Nepal, a landlocked country between India and China, is known for its mountain peaks. The small country contains eight of the 10 highest peaks in the world, including Mount Everest and Kanchenjunga – the world’s tallest and third tallest respectively.
Population: 30,986,975 (July 2014 estimate).
Capital: Kathmandu.
Government: Federal democratic republic (since July 2008. Prior to this, the country was ruled by a monarchy).
Chief of state: President Ram Baran Yadav (since July 2008).
Head of government: Prime Minister Sushil Koirala (since February 2014).
Flag: Nepal’s dual-pennant flag is the world’s only national flag that is not rectangular or square.
Legal system: English common law and Hindu legal concepts.
Size: 147,181 square kilometers. Slightly larger than Arkansas.
Time difference: 9 hours and 45 minutes ahead of Eastern Daylight Time; 5 hours and 45 minutes ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time).
Economy: Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking 197th in GDP. More than a quarter of its people live below the poverty line. The estimated unemployment rate in 2008 was 46%; 75% of the labor force works in agriculture.
Industries: Tourism, carpets, textiles; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarettes, cement and brick production.
Currency: Nepalese rupees ($1 = 101 Nepalese rupees).
Natural resources: Quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore.
Natural hazards: Flooding, landslides, drought, earthquakes. In 1934, the country was hit by a 8.1 magnitude earthquake. On April 25, 2015, a 7.8 magnitude quake hit the region.
Source: CIA World Factbook
