Bulgaria (2002) | Guadeloupe (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast); Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya, Sofiya-Grad, Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.6% (male 572,961; female 543,004)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 2,569,199; female 2,648,461) 65 years and over: 16.9% (male 540,109; female 747,603) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.7% (male 55,521; female 53,137)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 144,764; female 147,449) 65 years and over: 8.9% (male 16,443; female 22,875) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets | bananas, sugarcane, tropical fruits and vegetables; cattle, pigs, goats |
Airports | 215 (2001) | 9 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 128
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 92 (2002) |
total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 87
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 75 (2002) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
total: 1,780 sq km
land: 1,706 sq km water: 74 sq km note: Guadeloupe is an archipelago of nine inhabited islands, including Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Desirade, Iles des Saintes (2), Saint-Barthelemy, Iles de la Petite Terre, and Saint-Martin (French part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | 10 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Bulgaria regained its independence in 1878, but having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, it fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. Today, reforms and democratization keep Bulgaria on a path toward eventual integration into NATO and the EU - with which it began accession negotiations in 2000. | Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint Martin is shared with the Netherlands; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles and its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe |
Birth rate | 8.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.57 billion
expenditures: $5.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) |
Capital | Sofia | Basse-Terre |
Climate | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers | subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately high humidity |
Coastline | 354 km | 306 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 July 1991 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria |
conventional long form: Department of Guadeloupe
conventional short form: Guadeloupe local long form: Departement de la Guadeloupe local short form: Guadeloupe |
Currency | lev (BGL) | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 14.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.3 billion (2001 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James William PARDEW
embassy: 1 Suborna Street, Sofia 1000 mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 981-89-77 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Elena POPTODOROVA
chancery: 1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-7969 FAX: [1] (202) 234-7973 consulate(s): New York |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | because of a shift in the Danube course since the last correction of the boundary in 1920, a joint Bulgarian-Romanian team will recommend sovereignty changes to several islands and redefine the boundary | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $300 million (2000 est.) | $NA; note - substantial annual French subsidies |
Economy - overview | Bulgaria, a former communist country striving to enter the European Union, has experienced macroeconomic stability and positive growth rates since a major economic downturn in 1996 led to the fall of the then socialist government. A $300 million stand-by agreement negotiated with the IMF at the end of 2001 will help the government maintain economic stability as it seeks to overcome high rates of poverty and unemployment and, at the same time, cut the budget deficit and contain inflation. | The Caribbean economy depends on agriculture, tourism, light industry, and services. It also depends on France for large subsidies and imports. Tourism is a key industry, with most tourists from the US; an increasingly large number of cruise ships visit the islands. The traditional sugarcane crop is slowly being replaced by other crops, such as bananas (which now supply about 50% of export earnings), eggplant, and flowers. Other vegetables and root crops are cultivated for local consumption, although Guadeloupe is still dependent on imported food, mainly from France. Light industry features sugar and rum production. Most manufactured goods and fuel are imported. Unemployment is especially high among the young. Hurricanes periodically devastate the economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 34.42 billion kWh (2000) | 1.074 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 3.2 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.5 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 38.84 billion kWh (2000) | 1.155 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 48%
hydro: 8% nuclear: 44% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Soufriere 1,484 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
- |
Ethnic groups | Bulgarian 83.6%, Turk 9.5%, Roma 4.6%, other 2.3% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (1998) | black or mulatto 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Lebanese, Chinese less than 5% |
Exchange rates | leva per US dollar - 2.2147 (January 2002), 2.1847 (2001), 2.1233 (2000), 1.8364 (1999), 1,760.36 (1998), 1,681.88 (1997)
note: on 5 July 1999, the lev was redenominated; the post-5 July 1999 lev is equal to 1,000 of the pre-5 July 1999 lev |
euros per US dollar - 1.06 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Georgi PURVANOV (since 22 January 2002); Vice President Angel MARIN (since 22 January 2002)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA (since 24 July 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers Nikolay VASILEV (since 24 July 2001), Kostadin PASKALEV (since 24 July 2001), and Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 11 November and 18 November 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) nominated by the president; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister election results: Georgi PURVANOV elected president; percent of vote - Georgi PURVANOV 54.13%, Petar STOYANOV 45.87% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Dominique VIAN (since 6 August 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Jacques GILLOT (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Lucette MICHAUX-CHEVRY (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils election results: NA |
Exports | $5.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels | bananas, sugar, rum |
Exports - partners | Italy 14%, Turkey 10%, Germany 9%, Greece 8%, Serbia and Montenegro 8% (2001) | France 60%, Martinique 18%, US 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, and red; the national emblem formerly on the hoist side of the white stripe has been removed - it contained a rampant lion within a wreath of wheat ears below a red five-pointed star and above a ribbon bearing the dates 681 (first Bulgarian state established) and 1944 (liberation from Nazi control) | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $50.6 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.7 billion (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 14%
industry: 29% services: 58% (2001) |
agriculture: 15%
industry: 17% services: 68% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,600 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9,000 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.4% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 43 00 N, 25 00 E | 16 15 N, 61 35 W |
Geography - note | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia | a narrow channel, the Riviere Salee, divides Guadeloupe proper into two islands: the larger, western Basse-Terre and the smaller, eastern Grande-Terre |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 37,288 km
paved: 33,786 km (including 324 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,502 km (2001) |
total: 2,467 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5%
highest 10%: 23% (1997) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and, to a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market; limited producer of precursor chemicals; some money laundering of drug-related proceeds through financial institutions | - |
Imports | $6.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles | foodstuffs, fuels, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | Russia 19.9%, Germany 15.3%, Italy 9.6%, France 6.0% (2001) | France 63%, Germany 4%, US 3%, Japan 2%, Netherlands Antilles 2% (1999) |
Independence | 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Industries | electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel | construction, cement, rum, sugar, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 14.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 9.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.9% (2002 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 200 (2001) | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 8,000 sq km (1998 est.) | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Administrative Court; Supreme Court of Cassation; Constitutional Court (12 justices appointed or elected for nine-year terms); Supreme Judicial Council (consists of the chairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22 other members; responsible for appointing the justices, prosecutors, and investigating magistrates in the justice system; members of the Supreme Judicial Council elected for five-year terms, 11 elected by the National Assembly and 11 by bodies of the judiciary) | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel with jurisdiction over Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Martinique |
Labor force | 3.83 million (2000 est.) | 125,900 (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.) | NA |
Land boundaries | total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia and Montenegro 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
total: 10.2 km
border countries: Netherlands Antilles (Sint Maarten) 10.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 39%
permanent crops: 1.8% other: 59.2% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10.65%
permanent crops: 4.14% other: 85.21% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown | French (official) 99%, Creole patois |
Legal system | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sobranie (240 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NMS2 42.74%, UtdDF 18.18%, CFB 17.15%, MRF 7.45%; seats by party - NMS2 120, UtdDF 51, CFB 48, MRF 21; note - seating as of March 2003 - NMS2 110, UtdDF 50, CFB 48, MRF 20, independents 12 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (42 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2004); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - left-wing candidates 11, PS 8, RPR 8, PPDG 6, right-wing candidates 5, PCG 3, UDF 1; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - RPR 48.03%, PS/PPDG/diverse left parties 24.49%, PCG 5.29%, diverse right parties 5.73%; seats by party - RPR 25, PS/PPDG/diverse left parties 12, PCG 2, diverse right parties 2 note: Guadeloupe elects two representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1995 (next to be held NA September 2004); percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 1, FGPS 1; Guadeloupe elects four representatives to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, different right parties 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.5 years
male: 67.98 years female: 75.22 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 77.53 years
male: 74.37 years female: 80.84 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1999) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90% male: 90% female: 90% (1982 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 77 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 881,758 GRT/1,312,833 DWT
ships by type: bulk 43, cargo 15, chemical tanker 4, container 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,240 GRT/109 DWT
ships by type: passenger 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: France 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Defense), Internal Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Interior), Civil Defense Forces (subordinate to the president) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $356 million (FY02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (FY02) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,873,052 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,566,816 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 56,104 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
noun: Guadeloupian(s)
adjective: Guadeloupe |
Natural hazards | earthquakes, landslides | hurricanes (June to October); Soufriere de Guadeloupe is an active volcano |
Natural resources | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land | cultivable land, beaches and climate that foster tourism |
Net migration rate | -4.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 525 km; natural gas 1,500 km (1999) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or VMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Simeon II or NMS2 [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA]; People's Union or PU (includes Bulgarian Agrarian National Union and Democratic Party) [Anastasiya MOZER]; St. George's Day [Lyuben DILOV, Jr.]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Ekaterina NADEZHDA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtdDF (a coalition between the UDF and PU, dominated by the former) | Communist Party of Guadeloupe or PCG [Mona CADOCE]; FGPS [Dominique LARIFLA]; Progressive Democratic Party or PPDG [Henri BANGOU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR (may have become UMP) [Lucette MICHAUX-CHEVRY]; Socialist Party or PS [Georges LOUISOR]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Marcel ESDRAS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | agrarian movement; Bulgarian Democratic Center; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Democratic Alliance for the Republic or DAR; New Union for Democracy or NUD; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas | Christian Movement for the Liberation of Guadeloupe or KLPG; General Federation of Guadeloupe Workers or CGT-G; General Union of Guadeloupe Workers or UGTG; Movement for Independent Guadeloupe or MPGI |
Population | 7,621,337 (July 2002 est.) | 440,189 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -1.11% (2002 est.) | 1% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin | Basse-Terre, Gustavia (on Saint Barthelemy), Marigot, Pointe-a-Pitre |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 1, FM 17, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 4.51 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 4,294 km
standard gauge: 4,049 km 1.435-m gauge (2,710 km electrified) narrow gauge: 245 km 0.760-m gauge (2002) |
NA km; privately owned, narrow-gauge plantation lines |
Religions | Bulgarian Orthodox 83.8%, Muslim 12.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 2.3% (1998) | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 4%, Protestant 1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: extensive but antiquated
domestic: more than two-thirds of the lines are residential; telephone service is available in most villages; a fairly modern digital cable trunk line now connects switching centers in most of the regions, the others are connected by digital microwave radio relay international: direct dialing to 58 countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 2 Intelsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) |
general assessment: domestic facilities inadequate
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay to Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and Martinique |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,186,731 (2001) | 171,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.054 million (2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) | 5 (plus several low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast | Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior mountains; Grande-Terre is low limestone formation; most of the seven other islands are volcanic in origin |
Total fertility rate | 1.13 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.92 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 18% (2002 est.) | 27.8% (1998) |
Waterways | 470 km (1987) | none |