ales: 341,516 (1997 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: administrative boundary with Kenya does not
coincide with international boundary; administrative boundary with
Egypt does not coincide with international boundary creating the
"Hala'ib Triangle," a barren area of 20,580 sq km
______________________________________________________________________

SURINAME

@Suriname:Geography

Location: Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean,
between French Guiana and Guyana

Geographic coordinates: 4 00 N, 56 00 W

Map references: South America

Area:
total: 163,270 sq km
land: 161,470 sq km
water: 1,800 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly larger than Georgia

Land boundaries:
total: 1,707 km
border countries: Brazil 597 km, French Guiana 510 km, Guyana 600 km

Coastline: 386 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds

Terrain: mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps

Elevation extremes:
lowest point : unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m
highest point: Wilhelmina Gebergte 1,286 m

Natural resources: timber, hydropower potential, fish, shrimp,
bauxite, iron ore, and small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, gold

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 96%
other : 4% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 600 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: deforestation as timber is cut for
export

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change, Law of the Sea

Geography - note: mostly tropical rain forest; great diversity of
flora and fauna which for the most part is not threatened because of
the lack of development; relatively small population most of which
lives along the coast

@Suriname:People

Population: 424,569 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 34% (male 73,017; female 69,538)
15-64 years: 61% (male 132,188; female 128,260)
65 years and over: 5% (male 10,033; female 11,533) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.83% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 23.2 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 5.83 deaths/1,000 population (199