Burma (Myanmar)

Airports

85 total, 82 usable; 27 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 38 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

17 major transport aircraft (including 3 helicopters)

Highways

27,000 km total; 3,200 km bituminous, 17,700 km improved earth or gravel, 6,100 km unimproved earth

Inland waterways

12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels

Merchant marine

71 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,036,018 GRT/1,514,121 DWT; includes 3 passenger-cargo, 19 cargo, 5 refrigerated cargo, 3 vehicle carrier, 3 container, 2 petroleum tanker, 6 chemical, 1 combination ore/oil, 27 bulk, 1 combination bulk, 1 roll-on/roll-off

Pipelines

crude oil 1,343 km; natural gas 330 km

Ports

Rangoon, Moulmein, Bassein

Railroads

3,991 km total, all government owned; 3,878 km 1.000-meter gauge, 113 km narrow-gauge industrial lines; 362 km double track

Telecommunications

meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service; international service is good; 53,000 telephones (1986); radiobroadcast coverage is limited to the most populous areas; broadcast stations - 2 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (1985); 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $1.28 billion, FY(91-92)

Manpower availability

eligible 15-49, 21,447,878; of the 10,745,530 males 15-49, 5,759,840 are fit for military service; of the 10,702,348 females 15-49, 5,721,868 are fit for military service; 424,474 males and 410,579 females reach military age (18) annually; both sexes are liable for military service

Agriculture

accounts for 40% of GDP (including fish and forestry); self-sufficient in food; principal crops - paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses; world's largest stand of hardwood trees; rice and teak account for 55% of export revenues; fish catch of 740,000 metric tons (FY90)

Budget

revenues $7.2 billion; expenditures $9.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $6 billion (1991)

Currency

kyat (plural - kyats); 1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $158 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $3.9 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $424 million

Electricity

950,000 kW capacity; 2,900 million kWh produced, 70 kWh per capita (1990)

Exchange rates

kyats (K) per US$1 - 6.0963 (January 1992), 6.2837 (1991), 6.3386 (1990), 6.7049 (1989), 6.46 (1988), 6.6535 (1987)

Exports

$568 million commodities: teak, rice, oilseed, metals, rubber, gems partners: Southeast Asia, India, Japan, China, EC, Africa

External debt

$4.2 billion (1991)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

GDP

exchange rate conversion - $22.2 billion, per capita $530; real growth rate 5.6% (1991)

Illicit drugs

world's largest illicit producer of opium poppy and minor producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; opium production is on the increase as growers respond to the collapse of Rangoon's antinarcotic programs

Imports

$1.16 billion commodities: machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, food products partners: Japan, EC, China, Southeast Asia

Industrial production

growth rate 2.6% (FY90 est.); accounts for 10% of GDP

Industries

agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood products; petroleum refining; mining of copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

40% (1991)

Overview

Burma is a poor Asian country, with a per capita GDP of about $500. The nation has been unable to achieve any substantial improvement in export earnings because of falling prices for many of its major commodity exports. For rice, traditionally the most important export, the drop in world prices has been accompanied by shrinking markets and a smaller volume of sales. In 1985 teak replaced rice as the largest export and continues to hold this position. The economy is heavily dependent on the agricultural sector, which generates about 40% of GDP and provides employment for 65% of the work force. Burma has been largely isolated from international economic forces and has been trying to encourage foreign investment, so far with little success.

Unemployment rate

9.6% in urban areas (FY89 est.)

Climate

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)

Coastline

1,930 km

Comparative area

slightly smaller than Texas

Disputes

none

Environment

subject to destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); deforestation

Land area

657,740 km2

Land boundaries

5,876 km; Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km

Land use

arable land 15%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 1%; forest and woodland 49%; other 34%; includes irrigated 2%

Maritime claims

Contiguous zone: 24 nm Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

crude oil, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas

Note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes

Terrain

central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands

Total area

678,500 km2

Administrative divisions

7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular - yin) and 7 states (pyine-mya, singular - pyine); Chin State, Irrawaddy*, Kachin State, Karan State, Kayah State, Magwe*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Pegu*, Rakhine State, Rangoon*, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tenasserim*

Capital

Rangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)

Communists

several hundred (est.) in Burma Communist Party (BCP)

Constitution

3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988)

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador U THAUNG; Chancery at 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 332-9044 through 9046; there is a Burmese Consulate General in New York US: Ambassador (vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission, Charge d'Affaires Franklin P. HUDDLE, Jr.; Embassy at 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (mailing address is GPO Box 521, AMEMB Box B, APO AP 96546); telephone [95] (1) 82055, 82181; FAX [95] (1) 80409

Elections

People's Assembly: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened; results - NLD 80%; seats - (485 total) NLD 396, the regime-favored NUP 10, other 79

Executive branch

chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council, State Law and Order Restoration Council

Flag

red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions

Independence

4 January 1948 (from UK)

Judicial branch

Council of People's Justices was abolished after the coup of 18 September 1988

Leaders

Chief of State and Head of Government: Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)

Legal system

martial law in effect throughout most of the country; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

unicameral People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw) was dissolved after the coup of 18 September 1988

Long-form name

Union of Burma; note - the local official name is Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw, which has been translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar

Member of

AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO

National holiday

Independence Day, 4 January (1948)

Other political or pressure groups

Kachin Independence Army (KIA), United Wa State Army (UWSA), Karen National Union (KNU) , several Shan factions, including the Shan United Army (SUA) (all ethnically based insurgent groups)

Political parties and leaders

National Unity Party (NUP; proregime), THA KYAW; National League for Democracy (NLD), U AUNG SHWE; National Coalition of Union of Burma (NCGUB), SEIN WIN - consists of individuals legitimately elected but not recognized by military regime; fled to border area and joined with insurgents in December 1990 to form a parallel government

Suffrage

universal at age 18

Type

military regime

Birth rate

29 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate

10 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic divisions

Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%

Infant mortality rate

68 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force

16,036,000; agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY89 est.)

Languages

Burmese; minority ethnic groups have their own languages

Life expectancy at birth

57 years male, 61 years female (1992)

Literacy

81% (male 89%, female 72%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality

noun - Burmese (singular and plural); adjective - Burmese

Net migration rate

0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor

Workers' Asiayone (association), 1,800,000 members; Peasants' Asiayone, 7,600,000 members

Population

42,642,418 (July 1992), growth rate 1.9% (1992)

Religions

Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist beliefs 1%, other 2%

Total fertility rate

3.8 children born/woman (1992)