Albania (2002) | Martinique (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 counties (qarqe, singular - qark); Qarku i Beratit, Qarku i Dibres, Qarku i Durresit, Qarku i Elbasanit, Qarku i Fierit, Qarku i Gjirokastres, Qarku i Korces, Qarku i Kukesit, Qarku i Lezhes, Qarku i Shkodres, Qarku i Tiranes, Qarku i Vlores | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.8% (male 528,678; female 493,531)
15-64 years: 64% (male 1,094,034; female 1,175,024) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 111,524; female 142,050) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 23% (male 49,261; female 47,843)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 140,616; female 141,460) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 19,274; female 23,823) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane |
Airports | 11 (2001) | 2 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
total: 1,100 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | In 1990 Albania ended 44 years of xenophobic communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, a dilapidated infrastructure, widespread gangsterism, and disruptive political opponents. International observers judged local elections in 2001 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but identified serious deficiencies which should be addressed through reforms in the Albanian electoral code. | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. |
Birth rate | 18.59 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15.37 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $697 million
expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $900 million
expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) (1996) |
Capital | Tirana | Fort-de-France |
Climate | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid |
Coastline | 362 km | 350 km |
Constitution | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Albania
conventional short form: Albania local long form: Republika e Shqiperise local short form: Shqiperia former: People's Socialist Republic of Albania |
conventional long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
Currency | lek (ALL) | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 6.49 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $784 million (2000) | $180 million (1994) (1994) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James F. JEFFREY
embassy: Rruga Elbasanit, Labinoti #103, Tirana mailing address: U. S. Department of State, 9510 Tirana Place, Washington, DC 20521-9510 telephone: [355] (4) 247285 FAX: [355] (4) 232222 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Fatos TARIFA
chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4942 FAX: [1] (202) 628-7342 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | the Albanian Government supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders in the Kosovo region of Serbia and Montenegro and in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia while continuing to seek regional cooperation; many Albanians illegally transit neighboring states to emigrate to western Europe | none |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.) | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France |
Economy - overview | Poor and backward by European standards, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to revive economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from abroad of $400-$600 million annually, mostly from Greece and Italy. Agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, is held back because of frequent drought and the need to modernize equipment and consolidate small plots of land. Severe energy shortages are forcing small firms out of business, increasing unemployment, scaring off foreign investors, and spurring inflation. The government plans to boost energy imports to relieve the shortages. | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism, which employs more than 11,000 people, has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.378 billion kWh (2000) | 1.046 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 100 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 1.072 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 4.738 billion kWh (2000) | 1.125 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 3%
hydro: 97% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Albanian 95%, Greek 3%, other 2% (Vlach, Gypsy, Serb, and Bulgarian) (1989 est.)
note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization) |
African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | leke per US dollar - 140.16 (November 2001), 143.71 (2000) 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998), 148.93 (1997); note - leke is the plural of lek | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President of the Republic Alfred MOISIU (since 24 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Fatos NANO (since 31 July 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president elections: president elected by the People's Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 24 June 2002 (next to be held NA June 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Alfred MOISIU elected president; People's Assembly vote by number - total votes 116, for 97, against 19 |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Michel CADOT (since 21 June 2000)
head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | $340 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $250 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Exports - commodities | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples |
Exports - partners | Italy 71%, Greece 12%, Germany 7%, Yugoslavia 3% (2001) | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $14 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 49%
industry: 27% services: 24% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 41 00 N, 20 00 E | 14 40 N, 61 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) | the island is dominated by Mount Pelee, which on 8 May 1902 erupted and completely destroyed the city of Saint Pierre, killing 30,000 inhabitants |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (1998 est.) |
total: 2,105 km (2000)
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates, hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium and growing cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe; vulnerable to money laundering associated with regional trafficking in narcotics, arms, contraband, and illegal aliens | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe |
Imports | $1.5 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $2 billion c.i.f. (1997) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods |
Imports - partners | Italy 32%, Greece 26%, Turkey 6%, Germany 6%, Bulgaria 2% (2001) | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) |
Independence | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 9% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 38.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 7.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2002 est.) | 3.9% (1990) (1990) |
International organization participation | ACCT, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 10 (2001) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 3,400 sq km (1998 est.) | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.) | 170,000 (1997) (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 50%, industry and services 50% | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) (1997) |
Land boundaries | total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.45% other: 74.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32% other: 79.25% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek | French, Creole patois |
Legal system | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor (140 seats; 100 are elected by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote for four-year terms)
elections: last held 24 June with subsequent rounds on 8 July, 22 July, 29 July, 19 August 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 41.5%, PD and coalition allies 36.8%, NDP 5.2%, PSD 3.6%, PBDNJ 2.6%, PASH 2.6%, PAD 2.5%; seats by party - PS 73, PD and coalition allies 46, NDP 6, PSD 4, PBDNJ 3, PASH 3, PAD 3, independents 2 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - left-wing candidates 13, PPM 11, RPR 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCM 3, UDF 3, PMS 2, independents 2; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 2001 (next to be held September 2004); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held, first round - 9 June 2002, second round - 16 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, PMS 1, MIM 1, left-wing candidate 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.1 years
male: 69.27 years female: 75.14 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 78.56 years
male: 79.19 years female: 77.92 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 93% (1997 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 13,423 GRT/20,837 DWT
ships by type: cargo 7, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Honduras 1 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $56.5 million (FY02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.49% (FY02) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 888,086 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 727,406 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 35,792 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land |
Net migration rate | -1.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 196 km; petroleum products 55 km; natural gas 64 km (1996) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Agrarian Party or PASH [Lufter XHUVELI]; Albanian National Front (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Shptim ROQI]; Albanian Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEDIU]; Albanian Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albania Workers Party) [Fatos NANO, chairman]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef BUSHATI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Nerltan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Group of Reformist Democrats [Leonard NDOKA]; Legality Movement Party or PLL [Ekrem SPAHIA]; Liberal Union Party or PBL [Teodor LACO]; New Democratic Party or NDP [Genc POLLO]; OMONIA [Vagjelis DULES]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQUIRI]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Unity for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil MELO, chairman] | Martinique Communist Party or PCM [Pierre SUEDILLE]; Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; note - may no longer be in existence; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Movement of Democrats and Ecologists for a Sovereign Martinique or Modemas [Garcin MALSA]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Jean MAREN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP |
Population | 3,544,841 (July 2002 est.) | 422,277 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 30% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.06% (2002 est.) | 0.89% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore | Fort-de-France, La Trinite |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1 million (2001) | 82,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2001 est.) |
0 km (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10%
note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing private religious practice |
Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: Albania has the poorest telephone service in Europe with fewer than two telephones per 100 inhabitants; it is doubtful that every village has telephone service
domestic: obsolete wire system; no longer provides a telephone for every village; in 1992, following the fall of the Communist government, peasants cut the wire to about 1,000 villages and used it to build fences international: inadequate; international traffic carried by microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece |
general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 120,000 (2001) | 170,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 250,000 (2001) | 15,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001) | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano |
Total fertility rate | 2.27 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 17% officially (2001 est.); may be as high as 30% (2001) | 27.2% (1998) (1998) |
Waterways | 43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |
none |