##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Bulgaria (2008) - Turkmenistan (2006)
Compare Bulgaria (2008) z Turkmenistan (2006)
| Bulgaria (2008) | Turkmenistan (2006) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat): Ahal Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dashoguz Welayaty, Lebap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 13.9% (male 521,117/female 496,022)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 2,472,424/female 2,556,102) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 523,660/female 753,533) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 35.2% (male 913,988/female 863,503)
15-64 years: 60.7% (male 1,501,486/female 1,557,155) 65 years and over: 4.1% (male 79,227/female 127,561) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets; livestock | cotton, grain; livestock |
| Airports | 214 (2007) | 29 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 131
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 95 (2007) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 83
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 72 (2007) |
total: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 4 (2006) |
| Area | total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
total: 488,100 sq km
land: 488,100 sq km water: NEGL |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Tennessee | slightly larger than California |
| 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 from the Ottoman Empire 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. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007. | Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1924. It achieved its independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. President Saparmurat NIYAZOV retains absolute control over the country and opposition is not tolerated. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects were to be expanded. The Turkmenistan Government is actively seeking to develop alternative petroleum transportation routes in order to break Russia's pipeline monopoly. |
| Birth rate | 9.62 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 27.61 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $16.62 billion
expenditures: $15.18 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $1.401 billion
expenditures: $1.542 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
| Capital | name: Sofia
geographic coordinates: 42 41 N, 23 19 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
name: Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)
geographic coordinates: 37 57 N, 58 23 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers | subtropical desert |
| Coastline | 354 km | 0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) |
| Constitution | adopted 12 July 1991 | adopted 18 May 1992 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria local long form: Republika Balgariya local short form: Balgariya |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Death rate | 14.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 8.6 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $29.29 billion (30 June 2007) | $2.4 billion to $5 billion (2001 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John Ross BEYRLE
embassy: 16 Kozyak Street, Sofia 1407 mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, US Department of State, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 937-5320 |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Jennifer L. BRUSH
embassy: No. 9 1984 Street (formerly Pushkin Street), Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 774000 mailing address: 7070 Ashgabat Place, Washington, DC 20521-7070 telephone: [9] (9312) 35-00-45 FAX: [9] (9312) 39-26-14 |
| 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) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Meret Bairamovich ORAZOV
chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0697 |
| Disputes - international | none | cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan creates water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; bilateral talks continue with Azerbaijan on dividing the seabed and contested oilfields in the middle of the Caspian; demarcation of land boundary with Kazakhstan has started but Caspian seabed delimitation remains stalled |
| Economic aid - recipient | $742 million (2005-06 est.) | $16 million from the US (2001) |
| Economy - overview | Bulgaria, a former communist country that entered the EU on 1 January 2007, has experienced strong growth since a major economic downturn in 1996. Successive governments have demonstrated commitment to economic reforms and responsible fiscal planning, but have failed so far to rein in rising inflation and large current account deficits. Bulgaria has averaged more than 6% growth since 2004, attracting significant amounts of foreign direct investment, but corruption in the public administration, a weak judiciary, and the presence of organized crime remain significant challenges. | Turkmenistan is a largely desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and large gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton; formerly it was the world's tenth-largest producer. Poor harvests in recent years have led to an almost 50% decline in cotton exports. With an authoritarian ex-Communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. Privatization goals remain limited. In 1998-2005, Turkmenistan suffered from the continued lack of adequate export routes for natural gas and from obligations on extensive short-term external debt. At the same time, however, total exports rose by 20% to 30% per year in 2003-2005, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. In 2005, Ashgabat sought to raise natural gas export prices to its main customers, Russia and Ukraine, from $44 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $66 per tcm. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, the burden of foreign debt, the government's irrational use of oil and gas revenues, and its unwillingness to adopt market-oriented reforms. Turkmenistan's economic statistics are state secrets, and GDP and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In particular, the rate of GDP growth is uncertain. |
| Electricity - consumption | 37.4 billion kWh (2006) | 8.847 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 7.8 billion kWh (2006) | 1.136 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2006) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 45.7 billion kWh (2006) | 11.41 billion kWh (2004 est.) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya -81 m; note - Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya (the lake has dropped as low as -110 m)
note: Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya (the lake has dropped as low as -110 m) highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 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 | contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salination, water-logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; desertification |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, 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, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (2001 census) | Turkmen 85%, Uzbek 5%, Russian 4%, other 6% (2003) |
| Exchange rates | leva per US dollar - 1.4366 (2007), 1.5576 (2006), 1.5741 (2005), 1.5751 (2004), 1.7327 (2003) | in recent years the unofficial rate has hovered around 24,000 to 25,000 Turkmen manats to the dollar; the official rate has consistently been 5,200 manat to the dollar |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Georgi PARVANOV (since 22 January 2002); Vice President Angel MARIN (since 22 January 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei STANISHEV (since 16 August 2005); Deputy Prime Ministers Ivaylo KALFIN, Daniel VULCHEV, and Emel ETEM (since 16 August 2005) 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 a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 22 and 29 October 2006 (next to be held in 2011); 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 PARVANOV reelected president; percent of vote - Georgi PARVANOV 77.3%, Volen SIDEROV 22.7%; Sergei STANISHEV elected prime minister, result of legislative vote - 168 to 67 |
chief of state: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Saparmurat NIYAZOV (since 27 October 1990, when the first direct presidential election occurred) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president note: NIYAZOV's term in office was extended indefinitely on 28 December 1999 during a session of the People's Council (Halk Maslahaty); in November 2005, the People's Council voted down NIYAZOV's suggestion to hold presidential elections in 2009 elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1992; note - President NIYAZOV was unanimously approved as president for life by the People's Council on 28 December 1999; deputy chairmen of the Cabinet of Ministers are appointed by the president election results: Saparmurat NIYAZOV elected president without opposition; percent of vote - Saparmurat NIYAZOV 99.5% |
| Exports | 51,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels | gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, cotton fiber, textiles |
| Exports - partners | Turkey 12%, Italy 10.4%, Germany 10%, Greece 8.2%, Belgium 6.8%, France 4.3% (2006) | Ukraine 43.5%, Iran 15%, Hungary 5.4% (2005) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, and red
note: the national emblem, formerly on the hoist side of the white stripe, has been removed |
green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five tribal guls (designs used in producing carpets) stacked above two crossed olive branches similar to the olive branches on the UN flag; a white crescent moon representing Islam with five white stars representing the regions or velayats of Turkmenistan appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 60.7% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 20.9%
industry: 38% services: 41.1% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.1% (2007 est.) | IMF estimate: 6%
note: official government statistics show 21.4% growth, but these estimates are widely regarded as unreliable (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 43 00 N, 25 00 E | 40 00 N, 60 00 E |
| Geography - note | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia | landlocked; the western and central low-lying, desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau |
| Heliports | 4 (2007) | 1 (2006) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 25.4% (2005) |
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998) |
| 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 | transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and Western European markets; transit point for heroin precursor chemicals bound for Afghanistan |
| Imports | 138,800 bbl/day (2004 est.) | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; fuels, minerals, and raw materials | machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | Germany 15%, Italy 10.6%, Turkey 7.2%, Greece 6.3%, China 5%, France 4.9%, Romania 4.5% (2006) | UAE 12.4%, Azerbaijan 10.9%, US 9.4%, Russia 8.9%, Ukraine 7.4%, Turkey 7.2%, Iran 6.1%, Germany 5.3%, Kazakhstan 4.2% (2005) |
| Independence | 3 March 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire); 22 September 1908 (complete independence from the Ottoman Empire) | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 22% (2003 est.) |
| Industries | electricity, gas, water; food, beverages, tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel | natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 19.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 72.56 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 68 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.8% (2007 est.) | 10.5% (2005 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | AsDB, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
| Irrigated land | 5,880 sq km (2003) | 18,000 sq km (2003) |
| 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) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
| Labor force | 3.44 million (2007 est.) | 2.32 million (2003 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 8.5%
industry: 33.6% services: 57.9% (2nd qtr. 2006 est.) |
agriculture: 48.2%
industry: 13.8% services: 37% (2003 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
total: 3,736 km
border countries: Afghanistan 744 km, Iran 992 km, Kazakhstan 379 km, Uzbekistan 1,621 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.94%
permanent crops: 1.9% other: 68.16% (2005) |
arable land: 4.51%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 95.35% (2005) |
| Languages | Bulgarian 84.5%, Turkish 9.6%, Roma 4.1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) | Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7% |
| Legal system | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | based on 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 25 June 2005 (next to be held in June 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - CfB 31.1%, NMS2 19.9%, MRF 12.7%, ATAKA 8.2%, UDF 7.7%, DSB 6.5%, BPU 5.2%, other 8.7%; seats by party - CfB 83, NMS2 53, MRF 33, UDF 20, ATAKA 17, DSB 17, BPU 13, independents 4; note - seats by party as of January 2008 - CfB 82, NMS2 36, MRF 34, UDF 16, DSB 16, Bulgarian New Democracy 16, BPU 13, ATAKA 11, independents 16 |
under the 1992 constitution, there are two parliamentary bodies, a unicameral People's Council or Halk Maslahaty (supreme legislative body of up to 2,500 delegates, some of whom are elected by popular vote and some of whom are appointed; meets at least yearly) and a unicameral Parliament or Mejlis (50 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); membership is scheduled to be increased to 65 seats
elections: People's Council - last held in April 2003 (next to be held December 2008); Mejlis - last held 19 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: Mejlis - DPT 100%; seats by party - DPT 50; note - all 50 elected officials are members of the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan and are preapproved by President NIYAZOV note: in late 2003, a new law was adopted, reducing the powers of the Mejlis and making the Halk Maslahaty the supreme legislative organ; the Halk Maslahaty can now legally dissolve the Mejlis, and the president is now able to participate in the Mejlis as its supreme leader; the Mejlis can no longer adopt or amend the constitution, or announce referendums or its elections; since the president is both the "Chairman for Life" of the Halk Maslahaty and the supreme leader of the Mejlis, the 2003 law has the effect of making him the sole authority of both the executive and legislative branches of government |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.57 years
male: 68.95 years female: 76.4 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 61.83 years
male: 58.43 years female: 65.41 years (2006 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.2% male: 98.7% female: 97.7% (2001 census) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.8% male: 99.3% female: 98.3% (1999 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan |
| Map references | Europe | Asia |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total: 71 ships (1000 GRT or over) 833,153 GRT/1,194,660 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 37, cargo 14, chemical tanker 4, container 6, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 3 (Germany 1, Ireland 1, Russia 1) registered in other countries: 39 (Comoros 1, Malta 15, Mongolia 2, Panama 1, Slovakia 7, St Vincent and The Grenadines 13) (2007) |
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 22,870 GRT/25,801 DWT
by type: cargo 4, combination ore/oil 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1 (2006) |
| Military branches | Bulgarian Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Bulgarian Air Forces (Bulgarski Voennovazdyshni Sily, BVVS) (2008) | Ground Forces, Artillery and Rocket Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (2006) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $90 million (FY99) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2005 est.) | 3.4% (FY99) |
| National holiday | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) |
| Nationality | noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
noun: Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen |
| Natural hazards | earthquakes, landslides | NA |
| Natural resources | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land | petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt |
| Net migration rate | -3.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 2,500 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2007) | gas 6,441 km; oil 1,361 km (2006) |
| Political parties and leaders | ATAKA (Attack Coalition) (coalition of parties headed by the Attack National Union); Attack National Union [Volen SIDEROV]; Bulgarian Agrarian National Union-People's Union or BANU [Anastasia MOZER]; Bulgarian New Democracy [Borislav RALCHEV]; Bulgarian People's Union or BPU (coalition of UFD, IMRO, and BANU); Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria or GERB [Boyko BORISOV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV]; Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria or DSB [Ivan KOSTOV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or IMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Stability and Progress or NDSV [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA]; New Time [Emil KOSHLUKOV]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Petar STOYANOV]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtDF (a coalition of center-right parties dominated by UDF) | Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT [Saparmurat NIYAZOV]
note: formal opposition parties are outlawed; unofficial, small opposition movements exist underground or in foreign countries; the two most prominent opposition groups-in-exile have been National Democratic Movement of Turkmenistan (NDMT) and the United Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (UDPT); NDMT was led by former Foreign Minister Boris SHIKHMURADOV until his arrest and imprisonment in the wake of the 25 November 2002 assassination attempt on President NIYAZOV; UDPT is led by former Foreign Minister Abdy KULIEV and is based out of Moscow |
| 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 | NA |
| Population | 7,322,858 (July 2007 est.) | 5,042,920 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 14.1% (2003 est.) | 58% (2003 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -0.837% (2007 est.) | 1.83% (2006 est.) |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 16, FM 8, shortwave 2 (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 (2006) |
total: 2,440 km
broad gauge: 2,440 km 1.520-m gauge (2005) |
| Religions | Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Muslim 12.2%, other Christian 1.2%, other 4% (2001 census) | Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.051 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.967 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.695 male(s)/female total population: 0.924 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: an extensive but antiquated telecommunications network inherited from the Soviet era; quality has improved; the Bulgaria Telecommunications Company's fixed-line monopoly terminated in 2005 when alternative fixed-line operators were given access to its network; a drop in fixed-line connections in recent years has been offset by a sharp increase in mobile-cellular telephone use fostered by multiple service providers
domestic: 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; submarine cable provides connectivity to Ukraine and Russia; a combination submarine cable and land fiber-optic system provides connectivity to Italy, Albania, and Macedonia; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 2 Intelsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2007) |
general assessment: poorly developed
domestic: NA international: country code - 993; linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and to other countries by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; a new telephone link from Ashgabat to Iran has been established; a new exchange in Ashgabat switches international traffic through Turkey via Intelsat; satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 1 Intelsat |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2.399 million (2006) | 376,100 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8.253 million (2006) | 52,000 (2004) |
| Television broadcast stations | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) | 4 (government owned and programmed) (2004) |
| Terrain | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast | flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west |
| Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3.37 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 8% (2007 est.) | 60% (2004 est.) |
| Waterways | 470 km (2007) | 1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal important inland waterways) (2006) |
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