Azerbaijan (2006) | Albania (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 59 rayons (rayonlar; rayon - singular), 11 cities (saharlar; sahar - singular), 1 autonomous republic (muxtar respublika)
rayons: Abseron Rayonu, Agcabadi Rayonu, Agdam Rayonu, Agdas Rayonu, Agstafa Rayonu, Agsu Rayonu, Astara Rayonu, Balakan Rayonu, Barda Rayonu, Beylaqan Rayonu, Bilasuvar Rayonu, Cabrayil Rayonu, Calilabad Rayonu, Daskasan Rayonu, Davaci Rayonu, Fuzuli Rayonu, Gadabay Rayonu, Goranboy Rayonu, Goycay Rayonu, Haciqabul Rayonu, Imisli Rayonu, Ismayilli Rayonu, Kalbacar Rayonu, Kurdamir Rayonu, Lacin Rayonu, Lankaran Rayonu, Lerik Rayonu, Masalli Rayonu, Neftcala Rayonu, Oguz Rayonu, Qabala Rayonu, Qax Rayonu, Qazax Rayonu, Qobustan Rayonu, Quba Rayonu, Qubadli Rayonu, Qusar Rayonu, Saatli Rayonu, Sabirabad Rayonu, Saki Rayonu, Salyan Rayonu, Samaxi Rayonu, Samkir Rayonu, Samux Rayonu, Siyazan Rayonu, Susa Rayonu, Tartar Rayonu, Tovuz Rayonu, Ucar Rayonu, Xacmaz Rayonu, Xanlar Rayonu, Xizi Rayonu, Xocali Rayonu, Xocavand Rayonu, Yardimli Rayonu, Yevlax Rayonu, Zangilan Rayonu, Zaqatala Rayonu, Zardab Rayonu cities: Ali Bayramli Sahari, Baki Sahari, Ganca Sahari, Lankaran Sahari, Mingacevir Sahari, Naftalan Sahari, Saki Sahari, Sumqayit Sahari, Susa Sahari, Xankandi Sahari, Yevlax Sahari autonomous republic: Naxcivan Muxtar Respublikasi |
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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 25.8% (male 1,046,501/female 1,011,492)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 2,573,134/female 2,706,275) 65 years and over: 7.8% (male 246,556/female 377,661) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.4% (male 489,363; female 446,586)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 1,184,670; female 1,130,065) 65 years and over: 8.3% (male 135,177; female 158,947) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain, rice, grapes, fruit, vegetables, tea, tobacco; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products |
Airports | 36 (2006) | 11 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 27
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 86,600 sq km
land: 86,100 sq km water: 500 sq km note: includes the exclave of Naxcivan Autonomous Republic and the Nagorno-Karabakh region; the region's autonomy was abolished by Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on 26 November 1991 |
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maine | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Azerbaijan - a nation with a Turkic and majority-Muslim population - was briefly independent from 1918 to 1920; it regained its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Despite a 1994 cease-fire, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh enclave (largely Armenian populated). Azerbaijan has lost 16% of its territory and must support some 528,000 internally displaced persons as a result of the conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous, and the promise of widespread wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources remains largely unfulfilled. | Between 1990 and 1992 Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic Communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven difficult as successive governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, widespread corruption, a dilapidated infrastructure, powerful organized crime networks with links to high government officials, and disruptive political opponents. International observers judged parliamentary elections in 2001 and local elections in 2003 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but identified serious deficiencies. Many of these deficiencies have been addressed through bi-partisan changes to the electoral code in 2003 and 2005, but implementation of these changes will not be demonstrated until parliamentary elections in July 2005. |
Birth rate | 20.74 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 15.08 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.18 billion
expenditures: $2.986 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
revenues: $1.36 billion
expenditures: $1.627 billion, including capital expenditures of $406 million (2003 est.) |
Capital | name: Baku (Baki, Baky)
geographic coordinates: 40 23 N, 49 51 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Tirana |
Climate | dry, semiarid steppe | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km est.) | 362 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 November 1995 | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Azerbaijan
conventional short form: Azerbaijan local long form: Azarbaycan Respublikasi local short form: Azarbaycan former: Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic |
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 | - | lek (ALL) |
Death rate | 9.75 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 5.02 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.873 billion (2005 est.) | $1.41 billion (2003) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Anne E. DERSE
embassy: 83 Azadliyg Prospecti, Baku AZ1007 mailing address: American Embassy Baku, US Department of State, 7050 Baku Place, Washington, DC 20521-7050 telephone: [994] (12) 4980-335 through 337 FAX: [994] (12) 4656-671 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Marcie B. RIES
embassy: Rruga Elbasanit, Labinoti #103, Tirana mailing address: U. S. Department of State, 9510 Tirana Place, Dulles, VA 20189-9510 telephone: [355] (4) 247285 FAX: [355] (4) 374957 and [355] (4) 232222 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Yashar ALIYEV
chancery: 2741 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 337-3500 FAX: [1] (202) 337-5911 Consulate(s) general: Los Angeles |
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 |
Disputes - international | Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in Nagorno-Karabakh and since the early 1990s has militarily occupied 16% of Azerbaijan; over 800,000 mostly ethnic Azerbaijanis were driven from the occupied lands and Armenia; about 230,000 ethnic Armenians were driven from their homes in Azerbaijan into Armenia; Azerbaijan seeks transit route through Armenia to connect to Naxcivan exclave; Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues to mediate dispute; Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Russia ratify Caspian seabed delimitation treaties based on equidistance, while Iran continues to insist on an even one-fifth allocation and challenges Azerbaijan's hydrocarbon exploration in disputed waters; bilateral talks continue with Turkmenistan on dividing the seabed and contested oilfields in the middle of the Caspian; Azerbaijan and Georgia continue to discuss the alignment of their boundary at certain crossing areas | the Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in neighboring countries, and the peaceful resolution of interethnic disputes; some ethnic Albanian groups in neighboring countries advocate for a "greater Albania," but the idea has little appeal among Albanian nationals |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA, $140 million (2000 est.) | ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | Azerbaijan's number one export is oil. Azerbaijan's oil production declined through 1997, but has registered an increase every year since. Negotiation of production-sharing arrangements (PSAs) with foreign firms, which have thus far committed $60 billion to long-term oilfield development, should generate the funds needed to spur future industrial development. Oil production under the first of these PSAs, with the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, began in November 1997. A consortium of Western oil companies is scheduled to begin pumping 1 million barrels a day from a large offshore field in early 2006, through a $4 billion pipeline it built from Baku to Turkey's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan. Economists estimate that by 2010 revenues from this project will double the country's current GDP. Azerbaijan shares all the formidable problems of the former Soviet republics in making the transition from a command to a market economy, but its considerable energy resources brighten its long-term prospects. Baku has only recently begun making progress on economic reform, and old economic ties and structures are slowly being replaced. Several other obstacles impede Azerbaijan's economic progress: the need for stepped up foreign investment in the non-energy sector, the continuing conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and the pervasive corruption. Trade with Russia and the other former Soviet republics is declining in importance while trade is building with Turkey and the nations of Europe. Long-term prospects will depend on world oil prices, the location of new pipelines in the region, and Azerbaijan's ability to manage its oil wealth. | 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 one-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 and antiquated and inadequate infrastructure make it difficult to attract and sustain foreign investment. The government plans to boost energy imports to relieve the shortages and is moving slowly to improve the poor national road and rail network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 20.25 billion kWh (2003) | 5.898 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 700 million kWh (2003) | 221 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 2.35 billion kWh (2003) | 1.2 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 20 billion kWh (2003) | 5.289 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Bazarduzu Dagi 4,485 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,764 m |
Environment - current issues | local scientists consider the Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the Caspian Sea to be the ecologically most devastated area in the world because of severe air, soil, and water pollution; soil pollution results from oil spills, from the use of DDT as a pesticide, and from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Azeri 90.6%, Dagestani 2.2%, Russian 1.8%, Armenian 1.5%, other 3.9% (1999 census)
note: almost all Armenians live in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region |
Albanian 95%, Greek 3%, other 2% (Vlach, Roma (Gypsy), Serb, and Macedonian or Bulgarian) (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 | Azerbaijani manats per US dollar - 4,727.1 (2005), 4,913.48 (2004), 4,910.73 (2003), 4,860.82 (2002), 4,656.58 (2001)
note: on 1 January 2006 Azerbaijan revalued its currency, with 5,000 old manats equal to 1 new manat |
leke per US dollar - 121.863 (2003), 140.155 (2002), 143.485 (2001), 143.709 (2000), 137.691 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ilham ALIYEV (since 31 October 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Artur RASIZADE (since 4 November 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Abbas ABBASOV (since 10 November 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote to a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 15 October 2003 (next to be held October 2008); prime minister and first deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly election results: Ilham ALIYEV elected president; percent of vote - Ilham ALIYEV 76.8%, Isa GAMBAR 14% |
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 proposed by the prime minister, nominated by the president, and approved by Parliament 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 |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | oil and gas 90%, machinery, cotton, foodstuffs | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco |
Exports - partners | Italy 30.3%, France 9.4%, Russia 6.6%, Turkey 6.3%, Turkmenistan 6.3%, Georgia 4.8%, Israel 4.5%, Croatia 4.1% (2005) | Italy 74.9%, Greece 12.8%, Germany 3.4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), red, and green; a crescent and eight-pointed star in white are centered in red band | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $16.13 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 14.1%
industry: 45.7% services: 40.2% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 47.5%
industry: 24.6% services: 27.8% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 26.4% (2005 est.) | 7% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 40 30 N, 47 30 E | 41 00 N, 20 00 E |
Geography - note | both the main area of the country and the Naxcivan exclave are landlocked | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) |
Heliports | 1 (2006) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | - | total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 27.8% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; small government eradication program; transit point for Southwest Asian opiates bound for Russia and to a lesser extent the rest of Europe | 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 expanding in Europe; vulnerable to money laundering associated with regional trafficking in narcotics, arms, contraband, and illegal aliens |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, oil products, foodstuffs, metals, chemicals | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Russia 17%, UK 9.1%, Singapore 9.1%, Turkey 7.4%, Germany 6.1%, Turkmenistan 5.8%, Ukraine 5.4%, China 4.1% (2005) | Italy 33.6%, Greece 20.2%, Turkey 6.6%, Germany 5.7% (2003) |
Independence | 30 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 40% (2005 est.) | 2.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | petroleum and natural gas, petroleum products, oilfield equipment; steel, iron ore; cement; chemicals and petrochemicals; textiles | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower |
Infant mortality rate | total: 79 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 81.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 76.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 22.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.01 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9.6% (2005 est.) | 2.4% (2003) |
International organization participation | AsDB, BSEC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, GUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | ACCT, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 14,550 sq km (2003) | 3,400 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Constitutional Court, Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term), and multiple appeals and district courts |
Labor force | 5.45 million (2005 est.) | 1.35 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers) (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 41%
industry: 7% services: 52% (2001) |
agriculture 57%, non-agricultural private sector 20%, public sector 23% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,013 km
border countries: Armenia (with Azerbaijan-proper) 566 km, Armenia (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 221 km, Georgia 322 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-proper) 432 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 179 km, Russia 284 km, Turkey 9 km |
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.62%
permanent crops: 2.61% other: 76.77% (2005) |
arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.42% other: 74.49% (2001) |
Languages | Azerbaijani (Azeri) 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% (1995 est.) | Albanian (official - derived from Tosk dialect), Greek, Vlach, Romani, Slavic dialects |
Legal system | based on civil law system | has a civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; has accepted jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court for its citizens |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Milli Mejlis (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 6 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Yeni 58, Azadliq coalition 8, CSP 2, YES 2, Motherland 2, other parties with single seats 7, independents 42, undetermined 4 |
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 July 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 41.5%, PD and coalition allies 36.8%, PDR 5.2%, PSD 3.6%, PBDNJ 2.6%, PASH (now PAA) 2.6%, PAD 2.5%; seats by party - PS 73, PD and coalition allies 46, PDR 6, PSD 4, PBDNJ 3, PASH (now PAA) 3, PAD 3, independents 2; note - seats by party as of January 2005: PS 65, PD and coalition allies 46, LSI 9, PDR 6, PSD 3, PBDNJ 3, PASH (now PAA) 3, PAD 3, PDS 1, independents 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 63.85 years
male: 59.78 years female: 68.13 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 77.06 years
male: 74.37 years female: 80.02 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.8% male: 99.5% female: 98.2% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5% male: 93.3% female: 79.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia, with a small European portion north of the Caucasus range | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro |
Map references | Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 84 ships (1000 GRT or over) 405,395 GRT/436,666 DWT
by type: cargo 26, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 43, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 3 registered in other countries: 4 (Georgia 2, Malta 2) (2006) |
total: 22 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 40,878 GRT/62,676 DWT
by type: bulk 1, cargo 19, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Denmark 1, Honduras 1, Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 7 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces | General Staff Headquarters, Land Forces Command (Army), Naval Forces Command, Air Forces Command, Doctrine and Exercises Command, Logistics Support Command |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $121 million (FY99) | $56.5 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (FY99) | 1.49% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 956,107 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 775,422 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 36,584 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan, 28 May (1918) | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) |
Nationality | noun: Azerbaijani(s), Azeri(s)
adjective: Azerbaijani, Azeri |
noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
Natural hazards | droughts | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina | petroleum, natural gas, coal, bauxite, chromite, copper, iron ore, nickel, salt, timber, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -4.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -4.93 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 3,190 km; oil 2,436 km (2006) | gas 339 km; oil 207 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Azerbaijan Popular Front or APF [Ali KARIMLI, leader of "Reform" faction; Mirmahmud MIRALI-OGLU, leader of "Classic" faction]; Civic Solidarity Party or CSP [Sabir RUSTAMKHANLY]; Civic Union Party [Ayaz MUTALIBOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA [Ramiz AHMADOV]; Compatriot Party [Mais SAFARLI]; Democratic Party for Azerbaijan or DPA [Rasul QULIYEV, chairman]; Justice Party [Ilyas ISMAILOV]; Liberal Party of Azerbaijan [Lala Shovkat HACIYEVA]; Motherland Party; Musavat [Isa GAMBAR, chairman]; Yeni Azerbaijan Party; Party for National Independence of Azerbaijan or PNIA [Etibar MAMMADLI, chairman]; Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or SDP [Araz ALIZADE and Ayaz MUTALIBOV]
note: opposition parties regularly factionalize and form new parties |
Agrarian Environmentalist Party or PAA [Lufter XHUVELI]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Nikolle LESI]; Communist Party of Albania or PKSH [Hysni MILLOSHI]; Democratic Alliance Party or PAD [Neritan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Legality Movement Party or PLL [Ekrem SPAHIU]; Liberal Union Party or PBL [Arjan STAROVA]; National Front Party (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Adriatik ALIMADHI]; New Democratic Party or PDR [Genc POLLO]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQIRI]; Renewed Democratic Party or PDR [Dashamir SHEHI]; Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEDIU]; Social Democracy Party or PDS [Paskal MILO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Socialist Movement for Integration or LSI [Ilir META]; Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albanian Party of Labor) [Fatos NANO]; Union for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vangjel DULE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Sadval, Lezgin movement; self-proclaimed Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Republic; Talysh independence movement; Union of Pro-Azerbaijani Forces (UPAF) | Confederation of Trade Unions of Albania or KSSH [Kastriot MUCO]; Front for Albanian National Unification or FBKSH [Gafur ADILI]; Omonia [Jani JANI]; Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania or BSPSH [Gezim KALAJA] |
Population | 7,961,619 (July 2006 est.) | 3,544,808 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 49% (2002 est.) | 30% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.66% (2006 est.) | 0.51% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Railways | total: 2,957 km
broad gauge: 2,957 km 1.520-m gauge (1,278 km electrified) (2005) |
total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Muslim 93.4%, Russian Orthodox 2.5%, Armenian Orthodox 2.3%, other 1.8% (1995 est.)
note: religious affiliation is still nominal in Azerbaijan; percentages for actual practicing adherents are much lower |
Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10%
note: percentages are estimates; there are no available current statistics on religious affiliation; 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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate; requires considerable expansion and modernization; teledensity of 14 main lines per 100 persons is low (2002)
domestic: the majority of telephones are in Baku and other industrial centers - about 700 villages still without public telephone service; satellite service connects Baku to a modern switch in its exclave of Naxcivan international: country code - 994; the old Soviet system of cable and microwave is still serviceable; satellite earth stations - 2 (2005) |
general assessment: Despite new investment in fixed lines, the density of main lines remains the lowest in Europe with roughly 8 lines per 100 people. However, cellular telephone use is widespread and generally effective.
domestic: offsetting the shortage of fixed line capacity, mobile phone service has been available since 1996; by 2003 two companies were providing mobile services at a greater density than some of Albania's Balkan neighbors international: country code - 355; inadequate fixed main lines; adequate cellular connections; international traffic carried by microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece (2003) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,091,400 (2005) | 255,000 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.242 million (2005) | 1.1 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland) (much of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) in west; Baku lies on Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast |
Total fertility rate | 2.46 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 2.05 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 1.1% official rate (2005 est.) | 15.8% officially; may be as high as 30% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | - | 43 km (2004) |