The 1997 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency
rate: 29.54 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 11.41 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15–64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 78.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 56.62 years male: 54.89 years female: 58.45 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.76 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality: noun: Burmese (singular and plural) adjective: Burmese
Ethnic groups: Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%,
Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%
Religions: Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%),
Muslim 4%, animist beliefs 1%, other 2%
Languages: Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages
Literacy: definition : age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.1% male: 88.7% female: 77.7% (1995 est.)
@Burma:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Union of Burma conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
Data code: BM
Government type: military regime
National capital: Rangoon (regime refers to the capital as Yangon)
Administrative divisions: 7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular - yin) and 7
states (pyine-mya, singular - pyine); Chin State, Ayeyarwady*, Bago*,
Kachin State, Kayin State, Kayah State, Magway*, Mandalay*, Mon State,
Rakhine State, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tanintharyi*, Yangon*
Independence: 4 January 1948 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 4 January (1948)
Constitution: 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); national convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft a new constitution; chapter headings and three of 15 sections have been approved
Legal system: does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992); note - the prime minister is both the chief of state and head of government head of government : Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992); note - the prime minister is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: State Law and Order Restoration Council; military junta which assumed power 18 September 1988 elections: none; the prime minister assumed power upon resignation of the former prime minister
Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened election results: percent of vote by party - NLD 82%; seats by party - NLD 396, NUP 10, other 79
Judicial branch: limited; remnants of the British-era legal system in place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive
Political parties and leaders: Union Solidarity and Development
Association (USDA, proregime), THAN AUNG, general secretary; National
Unity Party (NUP, proregime), THA KYAW; National League for Democracy
(NLD), AUNG SAN SUU KYI, general secretary; and eight minor legal
parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), headed by Dr. SEIN WIN - consists of individuals legitimately elected to the People's Assembly but not recognized by the military regime; the group fled to a border area and joined with insurgents in December 1990 to form a parallel government; Kachin Independence Army (KIA); United Wa State Army (UWSA); Karen National Union (KNU); several Shan factions, including the Mong Tai Army (MTA); All Burma Student Democratic Front (ABSDF)
International organization participation: AsDB, ASEAN (observer), CCC,
CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU,
Mekong Group, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WToO,
WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador TIN WINN chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332–9044, 9045 FAX : [1] (202) 332–9046 consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kent M. WIEDEMANN embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (GPO 521) mailing address : Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 282055, 282182 (operator assistance required) FAX: [95] (1) 280409
Flag description: red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions
Economy
Economy - overview: Burma has a mixed economy with private activity dominant in agriculture, light industry, and transport, and with substantial state-controlled activity, mainly in energy, heavy industry, and the rice trade. Government policy in the last eight years, 1989–96, has aimed at revitalizing the economy after three decades of tight central planning. Thus, private activity has markedly increased; foreign investment has been encouraged, so far with moderate success; and efforts continue to increase the efficiency of state enterprises. Published estimates of Burma's foreign trade are greatly understated because of the volume of black-market trade. A major ongoing problem is the failure to achieve monetary and fiscal stability. Although Burma remains a poor Asian country, its rich resources furnish the potential for substantial long-term increases in income, exports, and living standards.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $51.5 billion (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 7% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,120 (1996 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 63% industry: 9% services : 28% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate - consumer price index: 30%-40% (1996 est.)
Labor force: total: 16.007 million (1992) by occupation: agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY88/89 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues: $5.3 billion expenditures : $10 billion, including capital expenditures of $3 billion (1995 est.)
Industries: agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer
Industrial production growth rate: 8.9% (FY94/95 est.)
Electricity - capacity: 1.21 million kW (1994)
Electricity - production: 3.37 billion kWh (1994)
Electricity - consumption per capita: 73 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture - products: paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses; hardwood
Exports: