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Compare Belgium (2005) - Yemen (2003)

Compare Belgium (2005) z Yemen (2003)

 Belgium (2005)Yemen (2003)
 BelgiumYemen
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
19 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, 'Adan, Ad Dali', Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, 'Amran, Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Sa'dah, San'a', Shabwah, Ta'izz


note: there may be one additional governorate of the capital city of Sanaa
Age structure 0-14 years: 16.9% (male 892,995/female 855,177)


15-64 years: 65.7% (male 3,435,282/female 3,373,917)


65 years and over: 17.4% (male 745,178/female 1,061,839) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 46.8% (male 4,606,110; female 4,446,229)


15-64 years: 50.4% (male 4,972,946; female 4,778,034)


65 years and over: 2.8% (male 272,921; female 273,641) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk grain, fruits, vegetables, pulses, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton; dairy products, livestock (sheep, goats, cattle, camels), poultry; fish
Airports 43 (2004 est.) 44 (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: 16


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 9


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 18


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 16 (2004 est.)
total: 28


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 7


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 4 (2002)
Area total: 30,528 sq km


land: 30,278 sq km


water: 250 sq km
total: 527,970 sq km


land: 527,970 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen)
Area - comparative about the size of Maryland slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
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. North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to a delimitation of their border.
Birth rate 10.48 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 43.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues: $173.7 billion


expenditures: $174.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.56 billion (2004 est.)
revenues: $3 billion


expenditures: $3.1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2001 est.)
Capital Brussels Sanaa
Climate temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east
Coastline 66.5 km 1,906 km
Constitution 7 February 1831; amended many times; revised 14 July 1993 to create a federal state 16 May 1991; amended 29 September 1994 and February 2001
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: Republic of Yemen


conventional short form: Yemen


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah


local short form: Al Yaman
Currency - Yemeni rial (YER)
Death rate 10.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 9.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $28.3 billion (1999 est.) $6.2 billion (2002)
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 Edmund J. HULL


embassy: Dhahar Himyar Zone, Sheraton Hotel District, Sanaa


mailing address: P. O. Box 22347, Sanaa


telephone: [967] (1) 303-161


FAX: [967] (1) 303-182
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 Abd al-Wahhab Abdallah al-HAJRI


chancery: Suite 705, 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037


telephone: [1] (202) 965-4760


FAX: [1] (202) 337-2017
Disputes - international none Eritrea protests Yemeni fishing around the Hanish islands awarded to Eritrea by the ICJ in 1999; nomadic groups in border region with Saudi Arabia resist demarcation of boundary
Economic aid - donor ODA, $1.072 billion (2002) -
Economic aid - recipient - $2.3 billion to be disbursed 2003-07 (2003-07 disbursements)
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 nearly 100% of GDP. On the positive side, the government has succeeded in balancing its budget, and income distribution is relatively equal. Belgium began circulating the euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-03 dropped sharply because of the global economic slowdown, with moderate recovery in 2004. Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, reported strong growth in the mid-1990s with the onset of oil production, but has been harmed by periodic declines in oil prices. Yemen has embarked on an IMF-supported structural adjustment program designed to modernize and streamline the economy, which has led to substantial foreign debt relief and restructuring. International donors, meeting in Paris in October 2002, agreed on a further $2.3 billion economic support package. Yemen has worked to maintain tight control over spending and implement additional components of the IMF program. A high population growth rate and internal political dissension complicate the government's task.
Electricity - consumption 78.82 billion kWh (2002) 2.8 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 9.1 billion kWh (2002) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 16.7 billion kWh (2002) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 76.58 billion kWh (2002) 3.01 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: North Sea 0 m


highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m


highest point: Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayb 3,760 m
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 very limited natural fresh water resources; inadequate supplies of potable water; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection


signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban
Ethnic groups Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11% predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asians, Europeans
Exchange rates euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) Yemeni rials per US dollar - NA (2002), 168.67 (2001), 161.72 (2000), 155.72 (1999), 135.88 (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 Field Marshall Ali Abdallah SALIH (since 22 May 1990, the former president of North Yemen, assumed office upon the merger of North and South Yemen); Vice President Maj. Gen. Abd al-Rab Mansur al-HADI (since 3 October 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Abd al-Qadir BA JAMAL (since 4 April 2001)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister


elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for a seven-year term (recently extended from a five-year term by constitutional amendment); election last held 23 September 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); vice president appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Ali Abdallah SALIH elected president; percent of vote - Ali Abdallah SALIH 96.3%, Najib Qahtan AL-SHAABI 3.7%
Exports 450,000 bbl/day (2001) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs crude oil, coffee, dried and salted fish
Exports - partners Germany 19.9%, France 17.2%, Netherlands 11.8%, UK 8.6%, US 6.5%, Italy 5.2% (2004) India 21.1%, Thailand 16.9%, South Korea 11.2%, China 11.1%, Malaysia 7.7%, US 6.7%, Singapore 4% (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 three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars and of Iraq which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band
GDP - purchasing power parity - $15.07 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 1.3%


industry: 25.7%


services: 73% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 22%


industry: 38%


services: 40% (2001)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $30,600 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.6% (2004 est.) 4.1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 50 50 N, 4 00 E 15 00 N, 48 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 strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes
Heliports 1 (2004 est.) -
Highways total: 149,028 km


paved: 116,540 km (including 1,729 km of expressways)


unpaved: 32,488 km (2002)
total: 67,000 km


paved: 7,705 km


unpaved: 59,295 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.2%


highest 10%: 23% (1996)
lowest 10%: 3%


highest 10%: 25.9% (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 -
Imports 1.042 million bbl/day (2001) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products food and live animals, machinery and equipment, chemicals
Imports - partners Germany 18.4%, Netherlands 17%, France 12.5%, UK 6.8%, Ireland 6.3%, US 5.5% (2004) US 10.4%, Saudi Arabia 9.5%, China 8.7%, UAE 6.9%, Russia 5.8%, France 4.7% (2002)
Independence 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne) 22 May 1990, Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]; previously North Yemen had become independent on NA November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and South Yemen had become independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)
Industrial production growth rate 3.5% (2004 est.) 4% (2002 est.)
Industries engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small aluminum products factory; cement
Infant mortality rate total: 4.68 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 5.27 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 4.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 65.02 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 69.98 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 59.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.9% (2004 est.) 12.2% (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 ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 1 (2000)
Irrigated land 40 sq km (includes Luxembourg) (1998 est.) 4,900 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 Court
Labor force 4.75 million (2004 est.) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 1.3%, industry 24.5%, services 74.2% (2003 est.) most people are employed in agriculture and herding; services, construction, industry, and commerce account for less than one-fourth of the labor force
Land boundaries total: 1,385 km


border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km
total: 1,746 km


border countries: Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km
Land use arable land: 23.28%


permanent crops: 0.4%


other: 76.32%


note: includes Luxembourg (2001)
arable land: 2.75%


permanent crops: 0.21%


other: 97.04% (1998 est.)
Languages Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French) Arabic
Legal system civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations based on Islamic law, Turkish law, English common law, and local tribal customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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
a new constitutional amendment ratified on 20 February 2001 created a bicameral legislature consisting of a Shura Council (111 seats; members appointed by the president) and a House of Representatives (301 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)


elections: last held 27 April 2003 (next to be held NA April 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - GPC 238, Islah 46, YSP 8, Nasserite Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Baath Party 2, independents 4
Life expectancy at birth total population: 78.62 years


male: 75.44 years


female: 81.94 years (2005 est.)
total population: 60.97 years


male: 59.16 years


female: 62.87 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: 50.2%


male: 70.5%


female: 30% (2003 est.)
Location Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia
Map references Europe Middle East
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


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 53 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,146,301 GRT/1,588,184 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 15, cargo 2, chemical tanker 2, container 8, liquefied gas 17, petroleum tanker 9


foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 4, France 4, Greece 4)


registered in other countries: 101 (2005)
total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 18,623 GRT/23,752 DWT


ships by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 1


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 2 (2002 est.)
Military - note - establishment of a Coast Guard, scheduled for May 2001, has been delayed
Military branches Land, Naval, and Air Components (2005) Army (includes Special Forces, established in 1999), Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Forces, Republican Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure $3.999 billion (2003) $482.5 million (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.3% (2003) 5.2% (FY01)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 4,443,312 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 2,493,612 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 14 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 249,292 (2003 est.)
National holiday 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I Unification Day, 22 May (1990)
Nationality noun: Belgian(s)


adjective: Belgian
noun: Yemeni(s)


adjective: Yemeni
Natural hazards flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes sandstorms and dust storms in summer
Natural resources construction materials, silica sand, carbonates petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble, small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper, fertile soil in west
Net migration rate 1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines gas 1,485 km; oil 158 km; refined products 535 km (2004) gas 88 km; oil 1,174 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders Flemish parties: Christian Democrats and Flemish or CD & V [Jo VANDEURZEN]; Flemish Liberal Democrats or VLD [Bart SOMERS]; GROEN! (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens) [Vera DUA]; New Flemish Alliance or NVA [Bart DE WEVER]; Socialist Party.Alternative or SP.A [Caroline GENNEZ]; Spirit [Geert LAMBERT] (new party now associated with SP.A); Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) or VB [Frank VANHECKE]


Francophone parties: Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Evelyne HUYTEBROECK, Claude BROUIR]; Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; Reformist Movement or MR [Didier REYNDERS]; Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; other minor parties
there are over 12 political parties active in Yemen, some of the more prominent are: General People's Congress or GPC [President Ali Abdallah SALIH]; Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah [Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR]; National Arab Socialist Baath Party [Dr. Qassim SALAAM]; Nasserite Unionist Party [Abdel Malik al-MAKHLAFI]; Yemeni Socialist Party or YSP [Ali Salih MUQBIL]


note: President SALIH's General People's Congress or GPC won a landslide victory in the April 1997 legislative election and no longer governs in coalition with Shaykh Abdallah bin Husayn al-AHMAR's Islamic Reform Grouping or Islah - the two parties had been in coalition since the end of the civil war in 1994; the YSP, a loyal opposition party, boycotted the April 1997 legislative election, but announced that it would participate in Yemen's first local elections, held in February 2001; these local elections aim to decentralize political power and are a key element of the government's political reform program
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 NA
Population 10,364,388 (July 2005 est.) 19,349,881 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 4% (1989 est.) NA
Population growth rate 0.15% (2005 est.) 3.42% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Antwerp, Brussels, Gent, Liege, Oostende, Zeebrugge Aden, Al Hudaydah, Al Mukalla, As Salif, Ras Issa, Mocha, Nishtun
Radio broadcast stations FM 79, AM 7, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 6, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998)
Railways total: 3,521 km


standard gauge: 3,521 km 1.435-m gauge (2,927 km electrified) (2004)
0 km
Religions Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25% Muslim including Shaf'i (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shi'a), small numbers of Jewish, Christian, and Hindu
Sex ratio at birth: 1.04 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 (2005 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1 male(s)/female


total population: 1.04 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: since unification in 1990, efforts have been made to create a national telecommunications network


domestic: the national network consists of microwave radio relay, cable, tropospheric scatter, and GSM cellular mobile telephone systems


international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 2 Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and Djibouti
Telephones - main lines in use 5,120,400 (2002) 291,359 (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,135,500 (2002) 32,042 (2000)
Television broadcast stations 25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997) 7 (plus several low-power repeaters) (1997)
Terrain flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula
Total fertility rate 1.64 children born/woman (2005 est.) 6.82 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 12% (first half, 2004) 30% (1995 est.)
Waterways 2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2003) none
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