Republic of Cyprus

National name: Kypriaki Dimokratia—Kibris Cumhuriyeti

President: Tassos Papadopoulos (2003)

Land area: 3,568 sq mi (9,241 sq km); total area: 3,571 sq mi ()

Population (2006 est.): 784,301 (growth rate: 0.5%); birth rate: 12.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 7.0/1000; life expectancy: 77.8; density per sq mi: 220

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Lefkosia (Nicosia) (in government-controlled area), 197,600

Monetary unit: Cyprus pound

Languages: Greek, Turkish (both official); English

Ethnicity/race: Greek 77%, Turkish 18% (each concentrated almost exclusively in separate areas); other 5% (2001)

Religions: Greek Orthodox 78%, Islam 18%, Maronite, Armenian Apostolic, and other 4%

Literacy rate: 98% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP: Greek Cypriot area (2005 est.): $16.85 billion; $21,600 per capita; Turkish Cypriot area (2005 est.): $4.54 billion; $7,135 per capita (2004 est.). Real growth rate: Greek Cypriot area: 3.7%; Turkish Cypriot area: 10.6%. Inflation: Greek Cypriot area: 2.5%; Turkish Cypriot area: 9.1% (2004 est.). Unemployment: Greek Cypriot area: 3.8% (2005 est.); Turkish Cypriot area: 5.6% (2004 est.). Arable land: 8%. Agriculture: citrus, vegetables, barley, grapes, olives, vegetables; poultry, pork, lamb; dairy, cheese. Labor force: Greek Cypriot area: 370,000; Turkish Cypriot area: 95,025 (2004 est.); Greek Cypriot area: agriculture 7.4%, industry 38.2%, services 54.4%; Turkish Cypriot area: agriculture 14.5%, industry 29%, services 56.5% (2004 est.). Industries: tourism, food and beverage processing, cement and gypsum production, ship repair and refurbishment, textiles, light chemicals, metal products, wood, paper, stone, and clay products. Natural resources: copper, pyrites, asbestos, gypsum, timber, salt, marble, clay earth pigment. Exports: Greek Cypriot area: $1.237 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): citrus, potatoes, pharmaceuticals, cement, clothing and cigarettes; Turkish Cypriot area: $69 million f.o.b. (2005 est.): citrus, potatoes, textiles. Imports: Greek Cypriot area: $5.552 billion (f.o.b., 2004 est.): consumer goods, petroleum and lubricants, intermediate goods, machinery, transport equipment; Turkish Cypriot area: $415.2 million (f.o.b., 2004 est.): vehicles, fuel, cigarettes, food, minerals, chemicals, machinery. Major trading partners: UK, Greece, Germany, UAE, UK, France, Japan, Israel, China (2004).

Member of Commonwealth of Nations

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: Greek Cypriot area: 427,400 (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 86,228 (2002); mobile cellular: Greek Cypriot area: 417,900 (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 143,178 (2002). Radio broadcast stations: Greek Cypriot area: AM 7, FM 60, shortwave 1 (1998); Turkish Cypriot area: AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998). Television broadcast stations: Greek Cypriot area: 4 (plus 225 low-power repeaters); Turkish Cypriot area: 4 (plus 5 repeaters) (Sept. 1995). Internet hosts: 5,901 (2004). Internet users: 210,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: Greek Cypriot area: 11,593 km; Turkish Cypriot area: 2,350 km; paved: Greek Cypriot area: 7,211 km; Turkish Cypriot area: 1,370 km; unpaved: Greek Cypriot area: 4,382 km (2002); Turkish Cypriot area: 980 km (1996). Ports and harbors: Famagusta, Kyrenia, Larnaca, Limassol, Vasilikos. Airports: 17 (2004 est.).

International disputes: hostilities in 1974 divided the island into two de facto autonomous entities, the internationally recognized Cypriot Government and a Turkish-Cypriot community (north Cyprus); the 1,000-strong UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) has served in Cyprus since 1964 and maintains the buffer zone between north and south; March 2003 reunification talks failed, but Turkish-Cypriots later opened their borders to temporary visits by Greek Cypriots; on 24 April 2004, the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities voted in simultaneous and parallel referenda on whether to approve the UN-brokered Annan Plan that would have ended the thirty-year division of the island by establishing a new "United Cyprus Republic," a majority of Greek Cypriots voted "no"; on 1 May 2004, Cyprus entered the European Union still divided, with the EU's body of legislation and standards (acquis communitaire) suspended in the north.

 

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