0/01)

Debt - external: $2.55 billion (FY00/01)

Economic aid - recipient: $424 million (FY00/01)

Currency: Nepalese rupee (NPR)

Currency code: NPR

Exchange rates: Nepalese rupees per US dollar - 76.675 (January 2002),
74.961 (2001), 71.094 (2000), 68.239 (1999), 65.976 (1998), 58.010 (1997)

Fiscal year: 16 July - 15 July

Communications Nepal

Telephones - main lines in use: 236,816 (January 2000)

Telephones - mobile cellular: NA

Telephone system: general assessment: poor telephone and telegraph
service; fair radiotelephone communication service and mobile
cellular telephone network domestic: NA international: radiotelephone
communications; microwave landline to India; satellite earth station -
1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (January 2000)

Radios: 840,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus 9 repeaters) (1998)

Televisions: 130,000 (1997)

Internet country code: .np

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 6 (2000)

Internet users: 50,000 (2001)

Transportation Nepal

Railways: total: 59 km narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge note: all in
Kosi close to Indian border (2001)

Highways: total: 13,223 km paved: 4,073 km unpaved: 9,150 km (April 1999)

Waterways: none

Ports and harbors: none

Airports: 45 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 8 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to
1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2001)

Military Nepal

Military branches: Royal Nepalese Army (includes Royal Nepalese Army
Air Service), Nepalese Police Force

Military manpower - military age: 17 years of age (2002 est.)

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 6,484,343 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 3,369,454
(2002 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 292,589
(2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $51.5 million (FY01)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1% (FY01)

Transnational Issues Nepal

Disputes - international: formed Joint Border committee with India in
2001 to resolve 53 disputed sections of boundary covering an area of
720 sq km; approximately 100,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal, 90%
of whom reside in seven UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees
camps, place decades-long strains on Nepa