1992 Edition

Climate

mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Coastline

2,440 km note: Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Comparative area

slightly larger than Alaska

Continental shelf

not specific

Disputes

Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt-al-Arab waterway; Iran occupies

Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek (Persian) or Lesser Tunb, and Tunb al Kubra (Arabic), Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg (Persian) or Greater Tunb; it jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE, Abu Musa (Arabic) or Jazireh-ye Abu Musa (Persian)

two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE

Tunb as Sughra (Arabic),

Environment

deforestation; overgrazing; desertification

Exclusive fishing zone

50 nm in the Sea of Oman; continental shelf limit, continental shelf boundaries, or median lines in the Persian Gulf

Land area

1,636,000 km2

Land boundaries

5,440 km; Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan (north) 432 km, Azerbaijan (northwest) 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km

Land use

arable land 8%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 27%; forest and woodland 11%; other 54%; includes irrigated 2%

Natural resources

petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur

Terrain

rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Territorial sea

12 nm

Total area

1,648,000 km2

Birth rate

44 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate

8 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic divisions

Persian 51%, Azerbaijani 25%, Kurd 9%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Lur 2%, Baloch 1%, Arab 1%, other 3%

Infant mortality rate

64 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force

15,400,000; agriculture 33%, manufacturing 21%; shortage of skilled labor (1988 est.)

Languages

58% Persian and Persian dialects, 26% Turkic and Turkic dialects, 9% Kurdish, 2% Luri, 1% Baloch, 1% Arabic, 1% Turkish, 2% other

Life expectancy at birth

64 years male, 66 years female (1992)

Literacy

54% (male 64%, female 43%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality

noun - Iranian(s); adjective - Iranian

Net migration rate

0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor

none

Population

61,183,138 (July 1992), growth rate 3.5% (1992)

Religions

Shi`a Muslim 95%, Sunni Muslim 4%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1%

Total fertility rate

6.5 children born/woman (1992)

Administrative divisions

24 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Azarbayjan-e Bakhtari, Azarbayjan-e Khavari, Bakhtaran, Bushehr, Chahar Machall va Bakhtiari, Ecsfahan, Fars, Gilan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohkiluyeh va Buyer Achmadi, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan

Capital

Tehran

Cleric and functional Chief of State

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali HOSEINI-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)

Communists

1,000 to 2,000 est. hardcore; 15,000 to 20,000 est. sympathizers; crackdown in 1983 crippled the party; trials of captured leaders began in late 1983

Constitution

2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership

Diplomatic representation

none; protecting power in the US is Pakistan - Iranian Interests Section, 2315 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 939-6200 US: protecting power in Iran is Switzerland

Executive branch

cleric (faqih), president, Council of Ministers

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in red is centered in the white band; Allah Alkbar (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Head of Government

President Ali Akbar HASHEMI-RAFSANJANI (since 3 August 1989)

Independence

1 April 1979, Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed

Islamic Consultative Assembly

last held 8 April 1992 (next to be held April 1996); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (270 seats total) number of seats by party NA

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Legal system

the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government

Legislative branch

unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly (Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami)

Long-form name

Islamic Republic of Iran

Member of

CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO

National holiday

Islamic Republic Day, 1 April (1979)

Other political or pressure groups

groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Hizballah, Hojjatiyeh Society, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Kurdish Democratic Party; the Society for the Defense of Freedom

Political parties and leaders

there are at least 18 licensed parties; the three most important are - Tehran Militant Clergy Association, Mohammad Reza MAHDAVI-KANI; Militant Clerics Association, Mehdi MAHDAVI-KARUBI and Mohammad Asqar MUSAVI-KHOINIHA; Fedaiyin Islam Organization, Sadeq KHALKHALI

President

last held July 1989 (next to be held April 1993); results - Ali Akbar HASHEMI-RAFSANJANI was elected with only token opposition

Suffrage

universal at age 15

Type

theocratic republic

Agriculture

principal products - wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton, dairy products, wool, caviar; not self-sufficient in food

Budget

revenues $63 billion; expenditures $80 billion, including capital expenditures of $23 billion (FY90 est.)

Currency

Iranian rial (plural - rials); 1 Iranian rial (IR) = 100 dinars; note - domestic figures are generally referred to in terms of the toman (plural - tomans), which equals 10 rials

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-80), $1.0 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $1.675 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $976 million; note - aid fell sharply following the 1979 revolution

Electricity

14,579,000 kW capacity; 40,000 million kWh produced, 740 kWh per capita (1989)

Exchange rates

Iranian rials (IR) per US$1 - 65.515 (January 1992), 67.505 (1991), 68.096 (1990), 72.015 (1989), 68.683 (1988), 71.460 (1987); note - black-market rate 1,400 (January 1991)

Exports

$17.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990) commodities: petroleum 90%, carpets, fruits, nuts, hides partners: Japan, Italy, France, Netherlands, Belgium/Luxembourg, Spain, and Germany

External debt

$10 billion (1990 est.)

Fiscal year

21 March - 20 March

GNP

exchange rate conversion - $90 billion, per capita $1,500; real growth rate 10% (FY91 est.)

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of opium poppy for the domestic and international drug trade

Imports

$15.9 billion (c.i.f., 1990) commodities: machinery, military supplies, metal works, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, technical services, refined oil products partners: Germany, Japan, Italy, UK, France

Industrial production

growth rate NA%

Industries

petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other building materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating (steel and copper)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

18% (FY91 est.)

Overview

Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. After a decade of economic decline, Iran's GNP grew roughly 4% in FY90 and 10% in FY91. An oil windfall in 1990 combined with a substantial increase in imports contributed to Iran's recent economic growth. Iran has also begun implementing a number of economic reforms to reduce government intervention (including subsidies) and has allocated substantial resources to development projects in the hope of stimulating the economy. Nevertheless, lower oil revenues in 1991 - oil accounts for more than 90% of export revenues and provides roughly 65% of the financing for the five-year economic development plan - and dramatic increases in external debt are threatening development plans and could prompt Iran to cut imports, thus limiting economic growth in the medium term.

Unemployment rate

30% (1989)

Airports

214 total, 188 usable; 81 with permanent-surface runways; 16 with runways over 3,659 m; 16 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 71 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

48 major transport aircraft

Highways

140,072 km total; 42,694 km paved surfaces; 46,866 km gravel and crushed stone; 49,440 km improved earth; 1,200 km (est.) rural road network

Inland waterways

904 km; the Shatt-al-Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km, but closed since September 1980 because of Iran-Iraq war

Merchant marine

134 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,466,395 GRT/8,329,760 DWT; includes 38 cargo, 6 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 32 oil tanker, 4 chemical tanker, 3 refrigerated cargo, 47 bulk, 2 combination bulk, 1 liquefied gas

Pipelines

crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km

Ports

Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Bandar Beheshti, Bandar-e Abbas, Bandar-e Bushehr, Bandar-e Khomeyni, Bandar-e Shahid Raja, Khorramshahr (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war)

Railroads

4,850 km total; 4,760 km 1.432-meter gauge, 92 km 1.676-meter gauge; 480 km under construction from Bafq to Bandar Abbas, rail construction from Bafq to Sirjan has been completed and is operational

Telecommunications

radio relay extends throughout country; system centered in Tehran; 2,143,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 77 AM, 3 FM, 28 TV; satellite earth stations - 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT; HF radio and radio relay to Turkey, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan

Branches

Islamic Republic of Iran Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, and Revolutionary Guard Corps (includes Basij militia and own ground, air, and naval forces); Law Enforcement Forces

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $13 billion, 14-15% of GNP (1991 est.)

Manpower availability

males 15-49, 13,267,810; 7,895,591 fit for military service; 552,408 reach military age (21) annually