Burkina Faso (2008) | Moldova (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 45 provinces; Bale, Bam, Banwa, Bazega, Bougouriba, Boulgou, Boulkiemde, Comoe, Ganzourgou, Gnagna, Gourma, Houet, Ioba, Kadiogo, Kenedougou, Komondjari, Kompienga, Kossi, Koulpelogo, Kouritenga, Kourweogo, Leraba, Loroum, Mouhoun, Nahouri, Namentenga, Nayala, Noumbiel, Oubritenga, Oudalan, Passore, Poni, Sanguie, Sanmatenga, Seno, Sissili, Soum, Sourou, Tapoa, Tuy, Yagha, Yatenga, Ziro, Zondoma, Zoundweogo | 9 counties (judetele, singular - judetul), 1 municipality* (municipiul), 1 autonomous territorial unit** (unitate teritoriala autonoma), and 1 territorial unit*** (unitate teritoriala); Balti, Cahul, Chisinau, Chisinau*, Edinet, Gagauzia**, Lapusna, Orhei, Soroca, Stinga Nistrului***, Tighina, Ungheni |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.7% (male 3,356,737/female 3,327,058)
15-64 years: 50.9% (male 3,635,152/female 3,650,303) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 141,554/female 215,399) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.1% (male 477,063; female 459,992)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 1,465,248; female 1,584,402) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 168,068; female 284,729) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, sorghum, millet, corn, rice; livestock | vegetables, fruits, wine, grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, tobacco; beef, milk |
Airports | 33 (2007) | 36 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 17 (2007) |
total: 28
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 12 (2002) |
Area | total: 274,200 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km |
total: 33,843 sq km
land: 33,371 sq km water: 472 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Colorado | slightly larger than Maryland |
Background | Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and has won every election since then. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries. | Formerly ruled by Romania, Moldova became part of the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although independent from the USSR since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Dniester River supporting the Slavic majority population, mostly Ukrainians and Russians, who have proclaimed a "Transnistria" republic. One of the poorest nations in Europe, Moldova became the first former Soviet state to elect a Communist as its president in 2001. |
Birth rate | 45.28 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 14.31 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.311 billion
expenditures: $1.764 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $536 million
expenditures: $594 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | name: Ouagadougou
geographic coordinates: 12 22 N, 1 31 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Chisinau |
Climate | tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers | moderate winters, warm summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 2 June 1991 approved by referendum, 11 June 1991 formally adopted; last amended January 2002 | new constitution adopted 28 July 1994; replaces old Soviet constitution of 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Burkina Faso local long form: none local short form: Burkina Faso former: Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta |
conventional long form: Republic of Moldova
conventional short form: Moldova local long form: Republica Moldova local short form: none former: Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldova; Moldavia |
Currency | - | Moldovan leu (MDL) |
Death rate | 15.31 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.7 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.33 billion (2007) | $1.3 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jeanine E. JACKSON
embassy: 602 Avenue Raoul Follereau, Koulouba, Secteur 4 mailing address: 01 B. P. 35, Ouagadougou 01; pouch mail - US Department of State, 2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC 20521-2440 telephone: [226] 50-30-67-23 FAX: [226] 50-30-38-90, 50-31-23-68 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela Hyde SMITH
embassy: 103 Alexei Mateevici Street, Chisinau MD-2009 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [373] (2) 23-37-72 FAX: [373] (2) 23-30-44 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Paramanga Ernest YONLI (since 14 January 2008)
chancery: 2340 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-5577 FAX: [1] (202) 667-1882 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mihail MANOLI
chancery: 2101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-1130 FAX: [1] (202) 667-1204 |
Disputes - international | two villages remain in dispute along the border with Benin; Benin accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; in recent years citizens and rogue security forces rob and harass local populations on both sides of the poorly-defined Burkina Faso-Niger border; despite the presence of over 9,000 UN forces (UNOCI) in Cote d'Ivoire since 2004, ethnic conflict continues to spread into neighboring states who can no longer send their migrant workers to work in Ivorian cocoa plantations | difficulties with the Transnistria region complicate border crossing and customs with Ukraine, facilitating smuggling, arms transfers, and other illegal activities |
Economic aid - recipient | $659.6 million (2005) | $100 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has few natural resources and a weak industrial base. About 90% of the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture, which is vulnerable to periodic drought. Cotton is the main cash crop and the government has joined with three other cotton producing countries in the region - Mali, Niger, and Chad - to lobby in the World Trade Organization for fewer subsidies to producers in other competing countries. Since 1998, Burkina Faso has embarked upon a gradual but successful privatization of state-owned enterprises. Having revised its investment code in 2004, Burkina Faso hopes to attract foreign investors. Thanks to this new code and other legislation favoring the mining sector, the country has seen an upswing in gold exploration and production. While the bitter internal crisis in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire is beginning to be resolved, it is still having a negative effect on Burkina Faso's trade and employment. In 2007 higher costs for energy and imported foodstuffs, as well as low cotton prices, dampened a GDP growth rate that had averaged 6% in the last 10 years. Burkina Faso received a Millennium Challenge Account threshold grant to improve girls' education at the primary school level, and appears likely to receive a grant in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture, and land reform. | Moldova remains a very poor country despite recent progress from its small economic base. It enjoys a favorable climate and good farmland but has no major mineral deposits. As a result, the economy depends heavily on agriculture, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine, and tobacco. Moldova must import all of its supplies of oil, coal, and natural gas, largely from Russia. Energy shortages contributed to sharp production declines after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. As part of an ambitious reform effort, Moldova introduced a convertible currency, freed all prices, stopped issuing preferential credits to state enterprises, backed steady land privatization, removed export controls, and freed interest rates. The government entered into agreements with the World Bank and the IMF to promote growth and reduce poverty. The economy returned to positive growth, of 2.1% in 2000, 6.1% in 2001, 7.2% in 2002, and 5.3% in 2003. Further reforms will come slowly because of strong political forces backing government controls. The economy remains vulnerable to higher fuel prices, poor agricultural weather, and the skepticism of foreign investors. |
Electricity - consumption | 480.1 million kWh (2005) | 3.216 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 60 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 516.2 million kWh (2005) | 3.394 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 90.6%
hydro: 9.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m |
lowest point: Dniester River 2 m
highest point: Dealul Balanesti 430 m |
Environment - current issues | recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation | heavy use of agricultural chemicals, including banned pesticides such as DDT, has contaminated soil and groundwater; extensive soil erosion from poor farming methods |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | Mossi over 40%, other approximately 60% (includes Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, and Fulani) | Moldovan/Romanian 64.5%, Ukrainian 13.8%, Russian 13%, Jewish 1.5%, Bulgarian 2%, Gagauz and other 5.2% (1989 est.)
note: internal disputes with ethnic Slavs in the Transnistrian region |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) | lei per US dollar - NA (2002), 12.87 (2001), 12.43 (2000), 10.52 (1999), 5.37 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Blaise COMPAORE (since 15 October 1987)
head of government: Prime Minister Tertius ZONGO (since 4 June 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 13 November 2005 (next to be held in 2010); in April 2000, the constitution was amended reducing the presidential term from seven to five years, enforceable as of 2005; prime minister appointed by the president with the consent of the legislature election results: Blaise COMPAORE reelected president; percent of popular vote - Blaise COMPAORE 80.3%, Benewende Stanislas SANKARA 4.9% |
chief of state: President Vladimir VORONIN (since 4 April 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Vasile TARLEV (since 15 April 2001), First Deputy Prime Minister Vasile IOVV (since NA 2002), Deputy Prime Minister Stefan ODAGIU (since NA 2002) cabinet: selected by prime minister, subject to approval of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term; election last held 4 April 2001 (next to be held NA 2005); note - presidential elections were scheduled for December 2000, but in July 2000, Parliament canceled direct, popular elections; Parliament's failure to chose a new president in December 2000 led to early parliamentary elections in February 2001; prime minister designated by the president, upon consultation with Parliament; note - within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence from the Parliament regarding his/her work program and entire cabinet; prime minister designated 15 April 2001, cabinet received a vote of confidence 19 April 2001 election results: Vladimir VORONIN elected president; parliamentary votes - Vladimir VORONIN 71, Dumitru BRAGHIS 15, Valerian CHRISTEA 3; Vasile TARLEV designated prime minister; parliamentary votes of confidence - 75 of 101 |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, livestock, gold | foodstuffs, textiles, machinery |
Exports - partners | China 41.9%, Singapore 14.4%, Ghana 5.9%, Thailand 4.9%, Niger 4.4% (2006) | Russia 35%, Italy 11.7%, Germany 8.8%, Ukraine 8.5%, Romania 5.7%, US 5.2%, Belarus 4.5%, Spain 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a yellow five-pointed star in the center
note: uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized ox head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $11.51 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 29.4%
industry: 19% services: 51.7% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 28%
industry: 23% services: 49% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2007) | 6.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 2 00 W | 47 00 N, 29 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas | landlocked; well endowed with various sedimentary rocks and minerals including sand, gravel, gypsum, and limestone |
Highways | - | total: 12,657 km
paved: 11,012 km unpaved: 1,645 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.2% (2004) |
lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.7% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | - | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for CIS consumption; transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central Asia to Russia, Western Europe, and possibly the US; widespread crime and underground economic activity |
Imports | 8,158 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum | mineral products and fuel 32%, machinery and equipment, chemicals, textiles (2000) |
Imports - partners | Cote d'Ivoire 25.9%, France 22.8%, Togo 7.2% (2006) | Russia 23.9%, Ukraine 13.4%, Germany 12.6%, Italy 8.3%, Romania 8.2% (2002) |
Independence | 5 August 1960 (from France) | 27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.2% (2007 est.) | 9% (2002 est.) |
Industries | cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold | food processing, agricultural machinery, foundry equipment, refrigerators and freezers, washing machines, hosiery, sugar, vegetable oil, shoes, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: 89.79 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 97.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 81.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 41.58 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 44.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 38.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.7% (2007 est.) | 5.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACCT, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, GUUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (1999) |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (2003) | 3,070 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court (the sole authority for constitutional judicature) |
Labor force | 5 million
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2003) |
1.7 million (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000 est.) |
agriculture 40%, industry 14%, services 46% (1998) |
Land boundaries | total: 3,193 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 549 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km |
total: 1,389 km
border countries: Romania 450 km, Ukraine 939 km |
Land use | arable land: 17.66%
permanent crops: 0.22% other: 82.12% (2005) |
arable land: 54.08%
permanent crops: 12.1% other: 33.82% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population | Moldovan (official, virtually the same as the Romanian language), Russian, Gagauz (a Turkish dialect) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews legality of legislative acts and governmental decisions of resolution; it is unclear if Moldova accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction but accepts many UN and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) documents |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (111 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly election last held 6 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CDP 73, ADF-RDA 14, UPR 5, UNIR-MS 4, CFD-B 3, UPS 2, PDP-PS 2, RDB 2, PDS 2, PAREN 1, PAI 1, RPC 1, UDPS 1 |
unicameral Parliament or Parlamentul (101 seats; parties and electoral blocs, as well as independent candidates, elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 February 2001 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PCM 50.1%, Braghis Alliance 13.4%, PPCD 8.2%, other parties 28.3%; seats by party - PCM 71, Braghis Alliance 19, PPCD 11 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.21 years
male: 47.68 years female: 50.8 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 64.88 years
male: 60.63 years female: 69.35 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 21.8% male: 29.4% female: 15.2% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.1% male: 99.6% female: 98.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, north of Ghana | Eastern Europe, northeast of Romania |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force of Burkina Faso (Force Aerienne de Burkina Faso, FABF), National Gendarmerie (2006) | Ground Forces (includes Air and Air Defense Forces), Republic Security Forces (includes paramilitary Internal Troops and Border Troops) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $6.4 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (2006) | 0.4% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,180,874 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 936,629 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 44,084 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 11 December (1958) | Independence Day, 27 August (1991) |
Nationality | noun: Burkinabe (singular and plural)
adjective: Burkinabe |
noun: Moldovan(s)
adjective: Moldovan |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | landslides (57 cases in 1998) |
Natural resources | manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates, pumice, salt | lignite, phosphorites, gypsum, arable land, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 606 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | African Democratic Rally-Alliance for Democracy and Federation or ADF-RDA [Gilbert OUEDRAOGO]; Citizen's Popular Rally or RPC [Antoine QUARE]; Coalition of Democratic Forces of Burkina or CFD-B [Amadou Diemdioda DICKO]; Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP [Roch Marc-Christian KABORE]; Movement for Tolerance and Progress or MTP [Nayabtigungou Congo KABORE]; Party for African Independence or PAI [Philippe OUEDRAOGO]; Party for Democracy and Progress/Socialist Party or PDP/PS [Ali LANKOANDE]; Party for Democracy and Socialism or PDS [Felix SOUBEIGA]; Party for National Rebirth or PAREN [Oumar DJIGUIMDE]; Rally for the Development of Burkina or RDB [Antoine KARGOUGOU]; Rally of Ecologists of Burkina Faso or RDEB [Ram OUEDRAGO]; Republican Party for Integration and Solidarity or PARIS [Cyril GOUNGOUNGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Fidele HIEN]; Union for Rebirth - Sankarist Movement or UNIR-MS [Benewende STANISLAS]; Union for the Republic or UPR [Toussaint Abel COULIBALY]; Union of Sankarist Parties or UPS [Ernest Nongma OUEDRAOGO] | Braghis Alliance [Dumitru BRAGHIS]; Communist Party or PCM [Vladimir VORONIN, first chairman]; Popular Christian Democratic Party or PPCD [Iurie ROSCA]; Social Democratic Union (composed of Braghis Alliance and the Democratic Party of Moldova) [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Burkinabe General Confederation of Labor or CGTB [Tole SAGNON]; Burkinabe Movement for Human Rights or MBDHP [Chrysigone ZOUGMORE]; Group of 14 February [Benewende STANISLAS]; National Confederation of Burkinabe Workers or CNTB [Laurent OUEDRAOGO]; National Organization of Free Unions or ONSL [Paul KABORE]; watchdog/political action groups throughout the country in both organizations and communities | NA |
Population | 14,326,203
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
4,439,502 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 46.4% (2004) | 80% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.997% (2007 est.) | 0.13% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 26, shortwave 3 | AM 7, FM 50, shortwave 3 (1998) |
Railways | total: 622 km
narrow gauge: 622 km 1.000-m gauge note:: another 660 km of this railway extends into Cote D'Ivoire (2006) |
total: 1,300 km
broad gauge: 1,300 km 1.520-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10% | Eastern Orthodox 98%, Jewish 1.5%, Baptist and other 0.5% (2000) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.009 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.996 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.657 male(s)/female total population: 0.992 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: services only fair; in 2006 the government sold a 51 percent stake in the national telephone company and ultimately plans to retain only a 23 percent stake in the company; fixed-line connections stand at less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage, fostered by multiple providers, is increasing rapidly from a low base
domestic: microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone communication stations international: country code - 226; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007) |
general assessment: inadequate, outmoded, poor service outside Chisinau; some effort to modernize is under way
domestic: new subscribers face long wait for service; mobile cellular telephone service being introduced international: service through Romania and Russia via landline; satellite earth stations - Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik |
Telephones - main lines in use | 94,800 (2006) | 627,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.017 million (2006) | 2,200 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (1 national, 2 private) | 1 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast | rolling steppe, gradual slope south to Black Sea |
Total fertility rate | 6.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.74 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 77% | 8% (roughly 25% of working age Moldovans are employed abroad) (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | 424 km (1994) |