Compare Belgium (2004) - China (2003)

Compare Belgium (2004) z China (2003)

	Belgium (2004)	China (2003)

Administrative divisions	10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Dutch: provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (French: regions; Dutch: gewesten); Antwerpen, Brabant Wallon, Brussels* (Bruxelles), Flanders, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams-Brabant, Wallonia, West-Vlaanderen note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities	23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing, Chongqing*, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin, Xinjiang, Xizang (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang; note - China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau
Age structure	0-14 years: 17.1% (male 901,486; female 863,092) 15-64 years: 65.6% (male 3,424,438; female 3,364,057) 65 years and over: 17.3% (male 739,479; female 1,055,724) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 23.1% (male 155,473,656; female 141,737,406) 15-64 years: 69.5% (male 461,223,219; female 433,154,970) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 44,954,643; female 50,431,574) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk	rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish
Airports	42 (2003 est.)	500 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 25 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.)	total: 351 over 3,047 m: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 108 1,524 to 2,437 m: 143 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 39 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 16 (2004 est.)	total: 149 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 48 under 914 m: 71 (2002)
Area	total: 30,528 sq km land: 30,278 sq km water: 250 sq km	total: 9,596,960 sq km land: 9,326,410 sq km water: 270,550 sq km
Area - comparative	about the size of Maryland	slightly smaller than the US
Background	Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830 and was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. It has prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy.	For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the 19th and early 20th centuries, China was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic decision-making. Output quadrupled by 2000. Political controls remain tight while economic controls continue to be relaxed.
Birth rate	10.59 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	12.96 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $151.6 billion expenditures: $151.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.56 billion (2003)	revenues: $224.8 billion expenditures: $267.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000)
Capital	Brussels	Beijing
Climate	temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy	extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
Coastline	66.5 km	14,500 km
Constitution	7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a constitutional package creating a federal state	most recent promulgation 4 December 1982
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium conventional short form: Belgium local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie local short form: Belgique/Belgie	conventional long form: People's Republic of China conventional short form: China local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo local short form: Zhong Guo abbreviation: PRC
Currency	euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries	yuan (CNY) note:: also referred to as the Renminbi (RMB)
Death rate	10.2 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.74 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$28.3 billion (1999 est.)	$149.4 billion (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Tom C. KOROLOGOS embassy: Regentlaan 27 Boulevard du Regent, B-1000 Brussels mailing address: PSC 82, Box 002, APO AE 09710 telephone: [32] (2) 508-2111 FAX: [32] (2) 511-2725	chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr. embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3831 FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6929 consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenyang
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Franciskus VAN DAELE chancery: 3330 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 333-3079 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Los Angeles, and New York	chief of mission: Ambassador YANG Jiechi chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2582 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
Disputes - international	none	involved in complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; claimants in November 2002 signed the "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea", a mechanism to ease tension but which fell short of a legally binding "code of conduct"; much of the rugged, militarized boundary with India is in dispute, but the two sides have participated in more than 13 rounds of joint working group sessions on this issue; India objects to Pakistan ceding lands to China in 1965 boundary agreement that India believes are part of disputed Kashmir; China, as well as Taiwan, claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) islands; negotiations with Tajikistan resolved the longstanding boundary dispute; China and Kazakhstan have resolved their border dispute and are working to delimit their large open borders to control population migration, illegal activities, and trade; Kyrgyzstan's constitutional court rules that 1,270 sq km ceded to China in 2000 delimitation agreement were legally transferred; certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers are in uncontested dispute with North Korea and a section of boundary around Mount Paektu is indefinite - China objects to illegal migration of North Koreans into northern China; China continues to seek a mutually acceptable solution to the disputed alluvial islands with Russia at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri rivers and a small island on the Argun river as part of the 2001 Treaty of Good Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation; boundary agreements signed in 2002 with Tajikistan cedes 1,000 sq km of Pamir Mountain range to China in return for China's relinquishing claims to 28,000 sq km; demarcation of land boundary with Vietnam continues but maritime boundary and joint fishing zone agreement remains unratified; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan
Economic aid - donor	ODA, $1.072 billion (2002)	-
Economic aid - recipient	-	$NA
Economy - overview	This modern private enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Roughly three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is about 100% of GDP, and the government has succeeded in balancing its budget. Belgium, together with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating the euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-03 dropped sharply because of the global economic slowdown. Prospects for 2004 again depend largely on recovery in the EU and the US.	In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish, Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state organizations and individual citizens has been steadily increasing. The authorities switched to a system of household and village responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprises in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 2003, with its 1.3 billion people but a GDP of just $5,000 per capita, China stood as the second-largest economy in the world after the US (measured on a purchasing power parity basis). Agriculture and industry have posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment has helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. The leadership, however, often has experienced - as a result of its hybrid system - the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (windfall gains and growing income disparities). China thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises, many of which had been shielded from competition by subsidies and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining long-term growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. Beijing says it will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure - such as water control and power grids - and poverty relief and through rural tax reform aimed at eliminating arbitrary local levies on farmers. Accession to the World Trade Organization helps strengthen China's ability to maintain strong growth rates but at the same time puts additional pressure on the hybrid system of strong political controls and growing market influences. China has benefited from a huge expansion in computer internet use. Foreign investment remains a strong element in China's remarkable economic growth.
Electricity - consumption	78.18 billion kWh (2001)	1.312 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	6.712 billion kWh (2001)	10.3 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	15.82 billion kWh (2001)	1.55 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	74.28 billion kWh (2001)	1.42 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 80.2% hydro: 18.5% nuclear: 1.2% other: 0.1% (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: North Sea 0 m highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m	lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
Environment - current issues	the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry, extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries; uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now resolved) have slowed progress in tackling environmental challenges	air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, 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, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants	party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups	Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11%	Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999)	yuan per US dollar - 8.28 (2002), 8.28 (2001), 8.28 (2000), 8.28 (1999), 8.28 (1998)
Executive branch	chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August 1993); Heir Apparent Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and then approved by Parliament note: government coalition - VLD, MR, PS, SP.A-Spirit	chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003) and Vice President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003) head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Vice Premiers HUANG Ju (since 17 March 2003), WU Yi (17 March 2003), ZENG Peiyan (since 17 March 2003), and HUI Liangyu (since 17 March 2003) cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC) elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 15-17 March 2003 (next to be held mid-March 2008); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress election results: HU Jintao elected president by the Tenth National People's Congress with a total of 2,937 votes (4 delegates voted against him, 4 abstained, and 38 did not vote); ZENG Qinghong elected vice president by the Tenth National People's Congress with a total of 2,578 votes (177 delegates voted against him, 190 abstained, and 38 did not vote); 2 seats were vacant
Exports	450,000 bbl/day (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs	machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels
Exports - partners	Germany 19.5%, France 17.4%, Netherlands 11.7%, UK 9%, US 6.7%, Italy 5.4% (2003)	US 21.5%, Hong Kong 18%, Japan 14.9%, South Korea 4.8% (2002)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the design was based on the flag of France	red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner
GDP	purchasing power parity - $299.1 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $5.989 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.9% industry: 26.3% services: 71.8% (2003)	agriculture: 15.2% industry and construction: 51.2% services: 33.6% (2001)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $29,100 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $4,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1.1% (2003 est.)	8% (official data) (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	50 50 N, 4 00 E	35 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note	crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the European Union and NATO	world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US); Mount Everest on the border with Nepal is the world's tallest peak;
Heliports	1 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 148,216 km paved: 116,687 km (including 1,727 km of expressways) unpaved: 31,529 km (2000)	total: 1,402,698 km paved: 314,204 km (with at least 16,314 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,088,494 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.2% highest 10%: 23% (1996)	lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 30.4% (1998)
Illicit drugs	growing producer of synthetic drugs; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation, the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics, automobiles, alcohol and tobacco	major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine
Imports	1.042 million bbl/day (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products	machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals
Imports - partners	Germany 17.7%, Netherlands 16.5%, France 13.2%, UK 7.5%, US 5.9%, Ireland 5.7% (2003)	Japan 18.1%, Taiwan 10.5%, South Korea 9.7%, US 9.2%, Germany 5.6% (2002)
Independence	4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne)	221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty 221 BC; Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic on 12 February 1912; People's Republic established 1 October 1949)
Industrial production growth rate	-1.5% (2003 est.)	12.6% (2002 est.)
Industries	engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum	iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications
Infant mortality rate	total: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 25.26 deaths/1,000 live births male: 24.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.6% (2003 est.)	-0.8% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC	APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, IFC, UNHCR, UNIDO, AfDB, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	3 (2000)
Irrigated land	40 sq km (includes Luxembourg) (1998 est.)	525,800 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) or Cour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by the Government; candidacies have to be submitted by the High Justice Council)	Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts)
Labor force	4.73 million (2003)	744 million (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 1.3%, industry 24.5%, services 74.2% (2003 est.)	agriculture 50%, industry 22%, services 28% (2001 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 1,385 km border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km	total: 22,147.34 km border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km
Land use	arable land: 23.28% permanent crops: 0.4% other: 76.32% note: includes Luxembourg (2001)	arable land: 13.31% permanent crops: 1.2% other: 85.49% (1998 est.)
Languages	Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French)	Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Legal system	civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations	a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate and Chamber of Deputies - last held 18 May 2003 (next to be held no later than May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - SP.A-Spirit 15.5%, VLD 15.4%, CD & V 12.7%, PS 12.8%, MR 12.1%, VB 9.4%, CDH 5.6%; seats by party - SP.A-Spirit 7, VLD 7, CD & V 6, PS 6, MR 5, VB 5, CDH 2, other 2 (note - there are also 31 indirectly elected senators); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - VLD 15.4%, SP.A-Spirit 14.9%, CD & V 13.3%, PS 13.0%, VB 11.6%, MR 11.4%, CDH 5.5%, Ecolo 3.1%; seats by party - VLD 25, SP.A-Spirit 23, CD & V 21, PS 25, VB 18, MR 24, CDH 8 Ecolo 4, other 2 note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly; for other acronyms of the listed parties see the Political parties and leaders entry	unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,985 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms) elections: last held NA December 2002-NA February 2003 (next to be held late 2007-NA February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 78.44 years male: 75.26 years female: 81.75 years (2004 est.)	total population: 72.22 years male: 70.33 years female: 74.28 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: NA female: NA	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86% male: 92.9% female: 78.8% (2003 est.)
Location	Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands	Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam
Map references	Europe	Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit continental shelf: median line with neighbors	contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin territorial sea: 12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Merchant marine	total: 50 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,146,301 GRT/1,588,184 DWT by type: bulk 1, cargo 8, chemical tanker 11, container 6, liquefied gas 18, petroleum tanker 6 foreign-owned: Denmark 6, Finland 1, France 2, Netherlands 3 registered in other countries: 69 (2004 est.)	total: 1,817 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 18,047,962 GRT/27,035,740 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 348, cargo 824, chemical tanker 28, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 150, liquefied gas 28, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 47, petroleum tanker 267, refrigerated cargo 26, roll on/roll off 21, short-sea passenger 42, specialized tanker 8, vehicle carrier 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Germany 1, Hong Kong 16, Japan 2, Panama 2, South Korea 1, Spain 1, Taiwan 9, Tanzania 1, Turkey 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Army, Naval, and Air Operations Commands	People's Liberation Army (PLA): comprises ground forces, Navy (including naval infantry and naval aviation), Air Force, and II Artillery Corps (strategic missile force), People's Armed Police Force (internal security troops, nominally a state security body but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA), militia
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$3.999 billion (2003)	$55.91 billion (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.3% (2003)	4.3% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 2,509,538 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 375,520,255 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,068,221 (2004 est.)	males age 15-49: 206 million (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age	-	18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 61,270 (2004 est.)	males: 10,973,761 (2003 est.)
National holiday	21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I	Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949)
Nationality	noun: Belgian(s) adjective: Belgian	noun: Chinese (singular and plural) adjective: Chinese
Natural hazards	flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes	frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts; land subsidence
Natural resources	coal, natural gas, construction materials, silica sand, carbonates	coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest)
Net migration rate	1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-0.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines	gas 1,485 km; oil 158 km; refined products 535 km (2004)	gas 13,845 km; oil 15,143 km; refined products 3,280 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders	Christian Democrats and Flemish or CD & V [Jo VANDEURZEN]; Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Evelyne HUYTEBROECK, Claude BROUIR]; Flemish Liberal Democrats or VLD [Bart SOMERS]; Flemish Socialist Party.Alternative or SP.A [Steve STEVAERT]; Francophone Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; Francophone Reformist Movement or MR [Didier REYNDERS]; Francophone Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; GROEN! (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens) [Vera DUA]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; New Flemish Alliance or NVA [Bart DE WEVER]; Spirit [Els VAN WEERT]; note - new party now associated with SP.A; Vlaams Belang or VB [Frank VANHECKE]; other minor parties	Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP
Political pressure groups and leaders	Christian, Socialist, and Liberal Trade Unions; Federation of Belgian Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia; various peace groups such as Pax Christi and groups representing immigrants	no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals
Population	10,348,276 (July 2004 est.)	1,286,975,468 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	4% (1989 est.)	10% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	0.16% (2004 est.)	0.6% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	Antwerp (one of the world's busiest ports), Brugge, Gent, Hasselt, Liege, Mons, Namur, Oostende, Zeebrugge	Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang (2001)
Radio broadcast stations	FM 79, AM 7, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998)
Railways	total: 3,518 km standard gauge: 3,518 km 1.435-m gauge (2,631 km electrified) (2003)	total: 71,600 km standard gauge: 68,000 km 1.435-m gauge (14,600 km electrified) narrow gauge: 3,600 km 1.000-m and 0.750-m gauge local industrial lines (2002)
Religions	Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%	Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%-2%, Christian 3%-4% note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal and compulsory	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: highly developed, technologically advanced, and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; extensive cable network; limited microwave radio relay network international: country code - 32; 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Eutelsat	general assessment: domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	5,120,400 (2002)	135 million (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular	8,135,500 (2002)	65 million (January 2001)
Television broadcast stations	25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997)	3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997)
Terrain	flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast	mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east
Total fertility rate	1.64 children born/woman (2004 est.)	1.7 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	8.1% (2003 est.)	urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2002 est.)
Waterways	2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2003)	110,000 km (1999)

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