Iran

§1. Iran Introduction

Background:
  Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after
  the ruling shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces
  subsequently crushed westernizing liberal elements. Militant Iranian
  students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it
  until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war
  with Iraq over disputed territory. The key current issue is how rapidly the
  country should open up to the modernizing influences of the outside world.

§2. Iran Geography

Location:
  Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian
  Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates:
  32 00 N, 53 00 E

Map references:
  Middle East

Area:
  total: 1.648 million kmē
  land: 1.636 million kmē
  water: 12,000 kmē

Area - comparative:
  slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries:
  total: 5,440 km border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km,
    Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458
    km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km

Coastline:
  2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Maritime claims:
  contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: natural prolongation
  exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the
    Persian Gulf
  territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate:
  mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Terrain:
  rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains;
  small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Qolleh-ye Damavand 5,671 m

Natural resources:
  petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese,
  zinc, sulfur

Land use:
  arable land: 10%
  permanent crops: 1%
  permanent pastures: 27%
  forests and woodland: 7%
  other: 55% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land:
  94,000 kmē (1993 est.)

Natural hazards:
  periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes along
  western border and in the northeast

Environment - current issues:
  air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery
  operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing;
  desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; inadequate supplies of
  potable water

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
    Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
    Protection, Wetlands
  signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea,
    Marine Life Conservation

§3. Iran People

Population:
  66,128,965 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 32.97% (male 11,150,053; female 10,654,884)
  15-64 years: 62.38% (male 20,765,001; female 20,488,672)
  65 years and over: 4.65% (male 1,617,045; female 1,453,310) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate:
  0.72% (2001 est.)

Birth rate:
  17.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate:
  5.41 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate:
  -4.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Sex ratio:
  at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
  15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 1.11 male(s)/female
  total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  29.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 69.95 years male: 68.61 years
  female: 71.37 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  2.02 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  less than 0.01% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  NA

Nationality:
  noun: Iranian(s)
  adjective: Iranian

Ethnic groups:
  Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur
  2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions:
  Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and
  Baha'i 1%

Languages:
  Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish
  9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%

Literacy:
  definition: age 15 and over can read and write
  total population: 72.1%
  male: 78.4%
  female: 65.8% (1994 est.)

§4. Iran Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran
  conventional short form: Iran
  local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran
  local short form: Iran
  former: Persia

Government type:
  theocratic republic

Capital:
  Tehran

Administrative divisions:
  28 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi,
  Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars,
  Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan,
  Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi,
  Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd,
  Zanjan

Independence:
  1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)

National holiday:
  Republic Day, 1 April (1979)

Constitution:
  2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and
  eliminate the prime ministership

Legal system:
  the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government

Suffrage:
  15 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali
    Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)
  head of government: President (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani (since 3
    August 1997); First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-YAZDI (since NA
    August 2001)
  cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative
    approval
  elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the
    Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year
    term; election last held 8 June 2001 (next to be held NA 2005)
  election results: (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani reelected president;
    percent of vote - (Ali) Mohammad KHATAMI-Ardakani 77%

Legislative branch:
  unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290
  seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election;
  members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
  elections: last held 18 February-NA April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004)
  election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - reformers 170,
    conservatives 45, and independents 10; 65 seats were up for runoff
    election on 5 May 2000 (reformers 52, conservatives 10, independents 3)

Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders:
  the following organizations appeared to have achieved considerable success
    at elections to the sixth Majlis in early 2000: Assembly of the Followers
    of the Imam's Line, Freethinkers' Front, Islamic Iran Participation
    Front, Moderation and Development Party, Servants of Construction Party,
    Society of Self-sacrificing Devotees

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  active student groups include the pro-reform "Organization for
  Strengthening Unity" and "the Union of Islamic Student Societies'; groups
  that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah,
  Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of
  the Imam, and the Islamic Coalition Association; opposition groups include
  the Liberation Movement of Iran and the Nation of Iran party; armed
  political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the
  government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen,
  Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan; the Society for the Defense of
  Freedom

International organization participation:
  CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM,
  IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat,
  Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN,
  UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy;
    address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin
    Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland

Flag description:
  three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national
  emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in red is centered in
  the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is
  repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times
  along the top edge of the red band

§5. Iran Economy

Economy - overview:
  Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and
  other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private
  trading and service ventures. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the
  market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI and has indicated that
  he will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy although he
  has made little progress toward that goal. The strong oil market in 1996
  helped ease financial pressures on Iran and allowed for Tehran's timely
  debt service payments. Iran's financial situation tightened in 1997 and
  deteriorated further in 1998 because of lower oil prices. The subsequent
  zoom in oil prices in 1999-2000 afforded Iran fiscal breathing room but
  does not solve Iran's structural economic problems, including the
  encouragement of foreign investment.

GDP:
  purchasing power parity - $413 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
  3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita:
  purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 24% industry: 28%
  services: 48% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line:
  53% (1996 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  16% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
  17.3 million
  note: shortage of skilled labor (1998)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture 33%, industry 25%, services 42% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate:
  14% (1999 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $27 billion
  expenditures: $27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999)

Industries:
  petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction
  materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil
  production), metal fabricating, armaments

Industrial production growth rate:
  4.4% (nonoil) (1999)

Electricity - production:
  103.054 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source:
  fossil fuel: 93.16% hydro: 6.84%
  nuclear: 0%
  other: 0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption:
  95.84 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports:
  0 kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports:
  0 kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products:
  wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy
  products, wool; caviar

Exports:
  $25 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  petroleum 85%, carpets, fruits and nuts, iron and steel, chemicals

Exports - partners:
  Japan, Italy, UAE, South Korea, France, China

Imports:
  $15 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs
  and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies

Imports - partners:
  Germany, South Korea, Italy, UAE, France, Japan

Debt - external:
  $7.5 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
  $116.5 million (1995)

Currency:
  Iranian rial (IRR)

Currency code:
  IRR

Exchange rates:
  Iranian rials per US dollar - 1,754.71 (January 2001), 1,764.43 (2000),
  1,725.93 (1999), 1,751.86 (1998), 1,752.92 (1997), 1,750.76 (1996)
  note: Iran has three officially recognized exchange rates; the averages for
    1999 are as follows: the official floating rate of 1,750 rials per US
    dollar, the "export" rate of 3,000 rials per US dollar, and the variable
    Tehran Stock Exchange rate, which averages 7,863 rials per US dollar; the
    market rate averages 8,615 rials per US dollar

Fiscal year:
  21 March - 20 March

§6. Iran Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  6.313 million (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  265,000 (August 1998)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: inadequate but currently being modernized and expanded
    with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the
    volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to
    several thousand villages, not presently connected
  domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since
    1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay
    trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the
    net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately
    doubled; and thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served;
    moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the
    installation of thousands of digital switches
  international: HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan,
    Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and
    Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic
    Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line
    runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan
    with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9
    Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat; Internet service available but limited to
    electronic mail to promote Iranian culture

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998)

Radios:
  17 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
  28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997)

Televisions:
  4.61 million (1997)

Internet country code:
  .ir

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
  8 (2000)

Internet users:
  100,000 (2000)

§7. Iran Transportation

Railways:
  total: 5,600 km
  broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge
  standard gauge: 5,506 km 1.435-m gauge (146 km electrified)
  note: broad gauge track is employed at the borders with Azerbaijan and
    Turkmenistan which have broad-gauge rail systems (2001)

Highways:
  total: 140,200 km
  paved: 49,440 km (including 470 km of expressways)
  unpaved: 90,760 km (1998 est.)

Waterways:
  904 km
  note: the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about
    130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use

Pipelines:
  crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km

Ports and harbors:
  Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Ahvaz, Bandar
  'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni, Bandar-e Lengeh,
  Bandar-e Mahshahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar (Bandar Beheshti),
  Jazireh-ye Khark, Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr (limited
  operation since November 1992), Now Shahr

Merchant marine:
  total: 152 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,097,977 GRT/7,131,688 DWT
  ships by type: bulk 49, cargo 38, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 1,
    container 10, liquefied gas 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 6,
    petroleum tanker 32, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea
    passenger 1
  note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of
    convenience: Singapore 1 (2000 est.)

Airports:
  317 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 117 over 3,047 m: 38
  2,438 to 3,047 m: 23
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 25
  914 to 1,523 m: 24
  under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 200 over 3,047 m: 2
  2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
  914 to 1,523 m: 122
  under 914 m: 60 (2000 est.)

Heliports:
  11 (2000 est.)

§8. Iran Military

Military branches:
  Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy, Air
  and Air Defense Forces), Revolutionary Guards (includes Ground, Air, Navy,
  Qods, and Basij-mobilization-forces), Law Enforcement Forces

Military manpower - military age:
  21 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
  males age 15-49: 18,319,328 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
  males age 15-49: 10,872,407 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
  males: 823,040 (2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  $5.787 billion (FY98/99)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  2.9% (FY98/99)

§9. Iran Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to
    work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their
    eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and
    freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway;
    Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE: Lesser
    Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek
    in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by
    UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); Iran jointly
    administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE
    (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by
    Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since
    1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the
    island; the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region
    in protesting these Iranian actions; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet
    determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

Illicit drugs:
  despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment
  point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic consumption of
  narcotics remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate
  that there are at least 1.2 million drug users in the country
