Cayman Islands (2003) | Bulgaria (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.6% (male 4,525; female 4,541)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 14,463; female 15,157) 65 years and over: 7.7% (male 1,515; female 1,733) (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets; livestock |
Airports | 3 (2002) | 214 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
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) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 83
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 72 (2007) |
Area | total: 262 sq km
land: 262 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica since 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | 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. |
Birth rate | 13.33 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.62 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $265.2 million
expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $16.62 billion
expenditures: $15.18 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | George Town | 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 |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 160 km | 354 km |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | adopted 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria local long form: Republika Balgariya local short form: Balgariya |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | - |
Death rate | 4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 14.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $29.29 billion (30 June 2007) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $742 million (2005-06 est.) |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1998, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million in 1997, with 600,000 from the US. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 355.2 million kWh (2001) | 37.4 billion kWh (2006) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 7.8 billion kWh (2006) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2006) |
Electricity - production | 381.9 million kWh (2001) | 45.7 billion kWh (2006) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchments | 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 |
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 |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.82 (29 October 2001), 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | leva per US dollar - 1.4366 (2007), 1.5576 (2006), 1.5741 (2005), 1.5751 (2004), 1.7327 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor Bruce DINWIDDY (since 29 May 2002)
head of government: Chief Secretary W. McKeeva BUSH (since NA December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch; the chief secretary is appointed by the governor |
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 |
Exports | NA (2001) | 51,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels |
Exports - partners | mostly US | Turkey 12%, Italy 10.4%, Germany 10%, Greece 8.2%, Belgium 6.8%, France 4.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture: 8.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 60.7% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $35,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% (2002 est.) | 6.1% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 43 00 N, 25 00 E |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia |
Heliports | - | 4 (2007) |
Highways | total: 785 km
paved: 785 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 25.4% (2005) |
Illicit drugs | offshore financial center; vulnerable to drug transshipment to the US and Europe | 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) | 138,800 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; fuels, minerals, and raw materials |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | Germany 15%, Italy 10.6%, Turkey 7.2%, Greece 6.3%, China 5%, France 4.9%, Romania 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 3 March 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire); 22 September 1908 (complete independence from the Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5.5% (2007 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | electricity, gas, water; food, beverages, tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.64 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2002) | 7.8% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 5,880 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | 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) |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 3.44 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | agriculture: 8.5%
industry: 33.6% services: 57.9% (2nd qtr. 2006 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 29.94%
permanent crops: 1.9% other: 68.16% (2005) |
Languages | English | Bulgarian 84.5%, Turkish 9.6%, Roma 4.1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members from the Executive Council and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.67 years
male: 77.08 years female: 82.3 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 72.57 years
male: 68.95 years female: 76.4 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.2% male: 98.7% female: 97.7% (2001 census) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 123 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,402,058 GRT/3,792,094 DWT
ships by type: bulk 22, cargo 5, chemical tanker 31, container 2, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 21, refrigerated cargo 35, roll on/roll off 5, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Bahrain 2, China 1, Germany 4, Greece 27, Hong Kong 3, Italy 2, Japan 1, Norway 14, Sweden 13, United Kingdom 15, United States 35 (2002 est.) |
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) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | Bulgarian Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Bulgarian Air Forces (Bulgarski Voennovazdyshni Sily, BVVS) (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.6% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) |
Nationality | noun: Caymanian(s)
adjective: Caymanian |
noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | earthquakes, landslides |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 19.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US (2003 est.) |
-3.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,500 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team [leader NA]; Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Team Cayman [leader NA]; United Democratic Party [leader NA] | 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) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas |
Population | 41,934 (July 2003 est.) | 7,322,858 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 14.1% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.79% (2003 est.) | -0.837% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Railways | 0 km | 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) |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Church of God, other Protestant, Roman Catholic | Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Muslim 12.2%, other Christian 1.2%, other 4% (2001 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 2.399 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 8.253 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 with cable system | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.91 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.39 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | 8% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | none | 470 km (2007) |