Comoros (2001) | Croatia (2002) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 3 islands; Grande Comore (Njazidja), Anjouan (Nzwani), and Moheli (Mwali); note - there are also four municipalities named Domoni, Fomboni, Moroni, and Moutsamoudou | 20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.81% (male 127,955; female 127,267) 15-64 years: 54.26% (male 159,560; female 163,949) 65 years and over: 2.93% (male 8,326; female 9,145) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 411,847; female 390,797)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,461,305; female 1,448,973) 65 years and over: 15.4% (male 252,970; female 424,859) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca) | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
Airports | 4 (2000 est.) | 67 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 45
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 37 (2002) |
Area | total:
2,170 sq km land: 2,170 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 56,542 sq km
land: 56,414 sq km water: 128 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
Background | Unstable Comoros has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands of Anjouan and Moheli declared their independence from Comoros. In 1999, military chief Col. AZALI seized power. He has pledged to resolve the secessionist crisis through the 2000 Fomboni Accord, a confederal arrangement that the Organization of African Unity has yet to recognize. | In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became an independent communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. |
Birth rate | 39.52 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.8 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$48 million expenditures: $53 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $8.6 billion
expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Moroni | Zagreb |
Climate | tropical marine; rainy season (November to May) | Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast |
Coastline | 340 km | 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km) |
Constitution | 20 October 1996 | adopted on 22 December 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros conventional short form: Comoros local long form: Republique Federale Islamique des Comores local short form: Comores |
conventional long form: Republic of Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia local long form: Republika Hrvatska local short form: Hrvatska |
Currency | Comoran franc (KMF) | kuna (HRK) |
Death rate | 9.35 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.31 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $197 million (1997 est.) | $16.5 billion (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Comoros; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Comoros | chief of mission: Ambassador Lawrence G. ROSSIN
embassy: Andrije Hebranga 2, Zagreb 10000 mailing address: use street address telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200 FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Deputy Permanent Representative Mahmoud Mohamed ABOUD (acting) chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of the Federal and Islamic Republic of the Comoros to the United Nations, 420 East 50th Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (212) 972-8010 FAX: [1] (212) 983-4712 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899 FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | claims French-administered Mayotte; the island of Anjouan (Nzwani) has moved to secede from Comoros | Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue discussions on the disputed boundary in the Una River near Kostajnica, Hrvatska Dubica, and Zeljava; Bosnia and Herzegovina also protests Croatian claim to the tip of the Klek Peninsula and several islands near Neum; Hungary opposes Croatian plan to build a hydropower dam on the boundary stream Drava; Slovenia and Croatia have not obtained parliamentary ratification of 2001 land and maritime boundary treaty which cedes villages on the Dragonja River and Sveta Gera (Trdinov Peak) to Croatia, and most of Pirin Bay to Slovenia, but restricts Slovenian access to the open sea; Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro continue to discuss disputed Prevlaka Peninsula and control over the Gulf of Kotor despite imminent UN intention to withdraw observer mission (UNMOP); Croatia and Italy are still trying to resolve bilateral property and ethnic minority rights dating from World War II |
Economic aid - recipient | $28.1 million (1997) | ODA $66 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | One of the world's poorest countries, Comoros is made up of three islands that have inadequate transportation links, a young and rapidly increasing population, and few natural resources. The low educational level of the labor force contributes to a subsistence level of economic activity, high unemployment, and a heavy dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance. Agriculture, including fishing, hunting, and forestry, is the leading sector of the economy. It contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports. The country is not self-sufficient in food production; rice, the main staple, accounts for the bulk of imports. The government is struggling to upgrade education and technical training, to privatize commercial and industrial enterprises, to improve health services, to diversify exports, to promote tourism, and to reduce the high population growth rate. Continued foreign support is essential if the goal of 4% annual GDP growth is to be met. Remittances from 150,000 Comorans abroad help supplement GDP. | Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions, to measures that would cut jobs, wages, or social benefits. As a result, the country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform. |
Electricity - consumption | 15.8 million kWh (1999) | 12.638 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 900 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 3.7 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 17 million kWh (1999) | 10.578 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
88.24% hydro: 11.76% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 45%
hydro: 55% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 m |
Environment - current issues | soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on slopes without proper terracing; deforestation | air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava | Croat 78.1%, Serb 12.2%, Bosniak 0.9%, Hungarian 0.5%, Slovene 0.5%, Czech 0.4%, Albanian 0.3%, Montenegrin 0.3%, Roma 0.2%, others 6.6% (1991) |
Exchange rates | Comoran francs per US dollar - 524.41 (January 2001), 533.98 (2000), 461.77 (1999), 442.46 (1998), 437.75 (1997), 383.66 (1996)
note: prior to January 1999, the official rate was pegged to the French franc at 75 Comoran francs per French franc; since 1 January 1999, the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677 Comoran francs per euro |
kuna per US dollar - 8.452 (January 2002), 8.340 (2001), 8.277 (2000), 7.112 (1999), 6.362 (1998), 6.101 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President AZALI Assoumani (since 6 May 1999); note - the interim government of President Tajiddine Ben Said MASSOUNDE, which had assumed power on 6 November 1998 upon the death of President Mohamed TAKI Abdulkarim, was overthrown in a bloodless coup on 30 April 1999 head of government: Prime Minister Hamada MADI (since late November 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 6 and 16 March 1996 (next to be held NA); prime minister appointed by the president note: President AZALI claimed a one-year term at the time of the coup; but elections, promised for spring 2000, were not held election results: results of the last presidential election before the coup were: Mohamed TAKI Abdulkarim elected president; percent of vote - 64.3% |
chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since NA July 2002), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44% note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a fifth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001 |
Exports | $7.9 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $5.1 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Exports - commodities | vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra | transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels |
Exports - partners | France 50%, Germany 25% (1998) | Italy 23.7%, Germany 14.8%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 12%, Slovenia 9.1%, Austria 5.7%, France 3.5 (2001) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | green with a white crescent in the center of the field, its points facing downward; there are four white five-pointed stars placed in a line between the points of the crescent; the crescent, stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam; the four stars represent the four main islands of the archipelago - Mwali, Njazidja, Nzwani, and Mayotte (a territorial collectivity of France, but claimed by Comoros); the design, the most recent of several, is described in the constitution approved by referendum on 7 June 1992 | red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $419 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $38.9 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 4% services: 56% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 33% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $720 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.5% (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 10 S, 44 15 E | 45 10 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel | controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
880 km paved: 673 km unpaved: 207 km (1996) |
total: 28,009 km
paved: 23,695 km (including 330 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,314 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 23% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe |
Imports | $55.1 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) | $9.7 billion c.i.f. (2002) |
Imports - commodities | rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods; petroleum products, cement, transport equipment | machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 38%, Pakistan 13%, South Africa 8%, Kenya 8% (1998) | Germany 17.1%, Italy 16.9%, Slovenia 7.9%, Russia 7.2%, Austria 7%, France 4.4% (2001) |
Independence | 6 July 1975 (from France) | 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2% (1999 est.) | 2.8% (2002 est.) |
Industries | tourism, perfume distillation, textiles, furniture, jewelry, construction materials, soft drinks | chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 84.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 7.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (1999) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, CCC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (associate), ILO, IMF, InOC, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTrO (applicant) | BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 30 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supremes (two members appointed by the president, two members elected by the Federal Assembly, one elected by the Council of each island, and others are former presidents of the republic) | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives |
Labor force | 144,500 (1996 est.) | 1.7 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,197 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km |
Land use | arable land:
35% permanent crops: 10% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 18% other: 30% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 23.55%
permanent crops: 2.24% other: 74.21% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), French (official), Comoran (a blend of Swahili and Arabic) | Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) |
Legal system | French and Muslim law in a new consolidated code | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (15 seats: five from each island); members selected by regional councils for six-year terms) and a Federal Assembly or Assemblee Federale (43 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - the Federal Assembly was dissolved following the coup of 30 April 1999
elections: Federal Assembly - last held 1 and 8 December 1996 (next to be held NA) election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RND 39, FNJ 3, independent 1 note: the constitution stipulates that only parties that win six seats in the Federal Assembly (two from each island) are permitted to be in opposition, but if no party accomplishes that, the second most successful party will be in opposition; in the elections of December 1996 the FNJ appeared to qualify as opposition |
unicameral Assembly or Sabor (151 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001
elections: Assembly - last held 2-3 January 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2003) election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - HDZ 46, SDP 44, HSLS 24, HSS 17, HSP/HKDU 5, IDS 4, HNS 2, independents 4, minority representatives 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.41 years male: 58.2 years female: 62.68 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.13 years
male: 70.52 years female: 77.96 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57.3% male: 64.2% female: 50.4% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 99% female: 95% (1991 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, group of islands in the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 19,122 GRT/29,817 DWT ships by type: cargo 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 681,465 GRT/1,076,315 DWT
ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 13, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 5, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Comoran Security Force | Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $520 million (2002 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.39% (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
141,120 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,086,578 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
83,920 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 860,497 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 30,037 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 July (1975) | Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) |
Nationality | noun:
Comoran(s) adjective: Comoran |
noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)
adjective: Croatian |
Natural hazards | cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | NEGL | oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower |
Net migration rate | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 670 km; petroleum products 20 km; natural gas 310 km (1992) |
Political parties and leaders | Front National pour la Justice or FNJ (Islamic party in opposition) [Ahmed Abdallah MOHAMED, Ahmed ABOUBACAR, Soidiki M'BAPANOZA]; Rassemblement National pour le Development or RND (party of the government) [Ali Bazi SELIM] | Alliance of Croatian Coast and Mountains Department or PGS [Luciano SUSANJ]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Marko VESELICA]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Dobroslav PARAGA]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LP [leader NA]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 596,202 (July 2001 est.) | 4,390,751 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.02% (2001 est.) | 1.12% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fomboni, Moroni, Moutsamoudou | Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) |
Radios | 90,000 (1997) | 1.51 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total: 2,726 km
standard gauge: 2,726 km 1.435-m gauge (NA electrified) (2000) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2% | Roman Catholic 76.5%, Orthodox 11.1%, Muslim 1.2%, Protestant 0.4%, others and unknown 10.8% (1991) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) |
Telephone system | general assessment:
sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communication stations domestic: HF radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay international: HF radiotelephone communications to Madagascar and Reunion |
general assessment: NA
domestic: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk international: digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 6,000 (1997) | 1,721,139 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 1.3 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (1998) | 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995) |
Terrain | volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills | geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands |
Total fertility rate | 5.32 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1996 est.) | 20.2% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | 785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |