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. In September 1988, the military deposed NE WIN and established a new ruling junta. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the 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 the ruling junta in August 2007 unexpectedly increased fuel prices, tens of thousands of Burmese marched in protest, led by prodemocracy activists and Buddhist monks. In late September 2007, the government brutally suppressed the protests, killing at least 13 people and arresting thousands for participating in the demonstrations. Since then, the regime has continued to raid homes and monasteries and arrest persons suspected of participating in the pro-democracy protests. The junta appointed Labor Minister AUNG KYI in October 2007 as liaison to AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who remains under house arrest and virtually incommunicado with her party and supporters. Burma in early May 2008 was struck by Cyclone Nargis which official estimates claimed left over 80,000 dead and 50,000 injured. Despite this tragedy, the junta proceeded with its May constitutional referendum, the first vote in Burma since 1990, setting the stage for the 2010 parliamentary elections. |
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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: 676,578 sq km
country comparison to the world: 47
land:
653,508 sq km
water:
23,070 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, 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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| 48,137,741
country comparison to the world: 27
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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2009 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 25.3% (male 6,193,263/female 5,990,658)
15-64 years:
69.3% (male 16,510,648/female 16,828,462)
65 years and over:
5.4% (male 1,121,412/female 1,493,298) (2009 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 28.2 years
male:
27.7 years
female:
28.8 years (2009 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.783% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 139
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Birth rate:
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16.97 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 123
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Death rate:
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9.14 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
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Net migration rate:
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NA
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Urbanization:
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urban population: 33% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization:
2.9% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.75 male(s)/female
total population:
0.98 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 47.61 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 53
male:
53.78 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
41.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 63.39 years
country comparison to the world: 172
male:
61.17 years
female:
65.74 years (2009 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.89 children born/woman (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 145
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.7% (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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240,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 28
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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25,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18
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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
water contact disease:
leptospirosis
animal contact disease:
rabies
note:
highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
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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% (2006 est.)
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
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total: 8 years
male:
8 years
female:
8 years (2001)
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Education expenditures:
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1.2% of GDP (2001)
country comparison to the world: 178
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