Chapter 107
Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Mohamed Azzouz ENNAIFER chancery: 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 862-1850
US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Ann CASEY embassy: 144 Avenue de la Liberte, 1002 Tunis-Belvedere mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [216] (1) 782-566 FAX: [216] (1) 789-719
Flag: red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam
Economy -------
Economic overview: Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Detailed governmental control of economic affairs has gradually lessened over the past decade, including increasing privatization of trade and commerce, simplification of the tax structure, and a cautious approach to debt. Real growth has averaged 4.2% in 1991-95, and inflation has been moderate. Growth in tourism and IMF support have been key elements in this solid record. Drought, especially in the south, held back GDP growth in 1995. Further privatization and further improvements in government administrative efficiency are among the challenges for the future.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $37.1 billion (1994 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 4.4% (1994 est.)
GDP per capita: $4,250 (1994 est.)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 15% industry: 30% services: 55% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.5% (1995 est.)
Labor force: 2.917 million (1993 est.) by occupation: services 55%, industry 23%, agriculture 22% (1995 est.) note: shortage of skilled labor
Unemployment rate: 16.2% (1993 est.)
Budget: revenues: $4.3 billion expenditures: $5.5 billion, including capital expenditures to $NA (1993 est.)
Industries: petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, food, beverages
Industrial production growth rate: 5% (1989)
Electricity: capacity: 1,410,000 kW production: 5.4 billion kWh consumption per capita: 595 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: olives, dates, oranges, almonds, grain, sugar beets, grapes; poultry, beef, dairy products
Exports: $4.7 billion (f.o.b., 1994) commodities: hydrocarbons, agricultural products, phosphates and chemicals partners: EU countries 75%, Middle East 10%, Algeria 2%, India 2%, US 1%
Imports: $6.6 billion (c.i.f., 1994) commodities: industrial goods and equipment 57%, hydrocarbons 13%, food 12%, consumer goods partners: EU countries 70%, US 5%, Middle East 2%, Japan 2%, Switzerland 1%, Algeria 1%
External debt: $7.7 billion (1993 est.)
Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $221 million (1993)
Currency: 1 Tunisian dinar (TD) = 1,000 millimes
Exchange rates: Tunisian dinars (TD) per US$1 - 0.9635 (January 1996), 0.9458 (1995), 1.0116 (1994), 1.0037 (1993), 0.8844 (1992), 0.9246 (1991)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Transportation --------------
Railways: total: 2,260 km standard gauge: 492 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,758 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 10 km 1.000-m and 1.435-m gauges (1993 est.)
Highways: total: 29,183 km paved: 17,510 km (including 52 km of expressways) unpaved: 11,673 km (1989 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 797 km; petroleum products 86 km; natural gas 742 km
Ports: Bizerte, Gabes, La Goulette, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis, Zarzis
Merchant marine: total: 19 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 125,840 GRT/164,277 DWT ships by type: bulk 6, cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, oil tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 3, short-sea passenger 1 (1995 est.)
Airports: total: 29 with paved runways over 3 047 m: 3 with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 6 with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 3 with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 3 with paved runways under 914 m: 6 with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 2 with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 6 (1995 est.)
Communications --------------
Telephones: 233,000 (1987 est.)
Telephone system: the system is above the African average; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis domestic: trunk facilities consist of open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat with back-up control station; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel
Radio broadcast stations: AM 7, FM 8, shortwave 0
Radios: 1,693,527 (1991 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 19
Televisions: 670,000 (1992 est.)
Defense -------
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces, National Guard
Manpower availability: males age 15-49: 2,354,513 males fit for military service: 1,349,728 males reach military age (20) annually: 91,866 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $535 million, 2.8% of GDP (1995)
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@Turkey ------
Map ---
Location: 39 00 N, 35 00 E -- Southwestern Asia (that part west of the Bosporus is sometimes included with Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
Flag ----
Description: red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening
Geography ---------
Location: Southwestern Asia (that part west of the Bosporus is sometimes included with Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
Geographic coordinates: 39 00 N, 35 00 E
Map references: Middle East
Area: total area: 780,580 sq km land area: 770,760 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than Texas
Land boundaries: total: 2,627 km border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 331 km, Syria 822 km
Coastline: 7,200 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: in Black Sea only - to the maritime boundary agreed upon with the former USSR territorial sea: 6 nm in the Aegean Sea,; 12 nm in the Black Sea and in the Mediterranean Sea
International disputes: complex maritime, air and territorial disputes with Greece in Aegean Sea; Cyprus question; Hatay question with Syria; dispute with downstream riparians (Syria and Iraq) over water development plans for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Climate: temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
Terrain: mostly mountains; narrow coastal plain; high central plateau (Anatolia) lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m
Natural resources: antimony, coal, chromium, mercury, copper, borate, sulfur, iron ore
Land use: arable land: 30% permanent crops: 4% meadows and pastures: 12% forest and woodland: 26% other: 28%
Irrigated land: 22,200 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment: current issues: water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution, particularly in urban areas; deforestation natural hazards: very severe earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Desertification, Environmental Modification
Geographic note: strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas
People ------
Population: 62,484,478 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 32% (male 10,192,195; female 9,836,045) 15-64 years: 62% (male 19,859,717; female 19,187,769) 65 years and over: 6% (male 1,571,451; female 1,837,301) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.67% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 22.26 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female all ages: 1.02 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 43.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.92 years male: 69.53 years female: 74.43 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.58 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality: noun: Turk(s) adjective: Turkish
Ethnic divisions: Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20%
Religions: Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (Christian and Jews)
Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, Arabic
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.) total population: 82.3% male: 91.7% female: 72.4%
Government ----------
Name of country: conventional long form: Republic of Turkey conventional short form: Turkey local long form: Turkiye Cumhuriyeti local short form: Turkiye
Data code: TU
Type of government: republican parliamentary democracy
Capital: Ankara
Administrative divisions: 79 provinces (iller, singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gazi Antep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Icel, Iggdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahraman Maras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanli Urfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak note: Karabuk, Kilis, and Yalova are three new Turkish provinces mentioned in the 24 December 1995 election results
Independence: 29 October 1923 (successor state to the Ottoman Empire)
National holiday: Anniversary of the Declaration of the Republic, 29 October (1923)
Constitution: 7 November 1982
Legal system: derived from various continental legal systems; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Suleyman DEMIREL (since 16 May 1993) was elected for a seven-year term by the National Assembly head of government: Prime Minister Mesut YILMAZ (since 12 March 1996) and Deputy Prime Minister Nahit MENTESE (since 12 March 1996) were appointed by the president National Security Council: advisory body to the president and the cabinet cabinet: Council of Ministers was appointed by the president on nomination of the prime minister
Legislative branch: unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey: (Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi) elections last held 24 December 1995 (next to be held by December 2000); results - RP 21.38%, DYP 19.18%, ANAP 19.65%, DSP 14.64%, CHP 10.71%, independent 0.48%; seats - 550 total) RP 158, DYP 135, ANAP 133, DSP 75, CHP 49 note: seats held by various parties are subject to change due to defections, creation of new parties, and ouster or death of sitting deputies; current seats by party are as follows: RP 158, DYP 135, ANAP 126, DSP 75, CHP 49, BBP 7
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court, judges appointed by the president; Court of Appeals, judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors
Political parties and leaders: True Path Party (DYP), Tansu CILLER; Motherland Party (ANAP), Mesut YILMAZ; Welfare Party (RP), Necmettin ERBAKAN; Democratic Left Party (DSP), Bulent ECEVIT; Nationalist Action Party (MHP), Alparslan TURKES; New Party (YP), Yusuf Bozkurt OZAL; Republican People's Party (CHP), Deniz BAYKAL; Workers' Party (IP), Dogu PERINCEK; Nation Party (MP), Aykut EDIBALI; Democrat Party (DP), Murat UZMAN; Grand Unity Party (BBP), Muhsin YAZICIOGLU; Rebirth Party (YDP), Hasan Celal GUZEL; People's Democracy Party (HADEP), Murat BOZLAK; Main Path Party (ANAYOL), Gurcan BASER; Democratic Target Party (DHP), Abdulkadir Yasar TURK; Liberal Party (LP), Besim TIBUK; New Democracy Movement (YDH), Cem BOYNER; Labor Party (EP), Abdullah Levent TUZER; Democracy and Peace Party (DBP), Refik KARAKOC; Freedom and Solidarity Praty (ODP), Ufuk URAS
Other political or pressure groups: Turkish Confederation of Labor (Turk-Is), Bayram MERAL; Confederation of Revolutionary Workers Unions (DISK), Ridvan BUDAK; Moral Rights Workers Union (Hak-Is), Salim USLU; Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association (TUSIAD), Halis KOMILI; Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), Ali Osman ULUSOY; Turkish Confederation of Employers' Unions (TISK), Refik BAYDUR; Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (MUSIAD), Erol YARAR
International organization participation: AsDB, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), EBRD, ECE, ECO, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NACC, NATO, NEA, OECD, OIC, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Nuzhet KANDEMIR chancery: 1714 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 659-8200 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York
US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Marc GROSSMAN embassy: 110 Ataturk Boulevard, Ankara mailing address: PSC 93, Box 5000, APO AE 09823 telephone: [90] (312) 468-6110 FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019 consulate(s) general: Istanbul consulate(s): Adana
Flag: red with a vertical white crescent (the closed portion is toward the hoist side) and white five-pointed star centered just outside the crescent opening
Economy -------
Economic overview: The Turkish economy consists of a mixture, on the one hand, of modern industry and commerce, and, on the other hand, of time-honored village agriculture and crafts. Since World War II, it has become increasingly integrated into the West European economic arena, for example, as a member of OECD. The economy has improved significantly since the 1994 crisis, when the economy experienced a sharp drop and inflation hit triple digits. The crisis - sparked by the downgrading in January 1994 of Turkey's international credit rating by two US rating agencies - stemmed from years of loose monetary and fiscal policies that had exacerbated inflation and allowed the public debt, money supply, and current account deficit to explode. In April 1994, then Prime Minister CILLER introduced a stabilization package that paved the way for a $950 million IMF standby loan. However, because the government missed key macroeconomic targets in 1995 and the December national election produced months of political wrangling, the IMF put the agreement - and release of remaining funds - on hold. The new center-right minority government that finally has emerged will find it difficult to balance the need for new austerity measures and tough structural reforms with the pressure for continued buoyant growth. Ankara is also likely to face internal opposition to policies it must implement as part of the Turkey-EU customs union agreement - which came into force on 1 January 1996 - because many industries are unfit for EU competition and much-needed revenues will decline with the elimination of import tariffs and surcharges. Meanwhile, Ankara's heavy debt repayment schedule in 1996 makes it necessary for Turkish leaders to bolster the confidence of both domestic and foreign investors.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $345.7 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 6.8% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $5,500 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 15.5% industry: 33.2% services: 51.3% (1994)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 94% (1995)
Labor force: 20.9 million by occupation: agriculture 46%, services 31%, industry 23% note: about 1.5 million Turks work abroad (1994)
Unemployment rate: 10.2% (1995 est.)
Budget: revenues: $30.2 billion expenditures: $35 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.8 billion (1995)
Industries: textiles, food processing, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper
Industrial production growth rate: 8.8% (1995)
Electricity: capacity: 18,710,000 kW production: 71 billion kWh consumption per capita: 1,079 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: tobacco, cotton, grain, olives, sugar beets, pulses, citrus; livestock
Illicit drugs: major transit route for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish to Western Europe and the US via air, land, and sea routes; major Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
Exports: $20.7 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.) commodities: textiles and apparel 37%, steel products 12%, fruits and vegetables 11% (1994) partners: Germany 22%, Russia 8%, US 8%, Italy 6% (1994)
Imports: $32.6 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.) commodities: machinery 25%, fuels 17%, raw materials 11%, foodstuffs 5% (1994) partners: Germany 16%, US 10%, Italy 9%, Russia 8% (1994)
External debt: $73.8 billion (1995 est.)
Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $195 million (1993) note: aid for Gulf war efforts from coalition allies (1991), $4.1 billion; aid pledged for Turkish Defense Fund, $2.5 billion
Currency: Turkish lira (TL)
Exchange rates: Turkish liras (TL) per US$1 - 60,502.1 (January 1996), 45,845.1 (1995), 29,608.7 (1994), 10,984.6 (1993), 6,872.4 (1992), 4,171.8 (1991)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Transportation --------------
Railways: total: 10,386 km standard gauge: 10,386 km 1.435-m gauge (1,088 km electrified)
Highways: total: 386,704 km paved: 45,683 km (including 862 km of expressways) unpaved: 341,021 km (1992 est.)
Waterways: about 1,200 km
Pipelines: crude oil 1,738 km; petroleum products 2,321 km; natural gas 708 km
Ports: Gemlik, Hopa, Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Izmit, Mersin, Samsun, Trabzon
Merchant marine: total: 465 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,509,741 GRT/9,494,434 DWT ships by type: bulk 139, cargo 212, chemical tanker 18, combination bulk 7, combination ore/oil 12, container 2, liquefied gas tanker 4, livestock carrier 1, oil tanker 43, passenger-cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 15, short-sea passenger 7, specialized tanker 2 note: Turkey owns an additional 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 247,369 DWT operating under the registries of Malta, Panama, Libya, and Greece (1995 est.)
Airports: total: 104 with paved runways over 3 047 m: 17 with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 19 with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 12 with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 18 with paved runways under 914 m: 28 with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 2 with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 8 (1995 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1995 est.)
Communications --------------
Telephones: 6.89 million (1990 est.)
Telephone system: fair domestic and international systems domestic: trunk microwave radio relay network; limited open-wire network international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Atlantic Ocean regions); 1 submarine cable
Radio broadcast stations: AM 15, FM 94, shortwave 0
Radios: 9.4 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 357
Televisions: 10.53 million (1993 est.)
Defense -------
Branches: Land Forces, Navy (includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force, Coast Guard, Gendarmerie
Manpower availability: males age 15-49: 16,937,828 males fit for military service: 10,312,010 males reach military age (20) annually: 637,456 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $6.0 billion, 4% of GDP (1995); note - figures do not include about $7 billion for the government's counterinsurgency effort against the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)
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@Turkmenistan ------------
Map ---
Location: 40 00 N, 60 00 E -- Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakstan
Flag ----
Description: green field, including a vertical stripe on the hoist side, with a claret vertical stripe in between containing five white, black, and orange carpet guls (an asymmetrical design used in producing rugs) associated with five different tribes; a white crescent and five white stars in the upper left corner to the right of the carpet guls
Geography ---------
Location: Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakstan
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 60 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area: total area: 488,100 sq km land area: 488,100 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than California
Land boundaries: total: 3,736 km border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km
Coastline: 0 km note: Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
International disputes: Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined
Climate: subtropical desert
Terrain: flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west lowest point: Sarygamysh Koli -110 m highest point: Ayrybaba 3,139 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, sulfur, salt
Land use: arable land: 2% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 69% forest and woodland: 0% other: 29%
Irrigated land: 12,450 sq km (1990)
Environment: current issues: contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salinization, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Desertification
Geographic note: landlocked
People ------
Population: 4,149,283 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 39% (male 826,637; female 804,385) 15-64 years: 56% (male 1,154,415; female 1,188,173) 65 years and over: 5% (male 65,447; female 110,226) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.82% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 29.12 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 8.89 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -2.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female all ages: 0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 81.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 61.48 years male: 56.68 years female: 66.52 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.62 children born/woman (1996 est.)