Air Force), paramilitary force
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory military service (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18–49: 288,770 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18–49: 152,760 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$8.9 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3.1% (2004)
Transnational Issues Guinea-Bissau
Disputes - international:
attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling,
and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's
Casamance region
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Guyana
Introduction Guyana
Background:
Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had
become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black
settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants
from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide
has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved
independence from the UK in 1966, but until the early 1990s it was
ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi
JAGAN was elected president, in what is considered the country's
first free and fair election since independence. Upon his death five
years later, he was succeeded by his wife Janet, who resigned in
1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was
reelected in 2001.
Geography Guyana
Location:
Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Suriname and Venezuela
Geographic coordinates:
5 00 N, 59 00 W
Map references:
South America
Area:
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km
water: 18,120 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Idaho
Land boundaries: total: 2,462 km border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km
Coastline:
459 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental
margin
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy
seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January)
Terrain:
mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m
Natural resources:
bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish
Land use: arable land: 2.44% permanent crops: 0.15% other: 97.41% (2001)
Irrigated land:
1,500 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons
Environment - current issues:
water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial
chemicals; deforestation
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, 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:
the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and
Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories
are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively
People Guyana
Population:
765,283
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2005 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 26.4% (male 103,054/female 99,279)
15–64 years: 68.5% (male 263,953/female 260,000)
65 years and over: 5.1% (male 16,801/female 22,196) (2005 est.)
Median age:
total: 26.91 years
male: 26.44 years
female: 27.4 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.26% (2005 est.)
Birth rate:
18.45 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate:
8.32 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate:
−7.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 33.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 36.94 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 29.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.5 years
male: 62.86 years