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Communications

Airports [time series]

131 total, 123 usable; 53 with permanent-surface runways; 7 with runways over 3,659 m; 31 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 44 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

59 major transport aircraft

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

32,500 km total; 24,000 km bituminous and bituminous treated, 8,500 km gravel, crushed stone and earth

Merchant marine [time series]

30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 807,539 GRT/1,452,847 DWT; includes 3 short-sea passenger, 11 cargo, 4 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 11 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker

Pipelines [time series]

crude oil 4,383 km; natural gas 1,947 km; refined products 443 km (includes 256 km liquid petroleum gas)

Ports [time series]

Tobruk, Tripoli, Banghazi, Misratah, Marsa el Brega

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

modern telecommunications system using radio relay, coaxial cable, tropospheric scatter, and domestic satellite stations; 370,000 telephones; stations--18 AM, 3 FM, 13 TV; satellite earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, and 14 domestic; submarine cables to France and Italy; radio relay to Tunisia; tropospheric scatter to Greece; planned ARABSAT and Intersputnik satellite stations

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Armed Peoples of the Libyan Arab Jamahariya (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Command), National Police

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

$NA, 11.1% of GNP (1987)

Manpower availability [time series]

males 15-49, 1,023,335; 603,886 fit for military service; 52,059 reach military age (17) annually; conscription now being implemented

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

5% of GNP; cash crops--wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus fruits, peanuts; 75% of food is imported

Budget [time series]

revenues $8.1 billion; expenditures $9.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.1 billion (1989 est.)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

Libyan dinar (plural--dinars); 1 Libyan dinar (LD) = 1,000 dirhams

Economic aid [time series]

Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $242 million; no longer a recipient

Electricity [time series]

4,705,000 kW capacity; 13,600 million kWh produced, 3,220 kWh per capita (1990)

Exchange rates [time series]

Libyan dinars (LD) per US$1--0.2669 (January 1991), 0.2699 (1990), 0.2922 (1989), 0.2853 (1988), 0.2706 (1987), 0.3139 (1986), 0.2961 (1985)

Exports [time series]

$6.1 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities--petroleum, peanuts, hides; partners--Italy, USSR, FRG, Spain, France, Belgium/Luxembourg, Turkey

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$3.5 billion, excluding military debt (December 1990 est.)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

GNP [time series]

$24 billion, per capita $5,860; real growth rate 3% (1989 est.)

Imports [time series]

$6.2 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities--machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods; partners--Italy, USSR, FRG, UK, Japan

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

growth rate NA%; accounts for 43% of GDP (including oil)

Industries [time series]

petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

20% (1988 est.)

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

The socialist-oriented economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contributes practically all export earnings and about one-third of GNP. Since 1980, however, the sharp drop in oil prices and the resulting decline in export revenues have adversely affected economic development. In 1988 per capita GNP was the highest in Africa at $5,410, but it had been $2,000 higher in 1982. Severe cutbacks in imports over the past five years have led to shortages of basic goods and foodstuffs, although the reopening of the Libyan-Tunisian border in April 1988 and the Libyan-Egyptian border in December 1989 have somewhat eased shortages. Austerity budgets and a lack of trained technicians have undermined the government's ability to implement a number of planned infrastructure development projects. Windfall profits from the hike in world oil prices in late 1990 improved the foreign payments position and may permit Tripoli to ease austerity measures. The nonoil industrial and construction sectors, which account for about 22% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Although agriculture accounts for less than 5% of GNP, it employs 18% of the labor force. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit farm output, requiring Libya to import about 75% of its food requirements.

Unemployment rate [time series]

2% (1988 est.)

Geography

Climate [time series]

Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior

Coastline [time series]

1,770 km Territorial sea: 12 nm; Gulf of Sidra closing line: 32o 30%19 N

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly larger than Alaska

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

claims and occupies the 100,000 km2 Aozou Strip in northern Chad; maritime boundary dispute with Tunisia; Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in northern Niger; Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in southeastern Algeria

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; desertification; sparse natural surface-water resources

Land boundaries [time series]

4,383 km total; Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,150 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 km

Land use [time series]

arable land 1%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 8%; forest and woodland 0%; other 91%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Natural resources [time series]

crude oil, natural gas, gypsum

Note [time series]

the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities

Terrain [time series]

mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions

Area (Total area) [time series]

1,759,540 km2; land area: 1,759,540 km2

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

46 municipalities (baladiyat, singular--baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al Abyar, Al Aziziyah, Al Bayda, Al Jufrah, Al Jumayl, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, Al Marj, Al Qarabulli, Al Qubbah, Al Ujaylat, Ash Shati, Awbari, Az Zahra, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Bani Walid, Bin Jawwad, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Ghat, Jadu, Jalu, Janzur, Masallatah, Misratah, Mizdah, Murzuq, Nalut, Qaminis, Qasr Bin Ghashir, Sabha, Sabratah, Shahhat, Surman, Surt, Tajura, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Tukrah, Yafran, Zlitan, Zuwarah; note--the number of municipalities may have been reduced to 13 named Al Jabal al-Akhdar, Al Jabal al-Gharbi, Al Jabal al-Khums, Al Batnam, Al Kufrah, Al Marqab, Al Marzuq, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Khalij Surt, Sabha, Tripoli, Wadi al-Hayat

Capital [time series]

Tripoli

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

no organized party, negligible membership

Constitution [time series]

11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

none

Executive branch (Elections) [time series]

national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of revolutionary committees

Executive branch [time series]

revolutionary leader, chairman of the General People's Committee, General People's Committee (cabinet)

Flag [time series]

plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion)

Independence [time series]

24 December 1951 (from Italy)

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Court Chief of State--Revolutionary Leader Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); Head of Government--Chairman of the General People's Committee (Premier) Abu Zayd Umar DURDA (since 7 October 1990)

Legal system [time series]

based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch [time series]

unicameral General People's Congress

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

Revolution Day, 1 September (1969)

Political parties (Other political or pressure groups) [time series]

various Arab nationalist movements and the Arab Socialist Resurrection (Ba'th) party with almost negligible memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements

Political parties [time series]

none

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

none

Suffrage [time series]

universal and compulsory at age 18

Government type (Type) [time series]

Jamahiriya (a state of the masses); in theory, governed by the populace through local councils; in fact, a military dictatorship

People

Birth rate [time series]

36 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate [time series]

6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

Berber and Arab 97%; some Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, and Tunisians

Infant mortality rate [time series]

62 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Labor force [time series]

1,000,000, includes about 280,000 resident foreigners; industry 31%, services 27%, government 24%, agriculture 18%

Languages (Language) [time series]

Arabic; Italian and English widely understood in major cities

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

66 years male, 71 years female (1991)

Literacy [time series]

64% (male 75%, female 50%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun--Libyan(s); adjective--Libyan

Net migration rate [time series]

0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Organized labor [time series]

National Trade Unions' Federation, 275,000 members; General Union for Oil and Petrochemicals; Pan-Africa Federation of Petroleum Energy and Allied Workers

Population [time series]

4,350,742 (July 1991), growth rate 3.0% (1991)

Religions (Religion) [time series]

Sunni Muslim 97%

Total fertility rate [time series]

5.1 children born/woman (1991)