1994 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1994 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Administrative divisions
7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular - yin) and 7 states (pyine-mya, singular - pyine); Chin State, Irrawaddy*, Kachin State, Karan State, Kayah State, Magwe*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Pegu*, Rakhine State, Rangoon*, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tenasserim*
Agriculture
accounts for 40% of GDP and 66% of employment (including fish and forestry); self-sufficient in food; principal crops - paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses; world's largest stand of hardwood trees; rice and timber account for 55% of export revenues
Airports
total: 83 usable: 78 with permanent-surface runways: 24 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 3 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 38
Area
total area: 678,500 sq km land area: 657,740 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Texas
Birth rate
28.45 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force
Budget
revenues: $8.1 billion expenditures: $11.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992)
Capital
Rangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)
Climate
tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April)
Coastline
1,930 km
Constitution
3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); National Convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft chapter headings for a new constitution
Currency
1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas
Death rate
9.84 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures
$NA, NA% of GDP
Digraph
BM
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador U THAUNG chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 332-9044 or 9045 consulate(s) general: New York
Economic aid
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $158 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $3.9 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $424 million
Electricity
capacity: 1,100,000 kW production: 2.8 billion kWh consumption per capita: 65 kWh (1992)
Environment
current issues: deforestation natural hazards: subject to destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September) international agreements: party to - Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea
Ethnic divisions
Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%
Exchange rates
kyats (K) per US$1 - 6.2301 (December 1993), 6.1570 (1993), 6.1045 (1992), 6.2837 (1991), 6.3386 (1990), 6.7049 (1989); unofficial - 105
Executive branch
chief of state and head of government: Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)
Exports
$613.4 million (FY93) commodities: pulses and beans, teak, rice, hardwood partners: Singapore, China, Thailand, India, Hong Kong
External debt
$4 billion (1992)
FAX
[95] (1) 80409
Fiscal year
1 April - 31 March
Flag
red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions
Highways
total: 27,000 km paved: bituminous 3,200 km unpaved: gravel, improved earth 17,700 km; unimproved earth 6,100 km
Illicit drugs
world's largest illicit producer of opium (2,575 metric tons in 1993) and minor producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; opium production has doubled since the collapse of Rangoon's antinarcotic programs
Imports
$1.02 billion (FY93) commodities: machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, food products partners: Japan, China, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia
Independence
4 January 1948 (from UK)
Industrial production
growth rate 4.9% (FY93 est.); accounts for 10% of GDP
Industries
agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood products; petroleum refining; mining of copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer
Infant mortality rate
63.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
30% (1993 est.)
Inland waterways
12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
10,180 sq km (1989)
Judicial branch
none; Council of People's Justices was abolished after the coup of 18 September 1988
Labor force
16.007 million (1992) by occupation: agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY89 est.)
Land boundaries
total 5,876 km, Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km
Land use
arable land: 15% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 1% forest and woodland: 49% other: 34%
Languages
Burmese; minority ethnic groups have their own languages
Legal system
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 59.98 years male: 57.94 years female: 62.15 years (1994 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 81% male: 89% female: 72%
Location
Southeastern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 11,199,531; females age 15-49 11,273,643; males fit for military service 5,979,710; females fit for military service 6,034,810; males reach military age (18) annually 445,933 (1994 est.); females reach military age (18) annually 430,738 (1994 est.); both sexes liable for military service
Map references
Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Member of
AsDB, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO
Merchant marine
47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 665,628 GRT/941,512 DWT, bulk 15, cargo 15, chemical 1, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 1, container 2, oil tanker 2, passenger-cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 5, vehicle carrier 2
Names
conventional long form: Union of Burma conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
National holiday
Independence Day, 4 January (1948)
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $41 billion (1993 est.)
National product per capita
$950 (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate
5% (1993 est.)
Nationality
noun: Burmese (singular and plural) adjective: Burmese
Natural resources
petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas
Net migration rate
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Note
strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes
Other political or pressure groups
National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), headed by the elected prime minister SEIN WIN (consists of individuals legitimately elected to Parliament 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)
Overview
Burma has a mixed economy with about 70% private activity, mainly in agriculture, light industry, and transport, and with about 30% state-controlled activity, mainly in energy, heavy industry, and foreign trade. Government policy in the last five years, 1989-93, has aimed at revitalizing the economy after four 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. Inflation has been running at 25% to 30% annually. Good weather helped boost GDP by perhaps 5% in 1993. Although Burma remains a poor Asian country, its rich resources furnish the potential for substantial long-term increases in income, exports, and living standards.
People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw)
last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened; results - NLD 80%; seats - (485 total) NLD 396, the regime-favored NUP 10, other 79; was dissolved after the coup of 18 September 1988
Pipelines
crude oil 1,343 km; natural gas 330 km
Political parties and leaders
Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), leader NA; National Unity Party (NUP; proregime), THA KYAW; National League for Democracy (NLD), U AUNG SHWE
Population
44,277,014 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate
1.86% (1994 est.)
Ports
Rangoon, Moulmein, Bassein
Railroads
3,991 km total, all government owned; 3,878 km 1.000-meter gauge, 113 km narrow-gauge industrial lines; 362 km double track
Religions
Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist beliefs 1%, other 2%
State Law and Order Restoration Council
military junta which assumed power 18 September 1988
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Telecommunications
meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government; international service is good; 53,000 telephones (1986); radiobroadcast coverage is limited to the most populous areas; broadcast stations - 2 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (1985); 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Terrain
central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands
Total fertility rate
3.64 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Type
military regime
Unemployment rate
NA%
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: (vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission, Charge d'Affaires Franklin P. HUDDLE, Jr. embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon mailing address: American Embassy, Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 82055, 82181