Introduction

The Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

The Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is situated in North Africa, stretching along the Mediterranean shoreline for nearly 2,000 kilometres. Its area is 1,775,500 square kilometres making it the fourth largest country in Africa. Egypt is on its eastern border; Sudan, Chad and Niger are to the south and Tunisia and Algeria lie to the west. The population of just over five million is concentrated in the cities, villages and farming areas along the coastal strip. Almost one million Libyans died during the Italian occupation from 1911 to 1944.

The administrative system in Libya is summed up in the word Jamahiriya, which literally means the state of the masses. Complete popular authority runs the country with no place for the traditional structures. Authority, wealth and the arms are all in the hands of the people. Everywhere there are Basic People's Conferences - from every village, city and town up to the General People's Congress. The Conferences decide all matters of policy and People’s Committees carry out their decisions with the assistance and guidance of the voluntary Revolutionary Committees.

Vast areas of arid land in the desert have been turned into green and fertile tracts since the Al-Fateh Revolution of 1969. "The Green Revolution" is aimed at developing large areas of agriculture to produce complete self-sufficiency in food. In the early 1950s Libya was officially rated by the United Nations as the poorest country in the world. Today, it is one of the wealthiest. At the heart of Libya's transformation since the 1969 Al-Fateh Revolution has been the mobilisation of the masses in direct control over society.

Libya enjoys valuable natural and historical resources over a large geographical area. The rich history of post civilization, semi-intact archaeological sights, long sunny beaches on the Mediterranean sea, sunny days all year round, desert, mountains and friendly and hospitable people are all incentives of the tourism industry and attractions to the tourist.

Investment Climate

The Great Jamahiriya has taken a number of important measures to restructure its economy with the sole objective to advance social and economic development. Some of these developments include:

	Encouraging individuals to take the initiative and to form small and medium companies and businesses;
	Modernising the banking system and financial institutions; and,
	Promoting foreign capital to invest in Libya to establish small, medium and large investment projects within the broad lines of the country’s economic and social development strategy.

There are over 400 industrial projects in the productive stage. These include industries such as chemicals, petrochemicals, basic metallurgy, textiles, construction, electrical, engineering, and food processing. There are many viable investment opportunities in the Libyan industrial sector, particularly those related to the production of intermediate and consumer goods to meet both local and regional demands. Such opportunities enjoy cheap and abundant sources of energy and trained manpower and adequate supply of local raw material.

Libya – India Relations 

In recent years the economic relations between the Great Jamahiriya and India registered a considerable growth with the increase in the volume of trade exchange. With a view to enhance these relations, the Indo-Libyan Joint Committee held its meetings in July 2002 in India where several areas of cooperation between the two countries were discussed. Also various Indian economic delegations visited the Great Jamahiriya including Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

During these visits, Memoranda of Understanding were signed with the concerned departments in order to activate the mutual relations. Besides, thousands of Indian technicians are presently working in all fields of the Great Jamahiriya. However, the volume of trade exchange between the two countries has not reached the level desired by their leadership. That is why both sides seek to give it an impetus so that the economic relations could match its potential.

Libya Country Data

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Official Name:		Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Capital:		Tripoli
Independence		24 December 1951 (from Italy)
Natural Resources:		Petroleum, natural gas, gypsum
Population:		5,765,563
Population growth rate:		2.33% (2004 est.)
Languages:		Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities
Religions:		Sunni Muslim 97%
GDP:		US$37.48 billion (2004 est.)* Real growth rate: 4.9% (2004 est.) Per capita: $6,700 (2004 est.)
Industries:		Petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement
Main Exports:		Crude oil, refined petroleum products
Main Imports:		Machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods
Currency:		Libyan dinar (LYD)