Location: Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea; between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north.
Land Area: 803,940 sq. kilometers (310,401 sq. miles)
Coastline: 1,046 km (650 miles)
Highest Point: Mt. Goodwin-Austen 8,611 m (28,244 ft)
Lowest Point: Indian Ocean 0 m ( 0 ft)
Notable Landmarks: Take a peek...

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 India. However, loans approved by the International Monetary Fund and generous foreign assistance have generated solid recovery the last four years. The government has made many reforms since 2000, although progress on more politically sensitive reforms has slowed. While long-term prospects remain uncertain, given Pakistan's low level of development, medium-term prospects for job creation and the reduction of poverty are the best in more than a decade. Islamabad has raised development spending from about two percent of the Gross Domestic Product in the 1990s to four percent in 2003, a necessary step towards reversing the broad underdevelopment of its social sector. GDP growth, spurred by double-digit gains in industrial production over the past year, has become less dependent on agriculture, and remained above seven percent in 2004 and 2005. Inflation remains the biggest threat to the economy, jumping to more than nine percent in 2005. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank announced they would each provide $1 billion (US) in aid to help Pakistan rebuild areas hit by the October 2005 earthquake in Kashmir.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $385.2 billion (2005 est.)
GDP Per Capita: $2,400 (2005 est.)
Number of Workers: 46.84 million (2005 est.)
Unemployment Rate: 6.6% (2005 est.)
Industries: Textiles and apparel, food processing, pharmaceuticals, construction materials, paper products, fertilizer, and shrimp.
Currency: Pakistani Rupee (PKR) What does it look like?

Type of Government: Federal Republic
Head of State: President General Pervez Musharraf (since 20 June 2001)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz (since 28 August 2004)
Capital City: Islamabad
Legal Age to Vote: 18, universal.
Flag Design: green with a vertical white band (symbolizing the role of religious minorities) on the hoist side; a large white crescent and star are centered in the green field. The crescent, star, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam.
Official Language: Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a variation of Punjabi) 10%, Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%; Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%. English (official for the Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaki and other, 8%.
Religions: Muslim, 97% (Sunni 77%, Shiía 20%), Christian, Hindu and other 3%.

The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with two sections West and East) and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily resolved. India and Pakistan fought two wars, in 1947-48 and 1965, over the disputed Kashmir territory. A third war between these countries in 1971, in which India capitalized on Islamabad's marginalization of Bengalis in Pakistani politics, resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998. The dispute over the state of Kashmir is ongoing, but discussions and confidence-building measures have led to decreased tensions since 2002.