Countries and Their Characteristics - Coursework Example

Countries and Their Characteristics al Affiliation Countries and Their Characteristics Introduction A is characterized by itseconomic status in the world ranking. Classification f a country will depend on how the nation presents its basic features including its interaction with the global scene. Countries are classified as developed or underdeveloped based on their economic and social prowess. The essay will compare four states and in respect to their location, geographical features, their weather, demography, economic status, and their relation to the global organization. The aim will be to determine how different countries relate based on the six factors. The countries being studied will be Canada, Germany, Nepal and Kenya. Developed nation tend to exhibit growth in all sectors while developing nations faces challenges in their quest to interact with the global scene. The essay will focus on the details of each country and a conclusion made based on the data collected and their effort to conserve the environment. Location Canada is located in North America and borders three oceans. They include the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Its coordinates are 600 00’N 95000’W (Maps of the world, 2014). Germany on the other hand is located in Europe. Its neighbors include Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium Poland, Denmark, Luxemburg, Czech Republic and Netherlands. Germany is located in central Europe between 470 and 560 North latitude and 50 and 160 east of the longitudes (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). Kenya on the other hand is located in Africa and borders Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania and South Sudan. The country borders the Indian Ocean on the southeast. Its coordinates are 10 16’S 360E 48’E (Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 ). Nepal is located in Asia and it is landlocked. It border India and china. It is located on the south of the continent. The coordinates of the country are 27042’N85019’E (Maps of the world, 2014) the four countries are located in different continent hence making them suitable for the study. The countries are unique and located in different locations on the world map. Physical geography This section while compare the geographical features of the four countries. These characteristics are essential in determining the level of natural resources enjoyed by a given nation. Canada Canada is dived into six major sections. These are the lowlands of St. Lawrence, the Atlantic, the shield region, western cordillera and the plains of Prairie. Canada has the world’s longest coastal area. Major rivers in Canada include Mattagami and Missiniabi River. The country also has a larger share of the water masses. Lakes in the country include Lake Louise, Great Bear Lake and Great Slave Lake. The highest point in Canada is Mount Logan, which stands at 5959 meters above sea level with the lowest point being the seas level in the Atlantic Ocean. Other mountains include the coast mountain, Mount Lucania and the Columbia Mountain. The country also boasts of a number of islands. They include Cape Breton Island and Anticosti Island. the coastline covers a 202,080 meter coastline. Kenya Kenya has an area of 580367 km2 with 2% being composed of water mass. Kenya boasts of major geographical features, which include the Great Rift Valley and Lake Victoria. Lake Victoria is the source of world longest river. The highest point in Kenya is the peak of Mount Kenya which standards at 5199 meter above sea level (Kareri, 2006).The country boasts of the equator, which crosses the country passing through major cities. Kenya has a 3 % forest cover. The Kenya cost line stretches from the Tanzanian border to the Somalis boarder a distance of 536 km (Kareri, 2006).Kenya is divided into five major sections. These sections are the coastal plains, which are the lowest point in Kenya, the foreland plateaus, the highland, Lake Basin, and the northern plates. The highland s are dived into the eastern and the western highlands separated by the Great Rift Valley. Major rivers in Kenya include the Arthi River, Tana River and the Yala River (Kareri, 2006). Germany Germany is divided into three major sections. These sections are the Alps, upland and lowlands. The German’s coastline stretches 2389 Km long. The highest point in the country is 2963 Km above sea level while the lowest point is -3.5 km below sea level. The lowest point is at Neuendorf bei Wilster (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). The major lakes of the countries include Lake Constance and Lake Müritz . Major rivers in the country include the Rhine and Danube. Beside the natural resources available, a number of manmade canals add to the long list of geographic features available in the country. Other mountains and hills include Ore Mountain and Vogelsberg mountains. Land in Germany is dived between arable land and conservational space thus 34 percent of the land in Germany is arable and thus making it suitable for other economic activities. The land also boasts of forest covers, major forests include the Bohemian Forest and the black forest (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). ` Nepal Nepal covers an area of 147181 kilometer square. The country is landlocked but boasts a number of physical features. The country boasts of the world largest mountain. Mount Everest is the highest point in Nepal. Despite it being landlocked Nepal have a number of rivers and lakes. The famous are Lake Rara and river Karnali. The highest point is Nepal Mount Everest and it stands at 8848 meters high. The country is divided into three terrains. These are the Madhesh region, the hill region and mountain region. The country also has two of the world highest peak this includes mount Kangchenjunga and Everest. Being landlocked, it lacks a coastline thus share most of its physical features with India and China (Central Intelligence Agency 2014 a) Weather characteristic Kenyan weather season are divided into two; the dry seasons and the rainy season. These are climates experienced with the tropics. The long rainy season are experienced between March and June while the short rainy season begins in October and end in December. The warm dry seasons commences in January and ends in March while the cool dry season begins in June and ends in October. The northern part of the country experiences dry weather conditions through the year. Nepal on the other hand has five major seasons, which are the monsoon, autumn, spring, summer and winter seasons. Summer temperature rises to maximum of 370C while the lowest temperature in winter falls to the lowest of 70C. The monsoon season begins in juke and end in September while the winter season begins in December and ends in January Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 a). The spring seasons ends in November, while summer begins in May and ends in July. Canadian climate is dived into four major seasons. Winter begins in May and ends in September while summer begins in July and ends in August. Spring begins in May. The other season is autumn (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). Canada being a large country, it is dived into various weather regions. These are the Mediterranean climate, semi arid climate of the western part, continental climate experienced in Ontario and arid climates. The arctic climate is characterized by extreme climates with weather ranging from 450C to -600C. Germany weather conditions range from the oceanic climates to continental climate. The country has four major seasons with summer being the hottest season of the year with temperatures reaching the 300C while the lowest temperature during winter falls to 90C. Demographics Germany has a population of 80 million with 73 percent of the population being above the age of 25%. The median ages of the male, population is 45 years while the female’s median age is 47 percent. The country has a population growth rate of -0.18% with the urban population constituting 75 percent of the entire population (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). Life expectancy in the country stands at 82 years. The fertility rate among women stands at 1.43childern per woman. 91.5 % of the population is German with 2.4% being Turkish with the remaining population constituting immigrants from different parts of the world. Literacy levels stands at 99%. Christianity in the country accounts for 60% of the entire population with Islam accounting for 5.2% (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). Canada has a population of 35 Million with a population growth rate of 0.9%. The net migration rate of Canada stands at six immigrants per 1000 persons. The sex ratio stands at 0.9 males per female. Life expectancy stands at 82% in Canada. The age between 15- 64 constitute s 69% of the entire population. The median age is 39.4 among males and 41.5 percent in females. In matters ethnicity 68 percent of the population speak English while French accounts for 22 percent speak French while the Aboriginal population accounts for 4.4%. The countries boast of many religion with 67% of the population being Christians. The Muslim religion accounts for 3.2% of the entire population while 24% having no religion to affiliate to (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 a). Nepal has a population of 31 million with 89 percent of the population being below the age of 54%. The median age of the country is 24years among the female and 22 among the male population. The birth rates stands at 21 births per 1000 while the death rate stands at 7 deaths per 1000 of the population. The urban population is 17 percent while the urbanization rate stands at 3.7%. Infant mortality rates are at 41deaths per 1000 births. The life expectancy is 67 years. The 2.3 children per woman is the fertility rate in the country. In matters religion, 81 percent of the entire population is Hindu while 9% is Buddhist. The major languages are Nepal that is 82 percent of the entire population (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 a). The population of Kenya stands at 45 million with a growth rate of 2.2 percent. The median age of the population stands at 19 years among males and 19.5 years among the female population. The birth rates stand at 28 births per 1000of the population with the death rates of 7 deaths per 1000 of the population. The urban population is 24% with the rate of urbanization standing at 4%. Life expectancy in Kenya is 63 % (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 d). The fertility rate per woman is 3.5 children per woman. Infant mortality rate of the country stands at 41 deaths per 1000 births. The level of literacy stands at 90 percent. The major ethic communities in Kenya are kikuyu which a 22% of the population and Luhya which constitute 14% of the entire population. The majority of the population is Christians at 32 percent and Muslims at 11 percent (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 d). Economic characteristics Canada has a real GDP growth rate of 1.6%. The purchasing power parity with the country stands at 1.5 trillion US dollars. The exchange rate of the country stands at $ 1.8 trillion with per capita income of $43100. The gross national savings stands at 22%. In matters consumption, the government accounts for 22 percent while the household consumption accounts for 56%. Investment in fixed capital and inventory accounts for 25 percent of the GDP (consumption based on end users). Those employed in the country labor market are 19 million with 76% being employed in the service sector. The unemployment rate stands at 7%. The country revenue stands at $ 688 million with the annual expenditure standing at 740 billion US dollars. The public debt stands at 86% of the gross domestic product (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 c). The purchasing power parity of Germany stands at 3.2 trillion US dollars. The exchange rate of the country is estimated to be $ 3.6 trillion. The real GDP growth stands at 0.5%. The per capita of Germany stands at $ 39500. The country’s gross national saving is 25% of the gross domestic product. in matters consumption by end user, the country’s household consumption stands at 57% while government consumption stands at 19% while Investments in fixed capital and inventory stands at 17.5% (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). In consumption based on sectors, the service sector account for 6% while the industrial sector accounts for 30 percent. The county labor supply is 44million with the service sector employing 74 percent of the entire population. The unemployment rate stands at 5% with those living below poverty line estimated to be 13 % of the entire population. The national expenditure stands at 1,624 trillion while the revenue accounting for 1.626 trillion US dollar. The public debt stands at 80% of the gross domestic product (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). In Nepal, the purchasing power parity stands at 42 billion US dollars with its exchange rate being $ 19 billion. The estimated growth in real GDP stands at 3.6%. The per capita based on purchasing power parity stands at $ 1500. Consumption based on end user within Nepal stands at 81% household consumption, 10% government consumption, investment in fixed capital at 21.6 percent, and investment in inventory at 14.6. On consumption based on sector, the service sector accounts for 49%, the industrial sector accounts for 15%, and the agricultural sector accounting for 35%. The labor market surplus is 16 million with 75% being absorbed into the agricultural sector (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 a). The unemployment rate stands at 46%. In Nepal, 25% of the population lives below poverty line. The revenue of the country stands at $3.3 billion while the expenditure stands at $3.9 billion. The public debt stands at 28% of the entire population (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 a). Kenyan economy is characterized by $80 billion purchasing power parity and its exchange rate being estimated at $45 billion. The real GDP growth is estimated to be at 5.1 % with its per capita being $1800. In consumption based on end user the household consumption is at 79% while the government consumption being at 18% (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 d). In matters consumption based on sector, the agricultural sector 29%, the industrial sector accounting for 18% while the service sector accounting for 53%. The labor market supply stands at 20mmilion with 75% being incorporated into the agricultural sector .The Kenyan revenue stands at $7.7 billion while expenditure stands at $9.7 billion. The public debt stands at 54% of the GDP 43% of the population live below poverty line (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 d). Membership status in the United Nations Canada has been a member of the united nation since 1945 (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 c). The country has played part in a number of peacekeeping missions. It has served in the Security Council for more than ten times. Canada is a non-permanent member of the United Nation. The country is ranked highly amongst the non-permanent members in the Security Council. Germany is a non-permanent member of the UN. Germany became a member of the united nation in 1955 (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 b). Germany begun as an observer before being offered a full membership status. Nepal is also a non-permanent member in the united nation security council. The country joint the united nation in the year 1955 (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 a). Nepal has been a beneficiary of a number of UN programs. Kenya on the other hand joints the united nation in 1963. Kenya is also a non- permanent member in the united nation security council (Central Intelligence Agency, 2014 d). However, the nation boasts of two UN programs, which are the UN- habitat and the UNEP. The Kyoto Protocol All the countries countries are signatories in the Kyoto Protocol that gave rise to the UN convention on climate. All countries tool part in the 2005 agreement between united nation states. Conclusion Each country has unique characteristics. Either the classification of the countries into developed or non-developed countries depend on their economic characteristic. All countries share a common platform under the United Nation body. Different GDP growth rate indicates the nature in which the countries are willing to take to improve their condition. Their actions are controlled upon by the Kyoto convention on climate hence each nation has the responsibility of ensuring a stainable ecosystem. Reference Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 a). The world Factbook: Nepal. Retrieved from https://www.Central Intelligence Agency.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/np.html Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 b). The world Factbook: Canada. Retrieved from https://www.Central Intelligence Agency.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ca.html Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 c). the world Factbook: Germany. Retrieved from https://www.Central Intelligence Agency.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gm.html Central Intelligence Agency. (2014 d). The world Factbook: Kenya. Retrieved from https://www.Central Intelligence Agency.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke.html Kareri, R.W. (2006). Some aspect of the geography of Kenya. Retrieved from http://international.iupui.edu/kenya/resources/Geography-of-Kenya.pdf Read More