|
Talibiddeen Jr. Home
>> Islamic Studies Home >>
52 Week Outline >>
Muslim World
>> Pakistan
Muslim World Study:
Pakistan
|
Background:
|
The separation in 1947 of British India into
the Muslim state of Pakistan (with two sections West and
East) and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily
resolved, and India and Pakistan have fought two wars - in
1947-48 and 1965 - over the disputed Kashmir territory. A
third war between these countries in 1971 - in which India
capitalized on Islamabad's marginalization of Bengalis in
Pakistani politics - resulted in East Pakistan becoming the
separate nation of Bangladesh. In response to Indian nuclear
weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998.
The dispute over the state of Kashmir is ongoing, but recent
discussions and confidence-building measures may be a start
toward lessened tensions. |
|
Location:
|
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea,
between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the
west and China in the north |
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
30 00 N, 70 00 E |
|
Map references:
|
Asia |
|
Area:
|
total: 803,940 sq
km
land: 778,720 sq km
water: 25,220 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly less than twice the size of
California |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 6,774 km
border countries: Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km,
India 2,912 km, Iran 909 km |
|
Coastline:
|
1,046 km |
|
Maritime claims:
|
territorial sea: 12
nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the
continental margin |
|
Climate:
|
mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in
northwest; arctic in north |
|
Terrain:
|
flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north
and northwest; Balochistan plateau in west |
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m
|
|
Natural resources:
|
land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited
petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt,
limestone |
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 27.87%
permanent crops: 0.87%
other: 71.26% (2001) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
180,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
|
Natural hazards:
|
frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe
especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after
heavy rains (July and August) |
|
Environment - current issues:
|
water pollution from raw sewage, industrial
wastes, and agricultural runoff; limited natural fresh water
resources; a majority of the population does not have access
to potable water; deforestation; soil erosion;
desertification |
|
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
|
|
Geography - note:
|
controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass,
traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and the
Indian Subcontinent |
|
Population:
|
162,419,946 (July 2005 est.) |
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years: 39.6%
(male 33,104,311/female 31,244,297)
15-64 years: 56.3% (male 46,759,333/female
44,685,828)
65 years and over: 4.1% (male 3,189,122/female
3,437,055) (2005 est.) |
|
Median age:
|
total: 19.58 years
male: 19.44 years
female: 19.74 years (2005 est.) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
2.03% (2005 est.) |
|
Birth rate:
|
30.42 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
|
|
Death rate:
|
8.45 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
|
|
Net migration rate:
|
-1.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
|
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth: 1.05
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
|
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total: 72.44
deaths/1,000 live births
male: 72.84 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 72.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
|
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population:
63 years
male: 62.04 years
female: 64.01 years (2005 est.) |
|
Total fertility rate:
|
4.14 children born/woman (2005 est.)
|
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
0.1% (2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
|
74,000 (2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
4,900 (2003 est.) |
|
Major infectious diseases:
|
degree of risk:
high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea,
hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and
cutaneous leishmaniasis are high risks depending on location
animal contact disease: rabies (2004) |
|
Nationality:
|
noun: Pakistani(s)
adjective: Pakistani |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun (Pathan), Baloch,
Muhajir (immigrants from India at the time of partition and
their descendants) |
|
Religions:
|
Muslim 97% (Sunni 77%, Shi'a 20%), Christian,
Hindu, and other 3% |
|
Languages:
|
Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi
variant) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%,
Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official and lingua franca of
Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski,
and other 8% |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age 15
and over can read and write
total population: 48.7%
male: 61.7%
female: 35.2% (2004 est.) |
|
Country name:
|
conventional long form:
Islamic Republic of Pakistan
conventional short form: Pakistan
former: West Pakistan |
|
Government type:
|
federal republic |
|
Capital:
|
Islamabad |
|
Administrative divisions:
|
4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital
territory**; Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal
Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**, North-West Frontier
Province, Punjab, Sindh
note: the Pakistani-administered portion of the
disputed Jammu and Kashmir region includes Azad Kashmir and
the Northern Areas |
|
Independence:
|
14 August 1947 (from UK) |
|
National holiday:
|
Republic Day, 23 March (1956) |
|
Constitution:
|
12 April 1973; suspended 5 July 1977,
restored with amendments 30 December 1985; suspended 15
October 1999, restored 31 December 2002; amended 31 December
2003 |
|
Legal system:
|
based on English common law with provisions
to accommodate Pakistan's status as an Islamic state;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
|
|
Suffrage:
|
18 years of age; universal; joint electorates
and reserved parliamentary seats for women and non-Muslims
|
|
Executive branch:
|
note: following a
military takeover on 12 October 1999, Chief of Army Staff
and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General
Pervez MUSHARRAF, suspended Pakistan's constitution and
assumed the additional title of Chief Executive; on 12 May
2000, Pakistan's Supreme Court unanimously validated the
October 1999 coup and granted MUSHARRAF executive and
legislative authority for three years from the coup date; on
20 June 2001, MUSHARRAF named himself as president and was
sworn in, replacing Mohammad Rafiq TARAR; in a referendum
held on 30 April 2002, MUSHARRAF's presidency was extended
by five more years; on 1 January 2004, MUSHARRAF won a vote
of confidence in the Senate, National Assembly, and four
provincial assemblies
chief of state: President General Pervez MUSHARRAF
(since 20 June 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Shaukat AZIZ
(since 28 August 2004)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister
elections: the president is elected by Parliament for
a five-year term; note - in a referendum held on 30 April
2002, MUSHARRAF's presidency was extended by five more years
(next to be held NA 2007); the prime minister is selected by
the National Assembly for a five-year term (next to be held
NA 2007)
election results: AZIZ elected by the National
Assembly on 27 August 2004 with 191 of the votes
|
|
Legislative branch:
|
bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora
consists of the Senate (100 seats - formerly 87; members
indirectly elected by provincial assemblies to serve
four-year terms; and the National Assembly (342 seats -
formerly 217; 60 seats represent women; 10 seats represent
minorities; members elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 24 and 27 February 2003
(next to be held by February 2007); National Assembly - last
held 10 October 2002 (next to be held by October 2006)
election results: Senate results - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - PML/Q 40, PPPP 11, MMA 21,
MQM/A 6, PML/N 4, NA 3, PML/F 1, PkMAP 2, ANP 2, PPP/S 2,
JWP 1, BNP-Awami 1, BNP-Mengal 1, BNM/H 1, independents 4;
National Assembly results - percent of votes by party - NA%;
seats by party - PML/Q 126, PPPP 81, MMA 63, PML/N 19, MQM/A
17, NA 16, PML/F 5, PML/J 3, PPP/S 2, BNP 1, JWP 1, PAT 1,
PML/Z 1, PTI 1, MQM/H 1, PkMAP 1, independents 3
|
|
Judicial branch:
|
Supreme Court (justices appointed by the
president); Federal Islamic or Shari'a Court |
|
Political parties and leaders:
|
Awami National Party or ANP [Wali KHAN];
Balochistan National Movement/Hayee Group or BNM/H [Dr.
Hayee BALUCH]; Baluch National Party/Awami or BNP/Awami
[Moheem Khan BALOCH]; Baluch National Party-Mengal or BNP/M
[Sardar Ataullah MENGAL]; Jamhoori Watan Party or JWP [Akbar
Khan BUGTI]; Jamiat-al-Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR];
Jamiat-i-Islami or JI [Qazi Hussain AHMED]; Jamiat
Ulema-i-Islam, Fazlur Rehman faction or JUI/F [Fazlur
REHMAN]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Sami ul-HAQ faction or JUI/S
[Sami ul-HAQ]; Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan or JUP [Shah Faridul
HAQ]; Millat Party or MP [Farooq LEGHARI]; Muttahida
Majlis-e-Amal Pakistan or MMA [Qazi Hussain AHMED];
Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Altaf faction or MQM/A [Altaf
HUSSAIN]; Muttahida Quami Movement, Haqiqi faction or MQM/H
[Afaq AHMAD]; National People's Party or NPP [Ghulam
Mustapha JATOI]; Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PkMAP
[Mahmood Khan ACHAKZAI]; Pakhtun Quami Party or PQP
[Mohammed Afzal KHAN]; Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir
ul QADRI]; Pakistan Democratic Party or PDP [Mehbooba Mufti
SAYEED]; Pakistan Muslim League, Functional Group or PML/F
[Pir PAGARO]; Pakistan Muslim League, Nawaz Sharif faction
or PML/N [Nawaz SHARIF]; Pakistan Muslim League or PML
[Chaudhry Shujaat HUSSAIN]; note - as of May 2004, the PML/Q
changed its name to PML and absorbed the PML/J, PML/Z, and
NA; Pakistan National Party or PNP [Hasil BIZENJO]; Pakistan
People's Party or PPP [Aftab Ahmed Khan SHERPAO]; Pakistan
People's Party Parliamentarians or PPPP [Benazir BHUTTO];
Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf or PTI [Imran KHAN];
Tehrik-i-Islami [Allama Sajid NAQVI]
note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift
frequently |
|
Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
military remains most important political
force; ulema (clergy), landowners, industrialists, and small
merchants also influential |
|
International organization participation:
|
ARF, AsDB, C (reinstated 2004), CP, ECO, FAO,
G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC,
ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jehangir KARAMAT
chancery: 3517 International Court, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 243-3277
FAX: [1] (202) 686-1534
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York,
Sunnyvale (California)
consulate(s): Chicago, Houston |
|
Diplomatic representation from the US:
|
chief of mission:
Ambassador Ryan CROCKER
embassy: Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad
mailing address: P. O. Box 1048, Unit 62200, APO AE
09812-2200
telephone: [92] (51) 2080-0000
FAX: [92] (51) 2276427
consulate(s): Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar |
|
Flag description:
|
green with a vertical white band (symbolizing
the role of religious minorities) on the hoist side; a large
white crescent and star are centered in the green field; the
crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of
Islam |
|
Economy - overview:
|
Pakistan, an impoverished and underdeveloped
country, has suffered from decades of internal political
disputes, low levels of foreign investment, and a costly,
ongoing confrontation with neighboring India. However,
IMF-approved government policies, bolstered by generous
foreign assistance and renewed access to global markets
since 2001, have generated solid macroeconomic recovery the
last three years. The government has made substantial
macroeconomic reforms since 2000, although progress on more
politically sensitive reforms has slowed. For example, in
the third and final year of its $1.3 billion IMF Poverty
Reduction and Growth Facility, Islamabad has continued to
require waivers for energy sector reforms. While long-term
prospects remain uncertain, given Pakistan's low level of
development, medium-term prospects for job creation and
poverty reduction are the best in nearly a decade. Islamabad
has raised development spending from about 2% of GDP in the
1990s to 4% in 2003, a necessary step towards reversing the
broad underdevelopment of its social sector. GDP growth,
spurred by double-digit gains in industrial production over
the past year, has become less dependent on agriculture.
Foreign exchange reserves continued to reach new levels in
2004, supported by robust export growth and steady worker
remittances. |
|
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$347.3 billion (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
6.1% (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2004 est.)
|
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture: 22.6%
industry: 24.1%
services: 53.3% (2004 est.) |
|
Labor force:
|
45.43 million
note: extensive export of labor, mostly to the Middle
East, and use of child labor (2004 est.) |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture 42%, industry 20%, services 38%
(2004 est.) |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
8.3% plus substantial underemployment (2004
est.) |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
32% (FY00/01 est.) |
|
Household income or consumption by
percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 27.6% (FY96/97) |
|
Distribution of family income - Gini
index:
|
41 (FY98/99) |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
4.8% (FY03/04 est.) |
|
Investment (gross fixed):
|
16.4% of GDP (FY03/04 est.) |
|
Budget:
|
revenues: $13.45
billion
expenditures: $16.51 billion, including capital
expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
|
Public debt:
|
71.4% of GDP (2004 est.) |
|
Agriculture - products:
|
cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane, fruits,
vegetables; milk, beef, mutton, eggs |
|
Industries:
|
textiles and apparel, food processing,
pharmaceuticals, construction materials, paper products,
fertilizer, shrimp |
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
13.1% (2004 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
|
75.27 billion kWh (2003) |
|
Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel: 68.8%
hydro: 28.2%
nuclear: 3%
other: 0% (2001) |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
52.66 billion kWh (2003) |
|
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2003) |
|
Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2003) |
|
Oil - production:
|
61,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption:
|
365,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
|
Oil - exports:
|
NA |
|
Oil - imports:
|
NA |
|
Oil - proved reserves:
|
325.5 million bbl (2004 est.) |
|
Natural gas - production:
|
23.4 billion cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
23.4 billion cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - exports:
|
0 cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
695.6 billion cu m (2004) |
|
Current account balance:
|
$1.4 billion (2004 est.) |
|
Exports:
|
$15.07 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
|
|
Exports - commodities:
|
textiles (garments, bed linen, cotton cloth,
and yarn), rice, leather goods, sports goods, chemicals,
manufactures, carpets and rugs |
|
Exports - partners:
|
US 23.5%, UAE 7.4%, UK 7.3%, Germany 5%, Hong
Kong 4.4% (2004) |
|
Imports:
|
$14.01 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
|
|
Imports - commodities:
|
petroleum, petroleum products, machinery,
plastics, transportation equipment, edible oils, paper and
paperboard, iron and steel, tea |
|
Imports - partners:
|
Saudi Arabia 11.6%, UAE 10%, US 9.7%, China
8.4%, Japan 6.5%, Kuwait 5.6% (2004) |
|
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
$12.58 billion (2004 est.) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$33.97 billion (2004 est.) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$2.4 billion (FY01/02) |
|
Currency (code):
|
Pakistani rupee (PKR) |
|
Currency code:
|
PKR |
|
Exchange rates:
|
Pakistani rupees per US dollar - 58.258
(2004), 57.752 (2003), 59.724 (2002), 61.927 (2001), 53.648
(2000) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
1 July - 30 June |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
|
3,982,800 (2003) |
|
Telephones - mobile cellular:
|
2,624,800 (2003) |
|
Telephone system:
|
general assessment:
the domestic system is mediocre, but improving; service is
adequate for government and business use, in part because
major businesses have established their own private systems;
since 1988, the government has promoted investment in the
national telecommunications system on a priority basis,
significantly increasing network capacity; despite major
improvements in trunk and urban systems, telecommunication
services are still not readily available to the majority of
the rural population
domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable,
fiber-optic cable, cellular, and satellite networks
international: country code - 92; satellite earth
stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean);
3 operational international gateway exchanges (1 at Karachi
and 2 at Islamabad); microwave radio relay to neighboring
countries (1999) |
|
Radio broadcast stations:
|
AM 27, FM 1, shortwave 21 (1998) |
|
Radios:
|
13.5 million (1997) |
|
Television broadcast stations:
|
22 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997)
|
|
Televisions:
|
3.1 million (1997) |
|
Internet country code:
|
.pk |
|
Internet hosts:
|
15,124 (2003) |
|
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
|
30 (2000) |
|
Internet users:
|
1.5 million (2002) |
|
Railways:
|
total: 8,163 km
broad gauge: 7,718 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km
electrified)
narrow gauge: 445 km 1.000-m gauge (2004)
|
|
Highways:
|
total: 257,683 km
paved: 152,033 km (including 339 km of expressways)
unpaved: 105,650 km (2001) |
|
Pipelines:
|
gas 9,945 km; oil 1,821 km (2004)
|
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Karachi, Port Muhammad bin Qasim |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total: 13 ships
(1,000 GRT or over) 329,486 GRT/512,506 DWT
by type: cargo 10, petroleum tanker 3
registered in other countries: 14 (2005) |
|
Airports:
|
131 (2004 est.) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 92
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 22
1,524 to 2,437 m: 32
914 to 1,523 m: 18
under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 39
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
|
Heliports:
|
15 (2004 est.) |
|
Military branches:
|
Army, Navy, Air Force |
|
Military service age and obligation:
|
16 years of age for voluntary military
service; soldiers cannot be deployed for combat until age of
18 (2001) |
|
Manpower available for military service:
|
males age 16-49:
39,028,014 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower fit for military service:
|
males age 16-49:
29,428,747 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower reaching military service age
annually:
|
males: 1,969,055
(2005 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$3.848 billion (2004) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
4.9% (2004) |
|
Transnational Issues |
Pakistan |
|
Disputes - international:
|
recent talks and confidence-building measures
have begun to defuse tensions over Kashmir, site of the
world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute
with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai
Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir
and Northern Areas); UN Military Observer Group in India and
Pakistan (UNMOGIP) has maintained a small group of
peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize Pakistan's
ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; in 2004,
India and Pakistan instituted a cease fire in the Kashmir,
and in 2005 restored bus service across the highly
militarized Line of Control; Pakistan has taken its dispute
on the impact and benefits of India's building the Baglihar
dam on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir to the World
Bank for arbitration and in general the two states still
dispute Indus River water sharing; to defuse tensions and
prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and
Pakistan resurveyed a portion of the disputed Sir Creek
estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in 2004; Pakistani
maps continue to show Junagadh in India's Gujarat State; by
2005, Pakistan with UN assistance had repatriated 2.3
million Afghan refugees and has undertaken a census to count
the remaining million or more, many of whom remain at their
own choosing; Pakistan maintains troops in remote tribal
areas to control the border with Afghanistan and root out
organized terrorist and other illegal cross-border
activities; regular meetings with Afghan and Coalition
allies aim to resolve periodic claims of boundary
encroachments |
|
Refugees and internally displaced
persons:
|
refugees (country of origin):
1,064,230 (Afghanistan)
IDPs: undetermined (government strikes on Islamic
militants in South Waziristan) (2004) |
|
Illicit drugs:
|
opium poppy in Federally Administered Tribal
Areas, North-West Frontier Province, and Balochistan
Province has rebounded since it was nearly eliminated in
2001; key transit point for Afghan drugs, including heroin,
opium, morphine, and hashish, bound for Western markets, the
Gulf States, and Africa; financial crimes related to drug
trafficking, terrorism, corruption, and smuggling remain
problems |
See Muslim World Study
Home page for activity ideas and resources
|
 |
General |
 |
Features |
 |
Subjects |
|
TJ's Sister sites/Blog |
|
|
|
|
|
Thanks for stopping by TJ.
©2006 - 2008 Talibiddeen Jr.
Talibiddeen Jr. materials may be used for non-commercial, educational purposes only. Please see Talibiddeen Jr.'s Terms of Use.
|
