Argentina (2002) | Albania (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 autonomous city* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Capital Federal*, Catamarca, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba, Corrientes, Entre Rios, Formosa, Jujuy, La Pampa, La Rioja, Mendoza, Misiones, Neuquen, Rio Negro, Salta, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero, Tierra del Fuego - Antartida e Islas del Atlantico Sur, Tucuman
note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica |
36 districts (rrethe, singular - rreth) and 1 municipality* (bashki); Berat, Bulqize, Delvine, Devoll (Bilisht), Diber (Peshkopi), Durres, Elbasan, Fier, Gjirokaster, Gramsh, Has (Krume), Kavaje, Kolonje (Erseke), Korce, Kruje, Kucove, Kukes, Kurbin, Lezhe, Librazhd, Lushnje, Malesi e Madhe (Koplik), Mallakaster (Ballsh), Mat (Burrel), Mirdite (Rreshen), Peqin, Permet, Pogradec, Puke, Sarande, Shkoder, Skrapar (Corovode), Tepelene, Tirane (Tirana), Tirane* (Tirana), Tropoje (Bajram Curri), Vlore
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26.3% (male 5,090,046; female 4,854,761)
15-64 years: 63.2% (male 11,968,135; female 11,937,709) 65 years and over: 10.5% (male 1,636,332; female 2,325,834) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
29.53% (male 536,495; female 500,026) 15-64 years: 63.48% (male 1,073,351; female 1,155,115) 65 years and over: 6.99% (male 107,476; female 138,021) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products |
Airports | 1,369 (2001) | 11 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 145
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 62 914 to 1,523 m: 44 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1,197 1,225
over 3,047 m: 2 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50 53 914 to 1,523 m: 572 598 under 914 m: 571 570 (2002) |
total:
8 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 2,766,890 sq km
land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km |
total:
28,748 sq km land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, a long period of Peronist authoritarian rule and interference in subsequent governments was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and numerous elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation. | 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 2000 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but serious deficiencies remain to be corrected before the the 2001 parliamentary elections. |
Birth rate | 18.23 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 19.01 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $44 billion
expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$393 million expenditures: $676 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | Buenos Aires | Tirana |
Climate | mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter |
Coastline | 4,989 km | 362 km |
Constitution | 1 May 1853; revised August 1994 | a new constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote |
Country name | conventional long form: Argentine Republic
conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina |
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 |
Currency | Argentine peso (ARS) | lek (ALL) |
Death rate | 7.57 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.5 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $155 billion (2001 est.) | $1 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James D. WALSH
embassy: Avenida Colombia 4300, C1425GMN Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: [54] (11) 5777-4533 FAX: [54] (11) 5777-4240 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph LIMPRECHT embassy: Rruga Elbasanit Labinoti 103, Tirana mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100(A), APO AE 09624 telephone: [355] (42) 32875, 33520 FAX: [355] (42) 32222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AMADEO
chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6400 FAX: [1] (202) 332-3171 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Petrit BUSHATI chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4942 FAX: [1] (202) 628-7342 |
Disputes - international | claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica partially overlaps British and Chilean claims | the Albanian Government supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders but has downplayed them to further its primary foreign policy goal of regional cooperation; Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Yugoslavia; Albanians in The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia claim discrimination in education, access to public-sector jobs, and representation in government |
Economic aid - recipient | $10 billion (2001 est.) | $NA; aid for energy from China, Germany, Norway (2000) |
Economy - overview | Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. Over the past decade, however, the country has suffered recurring economic problems of inflation, hugh external debt, capital flight, and budget deficits. Growth in 2000 was a negative 0.5%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain the peso's fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. The economic situation worsened in 2001 with the widening of spreads on Argentine bonds, massive withdrawals from the banks, and a further decline in consumer and investor confidence. Government efforts to achieve a "zero deficit", to stabilize the banking system, and to restore economic growth proved inadequate in the face of the mounting economic problems. The peso's peg to the dollar was abandoned in January 2002, and the peso was floated in February; the exchange rate plunged and inflation picked up rapidly, but by mid-2002 the economy had stabilized, albeit at a lower level. Output was 14.7% below the previous year's figure, and unemployment remained high, at 21.5%. In order to reverse the crisis some economists recently have advocated that Argentina adopt the US dollar as the national currency, however, others argue tieing the economy closely to the dollar was precisely what led to Argentina's current problems. | Poor by European standards, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more open-market economy. The economy rebounded in 1993-95 after a severe depression accompanying the end of the previous centrally planned system in 1990 and 1991. However, a weakening of government resolve to maintain stabilization policies in the election year of 1996 contributed to renewal of inflationary pressures, spurred by the budget deficit which exceeded 12% of GDP. The collapse of financial pyramid schemes in early 1997 - which had attracted deposits from a substantial portion of Albania's population - triggered severe social unrest which led to more than 1,500 deaths, widespread destruction of property, and a 7% drop in GDP. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to revive economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from some 20% of the labor force that works abroad, mostly in Greece and Italy. These remittances supplement GDP and help offset the large foreign trade deficit. Most agricultural land was privatized in 1992, substantially improving peasant incomes. In 1998, Albania recovered the 7% drop in GDP of 1997 and pushed ahead by 8% in 1999 and by 7.5% in 2000. International aid helped defray the high costs of receiving and returning refugees from the Kosovo conflict. Privatization scored some successes in 2000, but other reforms lagged. |
Electricity - consumption | 80.806 billion kWh (2000) | 5.379 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 3.7 billion kWh (2000) | 100 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 7.5 billion kWh (2000) | 600 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 82.802 billion kWh (2000) | 5.332 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 52%
hydro: 41% nuclear: 7% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
3.81% hydro: 96.19% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes)
highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m |
lowest point:
Adriatic Sea 0 m highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
Environment - current issues | environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets |
deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3% | Albanian 95%, Greeks 3%, other 2% (Vlachs, Gypsies, Serbs, and Bulgarians) (1989 est.)
note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization) |
Exchange rates | Argentine pesos per US dollar - 1.33325 (January 2002), 1.000 (1997-2001); note - fixed rate pegged to the US dollar was abandoned in January 2002; peso now floats | leke per US dollar - 146.08 (December 2000),143.71 (2000) 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998), 148.93 (1997), 104.50 (1996); note - leke is the plural of lek |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE (since 2 January 2002); note - selected by National Congress in aftermath of resignation of former President DE LA RUA on 20 December 2001 and resignations of others who briefly held the office following DE LA RUA's departure; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and the post remains vacant; 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 four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of vote - 48.5% ; Vice President Carlos "Chacho" ALVAREZ resigned 6 October 2000 and a replacement was not named; DE LA RUA resigned 20 December 2001; following a series of interim presidents, Eduardo Alberto DUHALDE was selected president by the National Congress on 1 January 2002 |
chief of state:
President of the Republic Rexhep MEIDANI (since 24 July 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Ilir META (since 29 October 1999) 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 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Rexhep MEIDANI elected president; People's Assembly vote by number - total votes 122, for 110, against 3, abstained 2, invalid 7 |
Exports | $26.7 billion f.o.b. (2001) | $310 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco |
Exports - partners | Brazil 26.5%, US 11.8%, Chile 10.6%, Spain 3.5% (2000) | Italy 67%, Greece 15%, Germany 5%, Austria 2%, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 2% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $391 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.5 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5%
industry: 28% services: 66% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
55% industry: 24% services: 21% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -14.7% (2002 est.) | 7.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 34 00 S, 64 00 W | 41 00 N, 20 00 E |
Geography - note | second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Cerro Aconcagua is South America's tallest mountain, while the Valdes Peninsula is the lowest point on the continent | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 215,434 km
paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.) |
total:
18,000 km paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | used as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe and the US; some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area; domestic consumption of drugs in urban centers is increasing | 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 cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe |
Imports | $20.3 billion f.o.b. (2001) | $1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Brazil 25.1%, US 18.7%, Germany 5%, China 4.6% (2000) | Italy 37%, Greece 28%, Turkey 6%, Germany 6%, Bulgaria 3% (2000) |
Independence | 9 July 1816 (from Spain) | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 9% (2000 est.) |
Industries | food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower |
Infant mortality rate | 17.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 39.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2001 est.) | 1% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT (associate), BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 33 (2000) | 7 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 15,610 sq km (1998 est.) | 3,410 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval by the Senate) | Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) |
Labor force | 15 million (1999) | 1.692 million (including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (1994 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 50%, industry and services 50% |
Land boundaries | total: 9,665 km
border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km |
total:
720 km border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Yugoslavia 287 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.14%
permanent crops: 0.8% other: 90.06% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
21% permanent crops: 5% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 38% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek |
Legal system | mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; formerly, three members appointed by each of the provincial legislatures; presently transitioning to one-third of the members being elected every two years to six-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; one-half of the members elected every two years to four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14 October 2001 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 40, UCR 24, provincial parties 6, Frepaso 1, ARI 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA%; seats by bloc or party - Justicialist (Peronist) 113, UCR 74, provincial parties 27, Frepaso 17, ARI 17, AR 9 |
unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor (155 seats; most members are elected by direct popular vote and some by proportional vote for four-year terms)
elections: last held 29 June 1997 (next held 24 June 2001, 2nd round 8 July 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 53.36%, PD 25.33%, PSD 2.5%, PBDNJ 2.78%, PBK 2.36%, PAD 2.85%, PR 2.25%, PLL 3.09%, PDK 1.00%, PBSD 0.84%; seats by party - PS 101, PD 27, PSD 8, PBDNJ 4, PBK 3, PAD 2, PR 2, PLL 2, PDK 1, PBSD 1, PUK 1, independents 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.48 years
male: 72.1 years female: 79.03 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
71.83 years male: 69.01 years female: 74.87 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2% male: 96.2% female: 96.2% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 9 and over can read and write total population: 93% (1997 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia |
Map references | South America | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 147,505 GRT/222,500 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 10, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: United Arab Emirates 1, Uruguay 1 (2002 est.) |
total:
9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 17,797 GRT/26,324 DWT ships by type: cargo 9 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes naval aviation and Marines), Coast Guard, Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4.3 billion (FY99) | $42 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (FY00) | 1.5% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 9,521,633 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
870,768 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 7,721,219 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
712,763 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2002 est.) | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 335,085 (2002 est.) | males:
35,792 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Revolution Day, 25 May (1810) | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) |
Nationality | noun: Argentine(s)
adjective: Argentine |
noun:
Albanian(s) adjective: Albanian |
Natural hazards | San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; drought |
Natural resources | fertile plains of the Pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -3.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km | crude oil 145 km; petroleum products 55 km; natural gas 64 km (1991) |
Political parties and leaders | Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Alternative for a Republic of Equals or ARI [Elisa CARRIO]; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Dario Pedro ALESSANDRO]; Justicialist Party or PJ [Carlos Saul MENEM] (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Angel ROZAS]; several provincial parties | Albanian National Front (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; 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 [Neritan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Group of Reformist Democrats [Leonard NDOKA]; Liberal Union Party [Teodor LACO]; note - Teodor LACO of the Liberal Union Party was leader of the Social Democratic Union of Albania or PBSD; Movement of Legality Party or PLL [Nderim KUPI]; 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); business organizations; General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic Church; students | NA |
Population | 37,812,817 (July 2002 est.) | 3,510,484 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 37% (2001 est.) | 19.6% (1996 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.13% (2002 est.) | 0.88% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998) | AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 24.3 million (1997) | 810,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 33,744 km (167 km electrified)
broad gauge: 20,594 km 1.676-m gauge (141 km electrified) standard gauge: 2,739 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified) narrow gauge: 10,154 km 1.000-m gauge; 257 km 0.750-m gauge (2000 est.) |
total:
447 km standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2001) |
Religions | nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4% | 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 |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and mandatory | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: by opening the telecommunications market to competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998", Argentina encouraged the growth of modern telecommunication technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines are being installed between all major cities; the major networks are entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is being improved; however, telephone density is presently minimal, and making telephone service universally available will take some time
domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network; more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone use is rapidly expanding international: satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); Atlantis II and Unisur submarine cables; two international gateways near Buenos Aires (1999) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 7.5 million (1998) | 87,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3 million (December 1999) | 3,100 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997) | 9 (plus 264 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast |
Total fertility rate | 2.41 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.32 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 25% (yearend 2001) | 16% (2000 est.) officially; may be as high as 25% |
Waterways | 10,950 km | 43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |