from
CIA World Factbook 2006
Iran
Introduction
Background: Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic
republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was
overthrown and the shah was forced into exile.
Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic
system of government with ultimate political authority
nominally vested in a learned religious scholar.
Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group
of 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 that eventually expanded into the Persian
Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian
military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been
designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its
activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and
remains subject to US economic sanctions and export
controls because of its continued involvement.
Following the elections of a reformist president and
Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political
reform in response to popular dissatisfaction
floundered as conservative politicians prevented reform
measures from being enacted, increased repressive
measures, and made electoral gains against reformers.
Parliamentary elections in 2004 and the August 2005
inauguration of a conservative stalwart as president,
completed the reconsolidation of conservative power in
Iran's government.
Geography
Location: Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian
Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan
Geographic 32 00 N, 53 00 E
coordinates:
Map Middle East
references:
Area: total: 1.648 million sq km
land: 1.636 million sq km
water: 12,000 sq km
Area - slightly larger than Alaska
comparative:
Land total: 5,440 km
boundaries: 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 territorial sea: 12 nm
claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median
lines in the Persian Gulf
continental shelf: natural prolongation
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 lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
extremes: highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m
Natural petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron
resources: ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur
Land use: arable land: 9.78%
permanent crops: 1.29%
other: 88.93% (2005)
Irrigated 76,500 sq km (2003)
land:
Natural periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms;
hazards: earthquakes
Environment - air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle
current emissions, refinery operations, and industrial
issues: effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification;
oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from
drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate
supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw
sewage and industrial waste; urbanization
Environment - party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change,
international Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
agreements: Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification,
Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of
note: Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil
transport
People
Population: 68,688,433 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 26.1% (male 9,204,785/female 8,731,429)
15-64 years: 69% (male 24,133,919/female 23,245,255)
65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,653,827/female
1,719,218) (2006 est.)
Median age: total: 24.8 years
male: 24.6 years
female: 25 years (2006 est.)
Population 1.1% (2006 est.)
growth rate:
Birth rate: 17 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: 5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration -0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
rate:
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant total: 40.3 deaths/1,000 live births
mortality male: 40.49 deaths/1,000 live births
rate: female: 40.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life total population: 70.26 years
expectancy at male: 68.86 years
birth: female: 71.74 years (2006 est.)
Total 1.8 children born/woman (2006 est.)
fertility
rate:
HIV/AIDS - less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
adult
prevalence
rate:
HIV/AIDS - 31,000 (2001 est.)
people living
with HIV/AIDS:
HIV/AIDS - 800 (2003 est.)
deaths:
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 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish,
Christian, and Baha'i 2%
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: 79.4%
male: 85.6%
female: 73% (2003 est.)
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 theocratic republic
type:
Capital: name: Tehran
geographic coordinates: 35 40 N, 51 26 E
time difference: UTC+3.5 (8.5 hours ahead of
Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative 30 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil,
divisions: Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr,
Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan,
Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah,
Khorasan-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e
Shemali, 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 Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
holiday: note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran
include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New
Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5
August (1925); and various Islamic observances that
change in accordance with the lunar-based hejira
calendar
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 chief of state: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI
branch: (since 4 June 1989)
head of government: President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD
(since 3 August 2005); First Vice President Parviz
DAVUDI (since 11 September 2005)
cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president
with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some
control over appointments to the more sensitive
ministries
note: also considered part of the Executive branch of
government are three oversight bodies: 1) Assembly of
Experts, a popularly elected body of 86 religious
scholars constitutionally charged with determining the
succession of the Supreme Leader, reviewing his
performance, and deposing him if deemed necessary; 2)
Expediency Council or Council for the Discernment of
Expediency is a policy advisory and implementation
board consisting of permanent and temporary members
representing all major government factions, some of
whom are appointed by the Supreme Leader; the Council
exerts supervisory authority over the executive,
judicial, and legislative branches and resolves
legislative issues on which the Majles and the Council
of Guardians disagree; 3) Council of Guardians or
Council of Guardians of the Constitution is a 12-member
board of clerics and jurists serving six-year terms
that determines whether proposed legislation is both
constitutional and faithful to Islamic law; the Council
also vets candidates for suitability and supervises
national elections
elections: Supreme Leader appointed for life by the
Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote
for a four-year term (eligible for a second term);
election last held 17 June 2005 with a two-candidate
runoff on 24 June 2005 (next to be held in 2009)
election results: Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD elected
president; percent of vote - Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD 62%,
Ali Akbar Hashemi RAFSANJANI 36%
Legislative unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or
branch: Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats - formerly 270
seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 February 2004 with a runoff
held 7 in May 2004 (next to be held in February 2008)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party
- conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50,
independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats
unaccounted for
Judicial Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a
branch: revolutionary court, and a special administrative court
Political formal political parties are a relatively new
parties and phenomenon in Iran and most conservatives still prefer
leaders: to work through political pressure groups rather than
parties; a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd
Khordad Front, which includes political parties as well
as less formal pressure groups and organizations,
achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth
Majles in early 2000; groups in the coalition include:
Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF), Executives of
Construction Party (Kargozaran), Solidarity Party,
Islamic Labor Party; Mardom Salari, Mojahedin of the
Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO), and Militant
Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); the coalition participated
in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004; a new
apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic
Iran, took a leading position in the new Majles after
winning a majority of the seats in February 2004
Political political pressure groups conduct most of Iran's
pressure political activities; groups that generally support the
groups and Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim
leaders: Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran
Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic
Coalition Party (Motalefeh), and Islamic Engineers
Society; active pro-reform student groups include the
Organization for Strengthening Unity; opposition groups
include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front,
Marz-e Por Gohar, and various ethnic and Monarchist
organizations; armed political groups that have been
almost completely repressed by the government include
Mujahidin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's
Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and
Komala
International ABEDA, CP, ECO, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
organization ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC,
participation: IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU,
ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, SCO
(observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
(observer)
Diplomatic none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the
representation Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section,
in the US: Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990;
FAX [1] (202) 965-1073
Diplomatic none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland
representation
from the US:
Flag three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and
description: red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of
the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of
martyrdom) 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
Economy
Economy - Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient
overview: state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and
statist policies that create major distortions
throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the
state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale
- workshops, farming, and services. President Mahmud
AHMADI-NEJAD has continued to follow the market reform
plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited
progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years
have enabled Iran to amass some $40 billion in foreign
exchange reserves, but have not eased economic
hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. The
proportion of the economy devoted to the development of
weapons of mass destruction remains a contentious issue
with leading Western nations.
GDP $569.9 billion (2005 est.)
(purchasing
power parity):
GDP (official $181.2 billion (2005 est.)
exchange
rate):
GDP - real 6.9% (2005 est.)
growth rate:
GDP - per $8,400 (2005 est.)
capita (PPP):
GDP - agriculture: 11.6%
composition by industry: 42.4%
sector: services: 46% (2005 est.)
Labor force: 23.68 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (2005 est.)
Labor force - agriculture: 30%
by occupation: industry: 25%
services: 45% (2001 est.)
Unemployment 11.2% (2004 est.)
rate:
Population 40% (2002 est.)
below poverty
line:
Household lowest 10%: NA%
income or highest 10%: NA%
consumption by
percentage
share:
Distribution 43 (1998)
of family
income - Gini
index:
Inflation rate 13.5% (2005 est.)
(consumer
prices):
Investment 30.1% of GDP (2005 est.)
(gross fixed):
Budget: revenues: $48.82 billion
expenditures: $60.4 billion; including capital
expenditures of $7.6 billion (2005 est.)
Public debt: 28.9% of GDP (2005 est.)
Agriculture - wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts,
products: cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar
Industries: petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other
construction materials, food processing (particularly
sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal
fabrication, armaments
Industrial 3% excluding oil (2005 est.)
production
growth rate:
Electricity - 142.3 billion kWh (2003)
production:
Electricity - fossil fuel: 97.1%
production by hydro: 2.9%
source: nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - 132.1 billion kWh (2003)
consumption:
Electricity - 840 million kWh (2003)
exports:
Electricity - 600 million kWh (2003)
imports:
Oil - 3.979 million bbl/day (2005 est.)
production:
Oil - 1.425 million bbl/day (2003 est.)
consumption:
Oil - exports: 2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - imports: NA bbl/day
Oil - proved 133.3 billion bbl (2005 est.)
reserves:
Natural gas - 79 billion cu m (2003 est.)
production:
Natural gas - 79 billion cu m (2003 est.)
consumption:
Natural gas - 3.4 billion cu m (2003 est.)
exports:
Natural gas - 4.92 billion cu m (2003 est.)
imports:
Natural gas - 26.62 trillion cu m (2005)
proved
reserves:
Current $13.27 billion (2005 est.)
account
balance:
Exports: $55.42 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products,
commodities: fruits and nuts, carpets
Exports - Japan 16.6%, China 11%, Italy 5.8%, South Korea 5.7%,
partners: South Africa 5.7%, Turkey 5.6%, Netherlands 4.5%,
France 4.3% (2005)
Imports: $42.5 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - industrial raw materials and intermediate goods,
commodities: capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods,
technical services, military supplies
Imports - Germany 13.8%, UAE 8.3%, China 8.3%, Italy 7%, France
partners: 6.2%, South Korea 5.4%, Russia 4.8% (2005)
Reserves of $45.46 billion (2005 est.)
foreign
exchange and
gold:
Debt - $19.06 billion (2005 est.)
external:
Economic aid - $408 million (2002 est.)
recipient:
Currency Iranian rial (IRR)
(code):
Currency code: IRR
Exchange rials per US dollar - 8,964 (2005), 8,614 (2004),
rates: 8,193.9 (2003), 6,907 (2002), 1,753.6 (2001)
note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange
rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in
March 2002
Fiscal year: 21 March - 20 March
Communications
Telephones - 18.986 million (2005)
main lines in
use:
Telephones - 7.222 million (2005)
mobile
cellular:
Telephone general assessment: inadequate, but currently being
system: 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; 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: country code - 98; 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
Radio AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998)
broadcast
stations:
Radios: 17 million (1997)
Television 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997)
broadcast
stations:
Televisions: 4.61 million (1997)
Internet .ir
country code:
Internet 5,242 (2006)
hosts:
Internet 100 (2002)
Service
Providers
(ISPs):
Internet 7.5 million (2005)
users:
Transportation
Airports: 321 (2006)
Airports - total: 129
with paved over 3,047 m: 41
runways: 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26
1,524 to 2,437 m: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 31
under 914 m: 6 (2006)
Airports - total: 192
with unpaved over 3,047 m: 1
runways: 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 140
under 914 m: 43 (2006)
Heliports: 15 (2006)
Pipelines: condensate 7 km; condensate/gas 397 km; gas 17,099 km;
liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,521 km; refined
products 7,808 km (2006)
Railways: total: 7,256 km
broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge
standard gauge: 7,162 km 1.435-m gauge (186 km
electrified) (2005)
Roadways: total: 178,152 km
paved: 118,115 km (including 751 km of expressways)
unpaved: 60,037 km (2002)
Waterways: 850 km (850 km on Karun River; additional service on
Lake Urmia) (2006)
Merchant total: 141 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,086,702 GRT/
marine: 8,878,829 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 39, cargo 45, chemical tanker 4,
container 12, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/
cargo 6, petroleum tanker 30, roll on/roll off 3
foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1)
registered in other countries: 22 (Bolivia 1, Cyprus 2,
Malta 14, Panama 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1)
(2006)
Ports and Assaluyeh, Bushehr
terminals:
Military
Military Islamic Republic of Iran Regular Forces (Artesh):
branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (includes air defense);
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e
Enqelab-e Eslami, IRGC): Ground Forces, Navy, Air
Force, Qods Force (special operations), and Basij Force
(Popular Mobilization Army); Law Enforcement Forces
(2005)
Military 18 years of age for compulsory military service; 16
service age years of age for volunteers; soldiers as young as 9
and were recruited extensively during the Iran-Iraq War;
obligation: conscript service obligation - 18 months (2004)
Manpower males age 18-49: 18,319,545
available for females age 18-49: 17,541,037 (2005 est.)
military
service:
Manpower fit males age 18-49: 15,665,725
for military females age 18-49: 15,005,597 (2005 est.)
service:
Manpower males age 18-49: 862,056
reaching females age 18-49: 808,044 (2005 est.)
military
service age
annually:
Military $4.3 billion (2003 est.)
expenditures -
dollar figure:
Military 3.3% (2003 est.)
expenditures -
percent of
GDP:
Transnational
Issues
Disputes - Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed
international: tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought;
Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts
jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al
Arab in the Persian Gulf; Iran and UAE dispute Tunb
Islands and Abu Musa Island, which are occupied by
Iran; Iran stands alone among littoral states in
insisting upon a division of the Caspian Sea into five
equal sectors
Refugees and refugees (country of origin): 952,802 (Afghanistan)
internally 93,173 (Iraq) (2005)
displaced
persons:
Trafficking in current situation: Iran is a source, transit, and
persons: destination country for women and girls trafficked for
the purposes of sexual exploitation and involuntary
servitude; according to foreign observers, women and
girls are trafficked to Pakistan, Turkey, the Persian
Gulf, and Europe for sexual exploitation, while boys
from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan are
trafficked through Iran en route to Persian Gulf states
where they are ultimately forced to work as camel
jockeys, beggars, or laborers; Afghan women and girls
are trafficked to the country for forced marriages and
sexual exploitation; women and children are also
trafficked internally for the purposes of forced
marriage, sexual exploitation, and involuntary
servitude
tier rating: Tier 3 - Iran is downgraded to Tier 3
after persistent, credible reports of Iranian
authorities punishing victims of trafficking with
beatings, imprisonment, and execution
Illicit drugs: despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains
a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to
Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a
persistent problem and according to official Iranian
statistics there are at least 2 million drug users in
the country; lacks anti-money-laundering laws