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Background:
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Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence from the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the ruling junta refused to hand over power. NLD leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who was under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 and 2000 to 2002, was imprisoned in May 2003 and subsequently transferred to house arrest. After Burma's ruling junta in August 2007 unexpectedly increased fuel prices, tens of thousands of Burmese marched in protest, led by prodemocracy activists and Buddhist monks. The government brutally suppressed the protests, shooting and killing at least 13 people and arresting thousands for participating in the demonstrations. The junta appointed Labor Minister AUNG KYI as liaison to AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who remains under house arrest and virtually incommunicado with her party and supporters.
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Location:
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Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand
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Geographic coordinates:
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22 00 N, 98 00 E
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Map references:
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Area:
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total: 678,500 sq km
land: 657,740 sq km
water: 20,760 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than Texas
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Land boundaries:
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total: 5,876 km
border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km
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Coastline:
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1,930 km
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Maritime claims:
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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
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Climate:
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tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April)
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Terrain:
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central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m
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Natural resources:
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petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower
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Land use:
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arable land: 14.92%
permanent crops: 1.31%
other: 83.77% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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18,700 sq km (2003)
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Total renewable water resources:
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1,045.6 cu km (1999)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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Total: 33.23 cu km/yr (1%/1%/98%)
Per capita: 658 cu m/yr (2000)
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Natural hazards:
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destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes
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Population:
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47,373,958
note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 26.1% (male 6,277,073/female 6,084,001)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 16,089,764/female 16,425,299)
65 years and over: 5.3% (male 1,075,868/female 1,421,953) (2007 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 27.4 years
male: 26.8 years
female: 28 years (2007 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.815% (2007 est.)
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Birth rate:
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17.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Death rate:
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9.33 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Net migration rate:
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0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.032 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.757 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 50.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 57.33 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 43.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 62.49 years
male: 60.29 years
female: 64.83 years (2007 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.95 children born/woman (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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1.2% (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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330,000 (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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20,000 (2003 est.)
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Major infectious diseases:
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degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria are high risks in some locations
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified among birds in this country or surrounding region; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2007)
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Nationality:
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noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
adjective: Burmese
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Ethnic groups:
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Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5%
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Religions:
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Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2%
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Languages:
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Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89.9%
male: 93.9%
female: 86.4% (2000 est.)
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This page was last updated on 24 January, 2008
- The Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook - |
