Pakistan – country information

Country name	Pakistan
Official name	Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Capital	Islamabad
continent	Asia
Area	796,095 km
Population	185 914 000 (2014)
Foundation of a state	14. 8. 1947
The highest mountains	Chhogori (K2) 8611 m, Nangá Parbat 8125 m
Longest rivers	Indus/Sindh 3190 km (inland 2500 km)
State system	a federative pluralistic Islamic republic with a bicameral parliament
The biggest cities	Karachi 10,500,000, Lahore 6,250,000, hl. Islamabad city 750,000
Official language	Urdu (Urdu)
Ethnicity/National Composition	Punjabi 50%, Pashtun 13%, Sindhi 11.5%, Sarai 9.5%, Urdu speaking Hindu 7.5%, other 8.5%
Religious affiliation	Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Hindu 0.8%, other 0.2%
Currency	1 Pakistani rupee (PRe, pl. PRs) = 100 paise
gross domestic product (GDP)	US$3,056 (2012)
Average life expectancy of the population	63.39 let (2006)
Structure of GDP	agriculture and fishing 21.5%, mining 0.5%, industry 18.5%, construction 4%, services 55.5%

Pakistan – Neighboring States

State	Capital	Area	Populace
Afghanistan	Kabul	652,090 km	25 500 100
China	Peking	9,640,820 km	1 363 350 000
Indie	Delhi	3,287,260 km	1 241 610 000
Iran	Tehran	1,648,200 km	77 288 000

Country overview

According to Abbreviationfinder, Pakistan occupies the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent.

Country data

Location: South Asia

Time zone: CET + 4 (during summer time: CET + 3)

Total area: 796,095 km²

Land area: 770,875 km²

Water area: 25,220 km²

Length of the state border: 6,774 km

Bordering countries:
Afghanistan: 2,430 km
China: 523 km
India: 2,912 km
Iran: 909 km

Coastline: 1,046 km

Capital: Islamabad

Provinces: 5
Balochistan, Islamabad, North-West Frontier, Punjab, Sindh

Telephone code: 00 92 (Source: Allcitycodes)

Highest point: K2, with a height of 8,611 m

Population

Population: approx. 196 million residents (Countryaah, 2021)

Population growth: 1.5% per year

Population density (residents per km²): 246

Life expectancy: 65 (male), 69 (female)

Official language: Urdu, English

Religions:

• 96% Muslim
• 4% other

Climate

The climate is dry and hot most of the year. In summer, the average daily temperature is just over 30 ° C, while in winter it is still just over 10 ° C.

Most of the rain (monsoons) fall in the months of July and August. In the remaining months there is very little rainfall.

In the coastal areas the humidity is much higher than in the inland, so that the central high altitude areas are climatically better tolerated.

Currency / finance

Currency unit: Pakistani rupee (PKR)

Classification: 1 rupee = 100 paises

ATMs: Available in the major cities.

International credit cards: These are accepted in a few larger hotels and shops.

Regulations: Foreign currencies can be imported and exported in unlimited amounts. Up to an amount of 100 rupees, the local currency can be carried when crossing the border. No banknote may be larger than 10 rupees.

Customs regulations

The following may be carried duty-free:

• 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 200 g tobacco
• 1 liter of alcoholic beverages
• small amounts of perfume

(Information applies to people aged 18 and over)

Tourists and people in transit can bring items of personal use with them duty-free.

Travel advice

Warnings are given against traveling to the Balochistan region, to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (formerly the Northwest Frontier Province) and to the border areas with Afghanistan.

The entire border regions of the country should be avoided when traveling. There are always armed conflicts here.

Nationwide there is a high risk of being victims of attacks or kidnappings.

Behavioral advice

When choosing clothing, keep in mind that you are in an Islamic country. Bare skin must not be visible (no skirts, shorts, etc.).

Consumption of alcohol of any kind in public is not permitted.

Possession and trafficking in drugs are severely punished (long imprisonment or the death penalty).

Blasphemy is also severely punished.

Economy

Although there are many natural resources, industry is very one-sided in this direction.

The extraction and export of natural gas, oil and limestone brings the necessary foreign exchange into the country.

The most important industry, however, is agriculture, which employs over 50% of the population.

Industries: building materials, chemistry, vehicle construction, agriculture, food production, paper production, textiles

Natural resources: iron ore, natural gas, petroleum, limestone, coal, copper, salt

Land use:

• Usable land: 27%
• Grain cultivation: 1%
• Pasture area: 6%
• Forests: 5%
• other: 61%

Plants

Large parts of the original flora were destroyed by intensive agricultural use.

The few trees grow mainly on mountains and in the north of the country.

There are also some plants and shrub species that can survive even under poor conditions (e.g. little water).

Animals

Especially in the north there are still wild animals. See snow leopards, ibex and wild goats.