Iran

theocratic republic

Iran as the 1994 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 119 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

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CapitalTehran
LocationMiddle East, between the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea
1994

Every edition of Iran

Populationas each edition published it
65.62 million July 1994 est. · 55.65m in 1990
Population growth% a year
3.46% 1994 est. · 3.49% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 22.9 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
Not in this edition 65.26 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
6.33 children per woman 1994 est. · 6.3 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
60.2 deaths per 1,000 live births 1994 est. · 91 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$4,780 1993 est. · $1,500 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
3% 1993 est. · 6% in 1993

Geography

Middle East, between the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea

24 fields
Coastline
2,440km
Land boundaries
5,440km
total · Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan (north) 432 km, Azerbaijan (northwest) 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km
Irrigated land
57,500sq km
(1989 est.)

Location

Middle East, between the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea

Map references

Asia, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World

total area

1.648 million sq km

land area

1.636 million sq km

comparative area

slightly larger than Alaska

note

Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

continental shelf

not specified

exclusive fishing zone

50 nm in the Gulf of Oman; continental shelf limit, continental shelf boundaries, or median lines in the Persian Gulf

territorial sea

12 nm

International disputes

  • Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway;
  • Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf
claimed by the UAE:
  • Tunb as Sughra (Arabic), Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek (Persian) or Lesser Tunb, and Tunb al Kubra (Arabic), Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg (Persian) or Greater Tunb;
  • it jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE, Abu Musa (Arabic) or Jazireh-ye Abu Musa (Persian);
  • in 1992 the dispute over Abu Musa and the Tunb islands became more acute when Iran unilaterally tried to control the entry of third country nationals into the UAE portion of Abu Musa island, Tehran subsequently backed off in the face of significant diplomatic support for the UAE in the region;
  • periodic disputes with Afghanistan over Helmand water rights

Climate

mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Terrain

  • rugged, mountainous rim;
  • high, central basin with deserts, mountains;
  • small, discontinuous plains along both coasts

Natural resources

petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur

arable land

8%

permanent crops

0%

meadows and pastures

27%

forest and woodland

11%

other

54%

current issues

  • air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industry;
  • deforestation;
  • overgrazing;
  • desertification;
  • oil pollution in the Persian Gulf;
  • shortages of drinking water

natural hazards

periodic droughts

international agreements

  • party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands;
  • signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

People

22 fields
Population
65,615,474
(July 1994 est.)growth rate: 3.46% (1994 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1994 est.)

Birth
42.43Death
7.83Net migration
0

Ethnic divisions

Persian 51%Azerbaijani 24%Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%Kurd 7%Arab 3%Lur 2%Baloch 2%Turkmen 2%other 1%
Labor force
15.4million
Literacy
15and over can read and write
age · (1990 est.)

Infant mortality rate

60.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

total population

65.66 years

male

64.7 years

female

66.68 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate

6.33 children born/woman (1994 est.)

noun

Iranian(s)

adjective

Iranian

Religions

Shi'a Muslim 95%, Sunni Muslim 4%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1%

Languages

Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Baloch 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%

total population

54%

male

64%

female

43%

by occupation

agriculture 33%, manufacturing 21%

note

shortage of skilled labor (1988 est.)

Government

Theocratic republic

27 fields

conventional long form

Islamic Republic of Iran

conventional short form

Iran

local long form

Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran

local short form

Iran

Type

theocratic republic

Capital

Tehran

Administrative divisions

  • 24 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan);
  • Azarbayjan-e Bakhtari, Azarbayjan-e Khavari, Bakhtaran, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Khorasan, Khuzestan, Kohkiluyeh va Buyer Ahmadi, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan

Independence

1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)

National holiday

Islamic Republic Day, 1 April (1979)

Constitution

2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership

Suffrage

15 years of age; universal

supreme leader and functional chief of state

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989); supreme leader (velayat-e faqih)

head of government

  • President Ali Akbar Hashemi-RAFSANJANI (since 3 August 1989);
  • election last held June 1993 (next to be held June-July 1997);
  • results - Ali Akbar HASHEMI-RAFSANJANI was elected with 63% of the vote

cabinet

Council of Ministers; selected by the president with legislative approval

Islamic Consultative Assembly

  • (Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami) elections last held 8 April 1992 (next to be held April 1996);
  • results - percent of vote by party NA;
  • seats - (270 seats total) number of seats by party NA

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

  • there are at least 76 licensed parties;
  • the three most important are - Tehran Militant Clergy Association, Mohammad Reza MAHDAVI-KANI;
  • Militant Clerics Association, Mehdi MAHDAVI-KARUBI and Mohammad Asqar MUSAVI-KHOINIHA;
  • Fedaiyin Islam Organization, Sadeq KHALKHALI

Other political or pressure groups

  • groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Hizballah, Hojjatiyeh Society, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam;
  • armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include
    • Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK),
    • People's Fedayeen,
    • Kurdish Democratic Party
    ;
  • the Society for the Defense of Freedom

Member of

CCC, CP, ESCAP, ECO, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission

Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, DC

chancery

Iranian Interests Section, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007

telephone

(202) 965-4990

US diplomatic representation

protecting power in Iran is Switzerland

Flag

  • three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red;
  • the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in red is centered in the white band;
  • Allah Alkbar (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Economy

Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of | oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale | private trading and service ventures.

27 fields
GDP per capita, PPP
$4,780
(1993 est.)
Real growth rate
3%
(1993 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 3% (1993 est.); accounts for almost 30% of GDP, including petroleum
Inflation, consumer prices
30%
(September 1992-September 1993)
Unemployment rate
30%
(1991 est.)

Overview

Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. Over the past several years, the government has introduced several measures to liberalize the economy and reduce government intervention, but most of these changes have moved slowly because of political opposition.

Iran has faced increasingly severe financial difficulties in 1992-93 due to an import surge since 1989 and general financial mismanagement. At yearend 1993 the Iranian Government estimated that it owed foreign creditors about $30 billion; an estimated $8 billion of this debt was in arrears.

Earnings from oil exports--which provide over 90% of Iran's export revenues--are providing less relief to Iran than usual because of declining oil prices. Estimated overall growth was a robust 6.3% in 1992 and a moderate 3% in 1993.

National product

GNP - purchasing power equivalent - $303 billion (1993 est.)

revenues

$NA

expenditures

$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Exports

$15.5 billion (f.o.b., FY92 est.)

commodities

petroleum 90%, carpets, fruits, nuts, hides

partners

Japan, Italy, France, Netherlands, Belgium/Luxembourg, Spain, and Germany

Imports

$23.7 billion (c.i.f., FY92 est.)

commodities

machinery, military supplies, metal works, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, technical services, refined oil products

partners

Germany, Japan, Italy, UK, France

External debt

$30 billion (December 1993)

capacity

15,649,000 kW

production

43.6 billion kWh

consumption per capita

710 kWh (1992)

Industries

petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other building materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabricating

Agriculture

  • accounts for about 20% of GDP;
  • principal products - wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton, dairy products, wool, caviar;
  • not self-sufficient in food

Illicit drugs

  • illicit producer of opium poppy for the domestic and international drug trade;
  • net opiate importer but also a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe

recipient

  • US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-80), $1 billion;
  • Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $1.675 billion;
  • Communist countries (1970-89), $976 million

note

aid fell sharply following the 1979 revolution

Currency

1 Iranian rial (IR) = 10 tomans

Exchange rates

  • Iranian rials (IR) per US$1 - 1,748.86 (January 1994), 1,267.77 (1993), 65.552 (1992), 67.505 (1991);
  • note - in March 1993 the Iranian government announced a new single-parity exchange rate system with a new official rate of 1,538 rials per dollar;
  • there is also a black market rate of 2200 rials per US$1 (December 1993)

Fiscal year

21 March - 20 March

Communications

15 fields

Railroads

  • 4,852 km total;
  • 4,760 km 1.432-meter gauge, 92 km 1.676-meter gauge;
  • 480 km under construction from Bafq to Bandar-e 'Abbas, rail construction from Bafq to Sirjan has been completed and is operational;
  • section from Sirjan to Bandar-e 'Abbas still under construction

total

140,200 km

paved

42,694 km

unpaved

  • gravel, crushed stone 46,866 km;
  • improved earth 49,440 km;
  • unimproved earth 1,200 km

Inland waterways

  • 904 km;
  • the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km;
  • channel has been dredged to 3 meters and is in use

Pipelines

  • crude oil 5,900 km;
  • petroleum products 3,900 km;
  • natural gas 4,550 km

Ports

Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Bandar Beheshti, Bandar-e 'Abbas, Bandar-e Bushehr, Bandar-e Khomeyni, Bandar-e Torkeman (Caspian Sea port), Khorramshahr (repaired after being largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war) has been in limited operation since November 1992

Merchant marine

139 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,480,000 GRT/8,332,667 DWT, bulk 48, cargo 41, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 2, liquefied gas 1, oil tanker 31, refrigerated cargo 3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 1

total

219

usable

193

with permanent-surface runways

80

with runways over 3,659 m

17

with runways 2,440-3,659 m

18

with runways 1,220-2,439 m

70

Telecommunications

  • microwave radio relay extends throughout country;
  • system centered in Tehran;
  • 2,143,000 telephones (35 telephones per 1,000 persons);
  • broadcast stations - 77 AM, 3 FM, 28 TV;
  • satellite earth stations - 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT;
  • HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan;
  • submarine fiber optic cable to UAE

Defense Forces

Islamic Republic of Iran Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense | Force, Revolutionary Guards (including Basij militia and own ground, | air, and naval forces), Law Enforcement Forces

4 fields

Branches

Islamic Republic of Iran Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, Revolutionary Guards (including Basij militia and own ground, air, and naval forces), Law Enforcement Forces

Manpower availability

  • males age 15-49 14,382,216;
  • fit for military service 8,555,760;
  • reach military age (21) annually 600,630 (1994 est.)

Defense expenditures

according to official Iranian data, Iran spent 1,785 billion rials, including $808 million in hard currency in 1992 and budgeted 2,507 billion rials, including $850 million in hard currency for 1993 (est.)

note

conversion of rial expenditures into US dollars using the prevailing exchange rate could produce misleading results

Central Intelligence Agency. “Iran.” The World Factbook 1994. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/iran/1994.

How to cite ← 1993 edition 1995 edition →