Location: Southern Africa, bordering the Mozambique Channel, between South Africa and Tanzania

Geographic coordinates: 18 15 S, 35 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 801,590 sq km
land : 784,090 sq km
water: 17,500 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of California

Land boundaries:
total: 4,571 km
border countries: Malawi 1,569 km, South Africa 491 km, Swaziland 105 km, Tanzania 756 km, Zambia 419 km, Zimbabwe 1,231 km

Coastline: 2,470 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone : 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical to subtropical

Terrain: mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus in northwest, mountains in west

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Monte Binga 2,436 m

Natural resources: coal, titanium, natural gas

Land use:
arable land: 4%
permanent crops : 0%
permanent pastures: 56%
forests and woodland: 18%
other: 22% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 1,070 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: severe droughts and floods occur in central and southern provinces; devastating cyclones

Environment - current issues: a long civil war and recurrent drought in the hinterlands have resulted in increased migration of the population to urban and coastal areas with adverse environmental consequences; desertification; pollution of surface and coastal waters

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Desertification, Law of the Sea

Population: 19,607,519 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.5% (male 4,162,413; female 4,176,295)
15-64 years: 54.7% (male 5,313,511; female 5,407,052)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 227,761; female 320,487) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.13% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 36.41 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 25.13 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over : 0.71 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 138.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 35.46 years
male:36.25 years
female:34.65 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.71 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Mozambican(s)
adjective: Mozambican

Ethnic groups: indigenous tribal groups 99.66% (Shangaan, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, and others), Europeans 0.06%, Euro-Africans 0.2%, Indians 0.08%

Religions: indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%

Languages: Portuguese (official), indigenous dialects

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population :42.3%
male: 58.4%
female: 27% (1998 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Mozambique
conventional short form: Mozambique
local long form : Republica Popular de Mocambique
local short form: Mocambique

Data code: MZ

Government type: republic

National capital: Maputo

Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Cabo Delgado, Gaza, Inhambane, Manica, Maputo, Nampula, Niassa, Sofala, Tete, Zambezia

Independence: 25 June 1975 (from Portugal)

National holiday: Independence Day, 25 June (1975)

Constitution: 30 November 1990

Legal system: based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state:President Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO (since 6 November 1986); note - before being popularly elected, CHISSANO was elected president by Frelimo's Central Committee on 4 November 1986 (reelected by the Committee 30 July 1989)
head of government: Prime Minister Pascoal MOCUMBI (since 17 December 1994)
cabinet : Cabinet
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president
election results:Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO reelected president; percent of vote - Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO 52.29%, Afonso DHLAKAMA 47.71%

Legislative branch: unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (250 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on a secret ballot to serve five-year terms)
elections: llast held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results:percent of vote by party - Frelimo 48.54%, Renamo-UE 38.81%; seats by party - Frelimo 133, Renamo-UE 117
note: Renamo-UE ran as a multiparty coalition; none of the other opposition parties received the 5% required to win parliamentary seats; in September 2000, Renamo-UE member Raul DOMINGOS was expelled from the party, he continues to hold his parliamentary seat as an independent

Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges appointed by the president and judges elected by the Assembly

Political parties and leaders: Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frente de Liberatacao de Mocambique) or Frelimo [Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO, president]; Mozambique National Resistance-Electoral Union (Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana-Uniao Eleitoral) or Renamo-UE [Afonso DHLAKAMA, president]

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Armando RANGUENE
chancery: Suite 570, 1990 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 293-7146
FAX: [1] (202) 835-0245

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Sharon P. WILKINSON
embassy: Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo
mailing address: P. O. Box 783, Maputo
telephone : [258] (1) 492797
FAX: [258] (1) 490114

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book

Economy - overview:At independence in 1975, Mozambique was one of the world's poorest countries. Socialist mismanagement and a brutal civil war from 1977-92 exacerbated the situation. In 1988, the government embarked on a series of dramatic macroeconomic reforms designed to stabilize the economy and reduce government participation. These steps combined with the political stability that has prevailed since the 1994 multi-party elections have led to dramatic improvements in the country's growth rate fueled by foreign and domestic investments and donor assistance. Inflation was brought to single digits during the same period, although it has returned to double digits in 2000 and 2001. Foreign exchange rates have remained relatively stable. Fiscal reforms, including the introduction of a value-added tax and reform of the customs service, have improved the government's revenue collection abilities. In spite of these gains, Mozambique remains dependent upon foreign assistance for much of its annual budget, and the majority of the population remains below the poverty line. Subsistence agriculture continues to employ the vast majority of the country's workforce. A substantial trade imbalance persists, although it has diminished with the opening of the MOZAL aluminum smelter, the country's largest foreign investment project. Additional investment projects in titanium extraction/processing and garment manufacturing should further close the import/export gap. Mozambique's once substantial foreign debt has been reduced through forgiveness and rescheduling under the IMF's Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and Enhanced HIPC initiatives, and is now at a manageable level.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $17.5 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 9.2% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $900 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 33%
industry: 25%
services : 42% (2000 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 10% (2001 est.)

Labor force:7.4 million (1997 est.)
by occupation: 8agriculture 81%, industry 6%, services 13% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate: 21% (1997 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $393.1 million
expenditures : $1.025 billion, including capital expenditures of $479.4 million (2001 est.)

Industries: food, beverages, chemicals (fertilizer, soap, paints), petroleum products, textiles, cement, glass, asbestos, tobacco

Industrial production growth rate: 3.4% (2000)

Electricity - capacity: 2.36 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 7.017 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita:925.81 million kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: cotton, cashew nuts, sugarcane, tea, cassava (tapioca), corn, rice, tropical fruits; beef, poultry

Exports:
total value : $746 million (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
commodities: prawns 40%, cashews, cotton, sugar, citrus, timber; bulk electricity (2000)
partners: South Africa 12.7%, Zimbabwe 12.2%, Spain 10.6%, Portugal 10.0% (2000)

Imports:
total value: $1.254 billion (c.i.f., 2001 est.)
commodities : fmachinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs, textiles (2000)
partners: South Africa 33.5%, Portugal 4.8%, US 4.2%, Australia 3.8% (2000)

Debt - external: $1 billion (2001 est.)

Economic aid:
recipient : $632.8 million (2001)

Currency: 1 metical (MZM) ) = 100 centavos

Exchange rates: meticais per US dollar - 23,314.2 (January 2002), 20,703.6 (2001), 15,447.1 (2000), 13,028.6 (1999), 12,110.2 (1998), 11,772.6 (1997)
note: effective October 2000, the exchange rate is determined as the weighted average of buying and selling exchange rates of all transactions of commercial banks and stock exchanges with the public; meticais is the plural form of metical

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 90,000 (December 2001)

Telephone system:fair system but not available generally (telephone density is only 3.5 telephones for each 1,000 persons)
domestic: the system consists of open-wire lines and trunk connection by microwave radio relay and tropospheric scatter
international : satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 13, FM 17, shortwave 11 (2001)

Radios: 730,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (2001)

Televisions: 67,600 (2000)

Railways:
total: 3,131 km
narrow gauge: 2,988 km 1.067-m gauge; 143 km 0.762-m gauge (2001)

Highways:
total: 30,400 km
paved:5,685 km
unpaved : 24,715 km (1996)

Waterways: about 3,750 km of navigable routes

Pipelines: crude oil (not operating) 306 km; petroleum products 289 km

Ports and harbors: Beira, Inhambane, Maputo, Nacala, Pemba

Merchant marine:
total : 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,125 GRT/7,024 DWT

Airports: 166 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 22
over 3,047 m : 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m : 10
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 5 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 44
2,438 to 3,047 m:1
1,524 to 2,437 m : 16
914 to 1,523 m: 37
under 914 m: 90 (2001)

Military branches: Army, Naval Command, Air and Air Defense Forces, Militia

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 4,711,318 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males: 2,720,583 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $35.1 million (2000 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:1% (2000 est.)

Disputes - international: none

Illicit drugs: Southern African transit hub for South American cocaine probably destined for the European and US markets; producer of hashish and methaqualone