Barbados (2003) | Albania (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status | 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: 21.2% (male 29,621; female 29,207)
15-64 years: 70% (male 94,840; female 99,230) 65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,355; female 15,011) (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton | wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products |
Airports | 1 (2002) | 12 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 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) |
Area | total: 431 sq km
land: 431 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. | 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. |
Birth rate | 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 18.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $697 million
expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | Bridgetown | Tirana |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (June to October) | mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter |
Coastline | 97 km | 362 km |
Constitution | 30 November 1966 | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Barbados |
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 | Barbadian dollar (BBD) | lek (ALL) |
Death rate | 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $692 million (2002) | $784 million (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Earl N. PHILLIPS, Jr.
embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING
chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 339-9201 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): 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 | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $9.1 million (1995) | ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light-manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002 mainly due to a 3% decline in tourism. Growth should be positive in 2003, the precise level largely dependent on economic conditions in the US and Europe. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 725.4 million kWh (2001) | 5.898 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 221 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 1.2 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 780 million kWh (2001) | 5.289 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 2.9%
hydro: 97.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
Environment - current issues | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers | deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% | 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) |
Exchange rates | Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) | leke per US dollar - NA (2002), 143.49 (2001), 143.71 (2000), 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister |
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 |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components | textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco |
Exports - partners | US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) | Italy 76.6%, Germany 5.6%, Greece 2.7% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) | red with a black two-headed eagle in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15.69 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 16% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 49%
industry: 27% services: 24% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -2.8% (2002 est.) | 7.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 10 N, 59 32 W | 41 00 N, 20 00 E |
Geography - note | easternmost Caribbean island | strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea) |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 1,793 km
paved: 1,719 km unpaved: 74 km (1999) |
total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center | 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 |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) | Italy 39.4%, Greece 24.5%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2002) |
Independence | 30 November 1966 (from UK) | 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | -3.2% (2000 est.) | 9% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export | food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.39 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.6% (2002 est.) | 6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 19 (2000) | 10 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 3,400 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) | Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) |
Labor force | 128,500 (2001 est.) | 1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) | agriculture 50%, industry and services 50% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km |
Land use | arable land: 37.21%
permanent crops: 2.33% other: 60.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 21.09%
permanent crops: 4.45% other: 74.46% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek |
Legal system | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.84 years
male: 69.56 years female: 74.14 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 72.37 years
male: 69.53 years female: 75.42 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 9 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5% male: 93.3% female: 79.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | 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: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 284,222 GRT/439,810 DWT
ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 22, combination bulk 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, The Bahamas 1, Canada 4, Germany 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 7, Norway 7, UK 18 (2002 est.) |
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.) |
Military branches | Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $56.5 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 1.49% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 77,862 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 906,168 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 53,282 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 742,837 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 36,985 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) | Independence Day, 28 November (1912) |
Nationality | noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)
adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
Natural hazards | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides | destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought |
Natural resources | petroleum, fish, natural gas | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 339 km; oil 207 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] | Omonia [Vangjel DULES] |
Population | 277,264 (July 2003 est.) | 3,582,205 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.38% (2003 est.) | 1.03% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) | Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% | 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: 1.01 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 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: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
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 | 108,000 (1997) | 120,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,013 (1997) | 250,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) | 3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region | mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast |
Total fertility rate | 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2001 est.) | 17% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | 43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |