Preliminary Report on Nepal

Geography: Nepal is located in "Southern Asia between China and India." 1 For size comparison, it is "slightly larger than Arkansas. Its climate varies from cool summers and severe winters in the northern areas, while the southern areas have subtropical summers and mild winters." 2

Population: Nepal's population is approximately "28,563,377" as of "July 2009."3 The life expectancy of the total population is roughly "65.46 years."4

Religions: Roughly "80.6% are Hindu, 10.7% are Buddhist, 4.2% are Muslim, and 3.6% are Kirant (2001 Census)"5

Languages: "47.8% speak Nepali, 12.1% Maithali," and the rest of the population speaks "Bhojpuri, Tharu, Tamang, Newar, Magar, Awadhi," and others. 6

Government: The government type is "federal democratic republic." 7 They have two national holidays: "May 29th is Republic Day and April 24th is Democracy Day." 8 The legal system is based on "Hindu legal concepts and English common law." 9

Economy: "Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with almost one-third of its population living below the poverty line. Industrial activity mainly involves the processing of agricultural products, including pulses, jute, sugarcane, tobacco, and grain. The unemployment rate is roughly 46% as of 2008. Nepal's main industries consist of tourism, carpets, textiles, small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick
production."10

Transnational Issues: Illicit drugs consist of illicit producers of "cannabis and hashish for the domestic and international drug markets. Nepal is a transit point for opiates from Southeast Asia to the West." 11


Works Cited:

For 1-11:
The World Factbook 2009. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2009.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/np.html