Roadways:
total: 43,670 km country comparison to the world: 86 paved: 6,472 km
unpaved: 37,198 km (2006)
Waterways:
1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2010) country comparison to the world: 54
Merchant marine:
total: 41 country comparison to the world: 76 by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, passenger 9, petroleum tanker 26, refrigerated cargo 1
registered in other countries: 7 (Bolivia 1, Panama 6) (2010)
Ports and terminals:
Esmeraldas, Guayaquil, Manta, Puerto Bolivar
Military ::Ecuador
Military branches:
Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard),
Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) (2007)
Military service age and obligation:
20 years of age for selective conscript military service; 12-month service obligation (2008)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16–49: 3,662,176
females age 16–49: 3,781,102 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16–49: 2,770,465
females age 16–49: 3,217,235 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 150,296
female: 145,184 (2010 est.)
Military expenditures:
0.9% of GDP (2009) country comparison to the world: 138
Transnational Issues ::Ecuador
Disputes - international:
organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border, which thousands of Colombians also cross to escape the violence in their home country
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 11,526 (Colombia); note - UNHCR estimates as many as 250,000 Columbians are seeking asylum in Ecuador, many of whom do not register as refugees for fear of deportation (2007)
Illicit drugs:
significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru, with much of the US-bound cocaine passing through Ecuadorian Pacific waters; importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics; attractive location for cash-placement by drug traffickers laundering money because of dollarization and weak anti-money-laundering regime; increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents (2008)
page last updated on January 19, 2011
======================================================================
@Egypt (Africa)
Introduction ::Egypt
Background:
The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C., and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty fell to the Persians in 341 B.C., who in turn were replaced by the Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines. It was the Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the 7th century and who ruled for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub, but also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty with the overthrow of the British-backed monarchy in 1952. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to meet the demands of Egypt's growing population through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure.
Geography ::Egypt
Location:
Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula
Geographic coordinates:
27 00 N, 30 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 1,001,450 sq km country comparison to the world: 30 land: 995,450 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than three times the size of New Mexico
Land boundaries:
total: 2,665 km
border countries: Gaza Strip 11 km, Israel 266 km, Libya 1,115 km, Sudan 1,273 km
Coastline:
2,450 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters
Terrain:
vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Qattara Depression −133 m
highest point: Mount Catherine 2,629 m
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, rare earth elements, zinc
Land use:
arable land: 2.92%
permanent crops: 0.5%
other: 96.58% (2005)
Irrigated land:
34,220 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
86.8 cu km (1997)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 68.3 cu km/yr (8%/6%/86%)
per capita: 923 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; frequent earthquakes; flash floods; landslides; hot, driving windstorm called khamsin occurs in spring; dust storms; sandstorms
Environment - current issues:
agricultural land being lost to urbanization and windblown sands; increasing soil salination below Aswan High Dam; desertification; oil pollution threatening coral reefs, beaches, and