Pakistan

• mostly hot, dry desert;
• temperate in northwest;
• arctic in north

• flat Indus plain in east;
• mountains in north and northwest;
• Balochistan plateau in west

total:

169.39 cu km/yr (2%/2%/96%)

per capita:

1,072 cu m/yr (2000)

• water pollution from raw sewage, industrial wastes, and agricultural runoff;
• limited natural freshwater resources;
• most of the population does not have access to potable water;
• deforestation;
• soil erosion;
• desertification

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Marine Life Conservation

noun:

Pakistani(s)

adjective:

Pakistani

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.07 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.89 male(s)/female

total population:

1.06 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

degree of risk:

high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

dengue fever and malaria

animal contact disease:

rabies

note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)

conventional long form:

Islamic Republic of Pakistan

conventional short form:

Pakistan

local long form:

Jamhuryat Islami Pakistan

local short form:

Pakistan

former:

West Pakistan

name:

Islamabad

geographic coordinates:

33 41 N, 73 03 E

time difference:

UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

• 4 provinces, 1 territory*, and 1 capital territory**;
• Balochistan, Federally Administered Tribal Areas*, Islamabad Capital Territory**, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly North-West Frontier Province), Punjab, Sindh

note: the Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region consists of two administrative entities: Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan

• 12 April 1973;
• suspended 5 July 1977, restored 30 December 1985;
• suspended 15 October 1999, restored in stages in 2002;
• amended 31 December 2003;
• suspended 3 November 2007;
• restored 15 December 2007;
• last amended 28 February 2012

• 18 years of age;
• universal;
• note - there are joint electorates and reserved parliamentary seats for women and non-Muslims

chief of state:

President Asif Ali ZARDARI (since 9 September 2008)

head of government:

Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz ASHRAF (since 22 June 2012); Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhry Pervais ELAHI (since 25 June 2012)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president upon the advice of the prime minister; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

• president elected by secret ballot through an Electoral College comprising the members of the Senate, National Assembly, and provincial assemblies for a five-year term;
• election last held on 6 September 2008 (next to be held not later than 2013);
• note - any person who is a Muslim and not less than 45 years of age and qualified to be elected as a member of the National Assembly can contest the presidential election;
• the prime minister selected by the National Assembly

election results:

• Asif Ali ZARDARI elected president;
• ZARDARI 481 votes, SIDDIQUE 153 votes, SYED 44 votes;
• Syed Yousuf Raza GILANI elected prime minister;
• GILANI 264 votes, Pervaiz ELAHI 42 votes;
• several abstentions;
• Prime Minister Raja Pervais ASHRAF elected by Parliament - ASHRAF 211 votes, Sardar Mehtab ABBASI 89 votes

• Awami National Party or ANP [Asfandyar Wali KHAN];
• Balochistan National Party-Awami or BNP-A;
• Balochistan National Party-Hayee Group or BNP-H [Dr. Hayee BALOCH];
• Balochistan National Party-Mengal or BNP-M;
• Jamaat-i Islami or JI [Syed Munawar HASAN];
• Jamhoori Watan Party or JWP;
• Jamiat Ahle Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR];
• Jamiat-i Ulema-i Islam Fazl-ur Rehman or JUI-F [Fazl-ur REHMAN];
• Jamiat-i Ulema-i Islam Sami-ul HAQ or JUI-S [Sami ul-HAQ];
• Jamiat-i Ulema-i Pakistan or JUP [Abul Khair ZUBAIR];
• Millat-e-Jafferia [Allama Sajid NAQVI];
• Muttahida Qaumi Movement or MQM [Altaf HUSSAIN];
• National Peoples Party or NPP;
• Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party or PKMAP [Mahmood Khan ACHAKZAI];
• Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir ul QADRI];
• Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-i Azam or PML-Q [Chaudhry Shujaat HUSSAIN];
• Pakistan Muslim League-Functional or PML-F [Pir PAGARO];
• Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz or PML-N [Nawaz SHARIF];
• Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians or PPPP [Bilawal Bhutto ZARDARI, chairman; Asif Ali ZARDARI, co-chairman];
• Quami Watan Party or QWP [Aftab Ahmed Khan SHERPAO];
• Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaaf or PTI [Imran KHAN]

note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift frequently

other:

• military (most important political force);
• ulema (clergy);
• landowners;
• industrialists;
• small merchants

chief of mission:

Ambassador Sheherbano "Sherry" REHMAN

chancery:

3517 International Court, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 243-6500

FAX:

[1] (202) 686-1544

consulate(s) general:

Boston (Honorary Consulate General), Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York

consulate(s):

Chicago, Houston

chief of mission:

Ambassador Richard Olson

embassy:

Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5, Islamabad

mailing address:

8100 Islamabad Pl., Washington, DC 20521-8100

telephone:

[92] (51) 208-0000

FAX:

[92] (51) 227-6427

consulate(s) general:

Karachi

consulate(s):

Lahore, Peshawar

• green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious minorities) on the hoist side;
• a large white crescent and star are centered in the green field;
• the crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam

name:

"Qaumi Tarana" (National Anthem)

lyrics/music:

Abu-Al-Asar Hafeez JULLANDHURI/Ahmed Ghulamali CHAGLA

note: adopted 1954; the anthem is also known as "Pak sarzamin shad bad" (Blessed Be the Sacred Land)

agriculture:

45.1%

industry:

20.7%

services:

34.2% (2010 est.)

lowest 10%:

9.9%

highest 10%:

39.3% (FY07/08)

general assessment:

• the telecommunications infrastructure is improving dramatically with foreign and domestic investments in fixed-line and mobile-cellular networks;
• system consists of microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, cellular, and satellite networks;

domestic:

• mobile-cellular subscribership has skyrocketed, exceeding 110 million by the end of 2011, up from only about 300,000 in 2000;
• more than 90 percent of Pakistanis live within areas that have cell phone coverage and more than half of all Pakistanis have access to a cell phone;
• fiber systems are being constructed throughout the country to aid in network growth;
• fixed line availability has risen only marginally over the same period and there are still difficulties getting fixed-line service to rural areas

international:

• country code - 92;
• landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 and SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable systems that provide links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe;
• satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean);
• 3 operational international gateway exchanges (1 at Karachi and 2 at Islamabad);
• microwave radio relay to neighboring countries

• media is government regulated;
• 1 dominant state-owned TV broadcaster, Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV), operates a network consisting of 5 channels;
• private TV broadcasters are permitted;
• to date 69 foreign satellite channels are operational;
• the state-owned radio network operates more than 40 stations;
• nearly 100 commercially-licensed privately-owned radio stations provide programming mostly limited to music and talk shows (2007)

total:

7,791 km

country comparison to the world: 27

broad gauge:

7,479 km 1.676-m gauge (293 km electrified)

narrow gauge:

312 km 1.000-m gauge (2007)

total:

260,760 km

country comparison to the world: 20

paved:

180,910 km (includes 711 km of expressways)

unpaved:

79,850 km (2007)

• 17-23 years of age for voluntary military service;
• soldiers cannot be deployed for combat until age 18;
• the Pakistani Air Force and Pakistani Navy have inducted their first female pilots and sailors;
• service obligation (Navy) 10-18 years;
• retirement required after 18-30 years service or age 40-52 (2012)

males age 16-49:

48,453,305

females age 16-49:

44,898,096 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

37,945,440

females age 16-49:

37,381,549 (2010 est.)

male:

2,237,723

female:

2,104,906 (2010 est.)

• various talks and confidence-building measures cautiously have begun to defuse tensions over Kashmir, particularly since the October 2005 earthquake in the region;
• Kashmir nevertheless remains the site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas);
• UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan has maintained a small group of peacekeepers since 1949;
• India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964;
• India and Pakistan have maintained their 2004 cease-fire in Kashmir and initiated discussions on defusing the armed standoff in the Siachen glacier region;
• Pakistan protests India's fencing the highly militarized Line of Control and construction of the Baglihar Dam on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir, which is part of the larger dispute on water sharing of the Indus River and its tributaries;
• to defuse tensions and prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and Pakistan seek technical resolution of the disputed boundary in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in the Arabian Sea;
• Pakistani maps continue to show the Junagadh claim in India's Gujarat State;
• by 2005, Pakistan, with UN assistance, repatriated 2.3 million Afghan refugees leaving slightly more than a million, many of whom remain at their own choosing;
• Pakistan has sent troops across and built fences along some remote tribal areas of its treaty-defined Durand Line border with Afghanistan, which serve as bases for foreign terrorists and other illegal activities;
• Afghan, Coalition, and Pakistan military meet periodically to clarify the alignment of the boundary on the ground and on maps

refugees (country of origin):

1,701,945 (Afghanistan) (2011)

IDPs:

774,594 (figure only includes IDPs in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber-Pakhtunkwa; fighting in the FATA, Khyber-Pakhtunkwa, and Balochistan since 2004; military operations in SWAT in 2009; earthquakes and floods) (2012)

• significant transit area for Afghan drugs, including heroin, opium, morphine, and hashish, bound for Iran, Western markets, the Gulf States, Africa, and Asia;
• financial crimes related to drug trafficking, terrorism, corruption, and smuggling remain problems;
• opium poppy cultivation estimated to be 2,300 hectares in 2007 with 600 of those hectares eradicated;
• federal and provincial authorities continue to conduct anti-poppy campaigns that utilizes forced eradication, fines, and arrests