Introduction

Background:  Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist president and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction have floundered as conservative politicians have prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and consolidated their control over the government.

Geography

Location:        Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates:      32 00 N, 53 00 E

Map references:       Middle East

Area:  total: 1.648 million sq km; land: 1.636 million sq km; water: 12,000 sq km

Area - comparative:  slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries:      total: 5,440 km; border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km

Coastline:       2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Maritime claims:       territorial sea: 12 nm; contiguous zone: 24 nm; exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf; continental shelf: natural prolongation

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

Elevation extremes:  lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m; highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m

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

Land use:       arable land: 8.72%; permanent crops: 1.39%; other: 89.89% (2001)

Irrigated land:            75,620 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:        periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes

Environment - current issues:          air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization

Environment - international agreements:   party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:     strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport

People

Population:     68,017,860 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:            0-14 years: 27.1% (male 9,465,475/female 8,973,828); 15-64 years: 68% (male 23,556,970/female 22,701,065); 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,637,512/female 1,683,010) (2005 est.)

Median age:  total: 24.23 years; male: 24.03 years; female: 24.44 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:        0.86% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:      16.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:    5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:   -2.64 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:       at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female; total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:            total: 41.58 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 41.75 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 41.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:      total population: 69.96 years; male: 68.58 years; female: 71.4 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:    1.82 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 31,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:  800 (2003 est.)

Nationality:    noun: Iranian(s); adjective: Iranian

Ethnic groups:            Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions:       Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2%

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

Literacy:        definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 79.4%; male: 85.6%; female: 73% (2003 est.)

Government

Country name:           conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran; conventional short form: Iran; local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran; local short form: Iran; former: Persia

Government type:     theocratic republic

Capital:          Tehran

Administrative divisions:      30 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e Shemali, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan

Independence:           1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)

National holiday:       Republic Day, 1 April (1979); note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925)

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

Legal system: the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government

Suffrage:        15 years of age; universal

Executive branch:     chief of state: Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989); head of government: President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD (since 3 August 2005) First Vice President Dr. Mohammad Reza AREF-Yazdi (since 26 August 2001); cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries; elections: leader of the Islamic Revolution appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 17 June 2005 with a two-candidate runoff on 24 June 2005 (next to be held NA 2009); election results: Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD elected president; percent of vote - Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD 62%, Ali Akbar Hashemi RAFSANJANI 36%; note - 2% of ballots spoiled

Legislative branch:   unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats, note - changed from 270 seats with the 18 February 2000 election; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections: last held 20 February 2004 with a runoff held 7 May 2004 (next to be held February 2008); election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50, independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats unaccounted for

Judicial branch:         Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a special administrative court

Economy

Economy - overview: Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and statist policies that create major distortions throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale - workshops, farming, and services. President KHATAMI has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $30 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not eased economic hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. The proportion of the economy devoted to the development of weapons of mass destruction remains a contentious issue with leading Western nations.

GDP:  purchasing power parity - $516.7 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:        6.3% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:      purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:          agriculture: 11.2%; industry: 40.9%; services: 48.7% (2004 est.)

Labor force:   23 million; note: shortage of skilled labor (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:            agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (2001 est.)

Unemployment rate:  11.2% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:         40% (2002 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA; highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices):     15.5% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):     31.3% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:          revenues: $43.34 billion; expenditures: $47.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.6 billion (2004 est.)

Public debt:    27% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:          wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar

Industries:      petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments

Industrial production growth rate:   3.5% excluding oil (2004 est.)

Electricity - production:        129 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - consumption:     119.9 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production:        3.962 million bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:     1.4 million bbl/day (2002 est.)

Oil - exports:  2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - imports:  NA

Oil - proved reserves:           130.8 billion bbl (2004 est.)

Natural gas - production:      79 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:  72.4 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports:           3.4 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - imports:           4.92 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:        26.7 trillion cu m (2004)

Current account balance:     $2.1 billion (2004 est.)

Exports:         $38.79 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:         petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets

Exports - partners:    Japan 20%, China 9.9%, Italy 6.3%, South Africa 6.3%, Taiwan 4.8%, Turkey 4.7%, South Korea 4.7%, France 4.3%, Netherlands 4.3% (2004)

Imports:         $31.3 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:         industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies

Imports - partners:    Germany 13%, France 8.9%, Italy 8%, China 7.7%, UAE 6.4%, South Korea 6.3%, Russia 4.9% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:     $29.87 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:         $13.4 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:      $408 million (2002 est.)

Currency (code):       Iranian rial (IRR)

Exchange rates:        rials per US dollar - 8,614 (2004), 8,193.9 (2003), 6,907 (2002), 1,753.6 (2001), 1,764.4 (2000); note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002

Fiscal year:    21 March - 20 March

Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:        14,571,100 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:           3,376,500 (2003)