@Tunisia:Geography

Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between
Algeria and Libya

Geographic coordinates: 34 00 N, 9 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 163,610 sq km
land: 155,360 sq km
water: 8,250 sq km

Area-comparative: slightly larger than Georgia

Land boundaries:
total: 1,424 km
border countries: Algeria 965 km, Libya 459 km

Coastline: 1,148 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry
summers; desert in south

Terrain: mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south
merges into the Sahara

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Shatt al Gharsah -17 m
highest point: Jabal ash Shanabi 1,544 m

Natural resources: petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt

Land use:
arable land: 19%
permanent crops: 13%
permanent pastures: 20%
forests and woodland: 4%
other: 44% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 3,850 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment-current issues: toxic and hazardous waste disposal is
ineffective and presents human health risks; water pollution from raw
sewage; limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation;
overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

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

Geography-note: strategic location in central Mediterranean

@Tunisia:People

Population: 9,380,404 (July 1998 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 32% (male 1,526,743; female 1,433,503)
15-64 years: 63% (male 2,933,487; female 2,947,189)
65 years and over: 5% (male 275,411; female 264,071) (July 1998 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.43% (1998 est.)

Birth rate: 20.07 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Death rate: 5.06 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.04 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 32.64 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.1 years
male: 71.72 years
female: 74.58 years (1998 est.)

Tot