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- 300,000 km²; land area: 298,170 km²
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- Comparative area: slightly larger than Arizona
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- Land boundaries: none
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- Coastline: 36,289 km
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- Maritime claims: (measured from claimed archipelagic baselines);
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- Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation;
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- Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
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- Territorial sea: irregular polygon extending up to 100 nm from
- coastline as defined by 1898 treaty; since late 1970s has also claimed
- polygonal-shaped area in South China Sea up to 285 nm in breadth
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- Disputes: involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with
- China, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam; claims Malaysian state of Sabah
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- Climate: tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April);
- southwest monsoon (May to October)
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- Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow to extensive coastal lowlands
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- Natural resources: timber, crude oil, nickel, cobalt, silver,
- gold, salt, copper
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- Land use: 26% arable land; 11% permanent crops; 4% meadows and
- pastures; 40% forest and woodland; 19% other; includes 5% irrigated
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- Environment: astride typhoon belt, usually affected by 15 and struck by five
- to six cyclonic storms per year; subject to landslides, active volcanoes,
- destructive earthquakes, tsunami; deforestation; soil erosion; water
- pollution
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- █ ≡ People ≡ █
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- Population: 66,117,284 (July 1990), growth rate 2.5% (1990)
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- Birth rate: 32 births/1,000 population (1990)
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- Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
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- Net migration rate: - 1 migrant/1,000 population (1990)
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- Infant mortality rate: 48 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
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- Life expectancy at birth: 63 years male, 69 years female (1990)
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- Total fertility rate: 4.3 children born/woman (1990)
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- Nationality: noun--Filipino(s); adjective--Philippine
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- Ethnic divisions: 91.5% Christian Malay, 4% Muslim Malay, 1.5% Chinese, 3%
- other
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- Religion: 83% Roman Catholic, 9% Protestant, 5% Muslim, 3% Buddhist and
- other
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- Language: Pilipino (based on Tagalog) and English; both official
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- Literacy: 88% (est.)
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- Labor force: 22,889,000; 47% agriculture, 20% industry and commerce,
- 13.5% services, 10% government, 9.5% other (1987)
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- Organized labor: 2,064 registered unions; total membership 4.8 million
- (includes 2.7 million members of the National Congress of Farmers
- Organizations)
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- █ ≡ Government ≡ █
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- Long-form name: Republic of the Philippines
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- Type: republic
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- Capital: Manila
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- Administrative divisions: 73 provinces and 61 chartered cities*; Abra,
- Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Aklan, Albay, Angeles*, Antique, Aurora,
- Bacolod*, Bago*, Baguio*, Bais*, Basilan, Basilan City*, Bataan, Batanes,
- Batangas, Batangas City*, Benguet, Bohol, Bukidnon, Bulacan, Butuan*,
- Cabanatuan*, Cadiz*, Cagayan, Cagayan de Oro*, Calbayog*, Caloocan*,
- Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Camiguin, Canlaon*, Capiz, Catanduanes,
- Cavite, Cavite City*, Cebu, Cebu City*, Cotabato*, Dagupan*, Danao*,
- Dapitan*, Davao City* Davao, Davao del Sur, Davao Oriental, Dipolog*,
- Dumaguete*, Eastern Samar, General Santos*, Gingoog*, Ifugao, Iligan*,
- Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Iloilo, Iloilo City*, Iriga*, Isabela,
- Kalinga-Apayao, La Carlota*, Laguna, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Laoag*,
- Lapu-Lapu*, La Union, Legaspi*, Leyte, Lipa*, Lucena*, Maguindanao,
- Mandaue*, Manila*, Marawi*, Marinduque, Masbate, Mindoro Occidental, Mindoro
- Oriental, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Mountain, Naga*, Negros
- Occidental, Negros Oriental, North Cotabato, Northern Samar, Nueva Ecija,
- Nueva Vizcaya, Olongapo*, Ormoc*, Oroquieta*, Ozamis*, Pagadian*, Palawan,
- Palayan*, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Pasay*, Puerto Princesa*, Quezon,
- Quezon City*, Quirino, Rizal, Romblon, Roxas*, Samar, San Carlos* (in Negros
- Occidental), San Carlos* (in Pangasinan), San Jose*, San Pablo*, Silay*,
- Siquijor, Sorsogon, South Cotabato, Southern Leyte, Sultan Kudarat, Sulu,
- Surigao*, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Tacloban*, Tagaytay*,
- Tagbilaran*, Tangub*, Tarlac, Tawitawi, Toledo*, Trece Martires*, Zambales,
- Zamboanga*, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur
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- Independence: 4 July 1946 (from US)
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- Constitution: 2 February 1987, effective 11 February 1987
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- Legal system: based on Spanish and Anglo-American law; accepts
- compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
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- National holiday: Independence Day (from Spain), 12 June (1898)
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- Executive branch: president, vice president, Cabinet
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- Legislative branch: bicameral Congress consists of an upper house or
- Senate and a lower house or House of Representatives
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- Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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- Leaders:
- Chief of State and Head of Government--President Corazon C. AQUINO
- (since 25 February 1986); Vice President Salvador H. LAUREL (since 25
- February 1986)
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- Political parties and leaders: PDP-Laban, Aquilino Pimentel; Struggle of
- Philippine Democrats (LDP), Neptali Gonzales; Nationalista Party, Salvador
- Laurel, Juan Ponce Enrile; Liberal Party, Jovito Salonga
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- Suffrage: universal at age 15
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- Elections:
- President--last held 7 February 1986 (next election to be
- held May 1992); results--Corazon C. Aquino elected after the fall of the
- Marcos regime;
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- Senate--last held 11 May 1987 (next to be held May 1993);
- results--Pro-Aquino LDP 63%, Liberals LDP and
- PDP-Laban (Pimentel wing) 25%, Opposition Nationalista Party 4%,
- independents 8%;
- seats--(24 total) Pro-Aquino LDP 15, Liberals
- LDP-Laban (Pimentel wing) 6, Opposition 1, independents 2;
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- House of Representatives--last held on 11 May 1987 (next to be
- held May 1992);
- results--Pro-Aquino LDP 73%, Liberals LDP and PDP-Laban
- (Pimentel wing) 10%, Opposition Nationalista Party 17%;
- seats--(250 total, 180 elected) number of seats by party NA
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- Communists: the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) controls
- about 18,000-23,000 full-time insurgents and is not recognized as a legal
- party; a second Communist party, the pro-Soviet Philippine Communist
- Party (PKP), has quasi-legal status
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- Member of: ADB, ASEAN, ASPAC, CCC, Colombo Plan, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT,
- IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
- IPU, IRC, ISO, ITU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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- Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Emmanuel PELAEZ; Chancery at
- 1617 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20036; telephone (202) 483-1414;
- there are Philippine Consulates General in Agana (Guam), Chicago, Honolulu,
- Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle;
- US--Ambassador Nicholas PLATT; Embassy at 1201 Roxas Boulevard, Manila
- (mailing address is APO San Francisco 96528); telephone p63o (2) 521-7116;
- there is a US Consulate in Cebu
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- Flag: two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a white
- equilateral triangle based on the hoist side; in the center of the triangle
- is a yellow sun with eight primary rays (each containing three individual
- rays) and in each corner of the triangle is a small yellow five-pointed star
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- █ ≡ Economy ≡ █
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- Overview: The economy continues to recover from the political turmoil
- following the ouster of former President Marcos and several coup attempts.
- After two consecutive years of economic contraction (1984 and 1985), the
- economy has since 1986 had positive growth. The agricultural sector,
- together with forestry and fishing, plays an important role in the economy,
- employing about 50% of the work force and providing almost 30% of GDP. The
- Philippines is the world's largest exporter of coconuts and coconut
- products. Manufacturing contributed about 25% of GDP. Major industries
- include food processing, chemicals, and textiles.
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- GNP: $40.5 billion, per capita $625; real growth rate 5.2% (1989)
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- Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10.6% (1989)
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- Unemployment rate: 8.7% (1989)
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- Budget: $7.2 billion; expenditures $8.12 billion,
- including capital expenditures of $0.97 billion (1989 est.)
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- Exports: revenues $8.1 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
- commodities--electrical equipment 19%, textiles 16%, minerals
- and ores 11%, farm products 10%, coconut 10%, chemicals 5%, fish 5%,
- forest products 4%; partners--US 36%, EC 19%, Japan 18%,
- ESCAP 9%, ASEAN 7%
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- Imports: $10.5 billion (c.i.f., 1989); commodities--raw materials
- 53%, capital goods 17%, petroleum products 17%; partners--US 25%,
- Japan 17%, ESCAP 13%, EC 11%, ASEAN 10%, Middle East 10%
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- External debt: $27.8 billion (1988)
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- Industrial production: growth rate 7.3% (1989)
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- Electricity: 6,700,000 kW capacity; 25,000 million kWh produced,
- 385 kWh per capita (1989)
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- Industries: textiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, wood products,
- food processing, electronics assembly, petroleum refining, fishing
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- Agriculture: accounts for about one-third of GNP and 50% of labor force;
- major crops--rice, coconut, corn, sugarcane, bananas, pineapple, mango;
- animal products--pork, eggs, beef; net exporter of farm products; fish
- catch of 2 million metric tons annually
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- Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis for the international
- drug trade; growers are producing more and better quality cannabis
- despite government eradication efforts
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- Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $3.2 billion; Western
- (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87),
- $6.4 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $5 million; Communist countries
- (1975-88), $123 million
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- Currency: Philippine peso (plural--pesos);
- 1 Philippine peso (P) = 100 centavos
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- Exchange rates: Philippine pesos (P) per US$1--22.464 (January 1990),
- 21.737 (1989), 21.095 (1988), 20.568 (1987), 20.386 (1986), 18.607 (1985)
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- Fiscal year: calendar year
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- █ ≡ Communications ≡ █
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- Railroads: 378 km operable on Luzon, 34% government owned (1982)
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- Highways: 156,000 km total (1984); 29,000 km paved; 77,000 km gravel,
- crushed-stone, or stabilized-soil surface; 50,000 km unimproved earth
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- Inland waterways: 3,219 km; limited to shallow-draft (less than 1.5 m)
- vessels
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- Pipelines: refined products, 357 km
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- Ports: Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Guimaras, Iloilo, Legaspi, Manila,
- Subic Bay
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- Merchant marine: 595 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,134,924
- GRT/15,171,692 DWT; includes 1 passenger, 10 short-sea passenger,
- 16 passenger-cargo, 166 cargo, 17 refrigerated cargo, 30 vehicle carrier,
- 8 livestock carrier, 7 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 6 container, 36 petroleum,
- oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 chemical tanker, 6 liquefied gas,
- 3 combination ore/oil, 282 bulk, 5 combination bulk; note--many
- Philippine flag ships are foreign owned and are on the register for the
- purpose of long-term bare-boat charter back to their original owners who
- are principally in Japan and FRG
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- Civil air: 53 major transport aircraft
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- Airports: 301 total, 237 usable; 70 with permanent-surface runways;
- none with runways over 3,659 m; 9 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
- 49 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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- Telecommunications: good international radio and submarine cable services;
- domestic and interisland service adequate; 872,900 telephones; stations-
- 267 AM (including 6 US), 55 FM, 33 TV (including 4 US); submarine cables
- extended to Hong Kong, Guam, Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan; satellite earth
- stations--1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT, and 11 domestic
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- █ ≡ Defense Forces ≡ █
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- Branches: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Constabulary--Integrated
- National Police
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- Military manpower: males 15-49, 16,160,543; 11,417,451 fit for military
- service; 684,976 reach military age (20) annually
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- Defense expenditures: 2.1% of GNP, or $850 million (1990 est.)