1987 Edition

Climate

varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winter in south

Comparative area

about the size of North Carolina

Environment

contains eight of world’s ten highest peaks; deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution

Land boundaries

2,800 km total

Land use

17% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 13% meadows and pastures; 33% forest and woodland; 37% other; includes 2% irrigated

Special notes

landlocked; strategic location between China and India

Terrain

Tarai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north

Total area

200. km

140,800 km?; land area: 136,800 km?

Ethnic divisions

Newars, Indians, Tibetans, Gurungs, Magars, Tamangs, Bhotias, Rais, Limbus, Sherpas, as well as many smaller groups

Infant mortality rate

143/1,000 (1983)

Labor force

4.1 million; 93% agriculture, 5% services, 2% industry; great lack of skilled labor

Language

Nepali (official); 20 mutually unintelligible languages divided into numerous dialects

Life expectancy

men 47, women 45

Literacy

20%

Nationality

noun—Nepalese (sing. and pl.); adiective—Nepalese

Population

17,814,294 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 2.43%

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

Administrative divisions

75 districts, 14 zones

Branches

Council of Ministers appointed by the King; Rastriya Panchayat (National Assembly; 112 directly elected, 28 appointed by King)

Capital

Kathmandu

Communists

Communist Party of Nepal (CPN); factions include V. B. Manandhar, Man Mohan Adhikari, Bharat Raj Joshi, Rai Majhi, Tulsi Lal, Krishna Raj Burma, Sahana Pradhan

Elections

village, town, and district councils (panchayats) elected by universal suffrage; a constitutional amendment in 1980 provided for direct elections to the National Panchayat, which consists of 140 members (including 28 appointed by the King), who serve five-year terms; Nepal’s first general election in 22 years was held in May 1981; general elections successfully held in May 1986; local district elections scheduled for Spring 1987 Nepal (continued) Political parties and leaders: all political parties outlawed but operate more or less openly; Nepali Congress Party (NCP), Ganesh Man Singh, K. P. Bhattarai, G. P. Koirala

Government leaders

BIRENDRBA Bir Bikram Shah Dev, King (since 1973); Marich Man SINGH (Shrestha), Prime Minister (since 1986)

Legal system

based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Member of

ADB, Colombo Plan, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, 1PU, IRC, ITU, NAM, SAARC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO

National holiday

Birthday of the King and Nationa] Day, 28 December

Official name

Kingdom of Nepal

Other political or pressure groups

numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; Indian merchants in Tarai and capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups operating from north India

Suffrage

universal over age 21

Type

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

Agriculture

over 90% of population engaged in agriculture; rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, oilseeds; an illegal producer of cannabis for the international drug trade

Budget

domestic revenues, $300 million; expenditures, $536 million (FY84/85 est.) Monetary conversion rate; 21.8 Nepalese rupees=US$1 (October 1986)

Electric power

160,000 kW capacity; 395 million kWh produced, 25 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$162 million (FY85/86 est.); rice and other food products, jute, timber, manufactured goods

Fiscal year

15 July-14 July

GDP

$2.4 billion (FY85/86 current prices), $140 per capita; 3% real growth (FY84/85 est.)

Imports

$460 million (FY85/86),; manufactured consumer goods, fuel, construction materials, fertilizers, food products

Major industries

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

Major trade partner

India

Natural resources

quartz, water, timber, hydroelectric potential, scenic beauty

Airfields

38 total, 38 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 8 with runways 1,220-2,489 m

Civil air

5 major and 11 minor transport aircraft

Highways

5,958 km total (1986); 2,645 km paved, 815 km gravel or crushed stone, 2,257 km improved and unimproved earth; additionally 241 km of seasonally motorable tracks

Railroads

52 km (1985), all 0.762-meter narrow gauge; all in Tarai close to Indian border; 10 km from Raxaul to Birganj is government owned

Telecommunications

poor telephone and telegraph service; fair radio communication and broadcast service; international radio communication service is poor; 18,400 telephones (0.1 per 100 popl.); 4 AM, 1 TV stations; 1 satellite ground station

Branches

Royal Nepalese Army, Royal Nepalese Army Air Service, Nepalese Police Force

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 15 July 1987, $32 million; 5% of central government budget

Military manpower

males 15-49, 4,171,000; 2,157,000 fit for military service; 197,000 reach military age (17) annually