User:Maria Shiekh

PAKISTAN Geography Area: 803,943 sq. km. (310,527 sq. mi.); almost twice the size of California. Cities: Capital--The city of Islamabad (pop. 800,000) and adjacent Rawalpindi (1,406, 214) comprise the national capital area with a combined population of 3.7 million. Other cities--Karachi (11,624,219) (2005 est.), Lahore (6,310,888) (2005 est.), Faisalabad (1,977,246) and Hyderabad (1,151,274).

People Nationality: Noun and adjective--Pakistan(i). Population (July 2008 est.): 167,762,040. Annual population growth rate (2008 est.): 1.81%. Ethnic groups: Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun, Baloch, Muhajir (i.e., Urdu-speaking immigrants from India and their descendants), Saraiki, and Hazara. Religions: Muslim 97%; small minorities of Christians, Hindus, and others. Languages: Urdu (national and official), English, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashto, Baloch, Hindko, Brahui, Saraiki (Punjabi variant). Education: Literacy (2005 est.)--49.9%; male 63%; female 36%. Health: Infant mortality rate (2008 est.)--66.95/1,000. Life expectancy (2008 est.)--men 63.07 yrs., women 65.24 yrs. Work force (2004 est.): Agriculture--42%; services--38%; industry--20%.

Government Type: Parliamentary democracy. Independence: August 14, 1947. Branches: Executive--president (chief of state), prime minister (head of government). Legislative--bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora (100-seat Senate, 342-seat National Assembly). Judicial--Supreme Court, provincial high courts, Federal Islamic (or Shari'a) Court. Political parties: Pakistan People's Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Awami National Party (ANP), Pakistan Muslim League (PML), Muttahid Majlis-e-Amal (umbrella group) (MMA), and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). Suffrage: Universal at 18. Political subdivisions: 4 provinces (Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province or NWFP)); also the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (composed of 7 tribal agencies--Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Kurram, Orakzai, North Waziristan, and South Waziristan) and the Pakistani-administered portion of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region (Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas).

Economy Real GDP growth rate (2009 est.): 2.7%. Per capita GDP (year ending 2009, purchasing power parity): $2,600. Natural resources: Arable land, natural gas, limited oil, substantial hydropower potential, coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone. Agriculture: Products--wheat, cotton, rice, sugarcane, eggs, fruits, vegetables, milk, beef, mutton. Industry: Types--textiles & apparel, food processing, pharmaceuticals, construction materials, shrimp, fertilizer, and paper products. Trade (2009 est.): Exports--$17.87 billion: textiles (garments, bed linen, cotton cloth, and yarn), rice, leather goods, sports goods, carpets, rugs, chemicals and manufactures. Major partners (2008)--U.S. 16%, United Arab Emirates 11.7%, Afghanistan 8.6%, U.K. 4.5%, China 4.2%. Imports--$28.31 billion: petroleum, petroleum products, machinery, plastics, paper and paper board, transportation equipment, edible oils, pulses, iron and steel, tea. Major partners (2008)--China 14.1%, Saudi Arabia 12%, U.A.E. 11.2%, Kuwait 5.4%, India 4.8%, U.S. 4.7%, Malaysia 4.1%.

PEOPLE The majority of Pakistan's population lives in the Indus River valley and in an arc formed by the cities of Faisalabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi/Islamabad, and Peshawar. Although Urdu is an official language of Pakistan, it is spoken as a first language by only 8% of the population; 48% speak Punjabi, 12% Sindhi, 10% Saraiki, 8% Pashto, 3% Baloch, and 3% other. Urdu, Punjabi, Pashto, and Baloch are Indo-European languages. English is the other official language, and is widely used in government, commerce, the officer ranks of the military, and in many institutions of higher learning.

HISTORICAL OVERVIEW Pakistan, along with parts of western India, contains the archeological remains of an urban civilization dating back 4,500 years. Alexander the Great’s empire included the Indus Valley in 326 B.C. His successors founded the Indo-Greek kingdom of Bactria based in what is today Afghanistan and extending to Peshawar. Following the rise of the Central Asian Kushan Empire in later centuries, the Buddhist culture of Afghanistan and Pakistan, centered on the city of Taxila just west of Islamabad, experienced a cultural renaissance known as the Gandhara period.

The arrival of Muslim traders in Sindh also introduced Islam to Pakistan in the 8th century. The collapse of the Mughal Empire in the 18th century provided an opportunity for the English East India Company to extend its control over much of the subcontinent. The Sikh adventurer, Ranjit Singh, carved out a dominion that extended from Kabul to Srinagar and Lahore, encompassing much of the northern area of modern Pakistan. British rule replaced the Sikhs in the first half of the 19th century. In a decision that had far-reaching consequences, the British permitted the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir, a Sikh appointee, to continue in power.

Pakistan emerged from an extended period of agitation by Muslims in the subcontinent to express their national identity free from British colonial domination as well as domination by what they perceived as a Hindu-controlled Indian National Congress. Muslim anti-colonial leaders formed the All-India Muslim League in 1906. Initially, the League adopted the same objective as the Congress--self-government for India within the British Empire--but Congress and the League were unable to agree on a formula that would ensure the protection of Muslim religious, economic, and political rights.