular Participation Law," which devolved much of the central government's authority to newly-created municipalities, and the INRA law, which significantly furthered land redistribution efforts begun under the MNR after the 1952 revolution.

In the 1997 elections, Gen. Hugo Banzer, leader of the ADN, returned to power democratically after defeating the MNR candidate. The Banzer government continued the free market and privatization policies of its predecessor. The relatively robust economic growth of the mid-1990s continued until regional, global, and domestic factors contributed to a decline in economic growth. Job creation remained limited throughout this period, and public perception of corruption was high. Both factors contributed to an increase in social protests during the second half of Banzer’s term.

Rising international demand for cocaine in the 1980s and 1990s led to a boom in coca production and to significant peasant migration to the Chapare region. To reverse this, Banzer instructed special police units to physically eradicate the illegal coca in the Chapare. The policy produced a sudden and dramatic 4-year decline in Bolivia’s illegal coca crop, to the point that Bolivia became a relatively small supplier of coca for cocaine. In 2001, Banzer resigned from office after being diagnosed with cancer. He died less than a year later. Banzer’s U.S.-educated vice president, Jorge Quiroga, completed the final year of the term.

In the 2002 national elections, former President Sanchez de Lozada (MNR) again placed first with 22.5% of the vote, followed by coca union leader Evo Morales (Movement Toward Socialism, MAS) with 20.9%. The MNR platform featured three overarching objectives: economic reactivation (and job creation), anti-corruption, and social inclusion.

A 4-year economic recession, difficult fiscal situation, and longstanding tensions between the military and police led to the February 12-13, 2003, violence that left more than 30 people dead and nearly toppled Sanchez de Lozada’s government. The government stayed in power, but was unpopular.

Trouble began again in the so-called “Gas Wars” of September/October 2003, which sparked over a proposed project to export liquefied natural gas, most likely through Chile. A hunger strike by Aymara leader and congressional deputy Felipe “Mallku” Quispe led his followers to begin blocking roads near Lake Titicaca. About 800 tourists, including some foreigners, were trapped in the town of Sorata. After days of unsuccessful negotiations, Bolivian security forces launched a rescue operation, but on the way out, were ambushed by armed peasants and a number of people were killed on both sides. The incident ignited passions throughout the highlands and united a loose coalition of protestors to pressure the government. Anti-Chile sentiment and memories of three major cycles of non-renewable commodity exports (silver through the 19th century, guano and rubber late in the 19th century, and tin in the 20th century) touched a nerve with many citizens. Tensions grew and La Paz was subjected to protesters’ blockades. Violent confrontations ensued, and approximately 60 people died when security forces tried to bring supplies into the besieged city.

On October 17, large demonstrations under the leadership of Evo Morales forced Sanchez de Lozada to resign. Vice President Carlos Mesa Gisbert assumed office and restored order. Mesa appointed a non-political cabinet and promised to revise the constitution through a constituent assembly, revise the hydrocarbons law, and hold a binding referendum on whether to develop the country’s natural gas deposits, including for export. The referendum took place on July 18, 2004, and Bolivians voted overwhelmingly in favor of development of the nation’s hydrocarbons resources. But the referendum did not end social unrest. In May 2005, large-scale protests led to the congressional approval of a law establishing a 32% direct tax on hydrocarbons production, which the government used to fund new social programs. After a brief pause, demonstrations resumed, particularly in La Paz and El Alto. President Mesa offered his resignation on June 6, and Eduardo Rodriguez, the president of the Supreme Court, assumed office in a constitutional transfer of power. Rodriguez announced that he was a transitional president, and called for elections within 6 months.

Evo Morales Elected
On December 18, 2005, the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) candidate Juan Evo Morales Ayma was elected to the presidency by 54% of the voters. Bolivia’s first president to represent the indigenous majority, Morales continued to serve as leader of the country’s coca unions. During his campaign, Morales vowed to nationalize hydrocarbons and to empower the indigenous population. Morales was highly critical of what he termed “neo-liberal” economic policies. On January 22, 2006, Morales and Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera were inaugurated.

On May 1, 2006, the government issued a decree nationalizing the hydrocarbons sector and calling for the renegotiation of contracts with hydrocarbons companies. Morales promoted greater state control of natural resource industries, particularly hydrocarbons and mining, and of the telecommunications sector (see Economy section). These policies pleased Morales’ supporters but complicated Bolivia’s relations with some of its neighboring countries, foreign investors, and members of the international community.

Fulfilling another campaign promise, Morales convoked a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. The assembly convened on August 6, 2006, and planned to complete its work by August 2007; however, the Congress extended its mandate to December 2007 after the assembly faced political deadlock over its voting rules. The MAS approved a constitution without the opposition vote in November 2007, in a controversial assembly session in which opposition delegates were blocked from voting by demonstrators and the armed forces. On December 14, 2007, Morales presented the constitutional text to the National Congress to request a referendum for its approval in 2008. The opposition-controlled Senate prevented the referendum legislation from moving forward.

Political tensions between the government and the opposition over the new constitution, autonomy statutes passed by some departmental legislatures, and disputes over the division of tax proceeds from the hydrocarbon industry led to civil unrest, which culminated in violent discord in August and September 2008 in eastern departments.

On October 21, 2008, with a crowd of at least 50,000 pro-government supporters surrounding the National Congress, the government and congressional opposition agreed on final draft text for the new constitution. Voters approved the new constitution on January 25, 2009, and it entered into force on February 7, 2009. The new constitution called for national elections to be held in December.

Current Administration
President Morales was re-elected on December 6, 2009, with 64% of the vote, followed by former Cochabamba Prefect Manfred Reyes Villa (27%) and business leader Samuel Doria Medina (6%). The ruling MAS party won 88 out of 130 deputy races and 26 out of 36 Senate seats, gaining a two-thirds majority of the Plurinational Assembly.

After re-election, President Morales prioritized implementation of the new constitution. Morales and Vice President Garcia Linera pledged to move the country toward "communitarian socialism," with an "integrated" economic system featuring a strong state presence. The Morales administration promised greater investment in infrastructure, education, health, and a "great leap forward" in industrialization (including development of lithium reserves and the country's first satellite).

On January 23, 2010 Morales announced sweeping changes to his cabinet, removing 14 of 20 ministers, including the key posts of defense, government, and the presidency. The 2009 constitution included mandates for implementing legislation, including five major pieces of legislation by July 2010. Required legislation included bills to codify and coordinate interactions between the co-equal "ordinary" and indigenous justice systems; reform and restructure the country's Supreme Court, Constitutional Tribunal, and National Electoral Court (considered the fourth branch of government); and define the roles and responsibilities of the central government and four autonomy levels: departmental, regional, municipal, and indigenous.

GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION
A new constitution was promulgated February 7, 2009, replacing Bolivia’s 1967 constitution. The 2009 constitution provides for legislative, executive, judicial, and electoral branches of government.

The National Congress, renamed Plurinational Assembly, is composed of two bodies: the Chamber of Deputies and the Chamber of Senators. The Chamber of Deputies has 130 members, with 70 members selected by direct vote, 53 by party list, and seven in special indigenous areas. The Chamber of Senators has 36 members, with 4 from each of the 9 departments. The executive consists of the president, vice president, and the ministers of state. The president and vice president are selected through national elections. The ministers of state are appointed.

The judiciary consists of a Supreme Court, an independent Constitutional Tribunal, a Supreme Electoral Tribunal, and departmental and lower courts. The 2009 constitution reformed the procedure for selecting judicial officials for the Supreme Court, Constitutional Tribunal, and Supreme Electoral Tribunal to make these officials subject to election by national vote. To stand for election, candidates first must be approved by a two-thirds majority vote of all Plurinational Assembly members present.

The 2009 constitution strengthened the executive branch and centralized political and economic decision-making. It also provided new powers and responsibilities at the departmental, municipal, and regional areas, as well as in newly-created indigenous autonomous areas.

Principal Government Officials
President--Juan Evo MORALES Ayma
Vice President--Alvaro GARCIA Linera
Minister of Foreign Affairs--David CHOQUEHUANCA Cespedes
Charge d’Affaires of the Bolivian Mission to the United States--Freddy Bersatti
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Diego PARY Rodriguez
Ambassador to the United Nations--Rafael Archondo

Bolivia maintains an embassy in the United States at 3014 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-483-4410); consulates in Washington, DC (tel. 202-232-4827), Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, New Orleans, and New York; and honorary consulates in Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Houston, Mobile, Seattle, St. Louis, and San Juan.

ECONOMY
Bolivia’s estimated 2010 gross domestic product (GDP) totaled $19.8 billion. Economic growth was estimated at about 4.1%, and inflation was estimated at about 7.2%.

In 1985, the Government of Bolivia implemented a far-reaching program of macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform aimed at maintaining price stability, creating conditions for sustained growth, and alleviating poverty. The most important change involved the “capitalization” (privatization) of numerous public sector enterprises. Parallel legislative reforms locked in place market-oriented policies that encouraged private investment. Foreign investors were accorded national treatment, and foreign ownership of companies was virtually unrestricted. Many of these reforms are currently under review. President Morales nationalized the hydrocarbon sector and expropriated some large international companies, including Entel (telecommunications) and Vinto (tin smelting). Increased state control of the economy continues to be a primary goal of the Morales administration. Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have dwindled, as has long-term investment across most industrial sectors.

The hydrocarbon sector provides the most prominent example of the country's investment climate. Bolivia has the second-largest natural gas reserves in South America. The Bolivian state oil corporation, Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), has contracts to supply Brazil with natural gas through existing pipelines until 2019. Moreover, in 2006, YPFB signed a “ramp-up” contract with Argentina to steadily increase export levels until 2010, by which time gas deliveries to Argentina were to have increased four-fold. However, lack of substantial investment between 2005 and 2009 meant that gas production stagnated, increasing by less than 10% over 4 years. Companies appeared to be investing only what was necessary to maintain existing operations. The 2010 production level was estimated at 41.7 million cubic meters/day.

Bolivian exports were approximately $7 billion for 2010, up from $652 million in 1991. Imports were $5.3 billion in 2010. Bolivia enjoyed an estimated $1.6 billion trade surplus in 2010. Hydrocarbons made up 42.3% of the exports, minerals 26.6%, manufacturing 25.9%, and agriculture 4%. Bolivian tariffs are low; however, manufacturers complain that the tax-rebate program that allows some companies to claim refunds of import taxes on capital equipment is inefficient, with many companies now owed millions of dollars by the Bolivian Government, which can take years to recover.

Bolivia’s trade with neighboring countries is growing, in part because of several regional preferential trade agreements. Bolivia is a member of the Andean Community (CAN) and enjoys nominally free trade with other member countries (Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia). Bolivia is also an associate member of Mercosur (Southern Cone Common Market). Bolivia currently is focused on developing markets through its membership in Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) whose members include Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua.

Until recently, the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) allowed numerous Bolivian products to enter the United States duty-free, including alpaca and llama products and, subject to a quota, cotton textiles. Effective December 15, 2008, President George W. Bush suspended Bolivia’s participation in the program based on its failure to meet international counternarcotics obligations; meeting those obligations is a criterion in the U.S. statute that created the preference program. Following the lapse of the Andean trade act in February 2011, efforts to renew it began. Bolivia's status under the ATPDEA would not affect its eligibility for benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) covering most of Bolivia’s exports to the United States.

In 2010 the United States exported $707 million of merchandise to Bolivia and imported $660 million. Bolivia’s major exports to the United States are tin, silver and silver concentrates, petroleum products, Brazil nuts, quinoa, and jewelry. Its major imports from the United States are airplane parts, electronic equipment, chemicals, vehicles, wheat, and machinery. A bilateral investment treaty (BIT) between the United States and Bolivia came into effect in 2001. While the Morales government has stated that it will respect all current BITs, officials have also publicly expressed Bolivia’s intent to “re-open” these treaties to align them with the 2009 constitution.

Agriculture accounts for roughly 10.4% of Bolivia’s GDP. The amount of land cultivated by modern farming techniques is increasing rapidly in the Santa Cruz area, where climate permits two crops a year. Soybeans are the major cash crop, sold in the CAN market. The extraction of minerals and hydrocarbons accounts for another 14.1% of GDP and manufacturing around 11.3%.

The Government of Bolivia remains heavily dependent on foreign assistance to finance development projects. Estimates indicate that as of 2008, the government owed $4.6 billion to foreign creditors. Between 1986 and 1998, Bolivia attended seven rounds of negotiations with Paris Club creditors and received U.S. $1.35 billion of bilateral debt forgiveness. The United States forgave almost all of Bolivia’s bilateral debt between 1999 and 2002 and strongly supported efforts to have multilateral institutions do the same. Bolivia received U.S. $1.95 billion in debt relief from the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) initiative in 1998 and HIPC II in 2001, including almost complete bilateral debt forgiveness.

In June 2005, the G-8 countries decided to provide renewed World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) debt relief for the 18 participant nations of HIPC I and II through the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). Bolivia received U.S. $232.5 million in debt relief from the IMF in January 2006 and approximately U.S. $1.5 billion in debt relief from the World Bank in June 2006. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) forgave $1 billion in debt in March 2007. Bolivia was one of three countries in the Western Hemisphere selected for eligibility for the Millennium Challenge Account in 2004. Bolivia qualified again in 2005 and 2006, and presented a proposal to the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) in December 2005, which was superseded by a new proposal submitted September 2007. An MCC assessment scheduled for December 2007 was postponed due to unrest surrounding the constituent assembly process. MCC’s technical engagement with Bolivia remained on hold for a year due to internal political instability. Since 2008, Bolivia has continued to seek eligibility for compact assistance.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Bolivia traditionally has maintained normal diplomatic relations with all hemispheric states except Chile. Relations with Chile, strained since Bolivia’s defeat in the War of the Pacific (1879-83) and its loss of the coastal province of Atacama, were severed from 1962 to 1975 in a dispute over the use of the waters of the Lauca River. Relations were resumed in 1975, but broken again in 1978, over the inability of the two countries to reach an agreement that might have granted Bolivia sovereign access to the sea. Relations with Chile improved during the Michelle Bachelet administration. They are maintained today below the ambassadorial level. In June 2009, Peru recalled its ambassador over accusations of Bolivian involvement in its internal political affairs and personal attacks by President Morales on Peruvian President Alan Garcia.

In the 1960s, relations with Cuba were broken following Fidel Castro’s rise to power, but resumed under the Paz Estenssoro administration in 1985. Under President Morales, relations between Bolivia and Cuba have improved considerably, and Cuba has sent doctors and teachers to Bolivia. Relations with Venezuela are close, with the Venezuelan Government providing financial assistance to Bolivian municipalities, the armed forces, and the police since Morales took office. The Bolivian Government announced in September 2007 that it would pursue diplomatic relations with Iran and Libya, with plans to cooperate in the petrochemical industry and increase Bolivian exports to both countries.

Bolivia is a member of the UN and some of its specialized agencies and related programs, the Organization of American States (OAS), CAN, Non-Aligned Movement, International Parliamentary Union, Latin American Integration Association (ALADI), World Trade Organization (WTO), Rio Treaty, Rio Group, Amazon Pact, UNASUR, ALBA, and an associate member of Mercosur. As an outgrowth of the 1994 Summit of the Americas, Bolivia hosted a hemispheric summit conference on sustainable development in December 1996. UNASUR’s “parliament” will be located in Cochabamba, in the geographic center of Bolivia.

U.S.-BOLIVIAN RELATIONS
The United States and Bolivia have traditionally had cordial and cooperative relations. Development assistance from the United States to Bolivia dates from the 1940s; the U.S. remains a major partner for economic development, improved health, democracy, and the environment. In 1991, the U.S. Government forgave a $341 million debt owed by Bolivia to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as well as 80% ($31 million) of the amount owed to the Department of Agriculture for food assistance. The United States has also been a strong supporter of forgiveness of Bolivia’s multilateral debt under the HIPC initiatives.

The United States Government channels its development assistance to Bolivia through USAID. USAID is well known in Bolivia, especially in rural areas where thousands of projects have been implemented. USAID has been providing assistance to Bolivia since the 1960s and works with the Government of Bolivia, the private sector, and the Bolivian people to achieve equitable and sustainable development. In fiscal year 2011 USAID/Bolivia provided about $52 million in development assistance through bilateral agreements with the Bolivian Government and unilateral agreements with non-governmental organizations. USAID’s programs support Bolivia’s National Development Plan and are designed to address key issues, such as poverty and the social exclusion of historically disadvantaged populations, focusing efforts on Bolivia’s peri-urban and rural populations. USAID’s programs in Bolivia provide economic opportunities for disadvantaged populations through business development and trade, provide farmers with alternatives to illicit coca cultivation, improve food security, improve family health, strengthen democratic institutions, and promote sustainable use of natural resources and biodiversity conservation.

Bilateral relations have deteriorated sharply during the Morales administration, as the Bolivian Government escalated public attacks against the U.S. Government and began to dismantle key partnerships. In June 2008, the government endorsed the expulsion of USAID from Bolivia’s largest coca-growing region. In a dramatic action which culminated a period of intense Bolivian Government hostility toward the United States, in September 2008, President Morales accused Ambassador Philip S. Goldberg of conspiring against the government, declared him "persona non grata," and expelled him from Bolivia. President Morales never offered proof for his accusation, which the U.S. Government rejected as baseless. In a reciprocal action, the Department of State expelled Bolivian Ambassador Gustavo Guzman later that month. In November 2008, President Morales expelled the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from the country, ending a 35-year history of engagement against narcotics production and trafficking.

Since May 2009, the U.S. and Bolivian governments have engaged in a dialogue to improve relations. The Bolivian Government has proposed a new framework agreement to define relations, which is being negotiated as part of the bilateral dialogue. In the meantime, U.S. assistance programs to promote health and welfare, advance economic development, and fight narcotics production and trafficking remain active and effective in advancing common goals in Bolivia.

Bolivia’s international obligation to control illegal narcotics is a major issue in the bilateral relationship. For centuries, a limited quantity of Bolivian coca leaf has been chewed and used in traditional rituals, but in the 1970s and 1980s the emergence of the drug trade led to a rapid expansion of coca cultivation used to make cocaine, particularly in the tropical Chapare region in the Department of Cochabamba (not a traditional coca growing area). In 1988, a new law, Law 1008, recognized only 12,000 hectares in the Yungas as sufficient to meet the licit demand of coca. Law 1008 also explicitly stated that coca grown in the Chapare was not required to meet traditional demand for chewing or for tea, and the law called for the eradication, over time, of all “excess” coca.

To accomplish that goal, successive Bolivian governments instituted programs offering cash compensation to coca farmers who eradicated voluntarily, and the government began developing and promoting suitable alternative crops for peasants to grow. Beginning in 1997, the government launched a more effective policy of physically uprooting the illegal coca plants. Bolivia’s illegal coca production fell over the next 4 years by up to 90%.

This “forced” eradication remains controversial, however, and well-organized coca growers unions have blocked roads, harassed police eradicators, and occasionally used violence to protest the policy. In response, previous government security forces have used force. In some cases confrontations between security forces and coca growers or distributors have resulted in injuries and fatalities, raising human rights concerns. The Morales government has embarked on a policy of voluntary eradication and social control. Although violent confrontations between police and coca growers/distributors have decreased under the new approach, its long-term efficacy remains to be proven.

Bolivia plans to expand legal coca production to 20,000 hectares and stresses development of legal commercial uses for coca leaf. The United States prefers long-term limits that track more closely with current estimated legal domestic demand of around 4,000 to 6,000 hectares. UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates place current cultivation at just over 30,000 hectares.

The United States has supported efforts to interdict the smuggling of coca leaves, cocaine, and precursor chemicals, as well as investigate and prosecute trafficking organizations. However, these efforts have been significantly constrained after the expulsion of DEA. The U.S. Government continues to finance alternative development programs and the counternarcotics police effort.

In addition to working closely with Bolivian Government officials to strengthen bilateral relations, the U.S. Embassy provides a wide range of services to U.S. citizens and businesses. Political and economic officers interact directly with the Bolivian Government in advancing U.S. interests, but are also available to provide information to American citizens on local economic and political conditions in the country. Commercial officers work closely with numerous U.S. companies that operate direct subsidiaries or have investments in Bolivia. The officers also provide information on Bolivian trade and industry regulations and on administering several programs intended to aid U.S. companies starting or maintaining businesses in Bolivia.

The Consular Section of the Embassy, and the two consular agencies in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, provide vital services to the estimated 13,000 American citizens who reside in Bolivia. Among other services, the Consular Section and the consular agencies assist Americans who wish to participate in U.S. elections while abroad and also provide notarial services. Additionally, some 40,000 U.S. citizens visit Bolivia annually. The Consular Section also offers passport and emergency services to tourists as needed during their stay in Bolivia. In 2008, the Bolivian Government began requiring that U.S. citizens obtain visas to visit Bolivia; more information about visa procedures can be found at http://bolivia.usembassy.gov. In addition to the services provided to U.S. citizens, the Consular Section adjudicates thousands of immigrant and non-immigrant visas at the Embassy in La Paz each year.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Charge d’Affaires--John Creamer
Deputy Chief of Mission--William Mozdzierz (acting)
Political/Economic/Commercial Officer--Geoffrey Schadrack
Director, Narcotics Affairs--Sandy Robinson
Public Affairs Officer--David Hodge
Consular Chief--Kate Flachsbart
Defense Attache--Col. Jeffrey Spraggins
Commander, U.S. Military Group--Col. Daniel Barreto
Director, USAID Mission--Wayne Nilsestuen

U.S. Embassy
Avenida Arce #2780
La Paz, Bolivia
Tel. 591-2-216-8000

U.S. Consular Agency in Santa Cruz
Tel. 591-3 -351-3477

U.S. Consular Agency in Cochabamba
Tel. 591-4-411-6313

USAID/Bolivia
P.O. Box 4530
Calle Nueve No. 104, Obrajes
La Paz - Bolivia
Tel. 591-2-278-6544
http://bolivia.usaid.gov/index_en.php

Other Contact Information
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Main Switchboard: 202-647-4000

Department of Commerce, Trade Information Center, International Trade Administration
1401 Constitution Avenue
Washington, DC 20230
Tel: 800-USA-TRADE
Internet: Country Commercial Guide for Bolivia - http://www.export.gov/mrktresearch/index.asp

U.S. exporters seeking general export information/assistance or country-specific commercial information should consult with the nearest Export Assistance Center or the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Trade Information Center at (800) USA-TRADE, or go to the following website: http://www.export.gov

American Chamber of Commerce in Bolivia
Edificio Hilda, Oficina 3
Avenida 6 de Agosto
Apartado Postal 8268
La Paz, Bolivia
Tel: 591-2-2432573
Fax: 591-2-2432472

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 51,129 sq. km, slightly smaller than West Virginia.
Cities: Capital--Sarajevo (est. pop 387,876); Banja Luka (220,407); Mostar (208,904); Tuzla (118,500); Bihac (49,544).
Terrain: Mountains in the central and southern regions, plains along the Sava River in the north.
Climate: Hot summers and cold winters; areas of high elevation have short, cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy winters in the southeast.

People
Nationalities: Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim), Bosnian Croat, Bosnian Serb.
Population (July 2004 est.): 3.8 million (Note: all data dealing with population are subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by armed conflict and ethnic cleansing from 1992-95. The most recent census was conducted in 1991.)
Population growth rate (2004 est.): 0.45%.
Ethnic groups: Bosniak 48.3%, Serb 34.0%, Croat 15.4%, others 2.3%. (Source: UNDP Human Development Report 2002--Bosnia-Herzegovina)
Religions: Muslim (40%); Orthodox (31%); Catholic (15%); Protestant (4%); other (10%).
Languages: Bosnian, Serbian, Croatian (formerly "Serbo-Croatian").
Education: 9 years of mandatory primary school, 3-4 years of secondary school (vocational or liberal arts), 3 years of undergraduate study and 2 years of graduate study at universities (depending on major). In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there are 1,089 primary schools with 359,902 students, 289 secondary schools with 148,100 students, and 20 universities with 139 faculties plus 10 academies and 4 religious faculties with 105,488 students. The main public universities are in larger cities (Sarajevo, Mostar, Banja Luka, Tuzla, Bihac, Zenica), and there are a number of private institutions of higher education. Adult literacy rate--male 94.1%, female 78.0%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2005 est.)--21.05 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2005 est.)--male 70.09 years, female 75.8 years.
Work force (2001 est.): 1.026 million.

Government
Type: Parliamentary democracy.
Constitution: The Dayton Agreement, signed December 14, 1995, included a new constitution now in force.
Independence: April 1992 (from Yugoslavia).
Branches: Executive--Chairman of the Presidency and two other members of three-member rotating presidency (head of state), Chairman of the Council of Ministers (head of government), Council of Ministers (cabinet). Legislative--bicameral parliamentary assembly, consisting of a House of Representatives and a House of Peoples. Judicial--Constitutional Court; Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has jurisdiction over war crimes, terrorism, human trafficking, and organized and serious economic crimes; Ministry of Justice.
Subdivisions: Two Entities: Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (divided into 10 cantons) and Republika Srpska. In accordance with Annex 2, Article V, of the Dayton Peace Agreement that left the unresolved status of Brcko subject to binding international arbitration, an Arbitration Tribunal was formed in mid-1996. On March 5, 1999, the Tribunal issued its Final Award. The Final Award established a special District for the entire pre-war Brcko Municipality (Opstina), under the exclusive sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The territory of the District belongs simultaneously to both Entities, the Republika Srpska and the Federation, in condominium. Amendment I to the BiH constitution, passed in March 2009, codifies this status in the constitution. In accordance with the Final Award, the District is self-governing and has a single, unitary, multiethnic, democratic Government; a unified and multiethnic police force operating under a single command structure; and an independent judiciary. The District Government exercises, throughout the pre-war Brcko Municipality, those powers previously exercised by the two Entities and the former three municipal governments. The Brcko District is demilitarized.
Political parties: Party of Democratic Action (SDA); Social Democratic Party (SDP); Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina (SBiH); Alliance for a Better Future of BiH (SBB-BiH); Bosnian Patriotic Party (BPS); National Democratic Union (DNZ); Bosnian Party (BOSS); Civil Democratic Party (GDS); Liberal Democratic Party (LDS); Social Democratic Union (SDU); Croatian Democratic Union of BiH (HDZ-BiH); Croatian Democratic Union-1990 (HDZ-1990); People’s Party of Work for Progress; Croatian Party of Rights-Djapic/Jurisic (HSP-D/J); Christian Democratic Union of BiH (HKDU); Croat Peasants’ Party-New Croat Initiative (HSS-NHI); Croatian Peoples’ Union; Nasa Stranka (NS); Serbian Democratic Party (SDS); Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD); Socialist Party (SP); Party for Democratic Progress (PDP); Democratic Party (DP); New Socialist Party (NSP); Serb Radical Party of the Republika Srpska (SRS-RS); Serb Radical Party-Dr. Vojislav Seselj (SRS-VS); Democratic Peoples' Alliance (DNS).
Suffrage: Universal at age 18.

Economy
Nominal GDP (2009): $17.1 billion. (U.S. $1 = 1.45 KM)
GDP real growth rate (2009 est.): -3.2%.
Nominal GDP per capita: $4,700.
Inflation rate (2010 est.): 2.5%.
Average monthly net salary (2010): $550.
Natural resources: Hydropower, coal, iron ore, bauxite, manganese, forests, copper, chromium, lead, zinc, cobalt, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand, forests, alumina.
Agriculture: Products--wheat, corn, fruits, vegetables, livestock.
Industry: Steel, aluminum, minerals, vehicle assembly, textiles, tobacco products, wood furniture, explosives, munitions, aircraft repair, domestic appliances, oil refining, cement and concrete.
Trade (2010 Central Bank figures): Exports--$4.4 billion. Imports--$8.4 billion.

PEOPLE AND HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS
The three constituent peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina are Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats, and languages are Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian. Religions include Islam, Serbian Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, Judaism, some Protestant sects, and some others.

For the first centuries of the Christian era, present-day Bosnia was part of the Roman Empire. After the fall of Rome, it was contested by Byzantium and Rome's successors in the west. Slavs settled the region in the 7th century. The medieval kingdom of Bosnia emerged in the 12th century and ended in 1463, when Ottoman Turks conquered the region.

During Ottoman rule, many Bosnians converted from Christianity to Islam. Bosnia was under Ottoman rule until 1878, when the Congress of Berlin transferred administrative control to Austria-Hungary. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia in 1908. While those living in Bosnia came under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, South Slavs in Serbia and elsewhere were calling for a South Slav state. World War I began when Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip assassinated the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. Following the Great War, Bosnia became part of the South Slav state of Yugoslavia, only to be given to the Nazi-puppet state, the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) during World War II. Many atrocities were committed against Jews, Serbs, and others who resisted the occupation from 1941-45. The end of the war saw the establishment of a Communist, federal Yugoslavia under wartime leader Josip Broz Tito, with Bosnia and Herzegovina as one of six republics in the Yugoslav federation.

After Tito died in 1980, Yugoslavia's unraveling was hastened by Slobodan Milosevic's rise to power in 1986. Milosevic's embrace of Serb nationalism led to intrastate ethnic strife. Slovenia and Croatia both declared independence from Yugoslavia in June 1991. By late September 1991, Bosnian Serb Radovan Karadzic's Serbian Democratic Party (SDS) had declared four self-proclaimed "Serb Autonomous Regions (SAO)" in Bosnia. In October 1991, the Bosnian Serbs announced the formation within Bosnia of a "Serbian Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina" that would have its own constitution and parliamentary assembly. In January 1992, Radovan Karadzic publicly proclaimed a fully independent "Republic of the Serbian People in Bosnia-Herzegovina." On March 1, 1992, the Bosnian Government held a referendum on independence. Bosnia's parliament declared the republic's independence on April 5, 1992. However, this move was opposed by Serb representatives, who had voted in their own referendum in November 1991 in favor of remaining in Yugoslavia. Bosnian Serbs, supported by neighboring Serbia, responded with armed force in an effort to partition the republic along ethnic lines. Recognition of Bosnia and Herzegovina's independence by the United States and the European Community occurred on April 6-7, and Bosnia and Herzegovina was admitted to the United Nations on May 22, 1992.

In March 1994, Muslims and Croats in Bosnia signed an agreement creating the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, ending a period of Muslim-Croat conflict. The conflict with the Bosnian Serbs continued through most of 1995. Many atrocities were committed, including acts of genocide committed by members of the Army of Republika Srpska in and around Srebrenica in July 1995, where approximately 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were killed. The conflict ended with the November 21, 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement, which was formally signed on December 14, 1995 in Paris.

Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, the political and military leaders of the Bosnian Serbs, were indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (http://www.icty.org/) in The Hague in July 1995 on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity stemming from their role in crimes against civilians throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina culminating in the Srebrenica massacre. Karadzic was apprehended and transferred to the ICTY in The Hague by Serbian authorities on July 21, 2008. Mladic was apprehended in Serbia on May 26, 2011 and transferred to The Hague on June 1, 2011.

Bosnia and Herzegovina today consists of two Entities--the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), which is largely Bosniak and Croat, and the Republika Srpska (RS), which is primarily Serb. In July 2000, the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rendered a decision whereby Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs are recognized as constituent peoples throughout the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In March 2002, this decision was formally recognized and agreed on by the major political parties in both Entities.

The most recent national elections took place in October 2010, electing new state presidency members; state, Entity, and cantonal parliaments; and the RS presidency. The BiH presidency was sworn in on November 10, 2010. The RS government was formed in December 2010, and the Federation government was formed in March 2011. Talks are ongoing to form a state-level government. The next municipal elections are scheduled to occur in 2012, and the next general elections will take place in 2014. In October 2008, Bosnia and Herzegovina held municipal elections, where mayors and members of municipal assemblies were directly elected (in all municipalities except Mostar and Brcko District).

The international community retains an extraordinary civilian and military presence in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) stemming from the Dayton Peace Accords. The Dayton Accords created the position of High Representative, an international official charged with overseeing implementation of the civilian aspects of the agreement. The current High Representative (since March 2009) is Austria's Valentin Inzko (www.ohr.int).

In December 1995, NATO deployed a 60,000-troop Implementation Force (IFOR) to oversee implementation of the military aspects of the peace agreement. IFOR transitioned into a smaller Stabilization Force (SFOR) in 1996. With the end of the SFOR mission in December 2004, the European Union (EU) assumed primary responsibility for military stabilization operations. Approximately 1,600 EU troops remain deployed in Bosnia (www.euforbih.org). NATO maintains a small headquarters operation with responsibility to assist with defense reform and efforts against persons indicted for war crimes and counterterrorism.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
General Government Framework Information and Information Regarding the President and the Cabinet. Under the provisions of the Dayton Peace Accords, the Entities have competencies in areas such as taxation, except indirect taxation, business development, and general legislation. Entities and cantons control their own budgets, spending on infrastructure, health care, and education. Ongoing reforms have led to the creation of a single, multi-ethnic military under state-level command and control to replace the previous Entity-based institutions and a state-level Indirect Taxation Administration (ITA) that is responsible for the implementation of a nationwide value-added tax (VAT), revenues from which are collected in the "Single Account." The Single Account funds the governments of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the country's foreign debt, the two Entities, and Brcko District. Customs, which had been collected by agencies of the two Entities, also are now collected by a new single state customs service.

Presidency. The Chairmanship of the Presidency in Bosnia and Herzegovina rotates every 8 months among three Presidency members (Bosniak, Serb, Croat), each elected for a 4-year term. The three members of the Presidency are directly elected (the Federation votes for the Bosniak and Croat, and the Republika Srpska for the Serb).

The Presidency is responsible for:

• Conducting the foreign policy of Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• Appointing ambassadors and other international representatives, no more than two-thirds of whom may come from the Federation;
• Representing Bosnia and Herzegovina in European and international organizations and institutions and seeking membership in such organizations and institutions of which it is not a member;
• Negotiating and, with the consent of the Parliamentary Assembly, ratifying treaties of Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• Executing decisions of the Parliamentary Assembly;
• Proposing, upon the recommendation of the Council of Ministers, an annual budget to the Parliamentary Assembly;
• Reporting as requested, but no less than annually, to the Parliamentary Assembly on expenditures by the Presidency;
• Coordinating as necessary with international and non-governmental organizations in Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• Exercising command and control over the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina in peacetime, crises, and war, and;
• Performing such other functions as may be necessary to carry out its duties, as may be assigned to it by the Parliamentary Assembly, or as may be agreed by the Entities.

The Chair of the Council of Ministers is nominated by the Presidency and approved by the House of Representatives. He is then responsible for appointing a Foreign Minister, Minister of Defense, Minister of Foreign Trade, and others as appropriate. The Council is responsible for carrying out the policies and decisions in the fields of defense, intelligence, foreign policy; foreign trade policy; customs policy; monetary policy; finances of the institutions and for the international obligations of Bosnia and Herzegovina; immigration, refugee, and asylum policy and regulation; international and inter-Entity criminal law enforcement, including relations with Interpol; establishment and operation of common and international communications facilities; regulation of inter-Entity transportation; air traffic control; facilitation of inter-Entity coordination; and other matters as agreed by the Entities.

Legislature. The Parliamentary Assembly is the lawmaking body in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It consists of two houses: the House of Peoples and the House of Representatives.

The House of Peoples includes 15 delegates, two-thirds of whom come from the Federation (5 Croats and 5 Bosniaks) and one-third from the Republika Srpska (5 Serbs). Nine members of the House of Peoples constitute a quorum, provided that at least three delegates from each ethnic group are present. Federation representatives are selected by the House of Peoples of the Federation, and Republika Srpska representatives are selected by the Republika Srpska National Assembly.

The House of Representatives is composed of 42 members, two-thirds elected from the Federation and one-third elected from the Republika Srpska. Federation representatives are elected directly by the voters of the Federation, and Republika Srpska representatives are directly elected by Republika Srpska voters.

The Parliamentary Assembly is responsible for enacting legislation as necessary to implement decisions of the Presidency or to carry out the responsibilities of the Assembly under the constitution; deciding upon the sources and amounts of revenues for the operations of the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and international obligations of Bosnia and Herzegovina; approving a budget for the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina; and deciding whether to consent to the ratification of treaties.

Judiciary. Bosnia and Herzegovina has a multi-layered and decentralized judicial system consisting of 14 Justice Ministries and numerous courts. The FBiH has the Constitutional Court of FBiH, the Supreme Court of FBiH, 10 cantonal courts, and municipal courts, as well as minor offense courts. The RS has the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska, the Supreme Court of Republika Srpska, district courts, and basic courts, as well as minor offense courts. Brcko District also has its own courts.

The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina (State Court), established by December 8, 2000 legislation, has criminal, administrative, and appeals departments and jurisdiction only over specific types of crimes, such as war crimes, financial crimes (e.g., official corruption and human trafficking), and crimes against the State (e.g., treason and terrorism). Unlike the BiH Constitutional Court, which is the final authority on questions of constitutionality, the State Court operates alongside, not above, the Federation and RS Supreme Courts.

The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina was first established in 1964. It decides any constitutional dispute that arises between the Entities or between Bosnia and Herzegovina and an Entity or Entities. The BiH Constitutional Court also has appellate jurisdiction over issues related to the constitution arising out of a judgment from another court in the country, and jurisdiction over issues referred to it by another court concerning compatibility with the constitution, the European Convention for Human Rights and its associated protocols, laws of BiH, or international law pertinent to a court decision. The BiH Constitutional Court is composed of nine members: four are selected by the House of Representatives of the Federation, two by the Assembly of the Republika Srpska, and three by the President of the European Court of Human Rights after consultation with the Presidency.

Principal Government Officials

State Level
Tri-Presidency--Zeljko Komsic (Bosnian Croat and current chairman), Bakir Izetbegovic (Bosniak), Nebojsa Radmanovic (Bosnian Serb)
Chairman of the Council of Ministers--Nikola Spiric

Council of Ministers
Foreign Affairs--Sven Alkalaj
Deputy--Ana Trisic-Babic
Defense--Selmo Cikotic
Deputies--Marina Pendes and Zivko Marjanac
Foreign Trade and Economic Relations--Mladen Zirojevic
Deputy--Vilim Primorac
Finance--Dragan Vrankic
Deputy--Fuad Kasumovic
Civil Affairs--Sredoje Novic
Deputy--Senad Sepic
Human Rights and Refugees--Safet Halilovic
Deputy--Slavko Marin
Security--Sadik Ahmetovic
Deputy--Mijo Kresic
Justice--Barisa Colak
Deputy--Srdan Arnaut
Transport and Communications--Rudo Vidovic
Deputy--Mladen Simic

BIH Parliament--House of Representatives
Speaker--Denis Becirovic
Deputy Speaker--Milorad Zivkovic
Deputy Speaker--Bozo Ljubic

BIH Parliament--House of Peoples
Speaker--Ognjen Tadic
Deputy Speaker--Dragan Covic
Deputy Speaker--Sulejman Tihic

Federation
President--Zivko Budimir (Croat)
Vice President--Mirsad Kebo (Bosniak)
Vice President--Svetozar Pudaric (Serb)
Prime Minister--Nermin Niksic
Deputy Prime Minister--Jerko Ivankovic-Lijanovic (also Minister of Agriculture)
Deputy Prime Minister--Desnica Radivojevic (also Minister of Urban Planning)

Federation Government
Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry--Jerko Ivankovic-Lijanovic (also Deputy Prime Minister)
Development, Entrepreneurship and Crafts--Sanjin Halimovic
Culture and Sport--Salmir Kaplan
Energy, Mining, and Industry--Erdal Trhulj
Finance--Ante Krajina
Health--Rusmir Mesihovic
Interior--Predrag Kurtes
Justice--Zoran Mikulic
Refugees and Displaced Persons--Adil Osmanovic
Social Policy and Labor--Vjekoslav Camber
Trade--Milorad Bahilj-Baja
Transport and Communications--Enver Bijedic
Urban Planning--Desnica Radivojevic (also Deputy Prime Minister)
Environment and Tourism--Branka Duric
Education and Science--Damir Masic
War Veteran Affairs--Zukan Helez

Federation Parliament--House of Representatives (42 members)
Speaker--Denis Zvivdic
Deputy Speaker--Stanko Primorac
Deputy Speaker--Mira Grgic

Federation Parliament--House of Peoples (15 members)
Speaker--Karolina Pavlovic
Deputy Speaker--Jasmin Smailbegovic
Deputy Speaker--vacant

Republika Srpska
President--Milorad Dodik
Vice President--Emil Vlajki
Vice President--Enes Suljkanovic
Prime Minister--Aleksandar Dzombic
Deputy Prime Minister--Anton Kasipovic (also Minister of Education)
Deputy Prime Minister--Dzerard Selman (also Minister of Justice)

National Assembly (83 members)
Speaker--Igor Radojicic
Deputy Speaker--Snezana Bozic
Deputy Speaker--Ramiz Salkic
Deputy Speaker--Predrag Gluhakovic

Ministers
Minister of Interior--Stanislav Cadjo
Minister of Finances--Zoran Tegeltija
Minister of Health--Ranko Skrbic
Minister of Economic Relations--Zeljka Cvijanovic
Minister of Transportation and Communication--Nedeljko Cubrilovic
Minister of Labor and War Veterans’ Issues--Petar Djokic
Minister of Industry and Energy--Zeljko Kovacevic
Minister of Agriculture--Miroslav Milovanovic
Minister of Justice--Dzerard Selman (also Deputy Prime Minister)
Minister of Spatial Planning--Srebrenka Golic
Minister of Science and Technology--Jasmin Komic
Minister of Administration and Local Self-governance--Lejla Resic
Minister of Family, Youth and Sports--Gorana Zlatkovic
Minister of Education--Anton Kasipovic (also Deputy Prime Minister)
Minister of Refugees and Displaced Persons--Davor Cordas
Minister of Trade and Tourism--Nada Tesanovic

Bosnia and Herzegovina maintains an embassy in the United States at 2109 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 (tel.: 202-337-1500; fax: 202-337-1502).

ECONOMY
Bosnia and Herzegovina was among the poorer areas of the old Yugoslav Federation and remains one of the poorer countries in Europe. For the most part, agriculture remains in private hands, but farms have been small and inefficient, and net food imports increased dramatically in the aftermath of the 1992-1995 war. Many industries are still overstaffed, reflecting the legacy of the centrally-planned economy, though limited privatization has improved efficiency in certain sectors. Under Tito, military industries were widespread in Bosnia, which hosted a large share of Yugoslavia's defense plants. During the war, 3 years of interethnic strife damaged or destroyed much of the economy and infrastructure in Bosnia, caused the death of about 100,000 people, and displaced half of the population.

Considerable progress has been made since peace was reestablished following the Dayton Accords. Still regarded as a transition economy, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) sees the long-term goal of EU membership as a driver to further economic growth and development. Due to Bosnia and Herzegovina's strict currency board regime, which links the Konvertibilna Marka (BAM or KM) to the Euro, inflation has remained relatively low and, as a result, the BAM is one of the most stable currencies in Southeast Europe. The banking sector has been fully reformed, with a significant inflow of foreign banks (foreign ownership currently stands at 85% of the banking sector) providing businesses with easier access to capital and a better range of banking services. Lending has slowed significantly since 2008.

Per capita GDP in 2009 was U.S. $4,700, with a total nominal GDP of approximately U.S. $17.1 billion (source: World Bank). While official unemployment is approximately 40%, "unofficial" estimates of unemployment that include the large gray economy are approximately 18%-22%. Bosnia and Herzegovina's most immediate task remains economic revitalization. The country needs meaningful progress in structural reforms to strengthen the basis for sustained, private sector-led growth. In order to improve the business climate, private sector growth--especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs)--and foreign direct investment (FDI) acceleration are needed to spur increased economic growth and job creation. Creating a single economic space will be key to attracting increased foreign investment. Privatization has been slow, and unemployment remains high.

BiH's top economic priorities are: acceleration of EU integration; strengthening the fiscal system; public administration reform; World Trade Organization (WTO) membership; and securing economic growth by fostering a dynamic, competitive private sector. To date, work on these priorities has been inconsistent. The country has received a substantial amount of foreign assistance and will need to demonstrate its ability to implement its economic reform agenda in order to advance its stated goal of EU accession. In 2009, Bosnia and Herzegovina undertook an International Monetary Fund (IMF) standby arrangement, necessitated by sharply increased social spending and a fiscal crisis precipitated by the global economic downturn. The program aims to reduce recurrent government spending and to strengthen revenue collection.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
The implementation of the Dayton Accords of 1995 has focused the efforts of policymakers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the international community, on regional stabilization in the former Yugoslavia. However, donor resources for Bosnia and Herzegovina have diminished due to competing assistance priorities elsewhere in the region and globally. Bosnia and Herzegovina's relations with its neighbors Croatia, Montenegro, and Serbia have been fairly stable since the signing of Dayton in 1995. The U.S. role in the Dayton Accords and their implementation has been key to successes in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Since the Dayton Accords were signed, over $15 billion in foreign aid has moved into Bosnia and Herzegovina, approximately $1.38 billion of it coming from Support for East European Democracy (SEED) funds. U.S. Government assistance, managed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), as well as the Departments of State, Justice, Defense, Treasury, and Commerce, have been crucial to the redevelopment of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The U.S. Government currently has programming in the following areas: economic policy reform and restructuring; private sector development; fostering democratic reforms in local government, civic education, and civil society; rule of law, including support to law enforcement, judicial, and prosecutorial institutions; and security sector assistance.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a member of the United Nations (1992); International Monetary Fund (IMF) (1992), World Bank (1995), Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) (1992); and the Council of Europe (2002). It also participates in regional cooperation through the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Central-European Initiative (CEI), Southeast Europe Co-operation Initiative (SECI), Southeast Europe Co-operation Process (SEECP), Adriatic-Ionic Initiative (AII) and others.

U.S.-BOSNIAN RELATIONS
The 1992-95 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina was ended with the crucial participation of the United States in brokering the 1995 Dayton Accords. After leading the diplomatic and military effort to secure the Dayton agreement, the United States has continued to lead the effort to ensure its implementation. The United States maintains command of the NATO headquarters in Sarajevo. The United States has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to help with reconstruction, humanitarian assistance, economic development, and military reconstruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has played a large role in post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina, including programs in economic development and reform, democratic reform (media, elections), infrastructure development, and training programs for Bosnian professionals, among others. Additionally, there are many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that have likewise played significant roles in the reconstruction.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Patrick S. Moon
Deputy Chief of Mission--Jonathan Moore
Political Counselor--Tamir Waser
Economic Counselor--Adrienne Galanek
Consular Section Chief--Anne-Marie Casella
Management Counselor--Adam Lamoreaux
Public Affairs Officer--Thomas Mesa
Regional Security Officer--Wade Boston
USAID Mission Director--Allan Reed

The U.S. Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina is at 1 Robert C. Frasure Street, 71000 Sarajevo (tel.: +387 33 704-000; fax: 387 33 659-722; website: http://sarajevo.usembassy.gov). The Embassy can be contacted for emergency or other information.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 678,500 sq. km. (slightly smaller than Texas).
Cities: Administrative capital--Nay Pyi Taw, near the township of Pyinmana (pop. 200,000). Other cities--Rangoon (pop. 5.5 million), Mandalay (pop. 1.2 million).
Terrain: Central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands.
Climate: Tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (December to April). Some areas of central Burma are subject to prolonged drought conditions.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Burmese.
Population (2011, CIA World Factbook): 53.99 million. No official census has been taken since 1983.
Annual population growth rate (2011 estimate, CIA World Factbook): 1.084%.
Ethnic groups (2011, CIA World Factbook): Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%.
Religions (2011, CIA World Factbook): Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2%.
Languages: Burmese, minority ethnic languages.
Education: Literacy (2010 estimate, UNDP*)--adult 89.9%; male 93.9%; female 86.4%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2009 estimate, UNICEF)--54 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2010 estimate, UN DESA)--overall 62.7 years; male 59.0 years; female 63.4 years.

*The Burmese Government reviews UNDP figures prior to release.

Government
Type: Nominally civilian regime comprised primarily of former senior military officers.
Constitution: Burma adopted a new constitution through a deeply flawed May 2008 national referendum. The government held elections in November 2010, though credible observers inside and outside Burma found numerous flaws with the process leading to the elections and election-day conduct (including government-sponsored malfeasance). The constitution went into effect with the seating of a new Parliament in early 2011.
Branches: Executive--President Thein Sein is the head of state and heads the executive branch. Legislative--There is a bicameral Parliament at the national level and 14 regional assemblies. Parliament convened in January 2011. Per the 2008-adopted constitution, 25% of all parliamentary seats are reserved for military appointees. Judicial--The legal system is based on a British-era system and headed by a Supreme Court seated in Nay Pyi Taw. Under the former military government known as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), the judiciary clearly was not independent; it is unclear how much autonomy the judiciary will have under the 2010-elected Parliament and nominally civilian executive branch.
Political parties/socio-political organizations: In March 2010, the government released a series of much-criticized election and party registration laws in preparation for the November 2010 elections. The government considers 37 parties as legally registered. Unregistered political parties are illegal. The National League for Democracy (NLD), the primary opposition party, announced it would not register under the flawed electoral laws; it is no longer recognized by the government as a political party but continues to operate, though with some government hindrance. Several former NLD party elders broke from the party and formed the National Democratic Force (NDF). Other new national democracy-oriented parties have also formed. In addition, several ceasefire groups representing Burma’s ethnic minority groups have formed political parties and/or maintain political organizations. The National Unity Party (NUP) and the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP--an offshoot of the regime-supported, 25-million-member mass organization Union Solidarity and Development Association), are the two primary parties supportive of government policies. USDP candidates won an overwhelming majority of national and state/region-level parliamentary seats in the November 2010 election, and the party maintains an unassailable majority in the legislative branch. USDP-member ministers dominate the cabinet and hold the chief minister slot in most states and regions.
Administrative subdivisions: The country is divided into seven regions (tain)--Irrawaddy, Bago (Pegu), Magway, Mandalay, Yangon (Rangoon), Sagaing, and Tanintharyi (Tenassarim); seven ethnic states (pyi nay)--Chin State, Kachin State, Kayin (Karen) State, Kayah (Karenni) State, Mon State, Rakhine (Arakan) State, and Shan State; and six self-administered zones/divisions also known as special regions--Naga, Pa Laung, Koka, Pa-O, Danu, Wa; Nay Pyi Taw is administered by the President.
Suffrage: Universal suffrage at 18 years of age.

Economy
GDP (2011 estimate): $40.288 billion.
Annual growth rate (2011 estimate): 3.2%. The Burmese Government’s economic growth statistics are not released regularly and lack credibility.
GDP per capita (2011 estimate, using purchasing power parity): $2,989.
Inflation rate (2011 estimate, Economist Intelligence Unit--EIU): 16%.
Natural resources: natural gas, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, limestone, precious stones, hydropower, marine products, and petroleum.
Agriculture: Products--rice, pulses, beans, sesame, peanuts, sugarcane, hardwood.
Industries: Types--natural gas, agricultural processing, knit and woven apparel, wood and wood products, cement, paper, cotton, cotton yarn, sugar, mining, construction materials, pharmaceuticals, and fertilizer.
Recorded trade (based on December 2010 statistics from Burmese Government's Central Statistical Organization): Exports--$8.1 billion. Types--natural gas 32.8%, agricultural products 13.9%, precious and semi-precious stones 10% (est.), timber and forest products 3.3%, and marine products 3.5%. Major markets--Thailand 37%, Hong Kong 18.5%, India 10.9%, Singapore 5.1%, China 12.2%, and Malaysia 5%. Imports--$4.5 billion. Types--refined mineral oil 19%, machinery 17.1%, base metals 9.2%, vegetable oil 3.5%, pharmaceuticals 3.3%, and cement 1.8%. Major suppliers--China 33.4%, Singapore 23%, Thailand 12.1%, South Korea 5.2%, Japan 4.4%, Indonesia 4.2%, and India 3.4%. U.S. economic sanctions prohibit the import of Burmese-origin goods into the United States and while U.S. exports to Burma (other than financial services) are permitted, very little trade flows in that direction.

PEOPLE
The majority of Burma's people are ethnic Burman. Shan, Karen, Rohingya, Arakanese (Rakhine), Kachin, Chin, and Mon, together with other smaller indigenous ethnic groups, represent about 30% of the population. Indians and Chinese are the largest non-indigenous groups.

Burmese is the most widely spoken language (approx. 32 million native speakers). Ethnic groups have retained their own identities and languages. Some of the most prominent are Shan; various Karen, Karenni and Chin languages; Arakanese; Kachin; Mon; Palaung; Parauk; Wa; and Yangbye. English is spoken in many areas frequented by tourists. Indian and Chinese residents speak various languages and dialects of their homelands: Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Bengali, Mandarin, Fujian, and Cantonese.

An estimated 89% of the population practices Buddhism. Other religions--Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, and animist 1%--are less prevalent, although Christian and Muslim groups claim the government significantly underestimates their number of adherents.

According to Burmese Government budget data, public health expenditure has accounted for less than 1% of total government spending. High infant mortality rates and short life expectancies further highlight poor health and living conditions. Tuberculosis, diarrheal disease, malaria, and HIV/AIDS pose serious threats to the Burmese population. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria re-entered Burma in early 2011. In 2009, the UNDP's Human Development Index, which measures achievements in terms of life expectancy, educational attainment, and adjusted real income, ranked Burma 138 out of 182 countries.

Burmese authorities have perpetrated numerous documented human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, disappearances, rape, torture, and incommunicado detentions. Internal displacement and refugee outflows of ethnic minorities are prevalent. Over two million Burmese, many of them ethnic minorities, have fled for economic and political reasons to Thailand, Bangladesh, India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and elsewhere.

In Burma, there are approximately 750,000 stateless Rohingya in Northern Rakhine State. Elsewhere, there are roughly 150,000 Burmese living in nine refugee camps in Thailand along the border with Burma. Approximately 28,000 Burmese Rohingya are registered as living in two official refugee camps in Bangladesh, and more than 200,000 unregistered Rohingya live in surrounding towns and villages outside of the two camps.

Malaysia hosts more than 90,000 refugees and asylum seekers, primarily in urban areas, 91% of whom are from Burma. Chin and Rohingya comprise the largest groups of this population. Up to 100,000 unregistered Burmese Chin are living in India's Mizoram State, with another 7,500 Burmese refugees and asylum seekers (primarily Chin) in Delhi, India, of which up to 4,000 are UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)-registered refugees.

HISTORY
Burma was unified by Burman dynasties three times during the past millennium. The first such unification came with the rise of the Bagan (Pagan) Dynasty in 1044 AD, which is considered the "Golden Age" in Burmese history. During this period, Theravada Buddhism first made its appearance in Burma, and the Bagan kings built a massive city with thousands of pagodas and monasteries along the Irrawaddy River. The Bagan Dynasty lasted until 1287 when Mongol invaders destroyed the city. Ethnic Shan rulers, who established a political center at Ava (near Mandalay), filled the ensuing political vacuum for a short time.

In the 15th century, the Taungoo Dynasty succeeded again in unifying under Burman rule a large, multi-ethnic kingdom. This dynasty, which lasted from 1486 until 1752, left little cultural legacy, but expanded the kingdom through conquest of the Shans. Internal power struggles and the cost of protracted warfare led to the eventual decline of the Taungoo Dynasty.

The final Burman royal dynasty, the Konbaung, was established in 1752 under the rule of King Alaungpaya and lasted until the fall of King Thibaw to Britain in 1885. Like the Taungoo Kings, the Konbaung rulers focused on warfare and conquest. Wars were fought with the ethnic Mons and Arakanese, and with the Siamese. The Burmese sacked the Siamese capital of Ayuthaya in 1767. This period also saw four invasions by the Chinese and three devastating wars with the British.

The British began their conquest of Burma in 1824, expanding their holdings after each of the three wars. At the end of the third war in 1885, the British gained complete control of Burma, annexing it to British India.

A group of Burmese nationalists known as the “30 Comrades,” led by General Aung San, joined the Japanese forces in driving out the British at the outbreak of World War II. However, the Burmese Army switched sides in mid-1945 and aided U.S. and British forces in their drive to Rangoon against the Japanese. After the war, the Burmese, with General Aung San at the helm, demanded complete political and economic independence from Britain. The British Government acceded to these demands. A constitution was completed in 1947 and independence granted in January 1948. General Aung San was assassinated with most of his cabinet before the constitution went into effect.

During the constitutional period from 1948 to 1962, Burma had a democratic, parliamentary government. However, the country suffered widespread conflict and internal struggle. Constitutional disputes and persistent division among political and ethnic groups contributed to the democratic government's weak hold on power. In 1958, Prime Minister U Nu accepted military rule temporarily to restore political order. The military stepped down after 18 months.

In 1962 General Ne Win led a military coup, abolishing the constitution and establishing a xenophobic military government. Under his “Burmese Way to Socialism,” he established socialist economic policies that had devastating effects on the country's economy and business climate. In 1974 Ne Win established the Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP), the sole political party allowed in the country.

On November 25, 1974, former UN Secretary General U Thant died in New York. His body was flown back to Rangoon, where Ne Win had ordered that he be buried without any official honors. On the day of his funeral, December 5, tens of thousands of Burmese came out to pay their respects. Student demonstrators took U Thant’s coffin and paraded through the streets before the demonstrators buried him on the site of the former Rangoon University Students Union. Demonstrations and anti-government speeches continued until December 11, when government troops stormed the campus, killing several students and taking away U Thant’s coffin to bury it near the Shwedagon Pagoda. Riots broke out in Rangoon and the government declared martial law in order to crush the student demonstrations. Student protests that broke out in subsequent years were also similarly suppressed.

In March 1988, student-led demonstrations broke out in Rangoon in response to the worsening economic situation and evolved into a call for regime change. Despite repeated violent crackdowns by the military and police, the demonstrations increased in size and many in the general public joined the students. During mass demonstrations on August 8, 1988, military forces killed more than 1,000 demonstrators. At a rally following this massacre, Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter of General Aung San, made her first political speech and assumed the role of opposition leader.

In September 1988, a group of generals deposed Ne Win's Burmese Socialist Program Party, suspended the constitution, and established a new ruling junta called the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). In an effort to "restore order," the SLORC sent the army into the streets to suppress the ongoing public demonstrations. An estimated additional 3,000 were killed, and more than 10,000 students fled into the hills and border areas. Many left the country.

The SLORC ruled by martial law until national parliamentary elections were held in May 1990. These elections were judged generally to be free and fair. The military made little effort to intimidate voters, erroneously assuming their preferred candidates would win. The results were an overwhelming victory for Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party, which won nearly 60% of the vote and 392 of the 485 seats, even though she was under house arrest at the time of the elections. The SLORC refused to honor the results or call the parliament into session, instead imprisoning many political activists and maintaining its grip on power.

The ruling junta changed its name to the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) in 1997, but did not change its policy of autocratic control and repression of the democratic opposition. It continued to subject Aung San Suu Kyi to varying forms of detention and other restrictions on her movement, which it periodically lifted only to reinstate later. In May 2002, Aung San Suu Kyi was allowed to leave her home, and she subsequently traveled widely throughout the country, where she was greeted by large crowds. On May 30, 2003, Aung San Suu Kyi and a convoy of her supporters were attacked by a group of regime-affiliated thugs. Many members of the convoy were killed or injured, and others disappeared. Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of her party were detained.

In October 2004, hard-line members of the senior leadership consolidated their power by ousting Prime Minister General Khin Nyunt and removing him and his allies from control of the government and military intelligence apparatus. Following a sharp increase in fuel prices on August 15, 2007, pro-democracy groups began a series of peaceful marches and demonstrations to protest the deteriorating economic situation in Burma. The regime responded by arbitrarily detaining over 150 pro-democracy activists in August and September 2007, including Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, both previously-imprisoned key figures in the 1988 demonstrations. On August 28, 2007, as popular dissatisfaction spread, Buddhist monks began leading peaceful marches. On September 5, 2007, security forces in the town of Pakkoku violently broke up demonstrations by monks, resulting in injuries and triggering calls for a nationwide response and a government apology for the incident.

Beginning on September 18, 2007, monks resumed their peaceful protests in several cities throughout the country. These marches grew quickly to include ordinary citizens, culminating in a large gathering of protestors in Rangoon on September 24. On September 26 and 27, the regime renewed its violent crackdown, shooting, beating, and arbitrarily detaining thousands of monks, pro-democracy activists, and onlookers. The regime confirmed the deaths of only 10 protestors. However, some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) estimated the number of casualties to be much higher, and in his December 7, 2007, report to the UN General Assembly, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar Paulo Sergio Pinheiro stated that there were over 30 fatalities in Rangoon associated with the September 2007 protests. In retribution for leading protest marches, monks were beaten and arrested, many monks were disrobed, and several monasteries were raided, ransacked, and closed. In addition to the more than 1,100 political prisoners whose arrests predate the crackdown, another thousand or more were detained due to their participation in the September 2007 protests.

Following the regime's 1993 proclamation of a seven-step roadmap to democracy and a subsequent national convention which convened intermittently, the regime in September 2007 concluded the process of "drafting" principles for the new constitution. Delegates to the convention were not allowed to debate freely, discuss, or attempt to amend the principles. In October 2007, the SPDC appointed 54 pro-regime persons to sit on a constitution drafting committee. The government declared the completion of the constitution drafting committee's work in February 2008, and announced that it would hold a national referendum on the constitution in May 2008, with multi-party elections planned for 2010. While the referendum law provided for a secret ballot, free debate was not permitted and activities considered "interfering with the referendum" carried a 3-year prison sentence. The government carried out the referendum in May 2008 amidst the aftermath of the humanitarian disaster caused by Cyclone Nargis. Although the referendum was rife with irregularities, the government announced that 92.48% of voters approved the constitution, with a 98% voter turnout. Independent observers do not consider those figures to be credible.

Cyclone Nargis hit Irrawaddy and Rangoon Divisions May 2-3, 2008. The storm devastated a huge swath of the Irrawaddy Delta region, wiping out entire villages, leaving an estimated 138,000 Burmese dead or missing, and affecting approximately 2.4 million people, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Burmese authorities were criticized for their initial reluctance to grant access to the affected region by international donors, though such access was granted in the ensuing months.

Starting in November 2008, the government imposed harsh sentences on large numbers of political prisoners it had arrested over the course of the previous year, including Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi. The trials were closed and did not appear to meet minimum standards of due process. The imprisoned activists were convicted, mainly in closed-door hearings, of unlawful association, illegally distributing print and video media, or generally destabilizing public security and the security of the state and were given lengthy sentences, some as long as 68 years.

On May 14, 2009, security forces took Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest to Insein prison and charged her and her two assistants with baseless crimes related to an uninvited U.S. citizen who swam to her home. Following a trial that was widely viewed as unfair, on August 11, 2009, Aung San Suu Kyi and her two assistants were convicted of violating the terms of her house arrest. The international community criticized her conviction and subsequent sentence to an additional 18 months of house arrest. The SPDC government released Aung San Suu Kyi on November 13, 2010, after more than 7 years' continuous detention. However, the government continues to hold an estimated 2,100 other political prisoners.

In March 2010, the government published widely criticized election and party registration laws to govern the conduct of elections planned for 2010. The laws annulled the results of the 1990 elections, barred political prisoners from party membership and parliamentary candidacy, and granted broad authority to the regime-appointed Union Election Commission to oversee and regulate political party activities. In April 2010, all active-duty cabinet ministers resigned their military commissions, reportedly to prepare for candidacy in the 2010 elections. Prime Minister Thein Sein was appointed head of the pro-government Union Solidarity and Development Party.

The country held its first elections in 20 years on November 7, 2010. The United States condemned the planning and the execution of the elections as neither free nor fair. The regime proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party won over three-quarters of elective parliamentary seats, although observers around the country reported widespread electoral malfeasance, including abuse of advance voting procedures. Per Burma's 2008 constitution, military appointees fill one-quarter of all parliamentary seats. The new, nominally civilian government took office on April 1, 2011, and the SPDC was dissolved. Insiders from the SPDC era fill almost all key positions at the national level and most at the state/region level. The current roles of the former top two SPDC leaders, Senior General Than Shwe and Vice Senior General Maung Aye, remain unclear.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Burma remains an authoritarian country dominated by active or former members of the military. The nation is headed by a civilian president and two vice presidents. On paper, power is apportioned between executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The military remains an institution unto itself, and the head of the armed forces retains the right to invoke extraordinary powers including the ability to suspend civil liberties and abrogate parliamentary authority.

The SPDC changed the name of the country to "Myanmar" in 1989, but some members of the democratic opposition and other political activists do not recognize the name change and continue to use the name "Burma." Out of support for the democratic opposition, and its victory in the 1990 election, the U.S. Government likewise uses "Burma."

Burma consists of 14 states and regions. Administrative control is exercised by the central government through a system of subordinate executive bodies headed by chief ministers. It is unclear how the country's new civilian regional power structures will share responsibilities with regional military commanders.

In November 2005, the ruling regime unexpectedly relocated the capital city from Rangoon to Nay Pyi Taw, located in central Burma approximately 200 miles north of Rangoon, further isolating the government from the public and international community. Most government workers and ministries moved to Nay Pyi Taw over the following 6 months, and rapid development of the new capital continues. Foreign diplomatic missions are still located in Rangoon and no country has yet announced plans to move its embassy to Nay Pyi Taw.

The government has a contentious relationship with Burma's ethnic groups, many of which fought for greater autonomy or secession for their regions after the country's independence in 1948. At the time of independence, only Rangoon itself was under the control of national government authorities. Subsequent military campaigns brought more and more of the nation under central government control. Since 1989, the regime has entered into a series of ceasefire agreements with insurgent groups, though a few armed groups remain in active opposition. In 2009, the regime began pressuring ceasefire groups to join a Border Guard Force (BGF)--an integrated unit of Burma Army and ceasefire group soldiers, with Burma Army soldiers occupying the key positions; no major ceasefire group has agreed to these demands. In June 2009 the Burma Army and its affiliate, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, launched an attack against the Karen National Union. In August 2009 the Burma Army defeated the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, an ethnic Kokang group, in an offensive in which thousands of people fled to China and the Burma Army destroyed a weapons and narcotics processing facility in the Kokang region. In the wake of the November 2010 elections, the Burma Army launched a series of attacks against armed ethnic groups in Karen and Shan States. In June 2011, fighting broke out between the Burmese Army and the Kachin Independence Army in northern Burma’s Kachin State with clashes continuing as of August 2011.

Principal Government Officials
President--Thein Sein
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Wanna Maung Lwin
Charge d' Affaires, Burmese Embassy in the United States--U Soe Paing
Ambassador to the United Nations--Than Swe

Burma maintains an embassy to the United States at 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008, tel.: (202) 332-3344; fax: (202) 332-4351.

ECONOMY
Burma is a resource-rich country with a strong agricultural base. It has vast hardwood timber, natural gas, and fishery reserves and is a leading source of gems and jade. Tourist potential remains underdeveloped because of weak infrastructure and Burma's international image, which has been damaged by the regime's human rights abuses and political oppression. Due to Burma's poor human rights record, the United States imposes an array of economic and travel sanctions, including bans on the importation of Burmese products into the U.S. and the export of financial services from the United States to Burma. Australia, Canada, and the EU also impose economic sanctions on the Burmese regime. Information on U.S. sanctions is available at http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/pages/burma.aspx.

Despite Burma's growing GDP, the regime's mismanagement of the economy has created a downward economic spiral for the people of Burma. The state remains heavily and inefficiently involved in most parts of the economy, infrastructure has deteriorated, and rule of law does not exist. The majority of Burmese citizens lead a subsistence-level existence with minimal opportunity for economic improvement. Inflation, though relatively low in 2009, increased in 2010 and shows signs of remaining higher in 2011.

The military's commercial entities play a major role in the economy. The limited moves to a market economy, begun in 1990, have been accompanied by a significant rise in crony capitalism. A handful of individuals loyal to the regime benefit from policies that promote monopoly and privilege. State-controlled activity predominates in energy, heavy industry, and the rice trade. The state embarked on a campaign to privatize state-owned enterprises and properties in late 2009 and continued to sell off assets throughout 2010 and into 2011. By all credible accounts most buyers of these privatized assets have been those closely connected to the regime: crony businessmen, the military's for-profit business arms, and proxies acting on behalf of military families.

Burma remains a primarily agricultural economy with 50% of GDP derived from agriculture, livestock and fisheries, and forestry. Burma's rice exports hit a near-record high in 2009, but experienced a more than 50% drop in 2010 due to drought, delayed monsoon rains, and a government desire to carefully control domestic rice prices. Manufacturing/industry constitutes only 15% of recorded economic activity, and state industries continue to play a large role in that sector. Trade and services constitute 35% of GDP.

A wave of foreign investors pulled out of Burma beginning in 1997 due to the increasingly unfriendly business environment and political pressure, some in the form of sanctions, from Western governments, consumers, and shareholders. However, successive waves of new investment from regional neighbors, predominately China, has increased in recent years and is very difficult to quantify accurately. The government conserves foreign exchange by limiting imports and promoting exports. Published estimates of Burma's foreign trade (particularly regarding imports) are greatly understated because of the large volume of off-book, black-market, illicit, and unrecorded border trade. In the near term, growth will continue to be constrained by government mismanagement and minimal investment. Government economic statistics are often unavailable and unreliable. According to official figures, GDP growth has been over 10% annually since FY 1999-2000. However, the true rate is likely lower; the Economist Intelligence Unit estimated that the growth rate in 2010 was 3.1% and predicted 3.2% growth in 2011. Burma's economic growth has been driven by its natural gas exports, which account for over half of Burma's export receipts and foreign direct investment. Natural gas exports will increase significantly once production begins from the offshore Shwe and Shwephyu Fields, estimated to hold 5.7-10 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Much of the gas from these fields will flow to China's Yunnan Province via a pipeline currently under construction by a consortium of Burmese and foreign partners, with an estimated completion date of 2014. A second roughly parallel pipeline will carry Middle East- and Africa-origin crude oil offloaded by tankers at a port in Rakhine State. Corporations based in China, India, South Korea, Thailand, Russia, Australia, France, and Malaysia have interests in the exploration and development of several offshore and onshore blocks. One U.S. corporation continues to maintain its interests in the energy sector, with an investment that predates U.S. sanctions.

Burma remains the world's second-largest producer of illicit opium--amounting to 5% of the world's total, according to a 2009 UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report. Annual production of opium has been estimated at less than 15% of mid-1990 peak levels. Cultivation rose for 3 years following a steady decline through 2006, but yields fell during that period. Burma is a major source of amphetamine-type stimulants in Asia. Although the Burmese Government has expanded its counternarcotics measures in recent years, production and trafficking of narcotics remain major issues. The Burmese Government has actively pursued mid-level and independent traffickers, but it remains reluctant to investigate, arrest, and prosecute high-level international traffickers associated with ethnic ceasefire groups.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
During the Cold War, Burmese foreign policy was based on principles of neutrality, often tending toward xenophobia. Since 1988, however, Burma has expanded its regional ties. It now is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), and several other regional organizations and initiatives. Burma joined ASEAN in 1997, and has participated in that regional forum, hosting a number of seminars, conferences, and ministerial meetings. Burma also is a member of the World Trade Organization. Burma's lack of progress on human rights and democracy has frayed some international ties, and in July 2005, Burma passed up its scheduled 2006 ASEAN chairmanship.

Although Burmese-Thai relations are generally cooperative, they have been tainted by a long history of border conflicts and sporadic hostilities over narcotics trafficking and insurgents operating along the Burmese-Thai border. Nonetheless, official and unofficial economic ties remain strong. In addition to the approximately 150,000 Burmese refugees it hosts, the Thai Government issues temporary work permits to another one million Burmese who live outside the refugee camps in Thailand. Despite their often-contentious histories, Burma has grown closer to both China and India in recent years. China quickly is becoming Burma's most important partner, offering debt relief, economic development grants, and soft loans used for the construction of infrastructure and light industry. China also is purportedly Burma's major supplier of arms and munitions. Burma's commercial and military ties with India are growing as well. India is a primary destination for exports of Burmese beans and pulses. The military relationship between Burma and North Korea has come under increased scrutiny by the international community. The United States and others have urged Burma to be transparent in its relationship with North Korea to give the international community confidence Burma is not violating its international obligations, particularly with respect to implementation of UN Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874.

The UN has made several efforts to address international concerns over human rights in Burma. The UN Secretary General's first Special Envoy to Burma, Tan Sri Razali Ismail, resigned his position in December 2005 due to the regime's lack of cooperation. Subsequently, Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon named former UN Undersecretary General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari as his Special Advisor for Burma. Special Advisor Gambari made eight trips to Burma. At the end of 2009, Special Advisor Gambari was named the Secretary General’s Special Envoy to Sudan. Acting Special Advisor to the Secretary General Vijay Nambiar traveled to Burma in November 2010 and again in May 2011. The UN Human Rights Council has a special procedure in place for Burma, and Tomas Ojea Quintana was appointed Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar in 2008. Burmese authorities have denied Quintana access to Burma since a March 2010 report in which he called on the United Nations to consider establishing a UN Commission of Inquiry for Burma.

In January 2007, the United States and the U.K. sponsored a UN Security Council resolution on Burma calling on the regime to cease attacks on ethnic minorities, engage in political dialogue, and allow for basic human rights, that both Russia and China vetoed. The UN Security Council adopted by consensus a Presidential Statement on October 11, 2007, deploring the September 2007 crackdown and calling for the release of all political prisoners and the creation of the necessary conditions for a genuine dialogue. The UN Security Council issued a press statement on the crackdown on November 14, 2007. In November 2007, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar Paulo Sergio Pinheiro was allowed to visit the country for the first time since 2003. His report detailing the Burmese authorities' September crackdown on demonstrations by monks and democracy activists and the severe reprisals was released on December 11, 2007. Tomas Ojea Quintana replaced Pinheiro on May 1, 2008. On May 2, 2008, the Security Council issued a second Presidential Statement calling for the Burmese regime to conduct the referendum on its draft constitution in a free and fair manner. In the wake of Cyclone Nargis, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon visited Burma in May 2008 and called on the regime to grant greater access for international aid to cyclone-affected areas of the country. On May 22, 2009, the Security Council released a press statement expressing concern over the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi and reiterating its call for dialogue. In July 2009 the UN Secretary General again visited Burma but was not permitted to meet with Aung San Suu Kyi. In a speech to the diplomatic community, he noted the regime’s “missed opportunity.” On August 13, 2009, the Security Council released another press statement expressing its serious concern over Aung San Suu Kyi's conviction and sentencing and the political impact of those events. UN Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojea Quintana reiterated concerns about the human rights situation in Burma after a February 2010 visit to the country. He subsequently recommended to the UN Human Rights Council that the UN should consider establishing a Commission of Inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma.

Most Western foreign aid diminished in the wake of the regime's suppression of the democracy movement in 1988. The UN Development Program's 2009 Human Development Report indicated that official development assistance totaled $242.8 million in 2007, roughly $4 per capita (compared with $68 per person in Laos and $46 per person in Cambodia). Burma receives grants of technical assistance (mostly from Asia), limited humanitarian aid and debt relief from Japan and China, and concessional loans from China and India. In the wake of Cyclone Nargis, the international community has provided more than $343 million to Burma in response to the UN appeal for humanitarian relief. The United States has provided nearly $85 million to date in assistance for Cyclone Nargis recovery efforts.

Burma became a member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in 1952, the International Financial Corporation (IFC) in 1956, the International Development Association (IDA) in 1962, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 1973. Since July 1987, the World Bank has not made any loans to Burma. Since 1998 Burma has been in non-accrual status with the Bank. The IMF performs its mandated annual Article IV consultations, but there are no IMF assistance programs. Burma is involved in the ADB’s Program of Economic Cooperation in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. As such, it participates in regional meetings and workshops supported by the ADB, although it has not received loans or grants since 1986. Bilateral technical assistance ended in 1988. Burma has not serviced its ADB loans since January 1998. Burma's total foreign debt now stands at over $9 billion. The debt total to Japan alone is reportedly $4.7 billion. The United States maintains sanctions against Burma that prohibit U.S. support for lending and technical assistance by international financial institutions in Burma.

U.S.-BURMA RELATIONS
The political relationship between the United States and Burma worsened after the 1988 military coup and violent suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations. The United States downgraded its level of representation in Burma from Ambassador to Charge d'Affaires after the government's crackdown on the democratic opposition that year and its failure to honor the results of the 1990 parliamentary election. Subsequent regime repression, including the brutal crackdown on peaceful protestors in September 2007, further strained the relationship.

The United States has imposed broad sanctions against Burma under several different authorities. In 2003, President George W. Bush imposed new sanctions against Burma pursuant to the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act (BFDA) and Executive Order 13310, including a ban on imports of products of Burma, a ban on the export of financial services to Burma, and an asset freeze against the SPDC and three designated Burmese foreign trade financial institutions. Congress passed an annual renewal of the BFDA in July 2010. On October 18, 2007, President Bush issued a new Executive Order (E.O. 13348) that expanded sanctions to include asset freezes against designated individuals responsible for human rights abuses and public corruption, as well as designated individuals and entities that provide material or financial support to designated individuals or the Burmese military government. On April 30, 2008 President Bush issued Executive Order 13464, which further expanded sanctions to permit asset freezes against designated Burmese entities. Approximately 110 individuals and entities have been designated for asset freezes under these authorities. In July 2008, Congress enacted the Tom Lantos Block Burmese JADE (Junta’s Anti-Democratic Efforts) Act, which expanded the categories of individuals and entities subject to asset freezes and travel restrictions, and also banned the importation into the United States of Burmese rubies and jadeite, regardless of whether the rubies or jade were substantially transformed (cut, polished, or set into jewelry) in a third country.

In addition, since May 1997, the U.S. Government has prohibited new investment in Burma by U.S. individuals or entities. A number of U.S. companies exited the Burma market even prior to the imposition of sanctions due to a worsening business climate and mounting criticism from human rights groups, consumers, and shareholders. The United States has also imposed countermeasures on Burma due to its inadequate measures to eliminate money laundering. In addition, visa restrictions against Burma have been in place under Presidential Proclamation 6925 pursuant to Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the BFDA, the JADE Act, and other authorities for many years.

Due to particularly severe violations of religious freedom, the United States has designated Burma a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act. Burma is designated a Tier 3 Country in the Trafficking in Persons Report for its use of forced labor. Burma was found to have “failed demonstrably” to meet its international responsibilities to control drug production and trafficking during U.S. narcotics certification procedures in the 2010 Majors’ List. These designations subject Burma to additional sanctions.

In September 2009, the Barack Obama administration announced the conclusion of a policy review launched earlier in the year by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The review reaffirmed the United States’ strategic goals in Burma: that the United States supports a unified, peaceful, prosperous, and democratic Burma that respects the human rights of its citizens. The review also concluded that, in addition to tools the United States has long applied to achieve its goals in Burma--sanctions and support for the democratic opposition--it would expand humanitarian assistance and engage in direct, senior-level dialogue with Burmese authorities.

The first senior-level meeting between the United States and Burma under the administration’s new policy took place in September 2009. In November 2009 and again in May 2010, East Asian and Pacific Affairs Assistant Secretary Kurt Campbell traveled to Burma for meetings with government officials, leaders of the democratic opposition, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and ethnic minority leaders. Senior-level meetings also took place in December 2010.

In April 2011, President Obama nominated Derek Mitchell as Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma, as called for by the JADE Act of 2008, and the Senate confirmed him in August 2011.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Charge d'Affaires--Michael Thurston
Deputy Chief of Mission--Eleanor Nagy
Political/Economic Affairs Officer--Douglas Sonnek
Public Affairs Officer--Adrienne Nutzman
Consul--Andrew Webster-Main
Management Officer--Luther Eric Lindberg

The U.S. Embassy in Burma is located at 110 University Ave., Kamayut Township, Rangoon; mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546, tel: [95] (1) 536-509/535-756/538-038/650-006; fax: [95] (1) 650306.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE

Geography
Area: 48,442 sq. km. (18,704 sq. mi.), about the size of Vermont and New Hampshire combined.
Cities: Capital--Santo Domingo (pop. 2.25 million). Other city--Santiago de los Caballeros (908,230).
Terrain: Mountainous.
Climate: Maritime tropical.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Dominican(s).
Population (2009): 9.65 million.
Annual population growth rate (2009): 3.5%.
Ethnic groups: Mixed 73%, European 16%, African origin 11%.
Religion: Roman Catholic 95%.
Language: Spanish.
Education: Years compulsory--6. Attendance--70%. Literacy--84.7%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--19/1,000. Life expectancy--71 years for men, 73.1 years for women.
Work force: 60.2% services (tourism, transportation, communications, finances, others), 15.5% industry (manufacturing), 11.5% construction, 11.3% agriculture, 1.5% mining.

Government
Type: Representative democracy.
Independence: February 27, 1844. Restoration of independence, August 16, 1863.
Constitution: November 28, 1966 (amended July 25, 2002); 2010.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state and head of government), vice president, cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Congress (Senate and House of Representatives). Judicial--Supreme Court of Justice.
Subdivisions: 31 provinces and the National District of Santo Domingo.
Political parties: Dominican Liberation Party (PLD), Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD), Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC), and several others.
Suffrage: Universal and compulsory, over 18 or married.

Economy (2010)
Nominal GDP: $51.6 billion.
Real GDP growth rate: 7.8%.
Per capita nominal GDP (est.): $5,231.
Agriculture (7.5% of real GDP): Products--rice, poultry, sugar, cacao, tobacco, coffee.
Non-manufacturing industry (4.5% of real GDP): construction and mining.
Manufacturing industry (21.3% of real GDP): beverages and tobacco, free trade zone (FTZ) textiles and wearing apparel, sugar, coke and refined petroleum products, grains.
Services (53.8% of real GDP): Communications, commerce, tourism, real estate, transport and storage.
Trade: Exports--U.S. $6.598 billion (f.o.b.), including free trade zones: FTZ exports (textiles, electronic products, jewelry, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, shoes), cacao, sugar, tobacco, coffee. Markets (2008)--U.S. (52.3%, including Puerto Rico) Haiti, Western Europe. Imports--U.S. $12.283 billion (f.o.b.), including free trade zones: petroleum and petroleum-derived products, lasting consumer goods (automobiles, etc.), food stuffs. Suppliers (2008)--U.S. (38.6%, including Puerto Rico), Taiwan, Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia..

PEOPLE
Slightly fewer than half of Dominicans live in rural areas; many are small landholders. Haitians form the largest foreign minority group. All religions are tolerated; the state religion is Roman Catholicism.

HISTORY
The island of Hispaniola, of which the Dominican Republic forms the eastern two-thirds and Haiti the remainder, was originally occupied by Tainos, an Arawak-speaking people. The Tainos welcomed Columbus in his first voyage in 1492, but subsequent colonizers were brutal, reducing the Taino population from about 1 million to about 500 in 50 years. To ensure adequate labor for plantations, the Spanish brought African slaves to the island beginning in 1503.

In the next century, French settlers occupied the western end of the island, which Spain ceded to France in 1697, and which, in 1804, became the Republic of Haiti. The Haitians conquered the whole island in 1822 and held it until 1844, when forces led by Juan Pablo Duarte, the hero of Dominican independence, drove them out and established the Dominican Republic as an independent state. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to the Spanish Empire; in 1865, independence was restored. Economic difficulties, the threat of European intervention, and ongoing internal disorders led to a U.S. occupation in 1916 and the establishment of a military government in the Dominican Republic. The occupation ended in 1924, with a democratically elected Dominican Government.

In 1930, Rafael L. Trujillo, a prominent army commander, established absolute political control. Trujillo promoted economic development--from which he and his supporters benefited--and severe repression of domestic human rights. Mismanagement and corruption resulted in major economic problems. In August 1960, the Organization of American States (OAS) imposed diplomatic sanctions against the Dominican Republic as a result of Trujillo's complicity in an attempt to assassinate President Romulo Betancourt of Venezuela. These sanctions remained in force after Trujillo's death by assassination in May 1961. In November 1961, the Trujillo family was forced into exile.

In January 1962, a council of state that included moderate opposition elements with legislative and executive powers was formed. OAS sanctions were lifted January 4, and, after the resignation of President Joaquin Balaguer on January 16, the council under President Rafael E. Bonnelly headed the Dominican Government.

In 1963, Juan Bosch was inaugurated president. Bosch was overthrown in a military coup in September 1963. Another military coup, on April 24, 1965, led to violence between military elements favoring the return to government by Bosch and those who proposed a military junta committed to early general elections. On April 28, U.S. military forces landed to protect U.S. citizens and to evacuate U.S. and other foreign nationals.

Additional U.S. forces subsequently established order. In June 1966, President Balaguer, leader of the Reformist Party (now called the Social Christian Reformist Party--PRSC), was elected and then re-elected to office in May 1970 and May 1974, both times after the major opposition parties withdrew late in the campaign. In the May 1978 election, Balaguer was defeated in his bid for a fourth successive term by Antonio Guzman of the Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD). Guzman's inauguration on August 16 marked the country's first peaceful transfer of power from one freely elected president to another.

The PRD's presidential candidate, Salvador Jorge Blanco, won the 1982 elections, and the PRD gained a majority in both houses of Congress. In an attempt to cure the ailing economy, the Jorge administration began to implement economic adjustment and recovery policies, including an austerity program in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In April 1984, rising prices of basic foodstuffs and uncertainty about austerity measures led to riots.

Balaguer was returned to the presidency with electoral victories in 1986 and 1990. Upon taking office in 1986, Balaguer tried to reactivate the economy through a public works construction program. Nonetheless, by 1988 the country had slid into a 2-year economic depression, characterized by high inflation and currency devaluation. Economic difficulties, coupled with problems in the delivery of basic services--e.g., electricity, water, transportation--generated popular discontent that resulted in frequent protests, occasionally violent, including a paralyzing nationwide strike in June 1989.

In 1990, Balaguer instituted a second set of economic reforms. After concluding an IMF agreement, balancing the budget, and curtailing inflation, the Dominican Republic experienced a period of economic growth marked by moderate inflation, a balance in external accounts, and a steadily increasing GDP that lasted through 2000.

The voting process in 1986 and 1990 was generally seen as fair, but allegations of electoral board fraud tainted both victories. The elections of 1994 were again marred by charges of fraud. Following a compromise calling for constitutional and electoral reform, President Balaguer assumed office for an abbreviated term and Congress amended the constitution to bar presidential succession.

Since 1996, the Dominican electoral process has been seen as generally free and fair. In June 1996, Leonel Fernández Reyna of the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) was elected to a 4-year term as president. Fernández's political agenda was one of economic and judicial reform. He helped enhance Dominican participation in hemispheric affairs, such as the OAS and the follow up to the Miami Summit. On May 16, 2000, Hipólito Mejía, the PRD candidate, was elected president in another free and fair election, soundly defeating PLD candidate Danilo Medina and former president Balaguer. Mejía championed the cause of free trade and Central American and Caribbean economic integration. The Dominican Republic signed a free trade agreement (CAFTA-DR) with the United States and five Central American countries in August 2004, in the last weeks of the Mejía administration. During the Mejía administration, the government sponsored and obtained anti-trafficking and anti-money-laundering legislation, sent troops to Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom, and ratified the Article 98 agreement it had signed in 2002. Mejía faced mounting domestic problems as a deteriorating economy--caused in large part by the government's measures to deal with massive bank fraud--and constant power shortages plagued the latter part of his administration.

During the Mejía administration, the constitution was amended to permit an incumbent president to seek a second successive term, and Mejía ran for re-election. On May 16, 2004, Leonel Fernández was elected president, defeating Mejía 57.11% to 33.65%. Eduardo Estrella of the PRSC received 8.65% of the vote. Fernández took office on August 16, 2004, promising in his inaugural speech to promote fiscal austerity, to fight corruption and to support social concerns. Fernández said the Dominican Republic would support policies favoring international peace and security through multilateral mechanisms in conformity with the United Nations and the OAS. The Fernández administration works closely with the United States on law enforcement and immigration and counter-terrorism matters. On May 16, 2008, President Fernández was reelected president with 53.8% of the vote. His new term runs until 2012. Congressional and municipal elections were held in May 2010, with Fernandez’s PLD winning a slim majority of seats in the House of Represenatatives and 31 of 32 Senate seats, as well as a plurality of mayoral seats. President Fernandez’s role in the victorious congressional campaign led his supporters to promote his candidacy for re-election in 2012. The new constitution promulgated in January 2010, would seem to prohibit this, and ultimately Fernandez announced that he would not run in the 2012 elections. After primary contests, the 2012 presidential race is currently divided between the ruling PLD candidate Danilo Medina and the opposition PRD candidate, former President Hipolito Mejia.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
The Dominican Republic is a representative democracy with national powers divided among independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The president appoints the cabinet, executes laws passed by the legislative branch, and is commander in chief of the armed forces. The president and vice president run for office on the same ticket and are elected by direct vote for 4-year terms. Legislative power is exercised by a bicameral Congress--the Senate (32 members) and the House of Representatives (178 members).

The Dominican Republic has a multi-party political system which until 2010 held national elections every 2 years (alternating between presidential elections and congressional/municipal elections). The 2010 constitution adjusted the terms of the 2010 elections on a one-time basis to 6 years, so that beginning in 2016 the presidential, congressional, and municipal elections will be held simultaneously every 4 years in years evenly divisible by four. International observers have found that presidential and congressional elections since 1996 have been generally free and fair. Elections are supervised by a Central Elections Board (JCE) of 9 members chosen for a four-year term by the newly elected Senate. JCE decisions on electoral matters are final.

Under the constitutional reforms negotiated after the 1994 elections, the 16-member Supreme Court of Justice is appointed by a National Judicial Council, which is comprised of the president, the leaders of both houses of Congress, the president of the Supreme Court, and an opposition or non-governing-party member. One other Supreme Court Justice acts as secretary of the Council, a non-voting position. The Supreme Court has sole authority over managing the court system and in hearing actions against the president, designated members of his cabinet, and members of Congress when the legislature is in session.

The Supreme Court hears appeals from lower courts and chooses members of lower courts. Each of the 31 provinces is headed by a presidentially appointed governor. Mayors and municipal councils to administer the 124 municipal districts and the National District (Santo Domingo) are elected at the same time as congressional representatives.

Principal Government Officials
President--Leonel Fernández Reyna
Foreign Minister--Carlos Morales Troncoso
Ambassador to the United States--Anibal de Castro
Ambassador to the United Nations--Virgilio Alcántara
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Roberto Saladín

The Dominican Republic maintains an embassy in the United States at 1715 22d Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-332-6280).

DEFENSE
Congress authorizes a combined military force of 44,000 active duty personnel. Actual active duty strength is approximately 32,000. However, approximately 50% of those are used for non-military activities such as security providers for government-owned non-military facilities, highway toll stations, prisons, forestry work, state enterprises, and private businesses. The commander in chief of the military is the president. The principal missions are to defend the nation and protect the territorial integrity of the country. The army, larger than the other services combined with approximately 20,000 active duty personnel, consists of six infantry brigades, a combat support brigade, and a combat service support brigade. The air force operates two main bases, one in the southern region near Santo Domingo and one in the northern region near Puerto Plata. The navy operates two major naval bases, one in Santo Domingo and one in Las Calderas on the southwestern coast, and maintains 12 operational vessels. In the Caribbean, only Cuba has a larger military force.

The armed forces have organized a Specialized Airport Security Corps (CESA) and a Specialized Port Security Corps (CESEP) to meet international security needs in these areas. The Secretary of the Armed Forces has also announced plans to form a specialized border corps (CESEF). Additionally, the armed forces provide 75% of personnel to the National Investigations Directorate (DNI) and the Counter-Drug Directorate (DNCD).

The Dominican National Police force contains 32,000 agents. The police are not part of the Dominican armed forces, but share some overlapping security functions. Sixty-three percent of the force serve in areas outside traditional police functions, similar to the situation of their military counterparts.

ECONOMY
After a decade of little to no growth in the 1980s, the Dominican Government initiated a program of economic reform in the early 1990s, adopting sound macroeconomic policies and opening the country to foreign investment. The economy grew at an average rate of 7.6% annually from 1996 to 2000. Growth faltered in the early 2000s as several of the Dominican Republic’s main trading partners suffered recessions, reducing demand for manufactured goods. The economy contracted in 2003 (-0.3%) in the wake of a domestic banking crisis. The Mejía administration negotiated an IMF standby agreement in August 2003, though failed to comply with fiscal targets. The Fernández administration signed the agreement in January 2005, after securing required tax legislation. Fernández successfully renegotiated official bilateral debt with Paris Club member governments, commercial bank debt with London Club members, and sovereign debt with a consortium of lenders. Growth recovered, averaging 7.8% from 2004 to 2007. The standby agreement concluded in January 2008 with fiscal and financial targets largely met but reform in the electricity sector and financial markets unrealized.

The global economic crisis, and in particular the U.S. recession, started to impact the Dominican economy in 2008. Remittances, exports, and tourism fell, and continued to fall throughout 2009, driving down government revenue. In October 2009, seeking to shore up dwindling revenues and improve its ability to secure more favorable rates with private lenders, the Fernández administration negotiated a new 28-month, U.S. $1.7 billion standby agreement with the IMF. Among other goals, the agreement aims to address the unrealized reform from the previous agreement by addressing electricity sector inefficiencies and improving fiscal management.

Trade
The Dominican Republic's most important trading partner is the United States. Other markets include Haiti, Western Europe, and China. The country exports goods manufactured in free trade zones (FTZs), such as textiles, electronic products, jewelry, tobacco, and pharmaceuticals, as well as cacao, sugar, tobacco, and coffee. Aside from inputs into FTZs, it imports petroleum and petroleum-derived products, lasting consumer goods (automobiles, etc.), and food and foodstuffs.

On September 5, 2005, the Dominican Congress ratified a free trade agreement with the U.S. and five Central American countries, known as CAFTA-DR. The CAFTA-DR agreement entered into force for the Dominican Republic on March 1, 2007. U.S. direct investment in the Dominican Republic is primarily in the manufacturing sector. Remittances were close to $3 billion in 2010.

FTZs accounted for an estimated U.S. $4.08 billion in Dominican exports for 2010 (61.8% of total exports). FTZ rebounded after a slump in 2009, though FTZ exports are still roughly 15% lower than they were at their peak in 2000 The textiles sector--which constituted 53.6% of FTZ exports in 2000--has increasingly played a smaller role in the FTZ sector. It experienced an estimated 17% drop since 2008 (and a 62% drop since 2000) due in part to the appreciation of the Dominican peso against the dollar, Asian competition following expiration of the quotas of the Multi-Fiber Arrangement, and a government-mandated increase in salaries. In 2009, the largest category of FTZ exports was the aggregate of non-traditional FTZ exports followed by textiles and electric products. .

Electricity
An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of participants in the electricity sector to establish long-term financial viability for the system. The sector is divided between privately-owned electricity generators and State-owned electricity distributors. Installed generation capacity is currently adequate, but a steadily increasing demand coupled with anemic recapitalization in generation point towards a looming shortage. Indeed, baseline demand is projected to overtake installed capacity by 2014. The investment climate remains unattractive due to late payment to generators by the government-owned distribution companies and the worries that generators have about fair competition. In 2009, the World Bank recorded that electricity distribution losses totaled about 40%, a rate of loss exceeded in only two other countries. Estimates continue to place total losses in the range of 35 to 42% due to low collection rates, theft, infrastructure problems, and corruption. As a result, the Government is always in arrears to the generators. Under the IMF Standby Agreement, the Government is committed to remaining current on debt to generators over 45 days old. Timely payments persist in being a challenge for the Dominican government and it frequently falls behind in-between IMF reviews. As an additional issue, an estimated 85% of Dominican citizens receive a subsidized billing rate, costing the Government a projected U.S. $1 billion in 2011. In response, the Dominican government recently announced an across-the board 8% increase in electricity rates, citing the relentless rise in oil prices. This follows an 11% rate increase on December 1, 2010.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
The Dominican Republic has a close relationship with the United States and with the other states of the inter-American system. It has accredited diplomatic missions in most Western Hemisphere countries and in principal European capitals. Newly elected president of Haiti René Préval made a working visit to Santo Domingo in March 2006, reciprocating Leonel Fernández's call on the Interim Government of Haiti in December 2005. The Dominican Government has regularly appealed for international support for its island neighbor.

There is a sizeable Haitian migrant community in the Dominican Republic, many of whom lack residence permits and citizenship documentation. The Dominican Republic is a founding member of the United Nations and participates in many of its specialized and related agencies, including the World Bank, International Labor Organization, International Atomic Energy Agency, and International Civil Aviation Organization. It is a member of the OAS and of the Inter-American Development Bank.

U.S.-DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RELATIONS
The U.S. has a strong interest in a democratic, stable, and economically healthy Dominican Republic. The country's standing as the largest Caribbean economy, second-largest country in terms of population and land mass, with large bilateral trade with the United States, and its proximity to the United States and other smaller Caribbean nations make the Dominican Republic an important partner in hemispheric affairs. The Embassy estimates that 100,000 U.S. citizens live in the Dominican Republic; many are dual nationals. An important element of the relationship between the two countries is the fact that more than 1 million individuals of Dominican origin reside in the United States, most of them in the metropolitan Northeast and some in Florida.

U.S. relations with the Dominican Republic are excellent, and the U.S. has been an outspoken supporter of that country's democratic and economic development. The Dominican Government has been supportive of many U.S. initiatives in the United Nations and related agencies. The two governments cooperate in the fight against the traffic in illegal substances. The Dominican Republic has worked closely with U.S. law enforcement officials on issues such as the extradition of fugitives and measures to hinder illegal migration.

The United States supports the Fernández administration's efforts to improve Dominican competitiveness, to attract foreign private investment, to fight corruption, and to modernize the tax system. Bilateral trade is important to both countries. U.S. firms, mostly manufacturers of apparel, footwear, and light electronics, as well as U.S. energy companies, account for much of the foreign private investment in the Dominican Republic.

U.S. goods exports to the Dominican Republic in 2008 were U.S. $6.6 billion, up 8.4% from 2007, 23.3% from 2006 (pre-CAFTA-DR), and 136% from 1994 (the year prior to the Uruguay Round). The Dominican Republic was the United States' 33rd-largest goods export market in 2008. The Dominican Republic's exports to the U.S. in 2008 were U.S. $4 billion, a 5.6% decrease from 2007 but up 29% over the previous 14 years. The U.S. Embassy works closely with U.S. business firms and Dominican trade groups, both of which can take advantage of the new opportunities in this growing market. At the same time, the Embassy is working with the Dominican Government to resolve a range of ongoing commercial and investment disputes.

The Embassy counsels U.S. firms through its Country Commercial Guide and informally via meetings with business persons planning to invest or already investing in the Dominican Republic. This is a challenging business environment for U.S. firms, especially for medium to smaller sized businesses.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) mission is focused on improving access of underserved populations to quality health care and combating HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB); promoting economic growth through policy reform, support for CAFTA-DR implementation, and technical assistance to small producers and tourism groups; environmental protection and policy reform initiatives; improved access to quality primary, public education and assistance to at-risk youth; a model rural electrification program; and improving participation in democratic processes, while strengthening the judiciary and combating corruption across all sectors.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Raul H. Yzaguirre
Deputy Chief of Mission--Christopher Lambert
USAID Mission Director--James Watson (Acting)
Consul General--William Weissmann
Economic and Political Counselor--Alexander Margulies
Public Affairs Adviser--Todd Haskell
Commercial Counselor (DOC/FCS)--Robert Jones
Defense Attaché--David M. O'Connell (U.S. Marine Corps)

The U.S. Embassy is located at the corner of Calle César Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Gazcué District, Santo Domingo (tel. 809-221-2171).

Other Contact Information
U.S. Department of Commerce
International Trade Administration
Trade Information Center
14th and Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20230
Tel: 1-800-USA-TRADE
Internet: http://trade.gov/

Caribbean/Latin American Action
1818 N. Street, NW, Suite 310
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 466-7464
Fax: (202) 822-0075

American Chamber of Commerce in the Dominican Republic
Torre Empresarial, 6to.
Piso, Ave. Sarasota No. 25,
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Tel: (809) 381-0777
Fax: (809) 381-0303
E-mail: amcham@codetel.net.do

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

The Department's Smart Traveler app for U.S. travelers going abroad provides easy access to the frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more that appear on the travel.state.gov site. Travelers can also set up e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later).

The Department of State encourages all U.S. citizens traveling or residing abroad to register via the State Department's travel registration website or at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate abroad (a link to the registration page is also available through the Smart Traveler app). Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency and will enable you to receive up-to-date information on security conditions.

Emergency information concerning Americans traveling abroad may be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada or the regular toll line 1-202-501-4444 for callers outside the U.S. and Canada.

Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

Health Information
Travelers can check the latest health information with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. A hotline at 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) and a web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx give the most recent health advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries. The CDC publication "Health Information for International Travel" can be found at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentYellowBook.aspx.

More Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov, the Department of State web site provides timely, global access to official U.S. foreign policy information, including more Background Notes, the Department's daily press briefings along with the directory of key officers of Foreign Service posts and more. The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides security information and regional news that impact U.S. companies working abroad through its website http://www.osac.gov

Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the export process, and more.

Mobile Sources. Background Notes are available on mobile devices at http://m.state.gov/mc36882.htm, or use the QR code below.

In addition, a mobile version of the Department's http://www.state.gov website is available at http://m.state.gov, or use the QR code below. Included on this site are Top Stories, remarks and speeches by Secretary Clinton, Daily Press Briefings, Country Information, and more.

PROFILE
Geography
Land area: 462,840 sq. km.; about the size of California.
Cities: Capital--Port Moresby (307, 643). Other cities--Lae (190,178), Mt. Hagen (39,003).
Terrain: Mostly mountains with coastal lowlands and rolling foothills. The largest portion of the population lives in fertile highlands valleys that were unknown to the outside world until the 1930s, but that supported agriculture some 10,000 years ago, possibly before agriculture was developed elsewhere.
Climate: Tropical. NW monsoon, Dec.-Mar.; SE monsoon, May-Oct.

People
Population (2010): 6.7 million.
Annual population growth rate (2010): 2.0%.
Languages: Three official languages are English, Tok Pisin, and Motu. There are approximately 860 other languages.
Education: Years compulsory--0. Literacy Rate--49.3%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2009)--52/1,000. Life expectancy (2009)--62.0 yrs.

Government
Type: Constitutional parliamentary democracy.
Constitution: September 16, 1975.
Branches: Executive--Queen Elizabeth II (head of state, represented by a governor general); prime minister (head of government). Legislative--unicameral parliament. Judicial--independent; highest is Supreme Court.
Administrative subdivisions: 19 provinces and the national capital district (Port Moresby).
Major political parties: National Alliance (NA), People's Progress Party (PPP), United Resources Party (URP), PNG Party (PNGP).
Suffrage: Universal over 18 years of age.

Economy
Nominal GDP (2010): U.S. $8.80 billion; PGK 21.84 billion.
Average exchange rate (2009): U.S. $1 = PGK 2.7.
Real GDP growth rate (2010): 47.1%.
Inflation rate (2010): 6.0%.
Per capita GDP (2009): U.S. $1,180.
Natural resources: Gold, copper ore, crude oil, natural gas, timber, fish, oil palm, tea, rubber, logs.
Forestry (4% of GDP); marine (1% of GDP); minerals and oil (82% of GDP).
Agriculture (32% of GDP): Major products--coffee, cocoa, coconuts, palm oil, timber, tea, vanilla.
Industry (35% of GDP): Major sectors--copra crushing; palm oil processing; plywood production; wood chip production; mining of gold, silver, and copper; construction; tourism; crude oil production, refined petroleum production.
Trade: Exports—67% of GDP: gold, copper ore, oil, timber, palm oil, coffee. Major markets (in order by value--high to low)--Australia, Japan, Philippines, Germany, South Korea, , United Kingdom, , and Malaysia. Imports--40% of GDP: machinery and transport equipment, vehicles, manufactured goods, food, mineral fuels, chemicals. Major suppliers (in order by value--high to low)--Australia, China, Singapore, United States, Japan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and United Kingdom.

PEOPLE
The indigenous population of Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous in the world. Papua New Guinea has several thousand separate communities, most with only a few hundred people. Divided by language, customs, and tradition, some of these communities have engaged in low-scale tribal conflict with their neighbors for millennia. The advent of modern weapons and modern migration into urban areas has greatly magnified the impact of this lawlessness.

The isolation created by the mountainous terrain is so great that some groups, until recently, were unaware of the existence of neighboring groups only a few kilometers away. The diversity, reflected in a folk saying, "For each village, a different culture," is perhaps best shown in the local languages. Spoken mainly on the island of New Guinea--composed of Papua New Guinea and the Indonesian province of West Papua--some 800 of these languages have been identified; of these, only 350-450 are related. The remainder seem to be totally unrelated either to each other or to the other major groupings. Most native languages are spoken by a few hundred to a few thousand, although Enga, used in part of the highlands, is spoken by some 130,000 people. However, the Enga people are subdivided into clans that regularly conflict with each other. Many native languages are extremely complex grammatically.

Melanesian Pidgin serves as the lingua franca. English is spoken by educated people and in Milne Bay Province. The overall population density is low, although pockets of overpopulation exist. Papua New Guinea's Western Province averages one person per square kilometer (3 per sq. mi.). The Chimbu Province in the New Guinea highlands averages 20 persons per square kilometer (60 per sq. mi.) and has areas containing up to 200 people farming a square kilometer of land. The highlands are home to 40% of the population.

A considerable urban drift toward Port Moresby and other major centers has occurred in recent years. The trend toward urbanization accelerated in the 1990s, bringing in its wake squatter settlements, ethnic disputes, unemployment, public utilities pressure, and attendant social problems, especially violent crime.

Approximately 96% of the population is Christian. The churches with the largest number of members are the Roman Catholic Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the United Church, and the Seventh Day Adventist church. Although the major churches are under indigenous leadership, a large number of missionaries remain in the country. The bulk of the estimated 2,000 Americans resident in Papua New Guinea are missionaries and their families. The non-Christian portion of the indigenous population, as well as a portion of the nominal Christians, practices a wide variety of religions that are an integral part of traditional culture, mainly animism (spirit worship) and ancestor cults.

Foreign residents comprise about 1% of the population. More than half are Australian; others are from China, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the Philippines, India, and the United States, most of whom are missionaries. Since independence, about 900 foreigners have become naturalized citizens.

Though cultures vary widely, traditional Papua New Guinea social structures generally include the following characteristics:

• The practice of subsistence economy;
• Recognition of bonds of kinship with obligations extending beyond the immediate family group;
• Generally egalitarian relationships with an emphasis on acquired, rather than inherited, status; and
• A strong attachment of the people to land, which is held communally. Traditional communities do not recognize a permanent transfer of ownership when land is sold.
• Though land and other possessions may be inherited through the female line in some cultures, women generally are considered and treated as inferiors. Gender violence is endemic.
• Patterns and frequency of sexual activity, though never publicly discussed (especially in rural areas), contribute to the current rapid spread of HIV.

Most Papua New Guineans still adhere strongly to this traditional social structure, which has its roots in village life.

HISTORY
Archeological evidence indicates that humans arrived on New Guinea at least 60,000 years ago, probably by sea from Southeast Asia during an Ice Age period when the sea was lower and distances between islands shorter. Although the first arrivals were hunters and gatherers, early evidence shows that people managed the forest environment to provide food. There also are indications of gardening having been practiced at the same time that agriculture was developing in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Early garden crops--many of which are indigenous--included sugarcane, Pacific bananas, yams, and taros, while sago and pandanus were two commonly exploited native forest crops. Today's staples--sweet potatoes and pigs--were later arrivals, but shellfish and fish have long been mainstays of coastal dwellers' diets.

When Europeans first arrived, inhabitants of New Guinea and nearby islands--while still relying on bone, wood, and stone tools--had a productive agricultural system. They traded along the coast, where products mainly were pottery, shell ornaments, and foodstuffs, and in the interior, where forest products were exchanged for shells and other sea products.

The first Europeans to sight New Guinea were probably the Portuguese and Spanish navigators sailing in the South Pacific in the early part of the 16th century. In 1526-27, Don Jorge de Meneses accidentally came upon the principal island and is credited with naming it "Papua," a Malay word for the frizzled quality of Melanesian hair. The term "New Guinea" was applied to the island in 1545 by a Spaniard, Inigo Ortiz de Retes, because of a fancied resemblance between the islands' inhabitants and those found on the African Guinea coast. Although European navigators visited the islands and explored their coastlines for the next 170 years, little was known of the inhabitants until the late 19th century.

New Guinea
With Europe's growing need for coconut oil, Godeffroy's of Hamburg, the largest trading firm in the Pacific, began trading for copra in the New Guinea Islands. In 1884, Germany formally took possession of the northeast quarter of the island and put its administration in the hands of a chartered company. In 1899, the German imperial government assumed direct control of the territory, thereafter known as German New Guinea. In 1914, Australian troops occupied German New Guinea, and it remained under Australian military control until 1921. The British Government, on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia, assumed a mandate from the League of Nations for governing the Territory of New Guinea in 1920. That mandate was administered by the Australian Government until the Japanese invasion in December 1941 brought about its suspension. Following the surrender of the Japanese in 1945, civil administration of Papua as well as New Guinea was restored, and under the Papua New Guinea Provisional Administration Act, 1945-46, Papua and New Guinea were combined in an administrative union.

Papua
On November 6, 1884, a British protectorate was proclaimed over the southern coast of New Guinea (the area called Papua) and its adjacent islands. The protectorate, called British New Guinea, was annexed outright on September 4, 1888. The possession was placed under the authority of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1902. Following the passage of the Papua Act of 1905, British New Guinea became the Territory of Papua, and formal Australian administration began in 1906. Papua was administered under the Papua Act until the Japanese invaded the northern parts of the islands in 1941 and began to advance on Port Moresby and civil administration was suspended. During the war, Papua was governed by a military administration from Port Moresby, where Gen. Douglas MacArthur occasionally made his headquarters. As noted, it was later joined in an administrative union with New Guinea during 1945-46 following the surrender of Japan.

Postwar Developments
The Papua and New Guinea Act of 1949 formally approved the placing of New Guinea under the international trusteeship system and confirmed the administrative union of New Guinea and Papua under the title of "The Territory of Papua and New Guinea." The act provided for a Legislative Council (established in 1951), a judicial organization, a public service, and a system of local government. A House of Assembly replaced the Legislative Council in 1963, and the first House of Assembly opened on June 8, 1964. In 1972, the name of the territory was changed to Papua New Guinea.

Elections in 1972 resulted in the formation of a ministry headed by Chief Minister Michael Somare, who pledged to lead the country to self-government and then to independence. Papua New Guinea became self-governing in December 1973 and achieved independence on September 16, 1975. The 1977 national elections confirmed Michael Somare as Prime Minister at the head of a coalition led by the Pangu Party. However, his government lost a vote of no confidence in 1980 and was replaced by a new cabinet headed by Julius Chan as Prime Minister. The 1982 elections increased Pangu's plurality, and parliament again chose Somare as Prime Minister. In November 1985, the Somare government lost a vote of no confidence, and the parliamentary majority elected Paias Wingti, at the head of a five-party coalition, as Prime Minister. A coalition, headed by Wingti, was victorious in very close elections in July 1987. In July 1988 a no-confidence vote toppled Wingti and brought to power Rabbie Namaliu, who a few weeks earlier had replaced Somare as leader of the Pangu Party. In 1992 Paias Wingti was elected Prime Minister. Julius Chan took his place in 1994 after a vote of no confidence. The 1997 elections brought Bill Skate to power as Prime Minister, but he was replaced by Mekere Morauta after a vote of no confidence in 1999. Michael Somare returned as Prime Minister after the 2002 general elections. He led his national alliance party into the 2007 elections and remained as the Prime Minister, becoming the longest-serving parliamentarian in the Commonwealth. Somare celebrated his 40th year in politics on March 16, 2008.

Such reversals of fortune and a revolving-door succession of prime ministers have characterized Papua New Guinea's national politics. From 1988 to 2002, the country had numerous prime ministers. A plethora of political parties, coalition governments, shifting party loyalties, and motions of no confidence in the leadership all lent an air of instability to political proceedings. For the first 27 years of independence, a "first past the post" electoral system resulted in many parliamentarians elected with less than 15% of their constituency. Fractious politics and a 75% loss rate for incumbents precluded the development of strong political parties or a stable national leadership. The limited preferential voting, introduced in 2003, and an organic law on political parties strengthened political stability.

In the 2007 elections, 66 members of parliament lost their seats. The government was formed by a coalition of several parties, and Michael Somare, the leader of the National Alliance (and the nation's first Prime Minister in 1975), was elected Prime Minister. His government was the first to complete a 5-year term since independence and hopes to complete a 10-year term. The next national elections will be held in 2012.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Papua New Guinea, a constitutional parliamentary democracy, recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. She is represented by a governor general who is elected by parliament and who performs mainly ceremonial functions. Papua New Guinea has three levels of government--national, provincial, and local. There is a 109-member unicameral parliament, whose members are elected every 5 years. The parliament in turn elects the prime minister, who appoints his cabinet from members of his party or coalition.

Members of parliament are elected from 19 provinces and the national capital district of Port Moresby. Parliament introduced reforms in June 1995 to change the provincial government system, with regional (at-large) members of parliament becoming provincial governors, while retaining their national seats in parliament.

Papua New Guinea's judiciary is independent of the government. It protects constitutional rights and interprets the laws. There are several levels, culminating in the Supreme Court.

Papua New Guinea's politics are highly competitive with most members elected on a personal and ethnic basis within their constituencies rather than as a result of party affiliation. Members of parliament are now elected in a limited preferential voting (LPV) system. There are several parties, but party allegiances are not strong. Winning independent candidates are usually courted in efforts to forge the majority needed to form a government, and allegiances are fluid. No single party has yet won enough seats to form a government in its own right.

Papua New Guinea has a history of changes in government coalitions and leadership from within parliament during the 5-year intervals between national elections. New governments are protected by law from votes of no confidence for the first 18 months of their incumbency, and no votes of no confidence may be moved in the 12 months preceding a national election. In an effort to create greater stability by reducing incessant votes of no confidence, the Organic Law on the Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates (OLIPPAC) was passed in 2001, forbidding members of each party in parliament from shifting loyalty to another party. In July 2010, the Supreme Court ruled certain provisions of the OLIPPAC unconstitutional including those requiring members of parliament (MPs) to vote along party lines on matters such as the budget and motions of no confidence, and restricting MPs from resigning and joining other political parties. Soon after the Supreme Court ruling, three government ministers, including Deputy Prime Minister Puka Temu, resigned from the government and joined the opposition in a bid to move a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Michael Somare. The bid was unsuccessful because the Speaker of Parliament did not allow a vote to be taken on the motion before adjourning parliament until November.

In 2003, the electoral system was changed to limited preferential voting, which has begun to encourage politicians to strike alliances and to be responsive to constituent concerns once elected. The new system was used in the 2007 national general elections. However, 53 election petitions disputing returns were registered with the courts. Allegations included bribery, intimidation, block voting, and undue influence.

On Bougainville Island, a 10-year rebellion was halted by a truce in 1997 and a permanent cease-fire was signed in April 1998. A peace agreement between the Government and ex-combatants was signed in August 2001. Under the eyes of a regional peace-monitoring force and a UN observer mission, the government and provincial leaders established an interim administration and made significant progress toward complete surrender/destruction of weapons. A constitution was drafted in 2004 and provincial government elections were held in May 2005. The elections were deemed to be free and fair by international observers, and Joseph Kabui was elected to serve as the first president of the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG). Bougainvilleans also participated in Papua New Guinea national elections in 2007 to elect representatives to the national parliament. Kabui died of a heart attack in June 2008. James Tanis was elected President of the ABG in December 2008. Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in May 2010, and John Momis was elected President. A referendum was tentatively agreed to be held between 2015 and 2020, 10 to 15 years following formation of the ABG. Progress has been slow with the ABG initially focusing on disarmament, peace, and reconciliation. A small percentage of former fighters have created illegal "no go zones," particularly in the Central and South Bougainville.

Principal Government Officials
Governor General—Michael Ogio
Prime Minister--Michael Somare
Deputy Prime Minister—Samuel Abal
Foreign Minister—Don Polye
Ambassador to the United States--Evan Paki
Ambassador to the United Nations--Robert Aisi

Papua New Guinea maintains an embassy at 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036 (tel. 202-745-3680; fax 202-745-3679). The Papua New Guinea mission to the United Nations is at 801 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10017 (tel. 212-682-6447).

ECONOMY
Papua New Guinea is rich in natural resources, including minerals, oil, gas, timber, and fish, and produces a variety of commercial agricultural products. The economy generally can be separated into subsistence and market sectors, although the distinction is blurred by smallholder cash cropping of coffee, cocoa, and copra. Approximately 75% of the country's population relies primarily on the subsistence economy. The minerals, timber, and fish sectors are dominated by foreign investors.

Manufacturing continued to be slow in 2010. The service industry was stable, while tourism shows potential and remains largely untapped. Generally, economic activity has continued to grow since2007. The growth was boosted by favorable international commodity prices. Employment grew modestly. The financial sector enjoyed high liquidity, with increased lending due to low interest rates. Inflation remained low.

Mineral and Oil Resources
Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with gold, copper, oil, natural gas, and other minerals. In 2006 minerals and oil export receipts accounted for 82% of GDP. Government revenues and foreign exchange earnings depend heavily on mineral and oil exports. Indigenous landowners in areas affected by minerals projects also receive royalties from those operations. Copper and gold mines are currently in production at Porgera, Ok Tedi, Misima, and Lihir. A consortium led by Exxon/Mobil signed a final investment decision in December 2009 to begin the commercialization of the country's estimated 22.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves through the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facility. Interoil, an American-owned firm, opened Papua New Guinea's first oil refinery in 2004 and is also building a second liquefied natural gas production facility which it aims to complete by 2012 with production capacity of 32,500 barrels of product per day.

Agriculture, Timber, and Fish
Papua New Guinea also produces and exports valuable agricultural, timber, and marine products. Agriculture currently accounts for 32% of GDP and supports more than 75% of the population. Cash crops ranked by value are coffee, oil, cocoa, copra, tea, rubber, and sugar. About 40% of the country is covered with exploitable trees, but a domestic woodworking industry has been slow to develop. A number of Southeast Asian companies are active in the timber industry, but World Bank and other donors have withdrawn support from the sector over concern for unregulated deforestation and environmental damage. Recently enacted forestry legislation has exacerbated those concerns. Papua New Guinea has an active tuna industry, but much of the catch is made by boats of other nations fishing in Papua New Guinea waters under license. Papua New Guinea is a signatory to the South Pacific Tuna Treaty (SPTT), under which U.S. purse seiners fish for tuna in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of the Pacific Island parties. Locally produced fish exports are confined primarily to shrimp.

Industry
In general, the Papua New Guinea economy is highly dependent on imports for manufactured goods. Its industrial sector--exclusive of mining--accounts for only 9% of GDP and contributes little to exports. Small-scale industries produce beer, soap, concrete products, clothing, paper products, matches, ice cream, canned meat, fruit juices, furniture, plywood, and paint. The small domestic market, relatively high wages, and high transport costs are constraints to industrial development.

Trade and Investment
Australia, Singapore, and Japan are the principal exporters to Papua New Guinea. Petroleum and mining machinery and aircraft have been the strongest U.S. exports to Papua New Guinea.

Australia is Papua New Guinea's most important export market, followed by Japan and the European Union. The U.S. imports modest amounts of gold, copper ore, cocoa, coffee, and other agricultural products from Papua New Guinea. Most of those exports take place through third countries.

With the 2003 withdrawal of Chevron/Texaco, Australian companies are the most active in developing Papua New Guinea's mining and petroleum sectors. Exxon/Mobil retains a major share of natural gas reserves and is constructing a liquefied natural gas processing facility. Interoil, backed by an Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) loan, operates an oil refinery in Port Moresby and in September 2010 signed an agreement with Energy World Corporation (EWC) to complete front-end engineering and design and a final investment decision to establish the second LNG project in the country. China is increasing its investment in Papua New Guinea, including development of the $1 billion Ramu nickel mine.

Papua New Guinea became a participating economy in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum in 1993. It joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1996. It is an observer at ASEAN and a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum. It has preferential tariff agreements with the markets of Melanesian and Pacific Island neighbors through the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Trade Agreement and the Pacific Islands Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA).

Development Programs and Aid
Australia is by far the largest bilateral aid donor to Papua New Guinea, offering about $355 million a year in assistance. Budgetary support, which has been provided in decreasing amounts since independence, was phased out in 2000, with aid concentrated on project development. In 2004, Australia and Papua New Guinea embarked on the Enhanced Cooperation Program (ECP), under which Australia agreed to provide direct assistance, including 210 line police officers, to the Papua New Guinea constabulary. The ECP met with initial success, but was abruptly ended when Papua New Guinea's Supreme Court stripped Australian police officers of immunity in May 2005. Virtually all ECP personnel left Papua New Guinea following the court's decision. The governments of Papua New Guinea and Australia are now involved in protracted negotiations on a scaled-down version of the ECP.

Other major sources of aid to Papua New Guinea are Japan, the European Union, the People's Republic of China, Taiwan, the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. Volunteers from a number of countries and mission church workers also provide education, health, and development assistance throughout the country. Foreign assistance to Papua New Guinea is approximately $46 per capita. The U.S. funds a $1.5 million-per-year HIV/AIDS project in Papua New Guinea.

Current Economic Conditions
After years of decline and government deficit, Papua New Guinea was bolstered in recent years by a general rise in commodity prices and by government steps toward spending control.Economic activity accelerated in 2010 resulting in an estimated economic growth of 7.1% compared to a 5.5% in 2009. This was largely due to the start of construction on the US$15 billion liquefied natural gas project led by ExxonMobil as well as a recovery in international commodity prices. . However, the economic improvements are based almost entirely on high commodity prices and the nation continues to have serious problems of corruption, a lack of law and order, land tenure concerns stifling investment, political interference in business, and a lack of political will to adopt needed sweeping reforms.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Papua New Guinea's foreign policy reflects close ties with Australia and other traditional allies. Papua New Guinea is by far the largest Pacific Island nation and has traditionally viewed itself as part of the Pacific. However, in recent years it has also been cultivating relations with Asian nations. Its views on international political and economic issues are generally moderate. Papua New Guinea has diplomatic relations with 56 countries.

U.S.-PAPUA NEW GUINEA RELATIONS
The United States and Papua New Guinea established diplomatic relations upon the latter's independence on September 16, 1975. The two nations belong to a variety of regional organizations, including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum; the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF); the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC); and the South Pacific Regional Environmental Program (SPREP).

One of the most successful cooperative multilateral efforts linking the U.S. and Papua New Guinea is the U.S.-Pacific Islands Multilateral Tuna Fisheries Treaty, under which the U.S. grants $18 million per year to Pacific Island parties and the latter provide access for U.S. fishing vessels. The United States has provided significant humanitarian assistance to Papua New Guinea and contributed to the rehabilitation of Bougainville. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funds a $1.5 million-per-year HIV/AIDS project in Papua New Guinea and contributed $150,000 to Oro disaster relief efforts. The Pacific Partnership 2008 mission provided humanitarian assistance in Port Moresby and Oro Province. School and health clinic engineering projects were completed and over 25,000 people received medical care. The Pacific Partnership 2010 mission provided humanitarian assistance in Rabaul, East New Britain Province. Health and engineering programs were completed in conjunction with local non-governmental organizations. An ongoing International Military Education and Training (IMET) program and HIV/AIDS training program exists.

The U.S. also supports Papua New Guinea's efforts to protect biodiversity. The U.S. Government supports the International Coral Reef Initiative aimed at protecting reefs in tropical nations such as Papua New Guinea. USAID contributes to the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) focused on preserving coral reefs, fisheries, and food security. Papua New Guinea is one of six CTI countries. U.S. military forces, through Pacific Command (PACOM) in Honolulu, Hawaii, provide training to the Papua New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF) and have held small-scale joint training exercises. The U.S. provides police and other education and training courses to national security officials. The U.S. also annually sponsors a handful of Papua New Guinea officials and private citizens to meet and confer with their professional counterparts and to experience the U.S. firsthand through the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) and workshops sponsored by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Asia Pacific Secretariat (APEC).

The U.S. Peace Corps ceased operations in Papua New Guinea in 2001 due to security concerns. About 2,000 U.S. citizens live in Papua New Guinea, with major concentrations at the headquarters of New Tribes Mission and the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), both located in the Eastern Highlands Province.

Following the severe sea swells in December 2008, the United States provided $150,000 of humanitarian assistance.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Teddy Taylor
Deputy Chief of Mission--Paul Berg
Consular Officer--Sarah Nelson

The U.S. Embassy in Papua New Guinea is located on Douglas Street, Port Moresby (tel. 675-321-1455; fax 675-321-3423). The mailing address is 4240 Port Moresby Pl., U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-4240.

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
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The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.

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Passports
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4-USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778); TDD/TTY: 1-888-874-7793. Passport information is available 24 hours, 7 days a week. You may speak with a representative Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

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PROFILE

Geography
Area: 75,517 sq. km. (29,157 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than South Carolina. Panama occupies the southeastern end of the isthmus forming the land bridge between North and South America.
Cities: Capital--Panama City (430,299), Panama District (880,691), Panama Province (1,713,000)). Other cities--Colon City (34,655), Colon district (206,553), David City (82,907), David District (144,858). Terrain: Mountainous (highest elevation Cerro Volcan Baru, 3,475 m. (11,468 ft.)); coastline 2,857 km. (1,786 mi.).
Climate: Tropical, with average daily rainfall 28 mm. (1 in.) in winter.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Panamanian(s).
Population (March 2011): 3,405,813. 50.3% of the population lives in Panama province.
Annual population growth rate: 1.84%.
Ethnic groups: Mestizo (mix of African, Indigenous, and European – mostly Spanish – ancestry) 67%, Indigenous 12.3%, African descent 9.2%, Other including Caucasian and Chinese 11.5%.
Religions: Roman Catholic 84%, Protestant 15%, other 1%.
Languages: Spanish (official); various indigenous languages. Many Afro descents from the West Indies speak English and many professional college-educated Panamanians in Panama City are bilingual.
Education: Years compulsory—primary grades 1-6, or through age 15. Attendance—98.4% for primary school-age children (grades 1-6 or ages 6-11), 73.8% for basic secondary (grades 7-9 or ages 12-14), 44.9% for specialized secondary (grades 10-12 or ages 15-17), 34.9% for tertiary. Literacy—94.5% overall; much lower literacy in Comarcas Ngobe Bugle 69.2%, Kuna Yala 71.7%, Embera 77.1%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2009)—12.2 deaths/1,000 live births, higher in Comarcas Embera 32.1%, Kuna Yala 22.3%, and Ngobe Bugle 19.2% and Bocas del Toro 26.6%. Life expectancy 75.3 77.6 yrs women, 72.8 men (2007).
Work force: 1.532 million: Commerce (wholesale and retail)--17.9%; agriculture, cattle, hunting, silviculture—15.4%; construction—10.6%; industries (manufactures)—8.6%; transportation, storage, postal —6.5% %; private home domestic services—4.6%; public and defense administration—6.2%; hotels and restaurants—5.1%; teaching—5.8%; social and health services—3.7%; financial services—2.0%.
Unemployment (Marzo 2011): 5.6%.
Poverty rate (2008): 32.7%, extreme poverty 14.4%.

Government
Type: Constitutional democracy.
Independence: from Spain, November 28, 1821; separation from Colombia, November 3, 1903.
Constitution: October 11, 1972; amended 1983 and 1994 and reformed in 2004.
Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), vice president. (A second vice presidential slot was abolished starting with the 2009 electoral cycle.) Legislative--National Assembly (unicameral; 71 members, reduced from 78 to 71 members for May 2009 elections). Judicial--Supreme Court.
Subdivisions: Nine provinces and five (indigenous) territories.
Political parties: Panameñista Party (formerly the Arnulfista Party (PA)); Democratic Change (CD); National Liberal Republican Movement (MOLIRENA); Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD).
Suffrage: Universal at 18.

Economy
GDP (2010 est.): $20.86 billion.
Annual growth rate: 7.5% (2010 est.); 3.2% (2009 prelim. ); 10.0% (2008); 12.1% (2007).
Per capita GDP: $5,953 (2010 est.); $5,627 (2009 prelim.); $5,541 (2008); $5,115 (2007); $4,640 (2006).
Natural resources: Timber, copper, gold.
Services (77% of GDP): Finance, insurance, health and medical, transportation, telecommunications, Canal and maritime services, tourism, Colon Free Zone, public administration, and general commerce.
Agriculture, Fishing, Mining (5.7 % of GDP, 2010 est.): Products--bananas, corn, sugarcane, rice, coffee, shrimp, timber, vegetables, livestock.
Industry/manufacturing (11.4% of GDP): construction, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling.
Other: (5.9% of GDP)
Trade (2010): Exports (goods)--$725 million in exports, with salmon/tuna as the largest dollar amount, followed by beef, watermelon, shrimp, and pineapples. Export partners (as a percentage of total export value in 2009)--U.S. 29%, China (P.R.C.) 5.0%, Taiwan 5.0%, Costa Rica 6.8%, Canada 10.5%, Sweden 6.9%, Netherlands 7.0%. Imports (goods)--$9.1 billion was imported in 2010: petrol and fuel oils capital goods, foodstuffs, chemicals, and consumer and intermediate goods are the leading imports. Import partners (2009)--the top five countries include the U.S. 27.5%, Costa Rica 4.9%, Mexico 4.3%, China 5.4%, and Japan 3.2%. U.S. exports to Panama (2009)--$4.3 billion: primarily oil and capital- and technology-intensive manufactured goods. Panama exports to U.S. (2010)--$211 million: primarily seafood and repaired goods.
Foreign direct investment (2009): $1.8 billion.

PEOPLE
Panamanians' culture, customs, and language are predominantly Caribbean Spanish. Because of Panama’s unique location as a transit point and because of people coming over the years to work on the railroad and the Canal, the majority of the population is ethnically a mix of Spanish, indigenous, and of African descent. The remaining population is of Afro descent, Caucasian, indigenous, Chinese, and others. Spanish is the official and dominant language; English is a common second language spoken by the West Indians and by many businesspeople and professionals. More than half the population lives in the Panama City-Colon metropolitan corridor.

Panama is rich in folklore and popular traditions. Lively salsa--a mixture of Latin American popular music, rhythm and blues, jazz, and rock--is a Panamanian specialty, and Ruben Blades its best-known performer. Indigenous influences dominate handicrafts such as the famous Kuna textile molas. Artist Roberto Lewis' Presidential Palace murals and his restoration work and ceiling in the National Theater are widely admired. Roberto Duran is a famous boxer. Mariano Rivera is a pitcher for the New York Yankees.

As of 2010, more than 117,600 Panamanian students attended the University of Panama, the Technological University, the Autonomous University of Chiriqui , and the University of Santa Maria La Antigua, a private Catholic institution. Including smaller colleges, there are 88 institutions of higher education in Panama. The first 6 years of primary education are compulsory. As of 2010, there were 723,666 students enrolled in primary and secondary school. More than 94.5% of Panamanians are literate.

HISTORY
Panama's history has been shaped by the evolution of the world economy and the ambitions of great powers. The earliest known inhabitants of Panama were the Cuevas and the Coclé tribes, but they were decimated by disease and fighting when the Spanish arrived in the 1500s.

Rodrigo de Bastidas, sailing westward from Venezuela in 1501 in search of gold, was the first European to explore the Isthmus of Panama. A year later, Christopher Columbus visited the Isthmus and established a short-lived settlement in the Darien. Vasco Nunez de Balboa's tortuous trek from the Atlantic to the Pacific in 1513 demonstrated that the Isthmus was, indeed, the path between the seas, and Panama quickly became the crossroads and marketplace of Spain's empire in the New World. Gold and silver were brought by ship from South America, hauled across the Isthmus, and loaded aboard ships for Spain. The route became known as the Camino Real, or Royal Road, although it was more commonly known as Camino de Cruces (Road of the Crosses) because of the abundance of gravesites along the way.

Panama was part of the Spanish empire for 300 years (1538-1821). From the outset, Panamanian identity was based on a sense of "geographic destiny," and Panamanian fortunes fluctuated with the geopolitical importance of the Isthmus. The colonial experience also spawned Panamanian nationalism as well as a racially complex and highly stratified society, the source of internal conflicts that ran counter to the unifying force of nationalism.

Building the Canal
Modern Panamanian history has been shaped by its trans-isthmian canal, which had been a dream since the beginning of Spanish colonization. From 1880 to 1890, a French company under Ferdinand de Lesseps attempted unsuccessfully to construct a sea-level canal on the site of the present Panama Canal. In November 1903, with U.S. encouragement, Panama proclaimed its independence and concluded the Hay/Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the United States.

The treaty granted rights to the United States "as if it were sovereign" in a zone roughly 10 miles wide and 50 miles long. In that zone, the U.S. would build a canal, then administer, fortify, and defend it "in perpetuity." In 1914, the United States completed the existing 83-kilometer (52 mile) canal, which is one of the world's greatest feats of engineering. The early 1960s saw the beginning of sustained pressure in Panama for the renegotiation of this treaty.

Military Coups and Coalitions
From 1903 until 1968, Panama was a constitutional democracy dominated by a commercially oriented oligarchy. During the 1950s, the Panamanian military began to challenge the oligarchy's political hegemony. In October 1968, Dr. Arnulfo Arias Madrid, twice elected president and twice ousted by the Panamanian military, was ousted for a third time as president by the National Guard after only 10 days in office. A military government was established, and the commander of the National Guard, Brigadier General Omar Torrijos, soon emerged as the principal power in Panamanian political life. Torrijos' regime was harsh and corrupt, but his charisma, populist domestic programs, and nationalist (anti-U.S.) foreign policy appealed to the rural and urban constituencies largely ignored by the oligarchy.

Torrijos' death in 1981 altered the tone but not the direction of Panama's political evolution. Despite the 1983 constitutional amendments, which appeared to proscribe a political role for the military, the Panama Defense Forces (PDF), as they were then known, continued to dominate Panamanian political life behind a facade of civilian government. By this time, General Manuel Noriega was firmly in control of both the PDF and the civilian government.

The United States froze economic and military assistance to Panama in the summer of 1987 in response to the domestic political crisis in Panama and an attack on the U.S. Embassy. In April 1988, President Reagan invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, freezing Panamanian Government assets in all U.S. organizations. In May 1989 Panamanians voted overwhelmingly for the anti-Noriega candidates. The Noriega regime promptly annulled the election, and embarked on a new round of repression. By the fall of 1989 the regime was barely clinging to power, and the regime's paranoia made daily existence unsafe for American citizens.

On December 20, 1989, President George H.W. Bush ordered the U.S. military into Panama to protect U.S. lives and property, to fulfill U.S. treaty responsibilities to operate and defend the Canal, to assist the Panamanian people in restoring democracy, and to bring Noriega to justice. The U.S. troops involved in Operation Just Cause achieved their primary objectives quickly, and Noriega eventually surrendered to U.S. authorities. He completed his sentence for drug trafficking charges in September 2007. In August 2007, a U.S. federal court in Miami found Noriega extraditable to France to serve a sentence imposed there after an in absentia conviction for money laundering. Noriega was extradited to France in April 2010 after exhausting all his appeals in U.S. courts, and was sentenced to a 7-year prison term.

Rebuilding Democracy
Panama's Electoral Tribunal moved quickly to rebuild the civilian constitutional government, reinstated the results of the May 1989 election on December 27, 1989, and confirmed the victory of President Guillermo Endara and Vice Presidents Guillermo Ford and Ricardo Arias Calderon.

During its 5-year term, the often-fractious Endara government struggled to meet the public's high expectations. Its new police force was a major improvement over its predecessor but was not fully able to deter crime. Ernesto Perez Balladares was sworn in as President on September 1, 1994, after an internationally monitored election campaign.

Perez Balladares ran as the candidate for a three-party coalition dominated by the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), the erstwhile political arm of military dictatorships. Perez Balladares worked skillfully during the campaign to rehabilitate the PRD's image, emphasizing the party's populist Torrijos roots rather than its association with Noriega. He won the election with only 33% of the vote when the major non-PRD forces splintered into competing factions. His administration carried out economic reforms and often worked closely with the U.S. on implementation of the Canal treaties.

On September 1, 1999, Mireya Moscoso, the widow of former President Arnulfo Arias Madrid, took office after defeating PRD candidate Martin Torrijos, son of the late dictator, in a free and fair election. During her administration, Moscoso attempted to strengthen social programs, especially for child and youth development, protection, and general welfare. Moscoso's administration successfully handled the Panama Canal transfer and was effective in the administration of the Canal.

The PRD's Martin Torrijos won the presidency and a legislative majority in the National Assembly in 2004. Under Torrijos, Panama continued strong economic growth and initiated the Panama Canal expansion project.

In May 2009, Panama held general elections and selected Ricardo Martinelli as president. President Martinelli assumed the presidency on July 1, 2009 and promised to promote free trade, establish a Panama City metro system, reform the health care system, and complete the expansion plan for the Panama Canal.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Panama is a representative democracy with three branches of government: executive and legislative branches elected by direct vote for 5-year terms, and an appointed judiciary. The judicial branch is organized under a nine-member Supreme Court (each judge is appointed for a 10-year term) and includes all tribunals and municipal courts. An autonomous Electoral Tribunal supervises voter registration, the election process, and the activities of political parties. Anyone over the age of 18 may vote.

Principal Government Officials
President--Ricardo MARTINELLI
Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs--Juan Carlos VARELA
Ambassador to the United States--Mario E. JARAMILLO
Ambassador to the Organization of American States--Guillermo COCHEZ

Panama maintains an embassy in the United States at 2862 McGill Terrace, NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel: 202-483-1407), and consulates in Washington DC, Honolulu, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Juan, San Diego, and Tampa.

NATIONAL SECURITY
As of July 2010, the Panamanian Security Forces consisted of the Panamanian National Police (PNP), the National Frontier Service (Servicio Nacional de Fronteras or SENAFRONT), the National Aero-Naval Service (Servicio Nacional Aero-Naval or SENAN), and the Institutional Protection Service (SPI--a secret service equivalent). A constitutional amendment passed in 1994 permanently abolished the military.

The lead criminal investigative entity is the Judicial Investigative Directorate (DIJ), which was previously under the nominal direction of the autonomous Attorney General and known as the Technical Judicial Police (PTJ). The DIJ is now part of the PNP, though it maintains investigative links with the Attorney General's office.

ECONOMY
Panama's economy is based primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for 77% of GDP. Services include the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, tourism, and medical and healthcare.

In October 2006, Panamanians voted overwhelmingly in favor of a $5.25 billion Canal expansion project to construct a third set of locks, which is expected to be completed in 2014. The Government of Panama expects the project to be a transforming event for Panama that will provide 7,000-9,000 direct new jobs during the peak construction period of 2009-2011 and increase economic opportunities for years to come. The expansion is financed through a combination of loans from multilateral institutions and current revenues. In July 2009, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) awarded the contract to build the locks to an international consortium led by Spain’s Sacyr Vallehermoso. The locks will be 60% wider and 40% longer than the existing locks so the Canal can handle all but eight of the world’s container vessels, along with supersize tankers and bulk carriers of ores and grains.

GDP growth in 2009 was 3.2%, reflecting a slowing of the robust growth of 10.1% seen in 2008. Although growth slowed in 2009, due to the global economic downturn, it has improved in 2010 and is still one of the most positive growth rates in the region. Growth has been fueled by the construction, transportation, maritime, and tourism sectors and Panama Canal-related activities. As a result of this growth, government deficit as a percentage of GDP dropped to 43% in 2009, and government-issued debt is classified as the lowest rung of investment grade. Socially, poverty has fallen from 1997 to 2008 – overall poverty fell from 37.3 to 32.7%, and extreme poverty fell from 18.8% to 14.4%.

Panama has bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) in force with Chile, El Salvador, Taiwan, Singapore, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. It completed negotiations with Canada and the European Union. Panama has started free trade negotiations with Colombia, Peru and EFTA. The U.S. and Panama signed a Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) in June 2007. The agreement was overwhelmingly approved in July 2007 by the Panamanian National Assembly, but has yet to be ratified by the United States Congress. In April, 2011, Panama completed indicated steps relating to labor code and tax transparency to ready the Trade Agreement for submission to Congress. Once implemented, the agreement will promote economic opportunity by eliminating tariffs and other barriers to trade of goods and services and will provide a framework for any trade disputes.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Panama is a member of the UN General Assembly and most major UN agencies. It maintains membership in several international financial institutions, including the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.

Panama is a member of the Organization of American States and was a founding member of the Rio Group. Although it was suspended from the Latin American Economic System--known informally both as the Group of Eight and the Rio Group--in 1988 due to its internal political system under Noriega, Panama was readmitted in 1994 as an acknowledgment of its democratic credentials.

Panama is a member of the Central American Integration System (SICA). It is in the process of withdrawing from the Central American Parliament (Parlacen). Panama joined its six Central American neighbors at the 1994 Summit of the Americas in signing the Alliance for Sustainable Development, known as the Conjunta Centroamerica-USA or CONCAUSA, to promote sustainable economic development in the region.

U.S.-PANAMANIAN RELATIONS
The United States cooperates with the Panamanian Government in promoting economic, democratic, security, and social development through U.S. and international agencies. Cultural ties between the two countries are strong, and many Panamanians come to the United States for higher education and advanced training. In 2007, the U.S. and Panama partnered to launch a regional health worker training center. The center provides training to community healthcare workers in Panama and throughout Central America. About 27,000 American citizens reside in Panama, many retirees from the Panama Canal Commission and individuals who hold dual nationality. There is also a rapidly growing enclave of American retirees in the Chiriqui Province in western Panama.

In the economic investment arena, the Panamanian Government has been successful in the enforcement of intellectual property rights and has concluded a Bilateral Investment Treaty Amendment with the United States and an agreement with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. Although money laundering remains a problem, Panama passed significant reforms in 2000 intended to strengthen its cooperation against international financial crimes.

The Panama Canal Treaties
The 1977 Panama Canal Treaties entered into force on October 1, 1979. They replaced the 1903 Hay/Bunau-Varilla Treaty between the United States and Panama (modified in 1936 and 1955), and all other U.S.-Panama agreements concerning the Panama Canal, which were in force on that date. The treaties comprise a basic treaty governing the operation and defense of the Canal from October 1, 1979 to December 31, 1999 (Panama Canal Treaty) and a treaty guaranteeing the permanent neutrality of the Canal (Neutrality Treaty).

The details of the arrangements for U.S. operation and defense of the Canal under the Panama Canal Treaty are spelled out in separate implementing agreements. The Canal Zone and its government ceased to exist when the treaties entered into force and Panama assumed jurisdiction over Canal Zone territories and functions, a process that was finalized on December 31, 1999.

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Phyllis M. Powers
Deputy Chief of Mission--John Law
Counselor for Political Affairs--Debra Hevia
Counselor for Economic Affairs--Andrew Plowman
Counselor for Public Affairs--David Searby
Counselor for Management--JoAnn Scandola
Consul General--Mark Fry

The U.S. Embassy in Panama is located at Edificio 783, Avenida Demetrio Basilio Lakas, Clayton, Panama City (tel: 507-207-7000). Personal and official mail for the embassy and members of the mission may be sent to: U.S. Embassy Panama, Unit 9100, DPO AA 34002. E-mail: Panamaweb@state.gov. The Embassy’s information for travelers is available at http://panama.usembassy.gov/american_citizens_service_unit.html.

Other Contact Information
American Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Panama
Apartado 0843-00152
Panama, Republica de Panama
Tel: 507-301-3881
Fax: 507-301-3882
E-mail: amcham@panamcham.com

U.S. Department of State
Office of Central American Affairs
2201 C St. NW
Washington, DC 20520
Tel: (202) 647-3505
Fax: (202) 647-2597

U.S. Department of Commerce
International Trade Administration
Office of Latin American and the Caribbean
14th and Constitution, NW
Washington, DC 20230
Tel: 202-482-0057
800-USA-TRADE
Fax: 202-482-0464
Home Page: http://trade.gov

TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings, Trip Registration
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program advises Americans traveling and residing abroad through Country Specific Information, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings. Country Specific Information exists for all countries and includes information on entry and exit requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, safety and security, crime, political disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information quickly about terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country because the situation is dangerous or unstable.

For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. The travel.state.gov website also includes information about passports, tips for planning a safe trip abroad and more.  More travel-related information also is available at  http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Travel/International.shtml.