248 lines
20 KiB
Plaintext
248 lines
20 KiB
Plaintext
CONGO
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 342,000 km2; land area: 341,500 km2
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Comparative area: slightly smaller than Montana
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Land boundaries: 5,504 km total; Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km,
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Central African Republic 467 km, Gabon 1,903 km, Zaire 2,410 km
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Coastline: 169 km
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Maritime claims:
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Territorial sea: 200 nm
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Disputes: long section with Zaire along the Congo River is
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indefinite (no division of the river or its islands has been made)
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Climate: tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June
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to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly
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enervating climate astride the Equator
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Terrain: coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern
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basin
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Natural resources: petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium,
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copper, phosphates, natural gas
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Land use: arable land 2%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and
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pastures 29%; forest and woodland 62%; other 7%
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Environment: deforestation; about 70% of the population lives in
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Brazzaville, Pointe Noire, or along the railroad between them
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PEOPLE
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Population: 2,309,444 (July 1991), growth rate 3.0% (1991)
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Birth rate: 43 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 13 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 108 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 52 years male, 56 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 5.7 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Congolese (sing., pl.); adjective--Congolese
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or Congo
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Ethnic divisions: about 15 ethnic groups divided into some 75
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tribes, almost all Bantu; most important ethnic groups are Kongo (48%) in
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the south, Sangha (20%) and M'Bochi (12%) in the north, Teke (17%) in the
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center; about 8,500 Europeans, mostly French
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Religion: Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2%
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Language: French (official); many African languages with Lingala
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and Kikongo most widely used
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Literacy: 57% (male 70%, female 44%) age 15 and over can
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read and write (1990 est.)
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Labor force: 79,100 wage earners; agriculture 75%, commerce,
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industry, and government 25%; 51% of population of working age; 40% of
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population economically active (1985)
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Organized labor: 20% of labor force (1979 est.)
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: Republic of the Congo
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Type: republic
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Capital: Brazzaville
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Administrative divisions: 9 regions (regions,
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singular--region); Bouenza, Cuvette, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala,
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Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha; note--there may be a new capital district
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of Brazzaville
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Independence: 15 August 1960 (from France; formerly
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Congo/Brazzaville)
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Constitution: 8 July 1979, currently being modified
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Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law
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National holiday: National Day, 15 August (1960)
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Executive branch: president, prime minister, Council of Ministers
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(cabinet)
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Legislative branch: unicameral National People's Assembly
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(Assemblee Nationale Populaire)
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
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Leaders:
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Chief of State--President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 8 February
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1979);
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Head of Government--Prime Minister Brig. Gen. Louis-Sylvain
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GOMA (since 9 January 1991)
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Political parties and leaders: Congolese Labor Party
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(PCT), President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, leader; note--multiparty system
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legalized, with over 50 parties established
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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President--last held 26-31 July 1989 (next to be held July 1994);
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results--President SASSOU-NGUESSO unanimously reelected leader of the
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PCT by the Party Congress, which automatically made him president;
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People's National Assembly--last held 24 September 1989 (next
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to be held NA 1994); results--PCT was the only party;
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seats--(153 total) single list of candidates nominated by the PCT
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Communists: unknown number of Communists and sympathizers
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Other political or pressure groups: Union of Congolese Socialist
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Youth (UJSC), Congolese Trade Union Congress (CSC), Revolutionary Union
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of Congolese Women (URFC), General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students
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(UGEEC)
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Member of: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77,
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GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
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IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UDEAC, UN, UNAVEM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
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WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Roger ISSOMBO; Chancery at
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4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington DC 20011; telephone (202) 726-5500;
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US--Ambassador James Daniel PHILLIPS; Embassy at Avenue
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Amilcar Cabral, Brazzaville (mailing address is B. P. 1015, Brazzaville,
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or Box C, APO New York 09662-0006); telephone (242) 83-20-70 or 83-26-24
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Flag: red with the national emblem in the upper hoist-side corner;
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the emblem includes a yellow five-pointed star above a crossed hoe and
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hammer (like the hammer and sickle design) in yellow, flanked by two
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curved green palm branches; uses the popular pan-African colors of
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Ethiopia
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ECONOMY
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Overview: Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the
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economy, providing about two-thirds of government revenues and
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exports. In the early 1980s rapidly rising oil revenues enabled Congo
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to finance large-scale development projects with growth averaging 5%
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annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The world decline in
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oil prices, however, has forced the government to launch an austerity
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program to cope with declining receipts and mounting foreign debts.
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GDP: $2.26 billion, per capita $1,050; real growth rate 0.6%
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(1989 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.6% (1989 est.)
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Unemployment rate: NA%
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Budget: revenues $522 million; expenditures $767 million,
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including capital expenditures of $141 million (1989)
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Exports: $751 million (f.o.b., 1988);
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commodities--crude petroleum 72%, lumber, plywood, coffee, cocoa,
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sugar, diamonds;
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partners--US, France, other EC
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Imports: $564 million (c.i.f., 1988);
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commodities--foodstuffs, consumer goods, intermediate manufactures,
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capital equipment;
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partners--France, Italy, other EC, US, FRG, Spain, Japan, Brazil
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External debt: $4.5 billion (December 1988)
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Industrial production: growth rate 1.2% (1989); accounts for
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33% of GDP, including petroleum
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Electricity: 133,000 kW capacity; 300 million kWh produced,
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130 kWh per capita (1989)
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Industries: crude oil, cement, sawmills, brewery, sugar mill, palm
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oil, soap, cigarettes
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Agriculture: accounts for 10% of GDP (including fishing and
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forestry); cassava accounts for 90% of food output; other crops--rice,
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corn, peanuts, vegetables; cash crops include coffee and cocoa; forest
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products important export earner; imports over 90% of food needs
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $60
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million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
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(1970-88), $2.2 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $15 million;
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Communist countries (1970-89), $338 million
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Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc
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(plural--francs); 1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
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Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF)
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per US$1--256.54 (January 1991), 272.26 (1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85
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(1988), 300.54 (1987), 346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)
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Fiscal year: calendar year
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 797 km, 1.067-meter gauge, single track (includes 285 km
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that are privately owned)
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Highways: 12,000 km total; 560 km bituminous surface treated;
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850 km gravel, laterite; 5,350 km improved earth; 5,240 km unimproved
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roads
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Inland waterways: the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) Rivers provide
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1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; the rest are used for
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local traffic only
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Pipelines: crude oil 25 km
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Ports: Pointe-Noire (ocean port), Brazzaville (river port)
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Civil air: 4 major transport aircraft
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Airports: 50 total, 45 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways;
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none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 18 with
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runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: services adequate for government use; primary
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network is composed of radio relay routes and coaxial cables; key centers
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are Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; 18,100 telephones;
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stations--3 AM, 1 FM, 4 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean satellite station
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, paramilitary
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National People's Militia, National Police
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 509,040; 258,861 fit for
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military service; 24,068 reach military age (20) annually
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Defense expenditures: $99 million, 4.6% of GDP (1987 est.)
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