Location
Middle East, bordering the Turkey, Iran and Syria
Area
40,643 km²
Geographic Coordinates
N: 37.7° N
E: 46.6° E
Area
Total: 40,000 km²
Land: 36,000 km²
Water: 4,000 km²
Area - Comparative
Twice the size of the state of Vermont
Land Boundaries
Total: 722 km
Bordering countries: Iran 220 km, Syria 150 km, Turkey 352 km
Current Weather
Mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; Northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows whichmelt in early spring. Very hot summers.
Terrain
The most areas of the mountains in Kurdistan are very dry in the summer while cooling down, in the winter and spring.
Natural Resources
Petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulphur
Land Use
Arable land: 13.12%
Permanent crops: 0.61%
Other: 86.27% 2005
Natural Hazards
Dust storms; sandstorms; floods
Environment: International Agreements
Party to: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
Signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Population
5.2 million
July 20O9 KRG statistics office est.
Age Structure
0-14 years: 36%
15-64 years: 60%
65 years and over: 4%
Median Age
Male: 20.5 years
Female: 20.8 years
Average: 20.65 years
Population Growth Rate
2.548%
2010 est.
Life Expectancy at Birth
Total population: 70.25 years
Male: 68.88 years
Female: 71.69 years 2010 est.
Nationality
Noun: Iraqi(s)
Adjective: Iraqi
Ethinic Groups
Kurds, Assyrians, Turkmen, Arabs, Armenians, Yezidis, Shabaks and Mandeans.
Religions
Muslim, Christian or Yezidi
Languages
Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Turkoman (a Turkish dialect), Assyrian (Neo-Aramaic), Armenian
Literacy
Total population: 74.1%
Male: 84.1%
Female: 64.2%
2000 est.
School Life Expectancy
Male: 12 years
Female: 9 years
Average: 10 years (2005)
Government: Kurdistan Regional Government
Country Name
Conventional long form: Republic of Iraq
Conventional short form: Iraq
Local long form: Jumhuriyat al-Iraq
Local short form: Al Iraq
Regional Name: Kurdistan
Government Type
Parliamentary democracy
Presidential democracy
Capital
Name: Erbil
Time difference: GMT+3 (winter) and GMT+2 (summer)
Administrative Divisions
3 governorates: Erbil, Sulaiman and Duhok
Constitution
Ratified on 15 October 2005 (subject to review by the Constitutional Review Committee and a possible public referendum)
Legal System
Based on European civil and Islamic law under the framework outlined in the Iraqi Constitution; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive Branch
Chief of state: President Masoud Barzani (since June 2005)
Prime Minister: Nechirvan Idris Barzani
Deputy Prime Minister: Qubad Jalal Talabani
Cabinet: 19 ministers appointed by the PM and Deputy PM
Legislative Branch
Head of Parliament: Dr. Yusuf Mohammad
Deputy Head of Parliament: Dr. Jaafer Ibrahim
Unicameral Council of Representatives (111 seats; consisting of 100 members elected by a closed-list, proportional representation system and 11 reserved for minorities; members serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held on September 21, 2013
Results: KDP 37,79%, PUK 24,21%, Movement for Change 17,80%, Kurdistan Islamic Union 9,49%, Islamic Group Kurdistan 6,01%, Islamic Movement of Kurdistan (1,1%).
Political Parties & Leaders
Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP (led by Masoud Barzani); Movement for Change (led by Nawshirwan Mustafa); Socialist Party (led by Muhammed Haji Mahmoud); Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK (led by Jalal Talabani); Islamic Union of Kurdistan (led by Mohammad Faraj); Islamic Group of Kurdistan (led by Ali Bapir).
Note: numerous smaller local, tribal, and minority parties
International Organization Participation
ABEDA, AFESD (suspended), AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNDP, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Flag Description
Three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green; the sun in yellow is centered in the white band.
