President

Thein Sein

Vice President

SAI MOUK KHAM
TIN AUNG MYINT OO

Capital

Rangoon ( Yangon )

Location

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand

Geographic coordinates

22 00 N, 98 00 E

Area

Total: 676,578 sq km
Land: 653,508 sq km
Water: 23,070 sq km

Land boundaries

Total: 5,876 km
Border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km

Coastline

1,930 km

Maritime claims

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

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)

Terrain

Central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands

Elevation extremes

Lowest point:  Andaman Sea 0 m
Highest point:  Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m

Land use

Arable land: 14.92%
Permanent crops: 1.31%
Other: 83.77% (2005)

Natural resources

Petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower

Irrigated land

18,700 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources

1,045.6 cu km (1999)

Natural hazards

Destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts

Environment - current issues

Deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease

Environment-international agreements

Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94

Signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

Strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes

Population & its structure

53,414,374(July 2010 est.)
0-14 years: 25.3% (male 6,193,263/female 5,990,658)
15-64 years: 69.3% (male 16,510,648/female 16,828,462)
65 years and over: 5.4% (male 1,121,412/female 1,493,298) (2010 est.)  

Birth rate

19.49 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)

Death rate

8.23 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)

Net migration rate

-0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Median age:

Total: 26.5 years
Male: 26 years
Female: 27.1 years (2010 est.)  

Population growth rate

1.096% (2010 est.)

Urbanization

Urban population: 34% of total population (2010)
Rate of urbanization: 2.9% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Sex ratio

At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total population: 64.52 years
Male: 62.23 years
Female: 66.94 years (2010 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total: 50.76 deaths/1,000 live births
Male: 57.85 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 43.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)  

Geographic coordinates

22 00 N, 98 00 E

Time difference

UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington , DC during Standard Time)

Independence

4 January 1948 (from the UK )

National Holiday

Independence Day, 4 January (1948); Union Day, 12 February (1947)

Constitution

3 January 1974; suspended on 18 September 1988; 31 January 2011 (effective date)

Religions

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

Legislative Branch

Bicameral, consists of the House of Nationalities [Amyotha Hluttaw] (224 seats, 168 directly elected and 56 appointed by the military; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives [Pythu Hluttaw] (440 seats, 330 directly elected and 110 appointed by the military; members serve five-year terms)
Elections: last held on 7 November 2010 (next to be held in December 2015)

Languages

Burmese (offical) minority ethnic groups have their own languages

Literacy

Total population: 89.9%
Male: 93.9%
Female: 86.4% (2006 est.)  

Currency

kyat (K) (MMK)  

Legal System

Based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Flag description

Design consists of three equal horizontal stripes of yellow (top), green, and red; centered on the green band is a large white five-pointed star that partially overlaps onto the adjacent colored stripes; the design revives the triband colors used by Burma from 1943-45, during the Japanese occupation

National anthem

Name: "Kaba Ma Kyei" (Till the End of the World, Myanmar )
Lyrics/music: SAYA TIN
Note: adopted 1948; Burma is among a handful of non-European nations that have anthems rooted in indigenous traditions; the beginning portion of the anthem is a traditional Burmese anthem before transitioning into a Western-style orchestrated work

Economy Overview

Burma , a resource-rich country, suffers from pervasive government controls, inefficient economic policies, corruption, and rural poverty. Despite Burma 's emergence as a natural gas exporter, socio-economic conditions have deteriorated under the regime's mismanagement, leaving most of the public in poverty, while military leaders and their business cronies exploit the country's ample natural resources. The economy suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including rising inflation, fiscal deficits, multiple official exchange rates that overvalue the Burmese kyat, a distorted interest rate regime, unreliable statistics, and an inability to reconcile national accounts to determine a realistic GDP figure. Burma 's poor investment climate hampers the inflow of foreign investment; in recent years, foreign investors have shied away from nearly every sector except for natural gas, power generation, timber, and mining. The business climate is widely perceived as opaque, corrupt, and highly inefficient. Over 60% of the FY 2009-10 budget is allocated to state owned enterprises - most operating at a deficit. The government has recently privatized a number of state owned enterprises, but most of the benefits have accrued to regime insiders and cronies. The most productive sectors will continue to be in extractive industries - especially oil and gas, mining, and timber - with the latter two causing significant environmental degradation. Other areas, such as manufacturing, tourism and services, struggle in the face of inadequate infrastructure, unpredictable trade policies, neglected health and education systems, and endemic corruption. A major banking crisis in 2003 caused 20 private banks to close; private banks still operate under tight restrictions, limiting the private sector's access to credit. The United States, the European Union, Canada, and Australia have imposed financial and economic sanctions on Burma, prohibiting most financial transactions with Burmese entities, imposing travel bans on Burmese officials and others connected to the ruling regime, and banning imports of certain Burmese products. These sanctions affected the country's fledgling garment industry, isolated the struggling banking sector, and raised the costs of doing business with Burmese companies, particularly firms tied to Burmese regime leaders. The global crisis of 2008-09 caused exports and domestic consumer demand to drop. Remittances from overseas Burmese workers - who had provided significant financial support for their families - slowed or dried up as jobs were lost and migrant workers returned home. Though the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbors, better investment and business climates and an improved political situation are needed to promote serious foreign investment, exports, and tourism.