| Background: |
The Maldives were
long a sultanate, first under Dutch and then under British
protection. They became a republic in 1968, three years
after independence. Tourism and fishing are being developed
on the archipelago. |
| Location: |
Southern Asia,
group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of
India |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
3 15 N, 73 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
300 sq km
land: 300 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
about 1.7 times
the size of Washington, DC |
| Maritime
claims: |
measured from
claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
tropical; hot,
humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy,
southwest monsoon (June to August) |
| Terrain: |
flat, with white
sandy beaches |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Wilingili
island in the Addu Atoll 2.4 m |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
10%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 3%
forests and woodland: 3%
other: 84% (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
low level of
islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise |
| Environment
- current issues: |
depletion of
freshwater aquifers threatens water supplies; global warming
and sea level rise; coral reef bleaching |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
1,190 coral
islands grouped into 26 atolls (200 inhabited islands, plus
80 islands with tourist resorts); archipelago of strategic
location astride and along major sea lanes in Indian Ocean |
| Population: |
310,764 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
45.63% (male 72,920; female 68,895)
15-64 years: 51.37% (male 81,506; female
78,149)
65 years and over: 3% (male 4,806; female
4,488) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
3.01% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
38.15
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
8.09 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
63.72
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 62.56 years
male: 61.39 years
female: 63.8 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
5.5 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.05% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Maldivian(s)
adjective: Maldivian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
South Indians,
Sinhalese, Arabs |
| Languages: |
Maldivian Dhivehi
(dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English
spoken by most government officials |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.2%
male: 93.3%
female: 93% (1995 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Republic of Maldives
conventional short form: Maldives
local long form: Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa
local short form: Dhivehi Raajje |
| Government
type: |
republic |
| Administrative
divisions: |
19 atolls (atholhu,
singular and plural) and 1 other first-order administrative
division*; Alifu, Baa, Dhaalu, Faafu, Gaafu Alifu, Gaafu
Dhaalu, Gnaviyani, Haa Alifu, Haa Dhaalu, Kaafu, Laamu,
Lhaviyani, Maale*, Meemu, Noonu, Raa, Seenu, Shaviyani, Thaa,
Vaavu |
| Independence: |
26 July 1965
(from UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Independence Day,
26 July (1965) |
| Constitution: |
adopted January
1998 |
| Legal
system: |
based on Islamic
law with admixtures of English common law primarily in
commercial matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: |
21 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Maumoon Abdul GAYOOM (since 11
November 1978); note - the president is both the chief of
state and head of government
head of government: President Maumoon Abdul
GAYOOM (since 11 November 1978); note - the president is
both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: appointed by the president; note -
need not be members of Majlis
elections: president nominated by the Majlis
and then that nomination must be ratified by a national
referendum (at least a 51% approval margin is required);
president elected for a five-year term; election last held
16 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2003)
election results: President Maumoon Abdul
GAYOOM reelected; percent of popular vote - Maumoon Abdul
GAYOOM 90.9% |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
People's Council or Majlis (50 seats; 42 elected by popular
vote, 8 appointed by the president; members serve five-year
terms)
elections: last held 20 November 1999 (next to
be held NA November 2004)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats
- independents 42 |
| Judicial
branch: |
High Court |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
although
political parties are not banned, none exist |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
none |
| International
organization participation: |
AsDB, C, CCC, CP,
ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IMF, IMO,
Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OIC,
OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WToO,
WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
Maldives does not
have an embassy in the US, but does have a Permanent Mission
to the UN in New York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
the US does not
have an embassy in Maldives; the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka
is accredited to Maldives and makes periodic visits there |
| Flag
description: |
red with a large
green rectangle in the center bearing a vertical white
crescent; the closed side of the crescent is on the hoist
side of the flag |
| Economy
- overview: |
Tourism, Maldives
largest industry, accounts for 20% of GDP and more than 60%
of the Maldives' foreign exchange receipts. Over 90% of
government tax revenue comes from import duties and
tourism-related taxes. Almost 400,000 tourists visited the
islands in 1998. Fishing is a second leading sector. The
Maldivian Government began an economic reform program in
1989 initially by lifting import quotas and opening some
exports to the private sector. Subsequently, it has
liberalized regulations to allow more foreign investment.
Agriculture and manufacturing continue to play a minor role
in the economy, constrained by the limited availability of
cultivable land and the shortage of domestic labor. Most
staple foods must be imported. Industry, which consists
mainly of garment production, boat building, and
handicrafts, accounts for about 18% of GDP. Maldivian
authorities worry about the impact of erosion and possible
global warming on their low-lying country; 80% of the area
is one meter or less above sea level. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $594 million (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
7.6% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
20%
industry: 18%
services: 62% (2000 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
3% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
67,000 (1995) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 22%,
industry 18%, services 60% (1995) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$166 million (excluding foreign grants)
expenditures: $192 million, including capital
expenditures of $80 million (1999 est.) |
| Industries: |
fish processing,
tourism, shipping, boat building, coconut processing,
garments, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand
mining |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
4.4% (1996 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
101 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
93.9 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
coconuts, corn,
sweet potatoes; fish |
| Exports: |
$88 million
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
fish, clothing |
| Exports
- partners: |
US, UK, Sri
Lanka, Japan |
| Imports: |
$372 million
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
consumer goods,
intermediate and capital goods, petroleum products |
| Imports
- partners: |
Singapore, India,
Sri Lanka, Japan, Canada |
| Debt
- external: |
$237 million
(2000 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$NA |
| Exchange
rates: |
rufiyaa per US
dollar - 11.770 (fixed rate since 1995) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
21,000 (1999) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
1,290 (1997) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: minimal domestic and international
facilities
domestic: interatoll communication through
microwave links; all inhabited islands are connected with
telephone and fax service
international: satellite earth station - 3
Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 1, FM 1,
shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
1 (1997) |
| Televisions: |
10,000 (1999) |
| Internet
country code: |
.mv |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
2,000 (2000) |
| Highways: |
total:
NA km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km; note - Male has 9.6 km of coral
highways within the city (1988 est.) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Gan, Male |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 58,604 GRT/81,451 DWT
ships by type: cargo 16, short-sea passenger 1
(2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
2
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
3
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
National Security
Service |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 71,856 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 40,006 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$NA |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
|
