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Iraq
Iraq
Background:Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq was occupied by Britain during the course of World War I; in 1920, it was declared a League of Nations mandate under UK administration. In stages over the next dozen years, Iraq attained its independence as a kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of strongmen ruled the country until 2003. The last was SADDAM Husayn. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-88). In August 1990, Iraq seized Kuwait but was expelled by US-led, UN coalition forces during the Gulf War of January-February 1991. Following Kuwait's liberation, the UN Security Council (UNSC) required Iraq to scrap all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles and to allow UN verification inspections. Continued Iraqi noncompliance with UNSC resolutions over a period of 12 years led to the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and the ouster of the SADDAM Husayn regime. US forces remain in Iraq under a UNSC mandate until 2009 and under a bilateral security agreement thereafter, helping to provide security and to support the freely elected government. In October 2005, Iraqis approved a constitution in a national referendum and, pursuant to this document, elected a 275-member Council of Representatives (CoR) in December 2005. After the election, Ibrahim al-JAAFARI was selected as prime minister; he was replaced by Nuri al-MALIKI in May 2006. The CoR approved most cabinet ministers in May 2006, marking the transition to Iraq's first constitutional government in nearly a half century. On 31 January 2009, Iraq held elections for provincial councils in all provinces except for the three provinces comprising the Kurdistan Regional Government and at-Ta'mim (Kirkuk) province.
Location: Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait Geographic coordinates: 33 00 N, 44 00 E Map references: Middle East Area: Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Idaho Land boundaries: Coastline: 58 km Maritime claims: Climate: mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq Terrain: mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey Elevation extremes: Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur Land use: Irrigated land: 35,250 sq km (2003) Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms, floods Environment - current issues: government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Marsh Arabs, who inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification Environment - international agreements: Geography - note: strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf
Population: 28,945,657 (July 2009 est.) Age structure: Population growth rate: 2.507% (2009 est.) Birth rate: 30.1 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) Death rate: 5.03 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) Net migration rate: NA (2009 est.) Urbanization: Sex ratio: Infant mortality rate: 43.82 deaths/1,000 live births Life expectancy at birth: Total fertility rate: 3.86 children born/woman (2009 est.) HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.) Major Infectious Diseases: Nationality: Ethnic groups: Arab 75%-80%, Kurdish 15%-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian, or other 5% Religions: Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3% Languages: Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Turkoman (a Turkish dialect), Assyrian (Neo-Aramaic), Armenian Literacy:
Country name: Government type: parliamentary democracy Capital: Baghdad Administrative divisions: 18 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) and 1 region*; Al Anbar, Al Basrah, Al Muthanna, Al Qadisiyah, An Najaf, Arbil, As Sulaymaniyah, At Ta'mim, Babil, Baghdad, Dahuk, Dhi Qar, Diyala, Karbala', Kurdistan Regional Government*, Maysan, Ninawa, Salah ad Din, Wasit Independence: 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi-controlled Government National holiday: Republic Day, July 14 (1958); note - the Government of Iraq has yet to declare an official national holiday but still observes Republic Day Constitution: ratified on 15 October 2005 (subject to review by the Constitutional Review Committee and a possible public referendum ) Legal system: based on European civil and Islamic law under the framework outlined in the Iraqi Constitution; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch: Legislative branch: unicameral Council of Representatives (consisting of 275 members elected by a closed-list, proportional representation system) Judicial branch: the Iraq Constitution calls for the federal judicial power to be comprised of the Higher Judicial Council, Federal Supreme Court, Federal Court of Cassation, Public Prosecution Department, Judiciary Oversight Commission and other federal courts that are regulated in accordance with the law Political parties and leaders: Assyrian Democratic Movement [Yunadim KANNA]; Badr Organization [Hadi al-AMIRI]; Constitutional Monarchy Movement or CMM [Sharif Ali Bin al-HUSAYN]; Da'wa al-Islamiya Party [Nuri al-MALIKI]; General Conference of Iraqi People [Adnan al-DULAYMI]; Independent Iraqi Alliance or IIA [Falah al-NAQIB]; Iraqi Communist Party [Hamid MAJID]; Iraqi Front for National Dialogue [Salih al-MUTLAQ]; Iraqi Hizballah [Karim Mahmud al-MUHAMMADAWI]; Iraqi Independent Democrats or IID [Adnan PACHACHI, Mahdi al-HAFIZ]; Iraqi Islamic Party or IIP [Tariq al-HASHIMI]; Iraqi National Accord or INA [Ayad ALLAWI]; Iraqi National Congress or INC [Ahmad CHALABI]; Iraqi National Council for Dialogue or INCD [Khalaf Ulayan al-Khalifawi al-DULAYMI]; Iraqi National Unity Movement or INUM [Ahmad al-KUBAYSI]; Islamic Action Organization or IAO [Ayatollah Muhammad al-MUDARRISI]; Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq or ISCI [Abd al-Aziz al-HAKIM]; Jama'at al Fadilah or JAF [Muhammad Ali al-YAQUBI]; Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP [Masud BARZANI]; Kurdistan Islamic Union [Salah ad-Din Muhammad BAHA al-DIN]; Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK [Jalal TALABANI]; Sadrist Trend [Muqtada al-SADR] (not an organized political party, but it fields independent candidates affiliated with Muqtada al-SADR); Sahawa al-Iraq [Ahmad al-RISHAWI]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Sunni militias; Shia militias, some associated with political parties International organization participation: ABEDA, AFESD (suspended), AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) Diplomatic representation in the US: Diplomatic representation from the US: Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great") in green Arabic script is centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Syria, which has two stars but no script, Yemen, which has a plain white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; design is based upon the Arab Liberation colors; Council of Representatives approved this flag as a compromise temporary replacement for Ba'athist Saddam-era flag
Economy - overview: Decreasing insurgent attacks and an improving security environment in many parts of the country are helping to spur economic activity. Iraq's economy is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided over 90% of foreign exchange earnings. Oil exports are around levels seen before Operation Iraqi Freedom. Total government revenues have benefited from high oil prices in recent years; however, revenues have declined significantly since the oil price drop in fall 2008. Iraq is making some progress in building the institutions needed to implement economic policy. In March 2009 Iraq concluded a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with the IMF that details economic reforms. The SBA allows an 80% reduction of the debt owed to Paris Club creditor nations. The International Compact with Iraq was established in May 2007 to integrate Iraq into the regional and global economy, and the Iraqi government is seeking to pass laws to strengthen its economy. This legislation includes a hydrocarbon law to establish a modern legal framework to allow Iraq to develop its resources and a revenue sharing law to equitably divide oil revenues within the nation, although both are still under contentious political negotiation. Some foreign entities have expressed interest in reinvigorating Iraq's industrial sector. The government of Iraq is pursuing a strategy to gain foreign participation in joint ventures with State-owned enterprises. Provincial Councils are also using their own budgets to promote and facilitate investment at the local level. The Central Bank has been successful in controlling inflation through appreciation of the dinar against the US dollar. However, Iraq's challenge will be to use macroeconomic gains to improve the lives of ordinary Iraqis. Reducing corruption and implementing structural reforms, such as bank restructuring and developing the private sector, will be key to Iraq's economic success. GDP - purchasing power parity (PPP): $90.23 billion (2008 est.) GDP - official exchange rate: $91.45 billion (2008 est.) GDP - real growth rate: 7.8% (2008 est.) GDP - per capita (PPP): $3,200 (2008 est.) GDP - composition by sector: Population below poverty line: NA% Household income or consumption by percentage share: Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.8% (2008 est.) Labor force: 7.74 million (2008 est.) Labor force - by occupation: agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% Unemployment rate: 18.2% (2008 est.) Budget: Industries: petroleum, chemicals, textiles, leather, construction materials, food processing, fertilizer, metal fabrication/processing Industrial production growth rate: 10.5% (2008 est.) Electricity - production: 36.92 billion kWh (2008 est.) Electricity - production by source: Electricity - consumption: 39.88 billion kWh (2008 est.) Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2008 est.) Electricity - imports: 2.95 billion kWh (2008 est.) Oil - production: 2.385 million bbl/day (2008 est.) Oil - consumption: 638,000 bbl/day (2008 est.) Oil - exports: 1.83 million bbl/day (2008 est.) Oil - imports: 116,900 bbl/day (2007 est.) Oil - proved reserves: 115 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.) Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep, poultry Exports: $58.81 billion (2008 est.) Exports - commodities: crude oil 84%, crude materials excluding fuels 8%, food and live animals 5% Exports - partners: US 37.3%, India 13.8%, Italy 9.4%, South Korea 6.8% (2008) Imports: $37.22 billion (2008 est.) Imports - commodities: food, medicine, manufactures Imports - partners: Syria 26.4%, Turkey 19.7%, US 10.7%, Jordan 6.5%, China 6% (2008) Debt - external: $67.74 billion (31 December 2008 est.) Currency: 1 Iraqi dinar (ID) = 1,000 fils Exchange rates: New Iraqi dinars (NID) per US dollar - 1,176 (2008), 1,255 (2007), 1,466 (2006), 1,475 (2005), 1,890 (second half, 2003)
Telephones - main lines in use: 1.082 million (2008) Telephones - mobile cellular: 17.529 million (2008) Telephone system: reconstitution of damaged
telecommunication facilities began after the Gulf war; most damaged
facilities have been rebuilt Radio broadcast stations: 52 (station frequency types NA) (2008) Television broadcast stations: 47 (2008) Internet country code: .iq Internet hosts: 11 (2009) Internet users: 300,000 (2008)
Railways: Roadways: Waterways: 5,279 km Pipelines: gas 2,501 km; liquid petroleum gas 918 km; oil 5,418 km; refined products 1,637 km (2008) Ports and terminals: Al Basrah, Khawr az Zubayr, Umm Qasr Merchant marine: Airports: 104 (2009) Airports - with paved runways: Airports - with unpaved runways: Heliports: 21 (2009 est.)
Military branches: Iraqi Armed Forces: Iraqi Army (includes Iraqi Special Operations Force, Iraqi Intervention Force), Iraqi Navy (former Iraqi Coastal Defense Force), Iraqi Air Force (former Iraqi Army Air Corps) (2005) Military service age and obligation: 18-49 years of age for voluntary military service (2008) Manpower available for militart service: Manpower fit for military service: Manpower reaching military significant age annually: Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 8.6% of GDP (2006)
Disputes - international: coalition forces assist Iraqis in monitoring internal and cross-border security; approximately two million Iraqis have fled the conflict in Iraq, with the majority taking refuge in Syria and Jordan, and lesser numbers to Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, and Turkey; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Turkey has expressed concern over the autonomous status of Kurds in Iraq Refugees and internally displaced persons: See also: Human
Rights in the Arab/Islamic World Source: CIA World Fact Book 2009 |
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![[Country map of Iraq]](/jsource/images/iraqmap.jpg)
