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Maldives SOCIETY
Population: July 1994 estimate 252,077, with a
growth
rate of 3.6 percent. High birth rate of 44 per 1,000 in
1994.
Ethnic Groups: Homogeneous mixture of Sinhalese,
Dravidian, Arab, Australasian, and African groups; also
small
group of Indian traders.
Languages: Maldivian Dhivehi is common language
with
loanwords from Arabic, Hindi, and Tamil.
Religion: Sunni Muslim apart from Shia Muslim
Indian
traders.
Education: Primary (classes one through five),
secondary (classes six through ten), and higher secondary
(classes eleven and twelve); noncompulsory. Most students
attend
private Quranic schools that charge fee in contrast to
free
government schools. No university but some vocational
education.
Overall literacy claimed as 98.2 percent in 1991.
Health: Waterborne and tropical diseases
prevalent
because of inadequate drinking water supply. In 1994 life
expectancy at birth estimated at: overall 64.7 years, 66.1
for
females, 63.2 years for males. In 1994 infant mortality
53.8 per
1,000 live births.
Data as of August 1994
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