Best Countries

At a glance

Capital: Islamabad (See more on ITYPEMBA.COM)

Official language: Urdu, English

Currency: rupee

Continent: South Asia

History and mountains

Pakistan is an interesting country, but the political situation is not ideal for traveling.

Info Pakistan

According to Countryaah, Pakistan is a state in South Asia. Like Bangladesh, it emerged from the division of post-colonial India. Politically, the state borders on Afghanistan, India and China. Geographically, the country is separated from the Hindu Kush, the Karakoram and the Himalayas in the north. The former capital of the country is Karachi, the current capital is Islamabad.

Hiking in Pakistan

Due to its location on the highest mountain ranges on earth, the country is very popular as a starting point for mountain climbs, similar to Nepal. Many Mount Everest expeditions start in Pakistan. But hiking doesn’t have to mean “climbing into the mountains”. You can also go on some cultural hikes, for example to the excavation sites of the Indus Valley culture.

Excursus: Indus valley culture

The most important sites for this ancient high culture are the excavations of Harappa. But also the remains of Mohenjo-Daro and Kot Diji leave hobby archaeologists and history buffs open their jaws. The interesting thing about this early high culture is that it left no traces in the present. The hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt were translated into ancient Greek, or the Assyrian cuneiform can still be understood today.

To be more precise: this is a written culture whose writing is illegible. We know the alphabet of the Indus valley culture, but we don’t know anything about their everyday life.

Plan your trip to Pakistan

Besides the capital Ilsamabad, the most interesting city in Pakistan is Karachi. It was the capital until the late 1950s and is still the largest city in the country. However, as in all other larger cities in the country, the security situation is relatively unstable. Sectarian religious militias, gangs abducting tourists and rebel groups repeatedly cause brief travel conditions to be unfavorable. So plan your trip to Pakistan well, find out about the current security situation !

Important facts

Capital: Islamabad

Official language: Urdu, English

Currency

Currency (sub-unit)

Rupee (100 Paisa)

ISO 4217 code

PKR / 586

Geography

Continent: Asia

Region: south

Geo coordinates: N 30 ° 22 ‘31.2 ” E 69 ° 20’ 42.4″

Highest mountain: K2 (8,611 m)

Total area: 803,940 km²

Mainland: 778,720 km²

National border: 6,774 km

Coastline: 1,046 km

Politics

Dependency: Great Britain until 1947

Formerly dependent states: Bangladesh until 1971

UN member since: 1947

Form of government: Federal Republic

Economy

Export goods: Cotton, rice, hides

BSP: $ 113.799 billion

GDP: $ 116,535,700,000

GDP purchasing power parity: $ 436.6 billion

Economic growth: 7.2%

GDP share of agriculture: 20.7%

GDP share of industry: 26%

GDP share of services: 53.3%

Inflation rate: 10.6%

Unemployment: 6.2%

State budget revenue: $ 4294967295

State budget expenditure: $ 4294967295

National debt: 55.6%

Export: $ 16,220,000,000

Import: $ 23.730 billion

Foreign debt: $ 41.3 billion

Gold and currency reserves: $ 10,280,000,000

Electricity consumption: 90,330 million KWh

Gas reserves: 759,700 million m³

Gas production: 24,500 million m³

Gas consumption: 24,500 million m³

Oil reserves: 342 million m³

Oil production: 66,000 million m³

Oil consumption: 377,000 million m³

Cultivation area: 25.13%

Sheep: 24,610,000 pieces

Fishing: 653,000 t

Demographic data

Residents: 165,803,600

Residents in cities: 64,347,000

Average age: 19.8 years

0-14 years: 39%

15-64 years: 56.9%

> 65 years: 4.1%

Population growth: 2.09%

Birth rate: 29.74 / 1,000 residents

Death rate: 8.23 / 1,000 residents

Migration: -0.59 / 1,000 residents

Ratio men / women: 1.05

Fertility: 4 children / woman

Infant mortality: 70.45 ‰

Life expectancy men: 62.4 years

Life expectancy women: 64.44 years

Country codes

ISO 3166 Alpha 2: PK

ISO 3166 Alpha 3: PAH

ISO 3166 numeric: 586

Top Level Domain: pk

IOC country code: PAH

UN / LOCODE: PK

Source: Abbreviationfinder

Communication

Telephone connections: 4,582,000

Cell Phones: 5,262,000

Radios: 16,970,000

TV: 28,230,000

Computer: 3,320,000

Internet users: 6,700,000

Transportation

Railway lines: 8,163 km

Paved roads: 155,229 km

of which expressways: 385 km

Cars: 1,710,000

Merchant fleet (ships over 1,000 GRT): 16

Pipelines: 11,766

Health

Number of doctors: 124,770

Daily food intake: 2,490 kcal / resident

HIV- infected people: 77,000

Education

Illiteracy: 51%

History

Foundation: 1947

Last sovereign since: 1947

Religion

Main religious group: Muslims

Crime

Prison inmates: 88,000

Military

Armed forces (troop strength): 620,000

Main battle tank: 2,290

Battleships: 8th

Submarines: 10

Warplanes: 380

Helicopter: 30th

Nuclear warheads: 45

Defense Spending: $ 4,789,000,000

GETTING THERE

Arriving by plane

Pakistan’s national airline is called Pakistan International Airlines (PK) (Internet: www.piac.com.pk).

Etihad Airways (EY) (Internet: www.etihadairways.com) flies from Munich, Frankfurt and Geneva via Abu Dhabi to Karachi. Emirates (EK) flies from Frankfurt and Vienna via Dubai to Karachi.

Lufthansa (LH) flies non-stop from Frankfurt to Karachi and Lahore.

From October 2013, Qatar Airways (QR) will be flying from various airports in Europe and Switzerland to Multan.

Flight times

Frankfurt – Karachi: 6 hours 25 minutes; Geneva – Karachi: 6 hours 30 minutes

Departure fee

1,400 PR for 1st class passengers, 1,300 PR for business class passengers and 700 PR for economy passengers. Transit travelers and children under two years of age are exempt from this.

Arrival by car

Road connections from the People’s Republic of China, India, Iran and Afghanistan. When traveling to Pakistan by land from Europe, it is essential to find out about border traffic, visa regulations and the current political situation of all countries on the way before departure.

The border crossings to India (Wagah / Atari between Lahore and Amritsar) and Iran (Taftan) are open, as are the direct transit routes there. However, significant bureaucratic difficulties and lengthy security checks are to be expected. The border with Afghanistan is currently closed. When leaving the country by land, a toll must be paid.

Arriving by train

The Samjhota Express runs from Lahore to Delhi. Passengers have to check in 3 hours before departure to complete customs and exit formalities. Express train connection from Quetta to Zahedan (Iran) and a passenger train runs between Quetta and Taftan (Iran). Further information from Pakistan Railway (Internet: www.pakrail.com).

Arrival by ship

The main port is Karachi (Keamari). There are currently no passenger ships to Pakistan.