Burma (Myanmar)

military regimeIndependence 4 January 1948 (from UK)

Burma (Myanmar) as the 1991 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 70 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalRangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)

Area678,500 km2

1991

Every edition of Burma (Myanmar)

Populationas each edition published it

42.11 million July 1991 · 41.28m in 1990

Population growth% a year

Not in this edition 1.88% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 25.3 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

Not in this edition 59.5 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

4.1 children per woman 1991 · 4.2 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

95 deaths per 1,000 live births 1991 · 97 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $660 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

Not in this edition 1.3% in 1993

Geography

10 fields

Total area

678,500km2

land area: 657,740 km2Comparative area: slightly smaller than Texas

Land boundaries

5,876km total

Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km

Coastline

1,930 km Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm

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

Natural resources

crude oil, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas

Land use

arable land 15%;
permanent crops 1%;
meadows and pastures 1%;
forest and woodland 49%;
other 34%;
includes irrigated 2%

Environment

subject to destructive earthquakes and cyclones;
flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September);
deforestation

Note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes

People

14 fields

Population

42,112,082

(July 1991), growth rate 2.0% (1991)

Per 1,000 population(1991)

Birth

32Death

13Net migration

Ethnic divisions

Burman 68%Shan 9%Karen 7%Rakhine 4%Chinese 3%Mon 2%Indian 2%other 5%

Religion

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

Literacy

81%

(male 89%, female 72%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Language

Burmese; minority ethnic groups have their own languages

Labor force

16,036,000; agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY89 est.)

Organized labor

Workers' Asiayone (association), 1,800,000 members; Peasants' Asiayone, 7,600,000 members

Government

Military regime

17 fields

People's Assembly, 485 seats, elected 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convenedseats by party

NLD 396the regime-favored NUP 10other 79

Long-form name

Union of Burma; note--the local official name is Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw which has been translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar

Capital

Rangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)

Administrative divisions

7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular--yin) and 7 states (pyine-mya, singular--pyine);
Chin State, Irrawaddy*, Kachin State, Karan State, Kayah State, Magwe*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Pegu*, Rakhine State, Rangoon*, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tenasserim*

Constitution

3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988)

Legal system

martial law in effect throughout most of the country; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Executive branch

chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council, State Law and Order Restoration Council

Legislative branch

unicameral People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw) was dissolved after the coup of 18 September 1988

Council of People's Justices was abolished after the coup of 18 September 1988 Chief of State and Head of Government--Chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council Gen. SAW MAUNG (since 18 September 1988) National Unity Party (NUP; proregime), THA KYAW; National League for Democracy (NLD), U TIN OO and AUNG SAN SUU KYI; League for Democracy and Peace, U NU

Suffrage

universal at age 18 People's Assembly--last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened;
results--NLD 80%;
seats--(485 total) NLD 396, the regime-favored NUP 10, other 79

Communists

several hundred (est.) in Burma Communist Party (BCP)

Other political or pressure groups

Kachin Independence Army (KIA), United Wa State Army (UWSA), Karen National Union (KNU), several Shan factions, including the Shan United Army (SUA) (all ethnically-based insurgent groups)

Member of

AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador U MYO AUNG;
Chancery at 2300 S Street NW, Washington DC 20008;
telephone (202) 332-9044 through 9046;
there is a Burmese Consulate General in New York;
US--Ambassador (vacant);
Deputy Chief of Mission Franklin P. HUDDLE, Jr.;
Embassy at 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (mailing address is G. P. O. Box 521, Rangoon or Box B, APO San Francisco 96346);
telephone 82055 or 82181

Flag

red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice;
the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative divisions

Economy

Burma is a poor Asian country, with a per capita GDP of about $400.

17 fields

GDP, purchasing power parity

$16.8billion

per capita $408; real growth rate NEGL% (FY90 est.)

Inflation, consumer prices

22.6%

(FY89 est.)

Unemployment rate

9.6%in urban areas

(FY89 est.)

External debt

$5.5billion

(December 1990 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$4.9 billionExpenditures

$5.0 billion

expenditures, including capital expenditures of $0.7 billion (FY89 est.)

Overview

Burma is a poor Asian country, with a per capita GDP of about $400. The nation has been unable to achieve any substantial improvement in export earnings because of falling prices for many of its major commodity exports. For rice, traditionally the most important export, the drop in world prices has been accompanied by shrinking markets and a smaller volume of sales.

In 1985 teak replaced rice as the largest export and continues to hold this position. The economy is heavily dependent on the agricultural sector, which generates about half of GDP and provides employment for 66% of the work force.

Exports

$228 million (f.o.b., FY89) commodities--teak, rice, oilseed, metals, rubber, gems; partners--Southeast Asia, India, China, EC, Africa

Imports

$540 million (c.i.f., FY89) commodities--machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, food products; partners--Japan, EC, China, Southeast Asia

Industrial production

growth rate 2.6% (FY90 est.); accounts for 10% of GDP

Electricity

950,000 kW capacity; 2,900 million kWh produced, 70 kWh per capita (1990)

Industries

agricultural processing;
textiles and footwear;
wood and wood products;
petroleum refining;
mining of copper, tin, tungsten, iron;
construction materials;
pharmaceuticals;
fertilizer

Agriculture

accounts for 51% of GDP (including fish and forestry);
self-sufficient in food;
principal crops--paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses;
world's largest stand of hardwood trees;
rice and teak account for 55% of export revenues;
fish catch of 732,000 metric tons (FY90)

Illicit drugs

world's largest illicit producer of opium poppy and minor producer of cannabis for the international drug trade;
opium production is on the increase as growers respond to the collapse of Rangoon's antinarcotic programs

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $158 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $3.9 billion;
Communist countries (1970-88), $424 million

Currency

kyat (plural--kyats); 1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas

Exchange rates

kyats (K) per US$1--6.0476 (January 1991), 6.3386 (1990), 6.7049 (1989), 6.3945 (1988), 6.6535 (1987), 7.3304 (1986), 8.4749 (1985)

Fiscal year

1 April-31 March

Communications

9 fields

Merchant marine, 60 ships by typeone square, one ship

passenger-cargo 3cargo 19refrigerated cargo 2vehicle carrier 3container 2petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker 3chemical 2combination ore/oil 1bulk 24combination bulk 160 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 968,226 GRT/1,433,584 DWT

Airports, 86 total, 79 usable

permanent-surface runways

29runways over 3,659 m

nonerunways 2,440-3,659 m

3runways 1,220-2,439 m

Networkskm

Highways

27,000Railroads

3,991Inland waterways

12,800

Highways: ; 3,200 km bituminous, 17,700 km improved earth or gravel, 6,100 km unimproved earth · Railroads: , all government owned; 3,878 km 1.000-meter gauge, 113 km narrow-gauge industrial lines; 362 km double track · Inland waterways: ; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels