|
| World Fact Book
| Mark H. Solsman
| Documentation Training and Publications, Center for Academic Computing
| mhs108@psu.edu  10/19/93
I
 
_@_Libya Geography
 
Total area:
    1,759,540 km2
Land area:
    1,759,540 km2
Comparative area:
    slightly larger than Alaska
Land boundaries:
    4,383 km; Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,150 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan
    383 km, Tunisia 459 km
Coastline:
    1,770 km
Maritime claims:
  Territorial sea:
    12 nm
  Gulf of Sidra closing line:
    32 degrees 30 minutes N
Disputes:
    claims and occupies the 100,000 km2 Aozou Strip in northern Chad; maritime
    boundary dispute with Tunisia; Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in northern
    Niger; Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in southeastern Algeria
Climate:
    Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior
Terrain:
    mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions
Natural resources:
    crude oil, natural gas, gypsum
Land use:
    arable land 1%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 8%; forest and
    woodland 0%; other 91%; includes irrigated NEGL%
Environment:
    hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in
    spring and fall; desertification; sparse natural surface-water resources
Note:
    the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the
    world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to
    coastal cities
 
:Libya People
 
Population:
    4,484,795 (July 1992), growth rate 3.0% (1992)
Birth rate:
    36 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
    6 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
    0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
    60 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
    66 years male, 71 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
    4.9 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
    noun - Libyan(s); adjective - Libyan
Ethnic divisions:
    Berber and Arab 97%; some Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis,
    Turks, Indians, and Tunisians
Religions:
    Sunni Muslim 97%
Languages:
    Arabic; Italian and English widely understood in major cities
Literacy:
    64% (male 75%, female 50%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force:
    1,000,000, includes about 280,000 resident foreigners; industry 31%,
    services 27%, government 24%, agriculture 18%
Organized labor:
    National Trade Unions' Federation, 275,000 members; General Union for Oil
    and Petrochemicals; Pan-Africa Federation of Petroleum Energy and Allied
    Workers
 
:Libya Government
 
Long-form name:
    Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Digraph:
    Tripoli Administration divisions *** 25 municipalities (baladiyah, singular
    - baladiyat; Ajdabiya, Al `Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al
    Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az
    Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha,
    Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan
Type:
    Jamahiriya (a state of the masses); in theory, governed by the populace
    through local councils; in fact, a military dictatorship
Capital:
    Tripoli Administration divisions
Administrative divisions:
    25 municipalities (baladiyah, singular - baladiyat; Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah,
    Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al
    Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan,
    Misratah, Murzuq Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq,
    Yafran, Zlitan
Independence:
    24 December 1951 (from Italy)
Constitution:
    11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977
Legal system:
    based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious
    courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts;
    has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
    Revolution Day, 1 September (1969)
Executive branch:
    revolutionary leader, chairman of the General People's Committee (premier),
    General People's Committee (cabinet)
Legislative branch:
    unicameral General People's Congress
Judicial branch:
    Supreme Court
Leaders:
  Chief of State:
    Revolutionary Leader Col. Mu`ammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September
    1969)
  Head of Government:
    Chairman of the General People's Committee (Premier) Abu Zayd `umar DURDA
    (since 7 October 1990)
Political parties and leaders:
    none
Suffrage:
    universal and compulsory at age 18
Elections:
    national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of peoples' committees
Other political or pressure groups:
    various Arab nationalist movements and the Arab Socialist Resurrection
    (Ba'th) party with almost negligible memberships may be functioning
    clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements
Member of:
    ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
    ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU,
    LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO,
    WIPO, WMO, WTO
 
:Libya Government
 
Diplomatic representation:
    none
Flag:
    plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion)
 
:Libya Economy
 
Overview:
    The socialist-oriented economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil
    sector, which contributes practically all export earnings and about
    one-third of GDP. Since 1980, however, the sharp drop in oil prices and the
    resulting decline in export revenues have adversely affected economic
    development. In 1988 per capita GDP was the highest in Africa at $5,410, but
    GDP growth rates have slowed and fluctuate sharply in response to changes in
    the world oil market. Import restrictions and inefficient resource
    allocations have led to shortages of basic goods and foodstuffs, although
    the reopening of the Libyan-Tunisian border in April 1988 and the
    Libyan-Egyptian border in December 1989 have somewhat eased shortages.
    Austerity budgets and a lack of trained technicians have undermined the
    government's ability to implement a number of planned infrastructure
    development projects. Windfall revenues from the hike in world oil prices in
    late 1990 improved the foreign payments position and resulted in a current
    account surplus for the first time in five years. The nonoil manufacturing
    and construction sectors, which account for about 22% of GDP, have expanded
    from processing mostly agricultural products to include petrochemicals,
    iron, steel, and aluminum. Although agriculture accounts for about 5% of
    GDP, it employs about 20% of the labor force. Climatic conditions and poor
    soils severely limit farm output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food
    requirements.
GDP:
    exchange rate conversion - $28.9 billion, per capita $6,800; real growth
    rate 9% (1990 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
    7% (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate:
    2% (1988 est.)
Budget:
    revenues $8.1 billion; expenditures $9.8 billion, including capital
    expenditures of $3.1 billion (1989 est.)
Exports:
    $11 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
  commodities:
    petroleum, peanuts, hides
  partners:
    Italy, USSR, Germany, Spain, France, Belgium/Luxembourg, Turkey
Imports:
    $7.6 billion (f.o.b., 1990 est.)
  commodities:
    machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods
  partners:
    Italy, USSR, Germany, UK, Japan
External debt:
    $3.5 billion, excluding military debt (1991 est.)
Industrial production:
    growth rate - 4%; accounts for 22% of GDP (not including oil) (1989)
Electricity:
    4,700,000 kW capacity; 13,700 million kWh produced, 3,100 kWh per capita
    (1991)
Industries:
    petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement
Agriculture:
    5% of GNP; cash crops - wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus fruits,
    peanuts; 75% of food is imported
Economic aid:
    Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87),
    $242 million; no longer a recipient
 
:Libya Economy
 
Currency:
    Libyan dinar (plural - dinars); 1 Libyan dinar (LD) = 1,000 dirhams
Exchange rates:
    Libyan dinars (LD) per US$1 - 0.2743 (March 1992), 0.2669 (1991), 0.2699
    (1990), 0.2922 (1989), 0.2853 (1988), 0.2706 (1987)
Fiscal year:
    calendar year
 
:Libya Communications
 
Pipelines:
    crude oil 4,383 km; natural gas 1,947 km; petroleum products 443 km
    (includes liquid petroleum gas 256 km)
Ports:
    Tobruk, Tripoli, Banghazi, Misratah, Marsa al Burayqah, Ra's Lanuf
Merchant marine:
    30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 684,969 GRT/1,209,084 DWT; includes 3
    short-sea passenger, 11 cargo, 4 roll-on/roll-off, 10 petroleum tanker, 1
    chemical tanker, 1 liquefied gas
Civil air:
    59 major transport aircraft
Airports:
    133 total, 120 usable; 53 with permanent-surface runways; 9 with runways
    over 3,659 m; 28 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 46 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications:
    modern telecommunications system using radio relay, coaxial cable,
    tropospheric scatter, and domestic satellite stations; 370,000 telephones;
    broadcast stations - 17 AM, 3 FM, 12 TV; satellite earth stations - 1
    Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, and 14 domestic; submarine
    cables to France and Italy; radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric
    scatter to Greece; planned ARABSAT and Intersputnik satellite stations
 
:Libya Defense Forces
 
Branches:
    Armed Peoples of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (including Army, Navy, Air and
    Air Defense Command), National Police
Manpower availability:
    males 15-49, 1,056,686; 624,027 fit for military service; 50,916 reach
    military age (17) annually; conscription now being implemented
Defense expenditures:
    exchange rate conversion - $NA, 11.1% of GDP (1987)
 
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