Economic Overview
Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with almost one-third of its population living below the poverty line. agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for three-fourths of the population and accounting for 38% of gdp. industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural produce including jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. security concerns relating to the maoist conflict have led to a decrease in tourism, a key source of foreign exchange. nepal has considerable scope for exploiting its potential in hydropower and tourism, areas of recent foreign investment interest. prospects for foreign trade or investment in other sectors will remain poor, however, because of the small size of the economy, its technological backwardness, its remoteness, its landlocked geographic location, its civil strife, and its susceptibility to natural disaster.
Environmental Issues
Deforestation (overuse of wood for fuel and lack of alternatives); contaminated water (with human and animal wastes, agricultural runoff, and industrial effluents); wildlife conservation; vehicular emissions
Government Type
Democratic republic
Population
29,519,114 (july 2008 est.)
Location
Southern asia, between china and india
Area
Total: 147,181 sq km
land: 143,181 sq km
water: 4,000 sq km
Slightly larger than arkansas
Country Aliases
Conventional long form: federal democratic republic of nepal
conventional short form: nepal
local long form: sanghiya loktantrik ganatantra nepal
local short form: nepal
Capital
Name: kathmandu
geographic coordinates: 27 43 n, 85 19 e
time difference: utc+5.75 (10.75 hours ahead of washington, dc during standard time)
Military Service
18 years of age for voluntary military service; 15 years of age for military training; no conscription (2008)
International Disputes
Joint border commission continues to work on contested sections of boundary with india, including the 400 square kilometer dispute over the source of the kalapani river; india has instituted a stricter border regime to restrict transit of maoist insurgents and illegal cross-border activities; approximately 106,000 bhutanese lhotshampas (hindus) have been confined in refugee camps in southeastern nepal since 1990
Sources: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
