molybdenum, tungsten,
phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold

Land use:
arable land: 1%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 79%
forest and woodland: 10%
other: 10%

Irrigated land: 770 sq km (1989)

Environment:
current issues: limited natural fresh water resources; policies of
the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and
industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects
on the environment; the burning of soft coal and the concentration
of factories in Ulaanbaatar have severely polluted the air;
deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to
agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and
rain; desertification
natural hazards: dust storms can occur in the spring
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Environmental Modification, Nuclear Test Ban; signed, but not
ratified - Desertification, Law of the Sea

Geographic note: landlocked; strategic location between China and
Russia

People
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Population: 2,496,617 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 38% (male 486,321; female 471,931)
15-64 years: 58% (male 722,485; female 723,065)
65 years and over: 4% (male 39,704; female 53,111) (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.69% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 25.55 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 8.65 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
all ages: 1 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 69.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 60.75 years
male: 58.8 years
female: 62.8 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.04 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Mongolian(s)
adjective: Mongolian

Ethnic divisions: Mongol 90%, Kazak 4%, Chinese 2%, Russian 2%,
other 2%

Religions: predominantly Tibetan Buddhist, Muslim 4%
note: previously limited religious activity because of communist
regime

Languages: Khalkha Mongol 90%, Turkic, Russian, Chinese

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1988 est.)
total population: 82.9%
male: 88.6%
female: 77.2%

Government
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Name of coun