1981 Edition

Area

141,400 km2; 16% agricultural area, 14% permanent meadows and pastures, 38% alpine land (unarable), waste, or urban; 32% forested

Land boundaries

2,800 km

Member of

no present plans to join UN; enjoys "special membership" in Commonwealth; South Pacific Commission, ESCAP, INTERPOL, ITU, UPU

Ethnic divisions

two main categories, Indo-Nepalese (about 80%) and Tibeto-Nepalese (about 20%), representing considerable intermixture of Indo-Aryan and Mongolian racial strains; country divided among many quasi-tribal communities

Labor force

4.1 million; 95% agriculture, 5% industry; great lack of skilled labor

Language

20 mutually unintelligible languages divided into numerous dialects; Nepali official language and lingua franca for much of the country; same script as Hindi

Literacy

about 12%

Nationality

noun — Nepalese (sing, and pi.); adjective — Nepalese

Population

15,715,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 2.4%

Religion

only official Hindu kingdom in world, although no sharp distinction between many Hindu (about 88%) and Buddhist groups; small groups of Muslims and Christians

Branches

Council of Ministers appointed by the King; directly elected National Panchayat (Assembly)

Capital

Kathmandu

Communists

the two wings of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) — pro-Soviet and pro-Chinese — are split into several lesser factions; the combined membership is about 6,500, with the majority (perhaps 5,000) in the pro-Chinese wing; the CPN continues to operate more or less openly; internal dissension, however, greatly hinders its effectiveness

Elections

village and town councils (panchayats) elected by universal suffrage; district panchayat members are indirectly elected; a constitutional amendment in 1980 provided for direct elections to the National Panchayat, which consists of 140 members (including 28 members appointed by the King), who serve five-year terms; Nepal's first general election in 22 years was held in May 1981 Political parties and leaders: all political parties outlawed

Government leaders

King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev; Prime Minister Surya Bahadur THAPA

Legal system

based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; legal education at Nepal Law College in Kathmandu; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Member of

ADB, Colombo Plan, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMCO, IMF, IPU, ITU, NAM, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO

National holiday

Birthday of the King, 28 December NEPAL (Continued)

Official name

Kingdom of Nepal

Other political or pressure groups

proscribed Nepali Congress Party led by B. P. Koirala

Political subdivisions

75 districts, 14 zones

Suffrage

universal over age 21

Type

nominally a constitutional monarchy; King Birendra exercises autocratic control over multitiered panchayat system of government

Agriculture

negligible; almost completely dependent on imports for food, water

over 90% of population engaged in agriculture; main crops — rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, oilseeds

Budget

(FY81 revised est.) domestic revenue $147 million, expenditure $253 million

Electric power

10,000 kW capacity (1981); 29 million kWh produced (1981), 4,144 kWh per capita

86,600 kW capacity (1980); 210 million kWh produced (1980), 14 kWh per capita

Exports

$50.4 million (f.o.b., 1977)

$116 million est. (FY81 est.); rice and other food products, jute, timber

Fiscal year

1 July-30 June

15 July14 July

GDP

$2.4 billion (FY81 current prices), $115 per capita; 5.5% real growth in FY81

GNP

over $155.4 million (1977), $21,400 per capita

Imports

$32 million (c.i.f., 1977); 16% food, fuel

$373 million est. (FY81 est.); manufactured consumer goods, fuel, construction materials, food products

Major industries

mining of phosphates, about 2 million tons per year

small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; match, cigarette, and brick factories

Major trade partner

over 80% India

Major trade partners

exports — 75% Australia and New Zealand; imports — Australia, UK, New Zealand, Japan

Monetary conversion rate

1 Australian dollar=US$1.12 (1979)

12 Nepalese rupees=US$l

Airfields

1 with runways over 1,220-2,439 m

47 total, 46 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 7 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

3 major transport aircraft, one on order

5 major transport aircraft

Highways

about 27 km total; 21 km paved, 6 km improved earth

4,136 km total; 1,751 km paved, 556 km gravel or crushed stone, 1,829 km improved and unimproved earth; additionally 322 km of seasonally motorable tracks

Inland waterways

none

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 14 July 1981, $22.1 million; 5.4% of central government budget

Military manpower

males 15-49, about 1,800; fit for military service, about 1,000; less than 100 reach military age (18) annually, 1978-82, No formal defense structure and no regular armed forces

males 15-49, 3,704,000; 1,919,000 fit for military service; 176,000 reach military age (17) annually

Ports

1 minor

Railroads

none

63 km (1977), all narrow gauge (0.762 m); all in Terai close to Indian border; 10 km from Raxaul to Biranj is government owned

Telecommunications

adequate intraisland and international radiocommunications provided via Australian facilities; 1,500 telephones (20.8 per 100 popl.); 3,600 radio receivers, 1 AM, no FM or TV stations; 1 ground satellite station DEFENSE FORCES

poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radiocommunication and broadcast service; international radiocommunication service is poor; 10,000 telephones (less than 0.1 per 100 popl.); 3 AM, no FM, and no TV stations DEFENSE FORCES