 |
GDP (purchasing power parity): $203.1 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $176.6 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 1.2% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $19,100 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 6.6% industry: 28.6% services: 64.9% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 5.57 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 10% industry: 30% services: 60% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 7.5% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 28.4% (1995 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 38.5 (1997)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.7% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 20.9% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget: revenues: $83.89 billion expenditures: $93.09 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)
Public debt: 65.7% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: grain, potatoes, tomatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, swine, poultry, dairy products; fish
Industries: textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metals and metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; rubber and plastic products; ceramics; electronics and communications equipment; rail transportation equipment; aerospace equipment; ship construction and refurbishment; wine; tourism
Industrial production growth rate: 0.9% (2006 est.)
Electricity - production: 42.52 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 64.5% hydro: 31.3% nuclear: 0% other: 4.1% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 46.05 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports: 2.1 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports: 8.6 billion kWh (2004)
Oil - production: 3,849 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption: 332,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports: 28,830 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: 357,300 bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 3.737 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 3.76 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Current account balance: $-16.75 billion (2006 est.)
Exports: $46.77 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities: clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides
Exports - partners: Spain 25.9%, France 13.1%, Germany 11.9%, UK 8%, US 5.4%, Italy 4.3% (2005)
Imports: $67.74 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products
Imports - partners: Spain 29%, Germany 13.4%, France 8.5%, Italy 5.2%, Netherlands 4.3%, UK 4.2% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $10.7 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external: $310.8 billion (30 June 2006 est.)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $271 million (1995)
Currency (code): euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Currency code: EUR
Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.79669 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Portugal
Telephones - main lines in use: 4.234 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 11.448 million (2005)
Telephone system: general assessment: Portugal's telephone system has achieved a state-of-the-art network with broadband, high-speed capabilities domestic: integrated network of coaxial cables, open-wire, microwave radio relay, and domestic satellite earth stations international: country code - 351; 6 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to Azores; note - an earth station for Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region) is planned
Radio broadcast stations: AM 47, FM 172 (many are repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: 3.02 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 62 (plus 166 repeaters) note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands (1995)
Televisions: 3.31 million (1997)
Internet country code: .pt
Internet hosts: 845,980 (2005)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 16 (2000)
Internet users: 7,782,700 (2006)
Transportation Portugal
Airports: 66 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 43 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 11 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 22 (2006)
Pipelines: gas 1,099 km; oil 8 km; refined products 174 km (2006)
Railways: total: 2,850 km broad gauge: 2,576 km 1.668-m gauge (623 km electrified) narrow gauge: 274 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)
Roadways: total: 78,470 km paved: 67,484 km (including 2,002 km of expressways) unpaved: 10,986 km (2004)
Waterways: 210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2003)
Merchant marine: total: 111 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,077,300 GRT/1,363,435 DWT by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 27, chemical tanker 15, container 7, liquefied gas 11, passenger 9, passenger/cargo 10, petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 4, vehicle carrier 9 foreign-owned: 82 (Australia 1, Belgium 8, Cyprus 1, Denmark 4, Germany 17, Greece 4, Italy 12, Japan 9, Malta 1, Mexico 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 4, Spain 15, Switzerland 3, US 1) registered in other countries: 16 (Cyprus 2, Hong Kong 1, Malta 3, Panama 10) (2006)
Ports and terminals: Leixoes, Lisbon, Setubal, Sines
Military Portugal
Military branches: Army, Navy (Marinha Portuguesa; includes Marine Corps), Air Force (Forca Aerea Portuguesa, FAP), National Republican Guard (Guarda Nacional Republicana) (2005)
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; compulsory military service was ended in 2004; women serve in the armed forces, on naval ships since 1993, but are prohibited from serving in some combatant specialties (2005)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 2,435,042 females age 18-49: 2,405,816 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 1,952,819 females age 18-49: 1,977,264 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 67,189 females age 18-49: 60,626 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $3,497.8 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.3% (2003)
Transnational Issues Portugal
Disputes - international: Portugal does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over the territory of Olivenza based on a difference of interpretation of the 1815 Congress of Vienna and the 1801 Treaty of Badajoz
Illicit drugs: gateway country for Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market (especially from Brazil); transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe; consumer of Southwest Asian heroin
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Puerto Rico
Introduction Puerto Rico
Background: Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following COLUMBUS' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly-elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose not to alter the existing political status.
Geography Puerto Rico
Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic
Geographic coordinates: 18 15 N, 66 30 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total: 13,790 sq km land: 8,870 sq km water: 4,921 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 501 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate: tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,339 m
Natural resources: some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil
Land use: arable land: 3.69% permanent crops: 5.59% other: 90.72% (2005)
Irrigated land: 400 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards: periodic droughts; hurricanes
Environment - current issues: erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages
Geography - note: important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north
People Puerto Rico
Population: 3,927,188 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 21.3% (male 428,610/female 409,484) 15-64 years: 65.8% (male 1,239,255/female 1,345,519) 65 years and over: 12.8% (male 218,045/female 286,275) (2006 est.)
Median age: total: 34.7 years male: 33 years female: 36.4 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.4% (2006 est.)
Birth rate: 12.77 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: 7.65 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 9.14 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.4 years male: 74.46 years female: 82.54 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.75 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 7,397 (1997)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Puerto Rican(s) (US citizens) adjective: Puerto Rican
Ethnic groups: white (mostly Spanish origin) 80.5%, black 8%, Amerindian 0.4%, Asian 0.2%, mixed and other 10.9%
Religions: Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15%
Languages: Spanish, English
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 94.1% male: 93.9% female: 94.4% (2002 est.)
Government Puerto Rico
Country name: conventional long form: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico conventional short form: Puerto Rico
Dependency status: unincorporated, organized territory of the US with commonwealth status; policy relations between Puerto Rico and the US conducted under the jurisdiction of the Office of the President
Government type: commonwealth
Capital: name: San Juan geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 66 07 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions: none (territory of the US with commonwealth status); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 78 municipalities (municipios, singular - municipio) at the second order; Adjuntas, Aguada, Aguadilla, Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, Anasco, Arecibo, Arroyo, Barceloneta, Barranquitas, Bayamon, Cabo Rojo, Caguas, Camuy, Canovanas, Carolina, Catano, Cayey, Ceiba, Ciales, Cidra, Coamo, Comerio, Corozal, Culebra, Dorado, Fajardo, Florida, Guanica, Guayama, Guayanilla, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Hatillo, Hormigueros, Humacao, Isabela, Jayuya, Juana Diaz, Juncos, Lajas, Lares, Las Marias, Las Piedras, Loiza, Luquillo, Manati, Maricao, Maunabo, Mayaguez, Moca, Morovis, Naguabo, Naranjito, Orocovis, Patillas, Penuelas, Ponce, Quebradillas, Rincon, Rio Grande, Sabana Grande, Salinas, San German, San Juan, San Lorenzo, San Sebastian, Santa Isabel, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Trujillo Alto, Utuado, Vega Alta, Vega Baja, Vieques, Villalba, Yabucoa, Yauco
Independence: none (territory of the US with commonwealth status)
National holiday: US Independence Day, 4 July (1776); Puerto Rico Constitution Day, 25 July (1952)
Constitution: ratified 3 March 1952, approved by US Congress 3 July 1952, effective 25 July 1952
Legal system: based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal system of justice
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections
Executive branch: chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001) head of government: Governor Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (since 2 January 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor with the consent of the legislature elections: under the US Consitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as Puerto Rico, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor elected by popular vote for a four-year term (no term limits); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (PPD) elected governor; percent of vote - 48.4%
Legislative branch: bicameral Legislative Assembly consists of the Senate (at least 27 seats - currently 29; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (51 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PNP 43.4%, PPD 40.3%, PIP 9.4%; seats by party - PNP 17, PPD 9, PIP 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PNP 46.3%, PPD 43.1%, PIP 9.7%; seats by party - PNP 32, PPD 18, PIP 1 note: Puerto Rico elects, by popular vote, a resident commissioner to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting representative in the US House of Representatives; aside from not voting on the House floor, he enjoys all the rights of a member of Congress; elections last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); Luis FORTUNO elected resident commissioner; results - percent of vote by party - PNP 48.6%; seats by party - PNP 1
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Appellate Court; Court of First Instance composed of two sections: a Superior Court and a Municipal Court (justices for all these courts appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate)
Political parties and leaders: National Democratic Party [Roberto PRATS]; National Republican Party of Puerto Rico [Dr. Tiody FERRE]; New Progressive Party or PNP (pro-US statehood) [Pedro ROSSELLO]; Popular Democratic Party or PPD (pro-commonwealth) [Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA]; Puerto Rican Independence Party or PIP (pro-independence) [Ruben BERRIOS Martinez]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Boricua Popular Army or EPB (a revolutionary group also known as Los Macheteros); note - the following radical groups are considered dormant by Federal law enforcement: Armed Forces for National Liberation or FALN, Armed Forces of Popular Resistance, Volunteers of the Puerto Rican Revolution
International organization participation: Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ITUC, UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WFTU
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of the US with commonwealth status)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of the US with commonwealth status)
Flag description: five equal horizontal bands of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bears a large, white, five-pointed star in the center; design initially influenced by the US flag, but similar to the Cuban flag, with the colors of the bands and triangle reversed
Economy Puerto Rico
Economy - overview: Puerto Rico has one of the most dynamic economies in the Caribbean region. A diverse industrial sector has far surpassed agriculture as the primary locus of economic activity and income. Encouraged by duty-free access to the US and by tax incentives, US firms have invested heavily in Puerto Rico since the 1950s. US minimum wage laws apply. Sugar production has lost out to dairy production and other livestock products as the main source of income in the agricultural sector. Tourism has traditionally been an important source of income, with estimated arrivals of nearly 5 million tourists in 2004. Growth fell off in 2001-03, largely due to the slowdown in the US economy, recovered in 2004-05, but declined again in 2006.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $74.89 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): NA (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 0.5% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $19,100 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1% industry: 45% services: 54% (2002 est.)
Labor force: 1.3 million (2000)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 3% industry: 20% services: 77% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12% (2002)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.5% (2003 est.)
Budget: revenues: $6.7 billion expenditures: $9.6 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00)
Agriculture - products: sugarcane, coffee, pineapples, plantains, bananas; livestock products, chickens
Industries: pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, tourism
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 24.14 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 99.2% hydro: 0.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 22.45 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production: 721.8 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption: 234,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports: NA bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: NA bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 680 million cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 680 million cu m (2004 est.)
Exports: $46.9 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Exports - commodities: chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment
Exports - partners: US 90.3%, UK 1.6%, Netherlands 1.4%, Dominican Republic 1.4% (2004)
Imports: $29.1 billion c.i.f. (2001)
Imports - commodities: chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products
Imports - partners: US 55.0%, Ireland 23.7%, Japan 5.4% (2004)
Debt - external: $NA
Economic aid - recipient: $NA
Currency (code): US dollar (USD)
Currency code: USD
Exchange rates: the US dollar is used
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
Communications Puerto Rico
Telephones - main lines in use: 1,111,900 (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 2.682 million (2004)
Telephone system: general assessment: modern system integrated with that of the US by high-capacity submarine cable and Intelsat with high-speed data capability domestic: digital telephone system; cellular telephone service international: country code - 1-787, 939; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; submarine cable to US
Radio broadcast stations: AM 74, FM 53, shortwave 0 (2006)
Radios: 2.7 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 32 (2006)
Televisions: 1.021 million (1997)
Internet country code: .pr
Internet hosts: 404 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 76 (2000)
Internet users: 1 million (2005)
Transportation Puerto Rico
Airports: 30 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 17 over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 5 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 10 (2006)
Railways: total: 96 km narrow gauge: 96 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)
Roadways: total: 25,735 km paved: 24,353 km (including 427 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,382 km (2005)
Merchant marine: total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 77,177 GRT/50,138 DWT by type: roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 3 (US 3) registered in other countries: 1 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals: Las Mareas, Mayaguez, San Juan
Military Puerto Rico
Military branches: no regular indigenous military forces; paramilitary National Guard, Police Force
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the US
Transnational Issues Puerto Rico
Disputes - international: increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage to Puerto Rico each year looking for work
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Qatar
Introduction Qatar
Background: Ruled by the al-Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Qatari economy was crippled by a continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenues by the amir, who had ruled the country since 1972. His son, the current Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa al-Thani, overthrew him in a bloodless coup in 1995. In 2001, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Oil and natural gas revenues enable Qatar to have one of the highest per capita incomes in the world.
Geography Qatar
Location: Middle East, peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia
Geographic coordinates: 25 30 N, 51 15 E
Map references: Middle East
Area: total: 11,437 sq km land: 11,437 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Connecticut
Land boundaries: total: 60 km border countries: Saudi Arabia 60 km
Coastline: 563 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: as determined by bilateral agreements or the median line
Climate: arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers
Terrain: mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and gravel
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Qurayn Abu al Bawl 103 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, fish
Land use: arable land: 1.64% permanent crops: 0.27% other: 98.09% (2005)
Irrigated land: 130 sq km (2002)
Natural hazards: haze, dust storms, sandstorms common
Environment - current issues: limited natural fresh water resources are increasing dependence on large-scale desalination facilities
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: strategic location in central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits
People Qatar
Population: 885,359 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 23.4% (male 105,546/female 101,371) 15-64 years: 73% (male 446,779/female 199,133) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 24,059/female 8,471) (2006 est.)
Median age: total: 31.7 years male: 37.1 years female: 22.7 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.5% (2006 est.)
Birth rate: 15.56 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: 4.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate: 14.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 2.24 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.87 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 18.04 deaths/1,000 live births male: 21.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 73.9 years male: 71.37 years female: 76.57 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.81 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.09% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: NA
Nationality: noun: Qatari(s) adjective: Qatari
Ethnic groups: Arab 40%, Indian 18%, Pakistani 18%, Iranian 10%, other 14%
Religions: Muslim 95%
Languages: Arabic (official), English commonly used as a second language
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89% male: 89.1% female: 88.6% (2004 est.)
Government Qatar
Country name: conventional long form: State of Qatar conventional short form: Qatar local long form: Dawlat Qatar local short form: Qatar note: closest approximation of the native pronunciation falls between cutter and gutter, but not like guitar
Government type: traditional emirate
Capital: name: Doha geographic coordinates: 25 17 N, 51 32 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions: 10 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ad Dawhah, Al Ghuwayriyah, Al Jumayliyah, Al Khawr, Al Wakrah, Ar Rayyan, Jarayan al Batinah, Madinat ash Shamal, Umm Sa'id, Umm Salal
Independence: 3 September 1971 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 3 September (1971)
Constitution: ratified by public referendum on 29 April 2003, endorsed by the amir on 8 June 2004, effective on 9 June 2005
Legal system: discretionary system of law controlled by the amir, although civil codes are being implemented; Shari'a law dominates family and personal matters
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa al-Thani (since 27 June 1995 when, as crown prince, he ousted his father, Amir KHALIFA bin Hamad al-Thani, in a bloodless coup); Crown Prince TAMIM bin Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, fourth son of the monarch (selected Heir Apparent by the monarch on 5 August 2003); note - Amir HAMAD also holds the positions of Minister of Defense and Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces head of government: Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Khalifa al-Thani, brother of the monarch (since 30 October 1996); First Deputy Prime Minister HAMAD bin Jasim bin Jabir al-Thani (since 16 September 2003, also Foreign Minister since 1992); Second Deputy Prime Minister Abdallah bin Hamad al-ATIYAH (since 16 September 2003, also Electricity and Water Minister since 1999 and Energy and Industry Minister since 1992) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary note: in April 2003, Qatar held nationwide elections for a 29-member Central Municipal Council (CMC), which has consultative powers aimed at improving the provision of municipal services; the first election for the CMC was held in March 1999
Legislative branch: unicameral Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (35 seats; members appointed) note: no legislative elections have been held since 1970 when there were partial elections to the body; Council members have had their terms extended every four years since; the new constitution, which came into force on 9 June 2005, provides for a 45-member Consultative Council, or Majlis al-Shura; the public would elect two-thirds of the Majlis al-Shura; the amir would appoint the remaining members; preparations are underway to conduct elections to the Majlis al-Shura in early 2007
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal note: under a judiciary law issued in 2003, the former two court systems, civil and Islamic law, were merged under a higher court, the Court of Cassation, established for appeals
Political parties and leaders: none
Political pressure groups and leaders: none
International organization participation: ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Nasir bin Hamad bin Mubarak al-KHALIFA chancery: 2555 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 274-1600 and 274-1603 FAX: [1] (202) 237-0061 consulate(s) general: Houston
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Chase UNTERMEYER embassy: Al-Luqta District, 22 February Road, Doha mailing address: P. O. Box 2399, Doha telephone: [974] 488 4101 FAX: [974] 488 4176
Flag description: maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side
Economy Qatar
Economy - overview: Oil and gas account for more than 60% of GDP, roughly 85% of export earnings, and 70% of government revenues. Oil and gas have given Qatar a per capita GDP about 80% of that of the leading West European industrial countries. Sustained high oil prices and increased natural gas exports in recent years have helped build Qatar's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. Proved oil reserves of more than 15 billion barrels should ensure continued output at current levels for 23 years. Qatar's proved reserves of natural gas exceed 25 trillion cubic meters, more than 5% of the world total and third largest in the world. Qatar has permitted substantial foreign investment in the development of its gas fields during the last decade and is expected to become the world's top liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter in 2007. Qatar is also trying to attract foreign investment in the development of its non-energy projects by further liberalizing the economy. Qatar has become one of the world's fastest growing and highest per-capita income countries.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $26.05 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $30.76 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 7.1% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $29,400 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 0.1% industry: 77.2% services: 22.6% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 508,000 (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate: 3.2% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7.2% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 33.2% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget: revenues: $22.51 billion expenditures: $16.89 billion; including capital expenditures of $2.2 billion (2006 est.)
Public debt: 23.6% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: fruits, vegetables; poultry, dairy products, beef; fish
Industries: crude oil production and refining, ammonia, fertilizers, petrochemicals, steel reinforcing bars, cement, commercial ship repair
Industrial production growth rate: 10% (2003 est.)
Electricity - production: 12.4 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 11.53 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2004)
Oil - production: 790,500 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption: 80,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports: NA bbl/day
Oil - imports: NA bbl/day
Oil - proved reserves: 15.2 billion bbl (2006 est.)
Natural gas - production: 39.17 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 15.11 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 24.06 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 25.77 trillion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)
Current account balance: $12.51 billion (2006 est.)
Exports: $33.25 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities: liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum products, fertilizers, steel
Exports - partners: Japan 36.9%, South Korea 19.4%, Singapore 8.2% (2005)
Imports: $12.36 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, food, chemicals
Imports - partners: France 11.4%, Japan 10.4%, US 10.3%, Germany 8.3%, Saudi Arabia 7.2%, UK 6.9%, Italy 6.4%, South Korea 5.5%, UAE 4.8% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $5.755 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external: $25.7 billion (2006 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $NA
Currency (code): Qatari rial (QAR)
Currency code: QAR
Exchange rates: Qatari rials per US dollar - 3.64 (2006), 3.64 (2005), 3.64 (2004), 3.64 (2003), 3.64 (2002)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications Qatar
Telephones - main lines in use: 205,400 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 854,900 (2006)
Telephone system: general assessment: modern system centered in Doha domestic: NA international: country code - 974; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and UAE; submarine cable to Bahrain and UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 256,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus three repeaters) (2001)
Televisions: 230,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .qa
Internet hosts: 301 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000)
Internet users: 219,000 (2005)
Transportation Qatar
Airports: 5 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 3 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Heliports: 1 (2006)
Pipelines: condensate 319 km; condensate/gas 209 km; gas 1,024 km; liquid petroleum gas 87 km; oil 844 km (2006)
Roadways: total: 1,230 km paved: 1,107 km unpaved: 123 km (1999)
Merchant marine: total: 23 ships (1000 GRT or over) 750,669 GRT/1,177,673 DWT by type: cargo 2, chemical tanker 3, container 8, liquefied gas 2, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 8 (Kuwait 7, US 1) registered in other countries: 4 (Honduras 1, Liberia 2, Panama 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals: Doha
Military Qatar
Military branches: Qatari Amiri Land Force (QALF), Qatari Amiri Navy (QAN), Qatari Amiri Air Force (QAAF)
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; land forces enlisted personnel are largely unprofessional foreign nationals (2005)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 302,873 females age 18-49: 137,856 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 238,566 females age 18-49: 116,595 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 7,851 females age 18-49: 7,040 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $723 million (FY00)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 10% (FY00)
Transnational Issues Qatar
Disputes - international: none
Trafficking in persons: current situation: Qatar is a destination country for men and women from South and Southeast Asia who migrate willingly, but are subsequently trafficked into involuntary servitude as domestic workers and laborers; the problem of trafficking of foreign children as camel jockeys was thoroughly addressed by government action in 2005, but independent confirmation of the problem's complete elimination is not yet available tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Qatar has made noticeable progress in rescuing and repatriating child camel jockeys, establishing a shelter for abused domestic workers, and creating hotlines to register complaints; however, Qatar is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to provide sufficient evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking in persons in 2005, particularly with regard to labor exploitation
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Romania
Introduction Romania
Background: The principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia - for centuries under the suzerainty of the Turkish Ottoman Empire - secured their autonomy in 1856; they united in 1859 and a few years later adopted the new name of Romania. The country gained recognition of its independence in 1878. It joined the Allied Powers in World War I and acquired new territories - most notably Transylvania - following the conflict. In 1940, Romania allied with the Axis powers and participated in the 1941 German invasion of the USSR. Three years later, overrun by the Soviets, Romania signed an armistice. The post-war Soviet occupation led to the formation of a Communist "people's republic" in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of dictator Nicolae CEAUSESCU, who took power in 1965, and his Securitate police state became increasingly oppressive and draconian through the 1980s. CEAUSESCU was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former Communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept from power. Romania joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
Geography Romania
Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Ukraine
Geographic coordinates: 46 00 N, 25 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 237,500 sq km land: 230,340 sq km water: 7,160 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Oregon
Land boundaries: total: 2,508 km border countries: Bulgaria 608 km, Hungary 443 km, Moldova 450 km, Serbia 476 km, Ukraine (north) 362 km, Ukraine (east) 169 km
Coastline: 225 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate: temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms
Terrain: central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain of Moldavia on the east by the Carpathian Mountains and separated from the Walachian Plain on the south by the Transylvanian Alps
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Moldoveanu 2,544 m
Natural resources: petroleum (reserves declining), timber, natural gas, coal, iron ore, salt, arable land, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 39.49% permanent crops: 1.92% other: 58.59% (2005)
Irrigated land: 30,770 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards: earthquakes, most severe in south and southwest; geologic structure and climate promote landslides
Environment - current issues: soil erosion and degradation; water pollution; air pollution in south from industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta wetlands
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: controls most easily traversable land route between the Balkans, Moldova, and Ukraine
People Romania
Population: 22,303,552 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 15.7% (male 1,799,072/female 1,708,030) 15-64 years: 69.6% (male 7,724,368/female 7,797,065) 65 years and over: 14.7% (male 1,347,392/female 1,927,625) (2006 est.)
Median age: total: 36.6 years male: 35.3 years female: 37.9 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.12% (2006 est.)
Birth rate: 10.7 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: 11.77 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 25.5 deaths/1,000 live births male: 28.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.63 years male: 68.14 years female: 75.34 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.37 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 6,500 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 350 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Romanian(s) adjective: Romanian
Ethnic groups: Romanian 89.5%, Hungarian 6.6%, Roma 2.5%, Ukrainian 0.3%, German 0.3%, Russian 0.2%, Turkish 0.2%, other 0.4% (2002 census)
Religions: Eastern Orthodox (including all sub-denominations) 86.8%, Protestant (various denominations including Reformate and Pentecostal) 7.5%, Roman Catholic 4.7%, other (mostly Muslim) and unspecified 0.9%, none 0.1% (2002 census)
Languages: Romanian (official), Hungarian, German
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.4% male: 99.1% female: 97.7% (2003 est.)
Government Romania
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Romania local long form: none local short form: Romania
Government type: republic
Capital: name: Bucharest geographic coordinates: 44 26 N, 26 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Administrative divisions: 41 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality* (municipiu); Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud, Botosani, Braila, Brasov, Bucuresti (Bucharest)*, Buzau, Calarasi, Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna, Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati, Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita, Iasi, Ilfov, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare, Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea
Independence: 9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from the Ottoman Empire; independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin; kingdom proclaimed 26 March 1881); 30 December 1947 (republic proclaimed)
National holiday: Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918)
Constitution: 8 December 1991; revision effective 29 October 2003
Legal system: former mixture of civil law system and communist legal theory; is now based on the constitution of France's Fifth Republic
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Traian BASESCU (since 20 December 2004) head of government: Prime Minister Calin Popescu-TARICEANU (since 29 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 28 November 2004, with runoff between the top two candidates held 12 December 2004 (next to be held November-December 2009); prime minister appointed by the president with the consent of the Parliament election results: percent of vote - Traian BASESCU 51.23%, Adrian NASTASE 48.77%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (137 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera Deputatilor (332 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 28 November 2004 (next expected to be held in November 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 28 November 2004 (next expected to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by alliance/party - PSD-PUR 37.1%, PNL-PD 31.8%, PRM 13.6%, UDMR 6.2%; seats by party - PSD 44, PNL 30, PD 20, PRM 20, PC 11, UDMR 10, independents 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by alliance/party - PSD-PUR 36.8%, PNL-PD 31.5%, PRM 13%, UDMR 6.2%; seats by party - PSD 111, PNL 66, PD 45, PRM 34, ex-PRM (Ciontu Group) 12, UDMR 22, PC 20, PIN (GUSA Group) 3, independent 1, ethnic minorities 18
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (comprised of 11 judges appointed for three-year terms by the president in consultation with the Superior Council of Magistrates, which is comprised of the minister of justice, the prosecutor general, two civil society representatives appointed by the Senate, and 14 judges and prosecutors elected by their peers); a separate body, the Constitutional Court, validates elections and makes decisions regarding the constitutionality of laws, treaties, ordinances, and internal rules of the Parliament; it is comprised of nine members serving nine-year terms, with three members each appointed by the president, the Senate, and the Chamber of Deputies
Political parties and leaders: Conservative Party or PC [Dan VOICULESCU], formerly Humanist Party or PUR; Democratic Party or PD [Emil BOC]; Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania or UDMR [Bela MARKO]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Calin Popescu-TARICEANU]; Romania Mare Party (Greater Romanian Party) or PRM [Corneliu Vadim TUDOR]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Mircea Dan GEOANA], formerly Party of Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR
Political pressure groups and leaders: various human rights and professional associations
International organization participation: ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ESA (cooperating state), EU (new member), FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Daniela GITMAN chancery: 1607 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851, 4852 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4748 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Nicholas F. TAUBMAN embassy: Strada Tudor Arghezi 7-9, Bucharest mailing address: American Embassy Bucharest, US Department of State, 5260 Bucharest Place, Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch) telephone: [40] (21) 200-3300 FAX: [40] (21) 200-3442 information office: Cluj-Napoca
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova
Economy Romania
Economy - overview: Romania began the transition from Communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country's needs. The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing three-year recession thanks to strong demand in EU export markets. Despite the global slowdown in 2001-02, strong domestic activity in construction, agriculture, and consumption have kept GDP growth above 4%. However, macroeconomic gains have only recently started to spur creation of a middle class and address Romania's widespread poverty, while corruption and red tape continue to handicap the business environment. Romanian government confidence in continuing disinflation was underscored by its currency revaluation in 2005, making 10,000 "old" lei equal 1 "new" leu. The economy grew at 6.4% in 2006, the strongest growth in the last decade. Romania joined the European Union on 1 January 2007, and the IMF has praised the country's recent reform efforts in preparation for EU accession.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $197.3 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $79.17 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 6.4% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $8,800 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 10.1% industry: 34.7% services: 55.2% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 9.33 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 31.6% industry: 30.7% services: 37.7% (2004)
Unemployment rate: 6.1% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line: 25% (2005 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 27.6% (2003)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 28.8 (2003)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.8% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 25% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget: revenues: $36.89 billion expenditures: $39.1 billion; including capital expenditures of $2.2 billion (2006 est.)
Public debt: 21.4% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes; eggs, sheep
Industries: textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining
Industrial production growth rate: 5.7% (2006 est.)
Electricity - production: 54.53 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 62.5% hydro: 27.6% nuclear: 9.9% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption: 49.62 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports: 3.7 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports: 2.6 billion kWh (2004)
Oil - production: 119,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption: 212,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports: NA bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: 163,000 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - proved reserves: 500 million bbl (yearend 2004)
Natural gas - production: 11.8 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 18 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 6.2 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 300 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)
Current account balance: $-12.45 billion (2006 est.)
Exports: $33 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities: textiles and footwear, metals and metal products, machinery and equipment, minerals and fuels, chemicals, agricultural products
Exports - partners: Italy 19.4%, Germany 14%, Turkey 7.9%, France 7.4%, UK 5.5%, Hungary 4.1%, US 4.1% (2005)
Imports: $46.48 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, fuels and minerals, chemicals, textile and products, basic metals, agricultural products
Imports - partners: Italy 15.5%, Germany 14%, Russia 8.3%, France 6.8%, Turkey 4.9%, China 4.1% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $27.88 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external: $42.76 billion (2006 est.)
Currency (code): leu (ROL) is being phased out in 2006; "new" leu (RON) was introduced in 2005 due to currency revaluation: 10,000 ROL = 1 RON
Currency code: ROL
Exchange rates: lei per US dollar - 2.84 (2006), 3 (2005), 3 (2004), 3 (2003), 3 (2002)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Romania
Telephones - main lines in use: 4.391 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 13.354 million (2005)
Telephone system: general assessment: rapidly improving domestic and international service, especially in wireless telephony domestic: 90% of telephone network is automatic; liberalization in 2003 is transforming telecommunications; there has been 20% growth in fixed lines with a penetration rate of 58% of households; nation-wide wireless service is growing even faster with four major providers and a penetration rate of 32% international: country code - 40; satellite earth station - 10 (Intelsat 4); digital, international, direct-dial exchanges operate in Bucharest (2005)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 40, FM 202, shortwave 3 (1998)
Radios: 7.2 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 48 (plus 392 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 5.25 million (1997)
Internet country code: .ro
Internet hosts: 57,470 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 38 (2000)
Internet users: 4.94 million (2005)
Transportation Romania
Airports: 61 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 25 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 36 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 23 (2006)
Heliports: 1 (2006)
Pipelines: gas 3,508 km; oil 2,427 km (2006)
Railways: total: 11,385 km standard gauge: 10,898 km 1.435-m gauge (3,888 km electrified) broad gauge: 60 km 1.524-m gauge narrow gauge: 427 km 0.760-m gauge (2005)
Roadways: total: 198,817 km paved: 60,043 km (including 228 km of expressways) unpaved: 138,774 km (2004)
Waterways: 1,731 km note: includes 1,075 km on Danube River, 524 km on secondary branches, and 132 km on canals (2005)
Merchant marine: total: 23 ships (1000 GRT or over) 198,767 GRT/246,732 DWT by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 15, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Italy 1) registered in other countries: 48 (Georgia 11, North Korea 11, Malta 9, Panama 9, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Syria 3, unknown 4) (2006)
Ports and terminals: Braila, Constanta, Galati, Tulcea
Military Romania
Military branches: Land Forces, Naval Forces, Romanian Air Force (Fortele Aerienne Romane, FAR), Special Operations (2006)
Military service age and obligation: all military inductees (including women) are volunteers who contract for an initial five-year term of service; subsequent voluntary service contracts are for successive three-year terms until the age of 36; minimum age for voluntary military service is 18 (2006)
Manpower available for military service: males age 20-49: 5,061,984 females age 20-49: 4,975,427 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 20-49: 3,932,579 females age 20-49: 4,076,288 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 172,093 females age 20-49: 165,547 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $985 million (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.47% (2002)
Transnational Issues Romania
Disputes - international: the ICJ gave Ukraine until December 2006 to reply and Romania until June 2007 to issue a rejoinder in their dispute submitted in 2004 over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy/Serpilor (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary delimitation; Romania also opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through Ukraine to the Black Sea
Illicit drugs: major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western Europe; although not a significant financial center, role as a narcotics conduit leaves it vulnerable to laundering which occurs via the banking system, currency exchange houses, and casinos
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Russia
Introduction Russia
Background: Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific. Under PETER I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire. During the 19th century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia. Defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 contributed to the Revolution of 1905, which resulted in the formation of a parliament and other reforms. Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the USSR. The brutal rule of Iosif STALIN (1928-53) strengthened Communist rule and Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize Communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into Russia and 14 other independent republics. Since then, Russia has struggled in its efforts to build a democratic political system and market economy to replace the social, political, and economic controls of the Communist period. While some progress has been made on the economic front, and Russia's management of its windfall oil wealth has improved its financial standing, recent years have seen a recentralization of power under Vladimir PUTIN and democratic institutions remain weak. Russia has severely disabled the Chechen rebel movement, although sporadic violence still occurs throughout the North Caucusus.
Geography Russia
Location: Northern Asia (the area west of the Urals is considered part of Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates: 60 00 N, 100 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area: total: 17,075,200 sq km land: 16,995,800 sq km water: 79,400 sq km
Area - comparative: approximately 1.8 times the size of the US
Land boundaries: total: 20,096.5 km border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China (southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 294 km, Finland 1,340 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 19 km, Latvia 217 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 280.5 km, Mongolia 3,485 km, Norway 196 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 232 km, Ukraine 1,576 km
Coastline: 37,653 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate: ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast
Terrain: broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 m
Natural resources: wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder exploitation of natural resources
Land use: arable land: 7.17% permanent crops: 0.11% other: 92.72% (2005)
Irrigated land: 46,000 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards: permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula; spring floods and summer/autumn forest fires throughout Siberia and parts of European Russia
Environment - current issues: air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and seacoasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination; groundwater contamination from toxic waste; urban solid waste management; abandoned stocks of obsolete pesticides
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulfur 94
Geography - note: largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture; Mount El'brus is Europe's tallest peak
People Russia
Population: 142,893,540 (July 2006 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 14.2% (male 10,441,151/female 9,921,102) 15-64 years: 71.3% (male 49,271,698/female 52,679,463) 65 years and over: 14.4% (male 6,500,814/female 14,079,312) (2006 est.)
Median age: total: 38.4 years male: 35.2 years female: 41.3 years (2006 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.37% (2006 est.)
Birth rate: 9.95 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Death rate: 14.65 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.46 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 15.13 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 67.08 years male: 60.45 years female: 74.1 years (2006 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.28 children born/woman (2006 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 860,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 9,000 (2001 est.)
Nationality: noun: Russian(s) adjective: Russian
Ethnic groups: Russian 79.8%, Tatar 3.8%, Ukrainian 2%, Bashkir 1.2%, Chuvash 1.1%, other or unspecified 12.1% (2002 census)
Religions: Russian Orthodox 15-20%, Muslim 10-15%, other Christian 2% (2006 est.) note: estimates are of practicing worshipers; Russia has large populations of non-practicing believers and non-believers, a legacy of over seven decades of Soviet rule
Languages: Russian, many minority languages
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Government Russia
Country name: conventional long form: Russian Federation conventional short form: Russia local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya local short form: Rossiya former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Government type: federation
Capital: name: Moscow geographic coordinates: 55 45 N, 37 35 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Russia is divided into eleven time zones
Administrative divisions: 48 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics (respublik, singular - respublika), 7 autonomous okrugs (avtonomnykh okrugov, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 7 krays (krayev, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (goroda, singular - gorod), and 1 autonomous oblast (avtonomnaya oblast') oblasts: Amur (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan', Belgorod, Bryansk, Chelyabinsk, Chita, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Kaliningrad, Kaluga, Kamchatka (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Kemerovo, Kirov, Kostroma, Kurgan, Kursk, Leningrad, Lipetsk, Magadan, Moscow, Murmansk, Nizhniy Novgorod, Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Orenburg, Orel, Penza, Pskov, Rostov, Ryazan', Sakhalin (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samara, Saratov, Smolensk, Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg), Tambov, Tomsk, Tula, Tver', Tyumen', Ul'yanovsk, Vladimir, Volgograd, Vologda, Voronezh, Yaroslavl' republics: Adygeya (Maykop), Altay (Gorno-Altaysk), Bashkortostan (Ufa), Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude), Chechnya (Groznyy), Chuvashiya (Cheboksary), Dagestan (Makhachkala), Ingushetiya (Magas), Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik), Kalmykiya (Elista), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk), Kareliya (Petrozavodsk), Khakasiya (Abakan), Komi (Syktyvkar), Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola), Mordoviya (Saransk), North Ossetia (Vladikavkaz), Sakha [Yakutiya] (Yakutsk), Tatarstan (Kazan'), Tyva (Kyzyl), Udmurtiya (Izhevsk) autonomous okrugs: Aga Buryat (Aginskoye), Chukotka (Anadyr'), Khanty-Mansi, Koryak (Palana), Nenets (Nar'yan-Mar), Ust'-Orda Buryat (Ust'-Ordynskiy), Yamalo-Nenets (Salekhard) krays: Altay (Barnaul), Khabarovsk, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Permskiy, Primorskiy (Vladivostok), Stavropol' federal cities: Moscow (Moskva), Saint Petersburg (Sankt-Peterburg) autonomous oblast: Yevrey [Jewish] (Birobidzhan) note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
Independence: 24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Russia Day, 12 June (1990)
Constitution: adopted 12 December 1993
Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting president 31 December 1999-6 May 2000, president since 7 May 2000) head of government: Premier Mikhail Yefimovich FRADKOV (since 5 March 2004); First Deputy Premier Dmitriy Anatolyevich MEDVEDEV (since 14 November 2005), Deputy Premiers Aleksandr Dmitriyevich ZHUKOV (since 9 March 2004) and Sergey Borisovich IVANOV (since 14 November 2005) cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of the premier and his deputies, ministers, and selected other individuals; all are appointed by the president note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); note - no vice president; if the president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier serves as acting president until a new presidential election is held, which must be within three months; premier appointed by the president with the approval of the Duma election results: Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN reelected president; percent of vote - Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN 71.2%, Nikolay KHARITONOV 13.7%, other (no candidate above 5%) 15.1%
Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (178 seats; as of July 2000, members appointed by the top executive and legislative officials in each of the 88 federal administrative units - oblasts, krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg; members serve four-year terms) and the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats; currently elected by proportional representation from party lists winning at least 7% of the vote; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: State Duma - last held 7 December 2003 (next to be held in December 2007) election results: State Duma - percent of vote received by parties clearing the 5% threshold entitling them to a proportional share of the 225 party list seats - United Russia 37.1%, CPRF 12.7%, LDPR 11.6%, Motherland 9.1%; seats by party - United Russia 222, CPRF 53, LDPR 38, Motherland 37, People's Party 19, Yabloko 4, SPS 2, other 7, independents 65, repeat election required 3; note - seats by party as of 1 July 2006 - United Russia 309, CPRF 45, LDPR 35, Motherland 29, People's Party 12, independents 18, vacant 2
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Supreme Arbitration Court; judges for all courts are appointed for life by the Federation Council on the recommendation of the president
Political parties and leaders: A Just Russia or JR [Sergey MIRONOV] (formed from the merger of three small political parties: Rodina (Motherland), Pensioners Party, and Party of Life); Communist Party of the Russian Federation or CPRF [Gennadiy Andreyevich ZYUGANOV]; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR [Vladimir Volfovich ZHIRINOVSKIY]; People's Party [Gennadiy GUDKOV]; Union of Right Forces or SPS [Nikita BELYKH]; United Russia or UR [Boris Vyacheslavovich GRYZLOV]; Yabloko Party [Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: APEC, Arctic Council, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC, CBSS, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, G- 8, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OIC (observer), ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Yuriy Viktorovich USHAKOV chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-5700, 5701, 5704, 5708 FAX: [1] (202) 298-5735 consulate(s) general: Houston, New York, San Francisco, Seattle
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador William J. BURNS embassy: Bolshoy Deviatinskiy Pereulok No. 8, 121099 Moscow mailing address: PSC-77, APO AE 09721 telephone: [7] (495) 728-5000 FAX: [7] (495) 728-5090 consulate(s) general: Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red
Economy Russia
Economy - overview: Russia ended 2006 with its eighth straight year of growth, averaging 6.7% annually since the financial crisis of 1998. Although high oil prices and a relatively cheap ruble are important drivers of this economic rebound, since 2000 investment and consumer-driven demand have played a noticeably increasing role. Real fixed capital investments have averaged gains greater than 10% over the last five years, and real personal incomes have realized average increases over 12%. During this time, poverty has declined steadily and the middle class has continued to expand. Russia has also improved its international financial position since the 1998 financial crisis. Over the past several years, Russia has used its stabilization fund based on oil taxes to prepay all Soviet-era sovereign debt to Paris Club creditors and the IMF. Foreign debt has decreased to 39% of GDP, mainly due to decreasing state debt, while commercial debt to foreigners has risen strongly. Oil export earnings have allowed Russia to increase its foreign reserves from $12 billion in 1999 to some $315 billion at yearend 2006, the third largest reserves in the world. These achievements, along with a renewed government effort to advance structural reforms and fiscal restraint, have raised business and investor confidence in Russia's economic prospects. Russia's economy grew 6.6% in 2006 and inflation growth was below 10% for the first time in the past 10 years. Russia shows signs of increasing its ties to the global economy, having signed a bilateral market access agreement with the US as a prelude to possible WTO entry. Nevertheless, serious problems persist. Oil, natural gas, metals, and timber account for more than 80% of exports, leaving the country vulnerable to swings in world commodity prices. Russia's manufacturing base is dilapidated and must be replaced or modernized if the country is to achieve broad-based economic growth. The banking system, while growing at a high rate and increasing consumer lending, is still small relative to the banking sectors of Russia's emerging market peers. Domestic and foreign investor sentiment is tempered by political uncertainties ahead of elections, corruption, and widespread lack of trust in institutions. President PUTIN continues to grant more influence to forces within his government that desire to reassert state control over the economy. Government spending has increased and risks becoming populist, most notably in the form of the four "national projects" of agriculture, education, housing, and medicine. Russia has made little progress in building the rule of law, the bedrock of a modern market economy.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $1.723 trillion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $733 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 6.6% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $12,100 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 5.3% industry: 36.6% services: 58.2% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 73.88 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 10.8% industry: 29.1% services: 60.1% (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate: 6.6% plus considerable underemployment (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line: 17.8% (2004 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.7% highest 10%: 38.7% (1998)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 40.5 (2005)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9.8% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 18.2% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget: revenues: $222.2 billion expenditures: $157.3 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)
Public debt: 8% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, vegetables, fruits; beef, milk
Industries: complete range of mining and extractive industries producing coal, oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of machine building from rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and space vehicles; defense industries including radar, missile production, and advanced electronic components, shipbuilding; road and rail transportation equipment; communications equipment; agricultural machinery, tractors, and construction equipment; electric power generating and transmitting equipment; medical and scientific instruments; consumer durables, textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts
Industrial production growth rate: 4.8% (2006 est.)
Electricity - production: 952.4 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 66.3% hydro: 17.2% nuclear: 16.4% other: 0.1% (2003)
Electricity - consumption: 940 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports: 22.3 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports: 9.9 billion kWh (2005)
Oil - production: 9.4 million bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption: 2.5 million bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - exports: 7 million bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports: 100,000 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves: 74.4 billion bbl (2005 est.)
Natural gas - production: 641 billion cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 445.1 billion cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 216.8 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 36.6 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 47.57 trillion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)
Current account balance: $105.3 billion (2006 est.)
Exports: $317.6 billion (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities: petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas, wood and wood products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and military manufactures
Exports - partners: Netherlands 10.3%, Germany 8.3%, Italy 7.9%, China 5.5%, Ukraine 5.2%, Turkey 4.5%, Switzerland 4.4% (2005)
Imports: $171.5 billion (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, consumer goods, medicines, meat, sugar, semifinished metal products
Imports - partners: Germany 13.6%, Ukraine 8%, China 7.4%, Japan 6%, Belarus 4.7%, US 4.7%, Italy 4.6%, South Korea 4.1% (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $314.5 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external: $287.4 billion (30 June 2006 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: in FY01 from US, $979 million (including $750 million in non-proliferation subsidies); in 2001 from EU, $200 million (2000 est.)
Currency (code): Russian ruble (RUR)
Currency code: RUR
Exchange rates: Russian rubles per US dollar - 27.5 (2006), 28.284 (2005), 28.814 (2004), 30.692 (2003), 31.349 (2002)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Russia
Telephones - main lines in use: 40.1 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 120 million (2005)
Telephone system: general assessment: the telephone system is experiencing significant changes; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed to offer communication services; access to digital lines has improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy; the estimated number of mobile subscribers jumped from fewer than 1 million in 1998 to 120 million in 2005; a large demand for main line service remains unsatisfied, but fixed-line operators continue to grow their services domestic: cross-country digital trunk lines run from Saint Petersburg to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the telephone systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital infrastructures; cellular services, both analog and digital, are available in many areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are still outdated, inadequate, and low density international: country code - 7; Russia is connected internationally by three undersea fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several cities provide more than 50,000 lines for international calls; satellite earth stations provide access to Intelsat, Intersputnik, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Orbita systems
Radio broadcast stations: AM 323, FM 1,500 est., shortwave 62 (2004)
Radios: 61.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 7,306 (1998)
Televisions: 60.5 million (1997)
Internet country code: .ru; note - Russia also has responsibility for a legacy domain ".su" that was allocated to the Soviet Union, and whose legal status and ownership are contested by the Russian Government, ICANN, and several Russian commercial entities
Internet hosts: 1,979,924 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 300 (June 2000)
Internet users: 23.7 million (2005)
Transportation Russia
Airports: 1,623 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 616 over 3,047 m: 51 2,438 to 3,047 m: 198 1,524 to 2,437 m: 130 914 to 1,523 m: 100 under 914 m: 137 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 1,007 over 3,047 m: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 1,524 to 2,437 m: 75 914 to 1,523 m: 127 under 914 m: 780 (2006)
Heliports: 52 (2006)
Pipelines: condensate 122 km; gas 156,285 km; oil 72,283 km; refined products 13,658 km (2006)
Railways: total: 87,157 km broad gauge: 86,200 km 1.520-m gauge (40,300 km electrified) narrow gauge: 957 km 1.067-m gauge (on Sakhalin Island) note: an additional 30,000 km of non-common carrier lines serve industries (2005)
Roadways: total: 871,000 km paved: 738,000 km (including 29,000 km of expressways) unpaved: 133,000 km note: includes public and departmental roads (2004)
Waterways: 102,000 km (including 33,000 km with guaranteed depth) note: 72,000 km system in European Russia links Baltic Sea, White Sea, Caspian Sea, Sea of Azov, and Black Sea (2005)
Merchant marine: total: 1,178 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,080,341 GRT/6,287,784 DWT by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 46, cargo 743, chemical tanker 25, combination ore/oil 38, container 13, passenger 12, passenger/cargo 7, petroleum tanker 219, refrigerated cargo 54, roll on/roll off 15, specialized tanker 5 foreign-owned: 100 (Belgium 4, Canada 1, Cyprus 2, Estonia 1, Germany 2, Greece 1, Latvia 2, Malta 4, Norway 1, Switzerland 7, Turkey 63, Ukraine 11, US 1) registered in other countries: 465 (Antigua and Barbuda 6, Bahamas 6, Belize 36, Bulgaria 1, Cambodia 105, Comoros 4, Cyprus 53, Dominica 2, Finland 1, Georgia 28, North Korea 1, Liberia 77, Malta 70, Marshall Islands 1, Mongolia 13, Panama 7, Saint Kitts and Nevis 5, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 29, Sierra Leone 1, Tuvalu 2, Ukraine 1, Vanuatu 1, Venezuela 1, unknown 14) (2006)
Ports and terminals: Anapa, Kaliningrad, Murmansk, Nakhodka, Novorossiysk, Rostov-na-Donu, Saint Petersburg, Taganrog, Vanino, Vostochnyy
Military Russia
Military branches: Ground Forces (SV), Navy (VMF), Air Forces (VVS); Airborne Troops (VDV), Strategic Rocket Troops (RVSN), and Space Troops (KV) are independent "combat arms," not subordinate to any of the three branches
Military service age and obligation: Russia has adopted a mixed conscript-contract force; 18-27 years of age; males are registered for the draft at 17 years of age; length of compulsory military service is two years; plans call for reduction in mandatory service to 18 months in 2007 and to one year by 2008; 30% of Russian army personnel were contract servicemen at the end of 2005; planning calls for volunteer servicemen to compose 70% of armed forces by 2010, with the remaining servicemen consisting of conscripts; as of November 2006, the Armed Forces had more than 60 units manned with contract personnel totalling over 78,000 contract privates and sergeants; 88 Ministry of Defense units have been designated as permanent readiness units and are expected to become all-volunteer by end 2007; these include most air force, naval, and nuclear arms units, as well as all airborne and naval infantry units, most motorized rifle brigades, and all special forces detachments (2006)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 35,247,049 females age 18-49: 35,986,426 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 21,049,651 females age 18-49: 29,056,021 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 1,286,069 females age 18-49: 1,244,264 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA
Transnational Issues Russia
Disputes - international: China and Russia have demarcated the once disputed islands at the Amur and Ussuri confluence and in the Argun River in accordance with the 2004 Agreement, ending their centuries-long border disputes; the sovereignty dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan, and the Habomai group, known in Japan as the "Northern Territories" and in Russia as the "Southern Kurils," occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, and claimed by Japan, remains the primary sticking point to signing a peace treaty formally ending World War II hostilities; Russia and Georgia agree on delimiting all but small, strategic segments of the land boundary and the maritime boundary; OSCE observers monitor volatile areas such as the Pankisi Gorge in the Akhmeti region and the Kodori Gorge in Abkhazia; Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Russia signed equidistance boundaries in the Caspian seabed but the littoral states have no consensus on dividing the water column; Russia and Norway dispute their maritime limits in the Barents Sea and Russia's fishing rights beyond Svalbard's territorial limits within the Svalbard Treaty zone; various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia (Kareliya) and other areas ceded to the Soviet Union following the Second World War but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands; in May 2005, Russia recalled its signatures to the 1996 border agreements with Estonia (1996) and Latvia (1997), when the two Baltic states announced issuance of unilateral declarations referencing Soviet occupation and ensuing territorial losses; Russia demands better treatment of ethnic Russians in Estonia and Latvia; Estonian citizen groups continue to press for realignment of the boundary based on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; Lithuania and Russia committed to demarcating their boundary in 2006 in accordance with the land and maritime treaty ratified by Russia in May 2003 and by Lithuania in 1999; Lithuania operates a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals traveling from the Kaliningrad coastal exclave into Russia, while still conforming, as an EU member state with an EU external border, where strict Schengen border rules apply; preparations for the demarcation delimitation of land boundary with Ukraine have commenced; the dispute over the boundary between Russia and Ukraine through the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov remains unresolved despite a December 2003 framework agreement and on-going expert-level discussions; Kazakhstan and Russia boundary delimitation was ratified on November 2005 and field demarcation should commence in 2007; Russian Duma has not yet ratified 1990 Bering Sea Maritime Boundary Agreement with the US
Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs: 25,000-180,000 (displacement from Chechnya and North Ossetia) (2006)
Trafficking in persons: current situation: Russia is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for various purposes; it remains a significant source of women trafficked to over 50 countries for commercial sexual exploitation; Russia is also a transit and destination country for men and women trafficked from Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and North Korea to Central and Western Europe and the Middle East for purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation; internal trafficking remains a problem in Russia with women trafficked from rural areas to urban centers for commercial sexual exploitation, and men are trafficked internally and from Central Asia for forced labor in the construction and agricultural industries; debt bondage is common among trafficking victims, and child sex tourism remains a concern tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Russia is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List for a third consecutive year for its continued failure to show evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking, particularly in the area of victim protection and assistance
Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of illicit cannabis and opium poppy and producer of methamphetamine, mostly for domestic consumption; government has active illicit crop eradication program; used as transshipment point for Asian opiates, cannabis, and Latin American cocaine bound for growing domestic markets, to a lesser extent Western and Central Europe, and occasionally to the US; major source of heroin precursor chemicals; corruption and organized crime are key concerns; heroin increasingly popular in domestic market
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Rwanda
Introduction Rwanda
Background: In 1959, three years before independence from Belgium, the majority ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the next several years, thousands of Tutsis were killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries. The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with several political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic tensions, culminating in April 1994 in the genocide of roughly 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. The Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutu regime and ended the killing in July 1994, but approximately 2 million Hutu refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and the former Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but several thousand remain in neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo and formed an extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF tried in 1990. Despite substantial international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 and its first post-genocide presidential and legislative elections in August and September 2003 - the country continues to struggle to boost investment and agricultural output, and ethnic reconciliation is complicated by the real and perceived Tutsi political dominance. Kigali's increasing centralization and intolerance of dissent, the nagging Hutu extremist insurgency across the border, and Rwandan involvement in two wars in recent years in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts to escape its bloody legacy.
Geography Rwanda
Location: Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Geographic coordinates: 2 00 S, 30 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries: total: 893 km border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible
Terrain: mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m
Natural resources: gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land
Land use: arable land: 45.56% permanent crops: 10.25% other: 44.19% (2005)
Irrigated land: 90 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards: periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo
Environment - current issues: deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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