Bulgaria (2003) | Grenada (2002) | |
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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 | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petit Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.2% (male 549,142; female 520,057)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 2,551,548; female 2,632,978) 65 years and over: 17% (male 535,165; female 749,039) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 35.9% (male 16,213; female 15,863)
15-64 years: 60.3% (male 28,460; female 25,307) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 1,546; female 1,822) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables |
Airports | 216 (2002) | 3 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 128
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 20 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 92 (2002) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 88
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 74 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
total: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | twice 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. | One of the smallest independent countries in the western hemisphere, Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year. |
Birth rate | 8.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 23.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.57 billion
expenditures: $5.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million, including capital expenditures of $28 million (1997) |
Capital | Sofia | Saint George's |
Climate | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 354 km | 121 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 July 1991 | 19 December 1973 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Grenada |
Currency | lev (BGL) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 14.34 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.63 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.3 billion (yearend 2002) | $196 million (2000) (2000) |
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, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 981-89-77 |
chief of mission: the ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada; Charge d'Affairs Nadia TONGOUR
embassy: Point Salines, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's, Grenada, West Indies telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1176 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Elena B. POPTODOROVA
chancery: 1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-0174 FAX: [1] (202) 234-7973 consulate(s): New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Denis G. ANTOINE
chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | joint boundary commission is rectifying boundary with Romania based on shifts in Danube since last delimitation in 1920 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $300 million (2000 est.) | $8.3 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | Bulgaria, a former communist country striving to enter the European Union, has experienced macroeconomic stability and strong growth since a major economic downturn in 1996 led to the fall of the then socialist government. As a result, the government became committed to economic reform and responsible fiscal planning. A $300 million stand-by agreement negotiated with the IMF at the end of 2001 has supported government efforts to overcome high rates of poverty and unemployment. | Despite government steadying of annual economic growth in recent years through progress in fiscal reform and prudent macroeconomic management, a downturn in tourist arrivals in 2001 threatens government spending in 2002. Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange, although it also supports a small agriculture sector and a developing offshore financial industry. Short-term concerns include a rising fiscal deficit and the deterioration in the external account balance. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.52 billion kWh (2001) | 102.3 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 6.79 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 830 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 41.38 billion kWh (2001) | 110 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 47.8%
hydro: 8.1% nuclear: 44.1% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Bulgarian 83.6%, Turk 9.5%, Roma 4.6%, other 2.3% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (1998) | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5% , and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | leva per US dollar - 2.08 (2002), 2.18 (2001), 2.12 (2000), 1.84 (1999), 1.76 (1998)
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 |
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
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), and Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001), Plamen PANAYOTOV (since 17 July 2003) 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) 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 |
Exports | NA (2001) | $78 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace |
Exports - partners | Italy 15.5%, Germany 9.6%, Turkey 9.4%, Greece 9.2%, France 5.3%, US 4.8% (2002) | Caricom 32.3%, UK 20%, US 13%, Netherlands 8.8% (1991) |
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) | a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $49.23 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $424 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13.7%
industry: 28.5% services: 57.9% (2001) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 24% services: 68% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,750 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.8% (2002 est.) | 6.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 43 00 N, 25 00 E | 12 07 N, 61 40 W |
Geography - note | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 37,286 km
paved: 35,049 km (including 324 km of expressways) unpaved: 2,237 km (2000) |
total: 1,040 km
paved: 638 km unpaved: 402 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.5%
highest 10%: 22.8% (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 | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US |
Imports | NA (2001) | $270 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel (1989) |
Imports - partners | Russia 14.6%, Germany 14.4%, Italy 11.4%, Greece 6.1%, France 5.7%, Turkey 5% (2002) | US 31.2%, Caricom 23.6%, UK 13.8%, Japan 7.1% (1991) |
Independence | 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire) | 7 February 1974 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2002 est.) | 0.7% (1997 est.) |
Industries | electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, construction |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
14.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.9% (2002 est.) | 2.8% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, 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, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 200 (2001) | 14 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 8,000 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
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) | West Indies Associate States Supreme Court (an associate judge resides in Grenada) |
Labor force | 3.83 million (2000 est.) | 42,300 (1996) (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.) | services 62%, agriculture 24%, industry 14% (1999 est.) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 39%
permanent crops: 1.8% other: 59.2% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 26.47% other: 67.65% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law |
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 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 13-member body, 10 appointed by the government and three by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 18 January 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2004) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NNP 14, GULP 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.8 years
male: 68.26 years female: 75.56 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 64.52 years
male: 62.74 years female: 66.31 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98.2% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
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: 69 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 829,421 GRT/1,252,496 DWT
ships by type: bulk 42, cargo 10, chemical tanker 4, container 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
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) | Royal Grenada Police Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $356 million (FY02) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (FY02) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,854,049 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,551,485 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 54,107 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) |
Nationality | noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
Natural hazards | earthquakes, landslides | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November |
Natural resources | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land | timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors |
Net migration rate | -4.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -15.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,425 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2003) | - |
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]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Nadezhda MIKHAYLOVA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtdDF (a coalition between the UDF and other center-right parties) | Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Herbert PREUDHOMME]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [leader vacant]; New National Party or NNP [George McGUIRE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | agrarian movement; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas | NA |
Population | 7,537,929 (July 2003 est.) | 89,211 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 12.6% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -1.09% (2003 est.) | 0.02% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin | Grenville, Saint George's |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 2, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 57,000 (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) |
0 km |
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 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% |
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: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2002 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: automatic, islandwide telephone system
domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: new SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,186,731 (2001) | 27,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.054 million (2001) | 976 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast | volcanic in origin with central mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.13 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 18% (2002 est.) | 11.5% (1999) (1999) |
Waterways | 470 km (1987) | none |