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Russia
Population growth rate: -0.33% (1999 est.)
Birth rate: 9.64 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate: 14.96 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Natural resources: wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder exploitation of natural resources
Natural hazards: permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula
Environment current issues: air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and sea coasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination
Geography note: largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture
Economy overview: Seven years after the collapse of the USSR, Russia is still struggling to establish a modern market economy and achieve strong economic growth. Russian GDP has contracted an estimated 43% since 1991, including a 5% drop in 1998, despite the country’s wealth of natural resources, its well-educated population, and its diverse although increasingly dilapidated industrial base. By the end of 1997, Russia had achieved some progress. Inflation had been brought under control, the ruble was stabilized, and an ambitious privatization program had transferred thousands of enterprises to private ownership. Some important market-oriented laws were also passed, including a commercial code governing business relations and an arbitration court for resolving economic disputes. But in 1998, the Asian financial crisis swept through the country, contributing to a sharp decline in russia’s earnings from oil exports and resulting in an exodus of foreign investors. Matters came to a head in August 1998 when the government allowed the ruble to fall precipitously and stopped payment on $40 billion in ruble bonds. Ongoing problems include an undeveloped legal and financial system, poor progress on restructuring the military-industrial complex, and persistently large budget deficits, largely reflecting the inability of successive governments to collect sufficient taxes. Russia’s transition to a market economy has also been slowed by the growing prevalence of payment arrears and barter and by widespread corruption. The severity of Russia’s economic problems is dramatized by the large annual decline in population, estimated by some observers at 800,000 people, caused by environmental hazards, the decline in health care, and the unwillingness of people to have children.
GDP: purchasing power parity $593.4 billion (1998 est.)
GDP real growth rate: -5% (1998 est.)
GDP per capita: purchasing power parity $4,000 (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: 28.6% (1998 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 84% (1998 est.)
AFRICA
Natural hazards: mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mud slides
Environment current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing and other poor farming practices; desertification; dumping of raw sewage, petroleum refining wastes, and other industrial effluents is leading to the pollution of rivers and coastal waters; Mediterranean Sea, in particular, becoming polluted from oil wastes, soil erosion, and fertilizer runoff; inadequate supplies of potable water
Population growth rate: 2.1% (1999 est.)
Death rate: 5.52 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 43.82 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 3.2% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: 22.6% (1995 est.)
Labor force by occupation: government 29.5%, agriculture 22%, construction and public works 16.2%, industry 13.6%, commerce and services 13.5%, transportation and communication 5.2% (1989)
Industrial production growth rate: -4% (1997 est.)
Telephone system:
domestic: good service in north but sparse in south; domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations (20 additional domestic earth stations are planned)
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc
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