World Facts Index
 The
Italians supplanted the Ottoman Turks in the area around Tripoli in 1911 and did
not relinquish their hold until 1943 when defeated in World War II. Libya then
passed to UN administration and achieved independence in 1951. Following a 1969
military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI began to espouse his own
political system, the Third Universal Theory. The system is a combination of
socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices and is supposed to be
implemented by the Libyan people themselves in a unique form of "direct
democracy." QADHAFI has always seen himself as a revolutionary and
visionary leader. He used oil funds during the 1970s and 1980s to promote his
ideology outside Libya, supporting subversives and terrorists abroad to hasten
the end of Marxism and capitalism. In addition, beginning in 1973, he engaged in
military operations in northern Chad's Aozou Strip - to gain access to minerals
and to use as a base of influence in Chadian politics - but was forced to
retreat in 1987. UN sanctions in 1992 isolated QADHAFI politically following the
downing of Pan AM Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. During the 1990s, QADHAFI
began to rebuild his relationships with Europe. UN sanctions were suspended in
April 1999 and finally lifted in September 2003 after Libya accepted
responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing. In December 2003, Libya announced that
it had agreed to reveal and end its programs to develop weapons of mass
destruction and to renounce terrorism. QADHAFI has made significant strides in
normalizing relations with Western nations since then. He has received various
Western European leaders as well as many working-level and commercial
delegations, and made his first trip to Western Europe in 15 years when he
traveled to Brussels in April 2004. Libya has responded in good faith to legal
cases brought against it in US courts for terrorist acts that predate its
renunciation of violence. Claims for compensation in the Lockerbie bombing,
LaBelle disco bombing, and UTA 772 bombing cases are ongoing. The US rescinded
Libya's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism in June 2006. In late 2007,
Libya was elected by the General Assembly to a nonpermanent seat on the United
Nations Security Council for the 2008-09 term.
Geography of Libya
|
Location:
|
Northern Africa, bordering
the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia |
|
Coordinates:
|
25 00 N, 17 00 E |
|
Area:
|
total: 1,759,540 sq
km
water: 0 sq km
land: 1,759,540 sq km |
|
Area comparative:
|
slightly larger than Alaska |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 4,348 km
border countries: Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,115 km,
Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 km |
|
Coastline:
|
1,770 km |
|
Maritime claims:
|
territorial sea: 12
NM
note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north |
|
Climate:
|
Mediterranean along coast;
dry, extreme desert interior |
|
Terrain:
|
mostly barren, flat to
undulating plains, plateaus, depressions |
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point:
Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m
highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m |
|
Natural resources:
|
petroleum, natural gas,
gypsum |
|
Natural hazards:
|
hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli
is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust
storms, sandstorms |
|
Environment current issues:
|
desertification; very
limited natural fresh water resources; the Great Manmade River Project,
the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to
bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities |
|
Geography - note:
|
more than 90% of the
country is desert or semidesert
|
Population of Libya
|
Population:
|
6,173,579 (July 2008 est.) |
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years: 33.6% (male 1,012,748/female 969,978)
15-64 years: 62.2% (male 1,891,643/female 1,778,621)
65 years and over: 4.2% (male 121,566/female 126,198) |
|
Median age:
|
23 years |
|
Growth rate:
|
2.3% |
|
Infant mortality:
|
23.71 deaths/1,000 live births |
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population: 76.69 years
male: 74.46 years
female: 79.02 years |
|
Fertility rate:
|
3.28 children born/woman |
|
Nationality:
|
noun: Libyan(s)
adjective: Libyan |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
Berber and Arab 97%, Greeks, Maltese,
Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, Tunisians |
|
Religions:
|
Sunni Muslim 97% |
|
Languages:
|
Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely
understood in the major cities |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age 15 and over can read
and write
total population: 82.6%
male: 92.4%
female: 72%
|
Government
|
Country name:
|
conventional long form: Great
Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
local long form: Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah
al Uzma |
|
Government type:
|
Jamahiriya (a state of the masses) in
theory, governed by the populace through local councils; in fact, a military dictatorship |
|
Capital:
|
Tripoli |
|
Administrative divisions:
|
25 municipalities (baladiyat, singular -
baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al
Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis,
Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran,
Zlitan; note - the 25 municipalities may have been replaced by 13 regions |
|
Independence:
|
24 December 1951 (from Italy) |
|
National holiday:
|
Revolution Day, 1 September (1969) |
|
Constitution:
|
11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977 |
|
Legal system:
|
based on Italian civil law system and
Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of
legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
|
Suffrage:
|
18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
|
Executive branch:
|
chief of state: Revolutionary Leader Col.
Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); note - holds no official
title, but is de facto chief of state
head of government: Secretary of the General People's Committee (Prime Minister)
al-Baghdadi Ali al-MAHMUDI (since 5 March 2006)
cabinet: General People's Committee established by the General People's Congress
elections: national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of people's
committees; head of government elected by the General People's Congress;
election last held March 2006. |
|
Legislative branch:
|
unicameral General People's Congress (members elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees) |
|
Judicial branch:
|
Supreme Court |
|
Political parties and leaders:
|
none |
|
Political pressure groups and leaders:
|
various Arab nationalist movements with almost negligible
memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements; an
anti-QADHAFI Libyan exile movement exists, primarily based in London, but has little
influence |
Economy
The Libyan economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector,
which contribute about 95% of export earnings, about one-quarter of GDP, and
60% of public sector wages. Substantial revenues from the energy sector
coupled with a small population give Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs
in Africa, but little of this income flows down to the lower orders of
society. Libyan officials in the past five years have made progress on
economic reforms as part of a broader campaign to reintegrate the country into
the international fold. This effort picked up steam after UN sanctions were
lifted in September 2003 and as Libya announced in December 2003 that it would
abandon programs to build weapons of mass destruction. Almost all US
unilateral sanctions against Libya were removed in April 2004, helping Libya
attract more foreign direct investment, mostly in the energy sector. Libyan
oil and gas licensing rounds continue to draw high international interest; the
National Oil Company set a goal of nearly doubling oil production to 3 million
bbl/day by 2015. Libya faces a long road ahead in liberalizing the
socialist-oriented economy, but initial steps - including applying for WTO
membership, reducing some subsidies, and announcing plans for privatization -
are laying the groundwork for a transition to a more market-based economy. The
non-oil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for more than
20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to
include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic
conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya
imports about 75% of its food. Libya's primary agricultural water source
remains the Great Manmade River Project, but significant resources are being
invested in desalinization research to meet growing water demands.
|
GDP:
|
$74.72 billion (2007 est.) |
|
GDP growth rate:
|
8.5% |
|
GDP per capita:
|
$11,400 |
|
GDP composition by sector:
|
agriculture: 7.6%
industry: 49.9%
services: 42.5% |
|
Inflation rate:
|
3.4% |
|
Labor force:
|
1.64 million |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture: 17%
industry: 23%
services: 59% |
|
Unemployment:
|
30% |
|
Electricity production by source:
|
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001) |
|
Industries:
|
petroleum, iron and steel, food processing, textiles,
handicrafts, cement |
|
Agriculture:
|
wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts,
soybeans; cattle |
|
Exports:
|
crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas |
|
Export partners:
|
Italy 38%, Germany 15.7%, Spain 8.8%, France 6.3%, Turkey
6%, US 5.3% |
|
Imports:
|
machinery, transport equipment, semi-finished goods, food,
consumer products |
|
Import partners:
|
Italy 20.8%, Germany 10.5%, South Korea 6.7%, Turkey 5.5%,
Tunisia 5.2%, UK 4.9%, France 4.6%, China 4.5% |
|
Currency:
|
Libyan dinar (LYD) |
SOURCES: The CIA World Factbook, U.S. Department of State, Area Handbook of the US Library of Congress
Copyright 2004 - 2008 worldfacts.us |