Albania (2003) | Bolivia (2001) | |
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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 | 9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.1% (male 520,714; female 486,911)
15-64 years: 64.6% (male 1,115,887; female 1,196,477) 65 years and over: 7.3% (male 115,754; female 146,462) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
38.46% (male 1,626,698; female 1,565,748) 15-64 years: 57.07% (male 2,315,098; female 2,421,987) 65 years and over: 4.47% (male 166,986; female 203,946) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber |
Airports | 12 (2002) | 1,093 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
13 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
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:
1,080 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 65 914 to 1,523 m: 212 under 914 m: 800 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
total:
1,098,580 sq km land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly less than three times the size of Montana |
Background | Between 1990 and 1992 Albania ended 46 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 legislative elections in 2001 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but identified serious deficiencies that should be addressed through reforms in the Albanian electoral code. | Bolivia, named after independence fighter Simon BOLIVAR, broke away from Spanish rule in 1825; much of its subsequent history has consisted of a series of nearly 200 coups and counter-coups. Comparatively democratic civilian rule was established in the 1980s, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and drug production. Current goals include attracting foreign investment, strengthening the educational system, continuing the privatization program, and waging an anti-corruption campaign. |
Birth rate | 18.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 27.27 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $697 million
expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.) |
revenues:
$2.7 billion expenditures: $2.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
Capital | Tirana | La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary) |
Climate | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter | varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid |
Coastline | 362 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote | 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994 |
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:
Republic of Bolivia conventional short form: Bolivia local long form: Republica de Bolivia local short form: Bolivia |
Currency | lek (ALL) | boliviano (BOB) |
Death rate | 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 8.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $784 million (2000) | $6.6 billion (2000) |
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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador V. Manuel ROCHA embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032 telephone: [591] (2) 432254 FAX: [591] (2) 433854 |
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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Marlene FERNANDEZ del Granado chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | the Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside its borders in the Kosovo region of Serbia and Montenegro, and in the northern Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, while continuing to seek regional cooperation; some outside ethnic Albanian groups voice union with Albania | has wanted a sovereign corridor to the South Pacific Ocean since the Atacama area was lost to Chile in 1884; dispute with Chile over Rio Lauca water rights |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.) | $588 million (1997) |
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 spur economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from abroad of $400-$600 million annually, mostly from Greece and Italy; this helps offset the sizable trade deficit. 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. In addition, the government is moving to improve the poor national road network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth. | Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, has made considerable progress toward the development of a market-oriented economy. Successes under President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA (1993-97) included the signing of a free trade agreement with Mexico and joining the Southern Cone Common Market (Mercosur), as well as the privatization of the state airline, telephone company, railroad, electric power company, and oil company. His successor, Hugo BANZER Suarez has tried to further improve the country's investment climate with an anticorruption campaign. Growth slowed in 1999, in part due to tight government budget policies, which limited needed appropriations for anti-poverty programs, and the fallout from the Asian financial crisis. In 2000, major civil disturbances in April, and again in September and October, held down overall growth to 2.5%. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.898 billion kWh (2001) | 3.377 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 221 million kWh (2001) | 4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 1.2 billion kWh (2001) | 10 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 5.289 billion kWh (2001) | 3.625 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 2.9%
hydro: 97.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
56.61% hydro: 41.6% nuclear: 0% other: 1.79% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
lowest point:
Rio Paraguay 90 m highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents | the clearing of land for agricultural purposes and the international demand for tropical timber are contributing to deforestation; soil erosion from overgrazing and poor cultivation methods (including slash-and-burn agriculture); desertification; loss of biodiversity; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection |
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) |
Quechua 30%, Aymara 25%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, white 15% |
Exchange rates | leke per US dollar - NA (2002), 143.49 (2001), 143.71 (2000), 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998) | bolivianos per US dollar - 6.4071 (January 2001), 6.1835 (2000), 5.8124 (1999), 5.5101 (1998), 5.2543 (1997), 5.0746 (1996) |
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 Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held May or June 2002) election results: Hugo BANZER Suarez elected president; percent of vote - Hugo BANZER Suarez (ADN) 22%; Jaime PAZ Zamora (MIR) 17%, Juan Carlos DURAN (MNR) 18%, Ivo KULJIS (UCS) 16%, Remedios LOZA (CONDEPA) 17%; no candidate received a majority of the popular vote; Hugo BANZER Suarez won a congressional runoff election on 5 August 1997 after forming a "megacoalition" with MIR, UCS, CONDEPA, NFR, and PDC |
Exports | NA (2001) | $1.26 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco | soybeans, natural gas, zinc, gold, wood |
Exports - partners | Italy 76.6%, Germany 5.6%, Greece 2.7% (2002) | UK 16%, US 12%, Peru 11%, Argentina 10%, Colombia 7% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band; similar to the flag of Ghana, which has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $15.69 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20.9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 49%
industry: 27% services: 24% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
16% industry: 31% services: 53% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7.3% (2002 est.) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 41 00 N, 20 00 E | 17 00 S, 65 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) | landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (2000) |
total:
49,400 km paved: 2,500 km (including 30 km of expressways) unpaved: 46,900 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 31.7% (1990) |
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 | world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru, a distant second) with an estimated 14,600 hectares under cultivation in 2000, a 33% decrease in overall cultivation of coca from 1999 levels; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported to or through Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to the US and other international drug markets; eradication and alternative crop programs have slashed illicit coca cultivation during the BANZER administration beginning in 1997 |
Imports | NA (2001) | $1.86 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals | capital goods, raw materials and semi-manufactures, chemicals, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | Italy 39.4%, Greece 24.5%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2002) | US 32%, Japan 24%, Brazil 12%, Argentina 12%, Chile 7%, Peru 4%, Germany 3%, other 6% (1998) |
Independence | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 9% (2000 est.) | 4% (1995 est.) |
Industries | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 37.28 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 39.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 34.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
58.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2002 est.) | 4.4% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, 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, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | CAN, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 10 (2001) | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 3,400 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,750 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges appointed for 10-year terms by National Congress); District Courts (one in each department); provincial and local courts (to try minor cases) |
Labor force | 1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.) | 2.5 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 50%, industry and services 50% | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km |
total:
6,743 km border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km |
Land use | arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.45% other: 74.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 53% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek | Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official) |
Legal system | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 2001 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 |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - some members are drawn from party lists, thus not directly elected)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA June 2002) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ADN 11, MIR 7, MNR 4, CONDEPA 3, UCS 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ADN 32, MNR 26, MIR 23, UCS 21, CONDEPA 19, MBL 5, IU 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.37 years
male: 69.53 years female: 75.42 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
64.06 years male: 61.53 years female: 66.72 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5% male: 93.3% female: 79.5% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.1% male: 90.5% female: 76% (1995 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro | Central South America, southwest of Brazil |
Map references | Europe | South America |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 21,954 GRT/34,412 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 11, roll on/roll off 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Honduras 1 (2002 est.) |
total:
42 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 141,017 GRT/211,058 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 20, chemical tanker 3, container 1, petroleum tanker 10, roll on/roll off 3 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana), National Police Force (Policia Nacional de Bolivia) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $56.5 million (FY02) | $147 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.49% (FY02) | 1.8% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 906,168 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,005,660 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 742,837 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,306,452 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 36,985 (2003 est.) | males:
90,120 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) | Independence Day, 6 August (1825) |
Nationality | noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
noun:
Bolivian(s) adjective: Bolivian |
Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought | flooding in the northeast (March-April) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower | tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 339 km; oil 207 km (2003) | crude oil 1,800 km; petroleum products 580 km; natural gas 1,495 km |
Political parties and leaders | Agrarian Party of Albania or PASH [Lufter XHUVELI]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef BUSHATI]; Communist Party of Albania or PKSH [Hysni MILLOSHI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Nerltan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Legality Movement Party or PLL [Guri DUROLLARI]; National Front Party (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQUIRI]; Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEDIU]; Social Democracy or DS [Paskal MILO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albanian Party of Labor) [Fatos NANO]; Union for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil MELO] | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [leader NA]; Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Conscience of the Fatherland or CONDEPA [Remedios LOZA Alvarado]; Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Antonio ARANIBAR]; Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Jaime PAZ Zamora]; Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Hugo BANZER Suarez]; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA]; New Republican Force or NFR [leader NA]; Pachacuti Indigenous Movement [Filipe QUISPE]; United Left or IU [Marcos DOMIC]
note: the ADN, MIR, and UCS comprise the ruling coalition |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Omonia [Vangjel DULES] | Cocalero Groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions |
Population | 3,582,205 (July 2003 est.) | 8,300,463 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 30% (2001 est.) | 70% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.03% (2003 est.) | 1.76% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore | none; however, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999) |
Radios | - | 5.25 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
total:
3,691 km (single track) narrow gauge: 3,652 km 1.000-m gauge; 39 km 0.760-m gauge (13 km electrified) (1995) |
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%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.08 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 (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single) |
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:
new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile cellular telephone use expanding rapidly domestic: primary trunk system, which is being expanded, employs digital microwave radio relay; some areas are served by fiber-optic cable; mobile cellular systems are being expanded international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 120,000 (2001) | 327,600 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 250,000 (2001) | 116,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001) | 48 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast | rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin |
Total fertility rate | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.51 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 17% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.) | 11.4% (1997)
note: widespread underemployment |
Waterways | 43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |
10,000 km (commercially navigable) |