Bulgaria (2004) | Macau (2003) | |
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 (special administrative region of China) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 553,801; female 526,856)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 2,533,784; female 2,615,968) 65 years and over: 17.1% (male 535,954; female 751,610) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.9% (male 51,078; female 47,118)
15-64 years: 71.8% (male 159,500; female 178,043) 65 years and over: 7.3% (male 13,930; female 20,234) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets | vegetables, livestock |
Airports | 212 (2003 est.) | 1 (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 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 85
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 72 (2004 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
total: 25.4 sq km
land: 25.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | about 0.1 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. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria 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 the EU. The country joined NATO in 2004. | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
Birth rate | 9.65 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 12.07 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $8.121 billion
expenditures: $8.121 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $1.41 billion
expenditures: $1.19 billion, including capital expenditures of $194 million (2002) |
Capital | Sofia | - |
Climate | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers |
Coastline | 354 km | 41 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 July 1991 | Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution" |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria |
conventional long form: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
Currency | lev (BGL) | pataca (MOP) |
Death rate | 14.25 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $12.05 billion (2003) | $255 million (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | - | special administrative region of China |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James William PARDEW
embassy: 16 Kozyak Street, Sofia 1407 mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, Department of State, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 937-5230 |
the US has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong |
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 |
none (special administrative region of China) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $300 million (2000 est.) | $NA |
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. | Macau's economy four years after reversion to China remains one of the most open in the world. The territory's net exports of goods and services account for 39% of GDP with tourism and apparel exports as the mainstays. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew an estimated 9.5% in 2002. A rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors because of China's easing of restrictions on travel drove the recovery. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 63% of government revenue. The liberalization of Macao's gambling monopoly may contribute to GDP growth, as the three companies awarded gambling licenses have pledged to invest $2.2 billion - roughly 33% of GDP - in the territory. Much of Macau's textile industry may move to the mainland as the Multi-Fiber Agreement is phased out. The territory may have to rely more on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. Growth fell to 4% in 2003, according to early government forecasts, with the drop in large measure due to concerns over the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). |
Electricity - consumption | 32.52 billion kWh (2001) | 1.688 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 6.79 billion kWh (2001) | 1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 830 million kWh (2001) | 193 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 41.38 billion kWh (2001) | 1.611 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | - | 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: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 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-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (2001) | Chinese 95%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry), Portuguese, other |
Exchange rates | leva per US dollar - 1.7327 (2003), 2.077 (2002), 2.1847 (2001), 2.1233 (2000), 1.8364 (1999)
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 |
patacas per US dollar - 8.03 (2002), 8.03 (2001), 8.03 (2000), 7.99 (1999), 7.98 (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), Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001), and Plamen PANAYOTOV (since 17 July 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and 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 and elected by the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly election results: Georgi PURVANOV elected president; percent of vote - Georgi PURVANOV 54.13%, Petar STOYANOV 45.87% |
chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of all five government secretaries, three legislators, and two businessmen elections: chief executive chosen by a 200-member selection committee for up to two five-year terms |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels | clothing, textiles, footwear, cement, machines, and parts |
Exports - partners | Italy 14.1%, Germany 10.9%, Greece 10.5%, Turkey 9.2%, France 5.1%, US 4.5% (2003) | US 48.6%, China 15.5%, Germany 7.4%, Hong Kong 5.8%, UK 5.4% (2002) |
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) | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $57.13 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8.6 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.4%
industry: 30% services: 58.6% (2003) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 12% services: 87% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,600 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $18,500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.3% (2003 est.) | 9.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 43 00 N, 25 00 E | 22 10 N, 113 33 E |
Geography - note | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia | essentially urban; one causeway and two bridges connect the two islands of Coloane and Taipa to the peninsula on mainland |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 37,286 km
paved: 35,049 km (including 324 km of expressways) unpaved: 2,237 km (2000) |
total: 271 km
paved: 271 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
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 | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles | clothing, textiles, yarn, foodstuffs, fuel, automobiles, capital goods |
Imports - partners | Germany 14.4%, Russia 12.6%, Italy 10.3%, Greece 6.7%, Turkey 6.2%, France 5.7% (2003) | China 41.7%, Hong Kong 14.5%, Japan 6.7%, Taiwan 6.6%, South Korea 5%, France 4.3%, US 4.1% (2002) |
Independence | 3 March 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire); 22 September 1908 (complete independence from the Ottoman Empire) | none (special administrative region of China) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.3% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys |
Infant mortality rate | total: 21.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.23 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 4.42 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.01 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% (2003 est.) | -2.6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | ESCAP (associate), IHO, IMO (associate), Interpol (sub-bureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (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) | The Court of Final Appeal in the Macau Special Administrative Region |
Labor force | 3.333 million (2003 est.) | 214,000 (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.) | restaurants and hotels 12%, manufacturing 20%, other services and agriculture 68% (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia and Montenegro 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
total: 0.34 km
border countries: China 0.34 km |
Land use | arable land: 40.02%
permanent crops: 1.92% other: 58.06% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: "green areas" represent 22.4% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown | Portuguese, Chinese (Cantonese) |
Legal system | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Portuguese civil law 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%, UDF 18.18%, CfB 17.15%, MRF 7.45%; seats by party - NMS2 120, UDF 51, CfB 48, MRF 21; note - seating as of January 2005 - NMS2 98, CfB 49, UtDF 28, MRF 20, UDF 14, New Time 13, BANU 11, independents 7 |
unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (27 seats; 10 elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by political bloc - Entertainment Industry 3, pro-democracy 2, pro-Beijing Labor Union 2, pro-Beijing Neighborhood Association 2, pro-business 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.75 years
male: 68.14 years female: 75.59 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 81.87 years
male: 79.05 years female: 84.82 years (2003 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: 94.5% male: 97.2% female: 92% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
not specified |
Merchant marine | total: 60 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 757,972 GRT/1,115,238 DWT
by type: bulk 37, cargo 7, chemical tanker 4, container 2, petroleum tanker 3, rail car carrier 2, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea/passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 registered in other countries: 45 (2004 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces | no regular indigenous military forces; responsibility for defense reverted to China on 20 December 1999; there is a local police force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $356 million (FY02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2003) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,829,203 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 130,228 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,530,657 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 71,826 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 52,811 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
Nationality | noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
Natural hazards | earthquakes, landslides | typhoons |
Natural resources | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -4.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.93 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,425 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Bulgarian Agrarian National Union-People's Union or BANU [Anastasia MOZER]; Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV]; Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria or DSB [Ivan KOSTOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Simeon II or NMS2 [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA]; New Time [Emil KOSHLUKOV]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Nadezhda MIKHAYLOVA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtDF (a coalition of center-right parties dominated by DSB) | there are no formal political parties, however, there are civic associations that, for purposes of legislative voting, join together to form political blocs |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas | Catholic Church [Domingos LAM, bishop]; Macau Society of Tourism and Entertainment or STDM [Stanley HO, managing director]; Union for Democracy Development [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong, leader] |
Population | 7,517,973 (July 2004 est.) | 469,903 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 13.4% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.92% (2004 est.) | 1.72% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin | Macau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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 (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Muslim 12.2%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 3.4% (1998) | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 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 (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
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: country code - 359; direct dialing to 58 countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 2 Intelsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) |
general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,868,200 (2002) | 176,902 (November 2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,597,500 (2002) | 158,251 (November 2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) | 1 (2003) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast | generally flat |
Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.32 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.3% (2003) | 6.3% (2002) |
Waterways | 470 km (2004) | none |