ds
lowest point: Philippine Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Apo 2,954 m

Natural resources: timber, petroleum, nickel, cobalt, silver,
gold, salt, copper

Land use:
arable land: 26%
permanent crops: 11%
meadows and pastures: 4%
forest and woodland: 40%
other: 19%

Irrigated land: 16,200 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: uncontrolled deforestation in watershed areas; soil
erosion; air and water pollution in Manila; increasing pollution of
coastal mangrove swamps which are important fish breeding grounds
natural hazards: astride typhoon belt, usually affected by 15 and
struck by five to six cyclonic storms per year; landslides, active
volcanoes, destructive earthquakes, tsunamis
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber
83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Tropical
Timber 94

People
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Population: 74,480,848 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 38% (male 14,486,214; female 14,026,873)
15-64 years: 58% (male 21,403,784; female 21,968,259)
65 years and over: 4% (male 1,165,810; female 1,429,908) (July 1996
est.)

Population growth rate: 2.18% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 29.51 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 6.66 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.06 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: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.99 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 35.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.91 years
male: 63.14 years
female: 68.83 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.69 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Filipino(s)
adjective: Philippine

Ethnic divisions: Christian Malay 91.5%, Muslim Malay 4%, Chinese
1.5%, other 3%

Religions: Roman Catholic 83%, Protestant 9%, Muslim 5%, Buddhist
and other 3%

Languages: Pilipino (official, based on Tagalog), English
(official)

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
total population: 94.6%
male: 95%
female: 94.3%

Government
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Name of country:
conventional long form: