Fish catch per year: 22,511 tonnes

Oil production and reserves: 2.03m b/d (reserves 113bn barrels)

Estimated livestock resources: 6.2m sheep, 1.65m goats, 1.4m cattle, 23m chickens

Main mineral resources: Oil, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur, gypsum

ELECTRICITY GENERATION

Iraq has huge reserves of oil and natural gas (the second-largest in the world). Total gas reserves, many of which are associated with oil, are proven to be 3.11 trillion cu. m (110 trillion cu. ft), with estimates of a further 4.25 trillion cu. m (150 trillion cu. ft). The capture of oil fields was a key priority for the invading Coalition forces in 2003, ostensibly to provide a firm economic future for a postwar Iraq. US companies are likely to be at the forefront of reconstruction.

Before the 1990 invasion of Kuwait and the subsequent war, Iraq supplied 80% of the world's trade in dates. After the imposition of sanctions, food was produced simply for domestic consumption, and Iraq achieved a degree of self-sufficiency in such crops as wheat, rice, and sugarcane.

From "The Financial Times World Desk Reference" © Dorling Kindersley 2004