The 2008 CIA World Factbook, United States. Central Intelligence Agency [primary phonics books .TXT] 📗

Niger
  Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking
  near last on the United Nations Development Fund index of human
  development. It is a landlocked, Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy
  centers on subsistence crops, livestock, and some of the world's
  largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles, desertification, and a
  2.9% population growth rate, have undercut the economy. Niger shares
  a common currency, the CFA franc, and a common central bank, the
  Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), with seven other
  members of the West African Monetary Union. In December 2000, Niger
  qualified for enhanced debt relief under the International Monetary
  Fund program for Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and concluded
  an agreement with the Fund on a Poverty Reduction and Growth
  Facility (PRGF). Debt relief provided under the enhanced HIPC
  initiative significantly reduces Niger's annual debt service
  obligations, freeing funds for expenditures on basic health care,
  primary education, HIV/AIDS prevention, rural infrastructure, and
  other programs geared at poverty reduction. In December 2005, Niger
  received 100% multilateral debt relief from the IMF, which
  translates into the forgiveness of approximately US $86 million in
  debts to the IMF, excluding the remaining assistance under HIPC.
  Nearly half of the government's budget is derived from foreign donor
  resources. Future growth may be sustained by exploitation of oil,
  gold, coal, and other mineral resources. Uranium prices have
  increased sharply in the last few years. A drought and locust
  infestation in 2005 led to food shortages for as many as 2.5 million
  Nigeriens.

Nigeria Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management, is undertaking some reforms under a new reform-minded administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from its overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 80% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. In the last year the government has begun showing the political will to implement the market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. In 2003, the government began deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the country's four oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy, a domestically designed and run program modeled on the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility for fiscal and monetary management. In November 2005, Abuja won Paris Club approval for a debt-relief deal that eliminated $18 billion of debt in exchange for $12 billion in payments - a total package worth $30 billion of Nigeria's total $37 billion external debt. The deal requires Nigeria to be subject to stringent IMF reviews. GDP rose strongly in 2007, based largely on increased oil exports and high global crude prices. Newly-elected President YAR'ADUA has pledged to continue the economic reforms of his predecessor and the proposed budget for 2008 reflects the administrations emphasis on infrastructure improvements. Infrastructure is the main impediment to growth. The government is working toward developing stronger public-private partnerships for electricity and roads.

Niue
  The economy suffers from the typical Pacific island problems of
  geographic isolation, few resources, and a small population.
  Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall
  is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are
  used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government
  expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The
  agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening,
  although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists
  primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil,
  honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign
  collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent
  years has suffered a serious loss of population because of
  emigration to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the
  promotion of tourism and a financial services industry, although the
  International Banking Repeal Act of 2002 resulted in the termination
  of all offshore banking licenses. Economic aid from New Zealand in
  2002 was US$2.6 million. Niue suffered a devastating typhoon in
  January 2004, which decimated nascent economic programs. While in
  the process of rebuilding, Niue has been dependent on foreign aid.

Norfolk Island
  Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily
  increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity
  unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural
  sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef,
  poultry, and eggs.

Northern Mariana Islands
  The economy benefits substantially from
  financial assistance from the US. The rate of funding has declined
  as locally generated government revenues have grown. The key tourist
  industry employs about 50% of the work force and accounts for
  roughly one-fourth of GDP. Japanese tourists predominate. Annual
  tourist entries have exceeded one-half million in recent years, but
  financial difficulties in Japan have caused a temporary slowdown.
  The agricultural sector is made up of cattle ranches and small farms
  producing coconuts, breadfruit, tomatoes, and melons. Garment
  production is by far the most important industry with the employment
  of 17,500 mostly Chinese workers and sizable shipments to the US
  under duty and quota exemptions.

Norway
  The Norwegian economy is a prosperous bastion of welfare
  capitalism, featuring a combination of free market activity and
  government intervention. The government controls key areas, such as
  the vital petroleum sector, through large-scale state enterprises.
  The country is richly endowed with natural resources - petroleum,
  hydropower, fish, forests, and minerals - and is highly dependent on
  its oil production and international oil prices, with oil and gas
  accounting for one-third of exports. Only Saudi Arabia and Russia
  export more oil than Norway. Norway opted to stay out of the EU
  during a referendum in November 1994; nonetheless, as a member of
  the European Economic Area, it contributes sizably to the EU budget.
  The government has moved ahead with privatization. Although
  Norwegian oil production peaked in 2000, natural gas production is
  still rising. Norwegians realize that once their gas production
  peaks they will eventually face declining oil and gas revenues;
  accordingly, Norway has been saving its oil-and-gas-boosted budget
  surpluses in a Government Petroleum Fund, which is invested abroad
  and now is valued at more than $250 billion. After lackluster growth
  of less than 1% in 2002-03, GDP growth picked up to 3-5% in 2004-07,
  partly due to higher oil prices. Norway's economy remains buoyant.
  Domestic economic activity is, and will continue to be, the main
  driver of growth, supported by high consumer confidence and strong
  investment spending in the offshore oil and gas sector. Norway's
  record high budget surplus and upswing in the labor market in 2007
  highlight the strength of its economic position going into 2008.

Oman
  Oman is a middle-income economy that is heavily dependent on
  dwindling oil resources, but sustained high oil prices in recent
  years have helped build Oman's budget and trade surpluses and
  foreign reserves. Oman joined the World Trade Organization in
  November 2000 and continues to liberalize its markets. It ratified a
  free trade agreement with the US in September 2006, and, through the
  Gulf Cooperation Council, seeks similar agreements with the EU,
  China and Japan. As a result of its dwindling oil resources, Oman is
  actively pursuing a development plan that focuses on
  diversification, industrialization, and privatization, with the
  objective of reducing the oil sector's contribution to GDP to 9
  percent by 2020. Muscat is attempting to "Omanize" the labor force
  by replacing foreign expatriate workers with local workers. Oman
  actively seeks private foreign investors, especially in the
  industrial, information technology, tourism, and higher education
  fields. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources, metal
  manufacturing, petrochemicals, and international transshipment ports.

Pacific Ocean
  The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world
  economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch.
  It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West,
  extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals,
  and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60%
  of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation
  of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role
  in the energy supplies of the US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru.
  The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the
  wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has led to
  fluctuations in new drillings.

Pakistan
  Pakistan, an impoverished and underdeveloped country, has
  suffered from decades of internal political disputes, low levels of
  foreign investment, and a costly, ongoing confrontation with
  neighboring India. However, since 2001, IMF-approved reforms - most
  notably, privatization of the banking sector - bolstered by generous
  foreign assistance and renewed access to global markets, have
  generated macroeconomic recovery. Pakistan has experienced GDP
  growth in the 6-8% range in 2004-07, spurred by gains in the
  industrial and service sectors. Poverty levels have decreased by 10%
  since 2001, and Islamabad has steadily raised development spending
  in recent years, including a 52% real increase in the budget
  allocation for development in FY07. In 2007 the fiscal deficit - a
  result of chronically low tax collection and increased spending -
  exceeded Islamabad's target of 4% of GDP. Inflation remains the top
  concern among the public, jumping from 7.7% in 2007 to more than 11%
  during the first few months of 2008, primarily because of rising
  world commodity prices. The Pakistani rupee has depreciated since
  the proclamation of emergency rule in November 2007.

Palau
  The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence
  agriculture, and fishing. The government is the major employer of
  the work force relying heavily on financial assistance from the US.
  The Compact of Free Association with the US, entered into after the
  end of the UN trusteeship on 1 October 1994, provided Palau with up
  to $700 million in US aid for the following 15 years in return for
  furnishing military facilities. Business and tourist arrivals
  numbered 63,000 in 2003. The population enjoys a per capita income
  roughly 50% higher than that of the Philippines and much of
  Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been
  greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the
  rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the
  willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development.

Panama
  Panama's dollarized economy rests primarily on a
  well-developed services sector that accounts for two-thirds of GDP.
  Services include operating the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free
  Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism.
  Economic growth will be bolstered by the Panama Canal expansion
  project that began in 2007 and should be completed by 2014 at a cost
  of $5.3 billion (about 30% of current GDP). The expansion project
  will more than double the Canal's capacity, enabling it to
  accommodate ships that are now too large to transverse the
  transoceanic crossway and should help to reduce the high
  unemployment rate. The government has implemented tax reforms, as
  well as social security reforms, and backs regional trade agreements
  and development of tourism. Not a CAFTA signatory, Panama in
  December 2006 independently negotiated a free trade agreement with
  the US, which, when implemented, will help promote the country's
  economic growth.

Papua New Guinea
  Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural
  resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain and
  the high cost of developing infrastructure. Agriculture provides a
  subsistence livelihood for 85% of the population. Mineral deposits,
  including copper, gold, and oil, account for nearly two-thirds of
  export earnings. The government of Prime Minister SOMARE has
  expended much of its energy remaining in power. He was the first
  prime minister ever to serve a full five-year term. The government
  also brought stability to the national budget, largely through
  expenditure control; however, it relaxed spending constraints in
  2006 and 2007 as elections approached. Numerous challenges still
  face the government including regaining investor confidence,
  restoring integrity to state institutions, promoting economic
  efficiency by privatizing moribund state institutions, and balancing
  relations with Australia, its former colonial ruler. Other
  socio-cultural challenges could upend the economy including a
  worsening HIV/AIDS epidemic and chronic law and order and land
  tenure issues. Australia will supply more than $300 million in aid
  in FY07/08, which accounts for nearly 20% of the national budget.

Paracel Islands
  China announced plans in 1997 to open the islands
  for