Country Profile Nepal

Country Profile
Physical Geography
Official Name of Country: Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
Climate: Varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south
Absolute Location : 28 00 N, 84 00 E
Relative location: Southern Asia, between China and India
Political Geography
Type of government: federal democratic republic
Capital: Katmandu
International Organization participation: ADB, BIMSTEC, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Size of armed forces: 718210 people (Male + Female)
Cultural Geography
Language: Nepali 47.8 %( official language), Maithali 12.1%, other 10%, unspecified 2.5%
Population: 28,563,377
Population growth rate: 1.281%
Major cities: Katmandu
Infant mortality rate: 47.46 deaths/1,000 live births
Average life expectancy: 65.46 years
Religion: Hindu 80.6%, Buddhist 10.7%, Muslim 4.2%, Kirant 3.6%, other 0.9%
Economic Geography
GNP (Gross National Product): $31.39 billion
Natural resources: quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore
Major agricultural and industrial products: pulses, rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, jute, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat; tourism, carpets, textiles; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick production
Major exports and imports: clothing, carpets, leather goods, jute goods, pulses, grain; petroleum products, machinery and equipment, electrical goods
Currency: 1.00 NPR = 0.433047 TWD
Historical events:
In 1951, the Nepalese monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system of government.
In 1990 established a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. An insurgency led by Maoist extremists broke out in 1996.
Several weeks of mass protests in April 2006 were followed by several months of peace negotiations between the Maoists and government officials, and culminated in a November 2006 peace accord and the promulgation of an interim constitution.
In April 2008, the newly formed Constituent Assembly declared Nepal a federal democratic republic and abolished the monarchy at its first meeting the following month.The Maoists, who received a plurality of votes in the Constituent Assembly election, formed a coalition government in August 2008.