Coral Sea Islands (2004) | Romania (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 41 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality* (municipiu); Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud, Botosani, Braila, Brasov, Bucuresti*, Buzau, Calarasi, Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna, Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati, Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita, Iasi, Ilfov, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare, Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 16.9% (male 1,932,204; female 1,838,240)
15-64 years: 69% (male 7,634,481; female 7,739,232) 65 years and over: 14% (male 1,290,343; female 1,837,339) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes; eggs, sheep |
Airports | - | 65 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 26
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 39
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 25 (2002) |
Area | total: less than 3 sq km
land: less than 3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes numerous small islands and reefs scattered over a sea area of about 780,000 sq km, with the Willis Islets the most important |
total: 237,500 sq km
land: 230,340 sq km water: 7,160 sq km |
Area - comparative | NA | slightly smaller than Oregon |
Background | Scattered over some 1 million square kilometers of ocean, the Coral Sea Islands were declared a territory of Australia in 1969. They are uninhabited except for a small meteorological staff on the Willis Islets. Automated weather stations, beacons, and a lighthouse occupy many other islands and reefs. | Soviet occupation following World War II led to the formation of a Communist "peoples republic" in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of dictator Nicolae CEAUSESCU, who took power in 1965, and his Securitate police state became increasingly oppressive and draconian through the 1980s. CEAUSESCU was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former Communists dominated the government until 1996, when they were swept from power by a fractious coalition of centrist parties. Currently, the Social Democratic Party forms a nominally minority government, which governs with the support of the opposition Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania. Bucharest must address rampant corruption, while invigorating lagging economic and democratic reforms, before Romania can achieve its hope of joining the European Union. |
Birth rate | - | 10.79 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $11.7 billion
expenditures: $12.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
Capital | - | Bucharest |
Climate | tropical | temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms |
Coastline | 3,095 km | 225 km |
Constitution | - | 8 December 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Coral Sea Islands Territory
conventional short form: Coral Sea Islands |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Romania local long form: none local short form: Romania |
Currency | - | leu (ROL) |
Death rate | - | 12.25 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $13.7 billion (2002 est.) |
Dependency status | territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Department of the Environment, Sport, and Territories | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael E. GUEST
embassy: Strada Tudor Arghezi 7-9, Bucharest mailing address: American Embassy Bucharest, Department of State, 5260 Bucharest Place, Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch) telephone: [40] (21) 210-4042 FAX: [40] (21) 210-0395 branch office(s): Cluj-Napoca |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Sorin Dumitru DUCARU
chancery: 1607 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4748 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | has not resolved claims to Ukrainian-administered Zmyinyy (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary despite ongoing talks based on 1997 friendship treaty to find a solution in two years; joint boundary commission is rectifying boundary with Bulgaria based on shifts in Danube since last delimitation in 1920; Hungary has yet to amend status law extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in Romania, who protest the law |
Economy - overview | no economic activity | Romania began the transition from Communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country's needs. The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing three-year recession thanks to strong demand in EU export markets. Despite the global slowdown in 2001-02, strong domestic activity in construction, agriculture, and consumption have kept growth above 4%. An IMF Standby Agreement, signed in 2001, has been accompanied by slow but palpable gains in privatization, deficit reduction, and the curbing of inflation. Nonetheless, recent macroeconomic gains have done little to address Romania's widespread poverty, while corruption and red tape hinder foreign investment. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 46.1 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | - | 1.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | - | 400 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | - | 50.86 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 62.5%
hydro: 27.6% nuclear: 9.9% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Cato Island 6 m |
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Moldoveanu 2,544 m |
Environment - current issues | no permanent fresh water resources | soil erosion and degradation; water pollution; air pollution in south from industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta wetlands |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol |
Ethnic groups | - | Romanian 89.5%, Hungarian 6.6%, Roma 2.5%, Ukrainian 0.3%, German 0.3%, Russian 0.2%, Turkish 0.2%, other 0.4% (2002) |
Exchange rates | - | lei per US dollar - 33,055.4 (2002), 29,060.8 (2001), 21,708.7 (2000), 15,332.8 (1999), 8,875.58 (1998) |
Executive branch | administered from Canberra by the Department of the Environment, Sport, and Territories | chief of state: President Ion ILIESCU (since 20 December 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Adrian NASTASE (since 29 December 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 November 2000, with runoff between the top two candidates held 10 December 2000 (next to be held NA November/December 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: percent of vote - Ion ILIESCU 66.84%, Corneliu Vadim TUDOR 33.16% |
Exports | - | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | - | textiles and footwear, metals and metal products, machinery and equipment, minerals and fuels |
Exports - partners | - | Italy 24.4%, Germany 15.5%, France 7.7%, UK 5.4%, US 5%, Turkey 4.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of Australia is used | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $169.3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 15%
industry: 35% services: 50% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $7,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 4.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 00 S, 152 00 E | 46 00 N, 25 00 E |
Geography - note | important nesting area for birds and turtles | controls most easily traversable land route between the Balkans, Moldova, and Ukraine |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 198,603 km
paved: 98,308 km (including 113 km of expressways) unpaved: 100,295 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 25% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | - | major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western Europe |
Imports | - | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery and equipment 23%, fuels and minerals 12%, chemicals 9%, textile and products 19% (1999) |
Imports - partners | - | Italy 20.2%, Germany 18.1%, France 6.6%, Russia 5.6%, Austria 4.9%, Hungary 4.1% (2002) |
Independence | - | 9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from Turkey; independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin; kingdom proclaimed 26 March 1881; republic proclaimed 30 December 1947) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 6% (2002) |
Industries | - | textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 18.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 22.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 38 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | 28,800 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistrates) |
Labor force | - | 9.9 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 40%, industry 25%, services 35% (1998) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,508 km
border countries: Bulgaria 608 km, Hungary 443 km, Moldova 450 km, Serbia and Montenegro 476 km, Ukraine (north) 362 km, Ukraine (east) 169 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mostly grass or scrub cover) (2001) |
arable land: 40.57%
permanent crops: 2.4% other: 57.03% (1998 est.) |
Languages | - | Romanian (official), Hungarian, German |
Legal system | the laws of Australia, where applicable, apply | former mixture of civil law system and communist legal theory; is now based on the constitution of France's Fifth Republic |
Legislative branch | - | bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (140 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Adunarea Deputatilor (345 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2004); Chamber of Deputies - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDSR (now PSD) 37.1%, PRM 21.0%, PD 7.6%, PNL 7.5%, UDMR 6.9%; seats by party - PSD 65, PRM 36, PNL 13, UDMR 12, PD 9, independents 5; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PDSR (now PSD) 36.6%, PRM 19.5%, PD 7.0%, PNL, 6.9%, UDMR 6.8%; seats by party - PSD 171, PRM 69, PD 29, PNL 27, UDMR 27, ethnic minorities 18, independents 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 70.62 years
male: 66.88 years female: 74.59 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.4% male: 99.1% female: 97.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, islands in the Coral Sea, northeast of Australia | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Ukraine |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 61 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 494,670 GRT/650,863 DWT
ships by type: bulk 9, cargo 39, container 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, roll on/roll off 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Greece 1, Italy 5 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia; visited regularly by the Royal Australian Navy; Australia has control over the activities of visitors | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (AMR), Paramilitary Forces, Civil Defense, Border Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $985 million (2002) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.47% (2002) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 5,912,284 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 4,974,240 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 157,840 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | - | Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918) |
Nationality | - | noun: Romanian(s)
adjective: Romanian |
Natural hazards | occasional tropical cyclones | earthquakes, most severe in south and southwest; geologic structure and climate promote landslides |
Natural resources | NEGL | petroleum (reserves declining), timber, natural gas, coal, iron ore, salt, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | - | -0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 3,508 km; oil 2,427 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Democratic Party or PD [Traian BASESCU]; Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania or UDMR [Bela MARKO]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Theodor STOLOJAN]; Romania Mare Party (Greater Romanian Party) or PRM [Corneliu Vadim TUDOR]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Adrian NASTASE], formerly known as the Party of Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | various human rights and professional associations |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there is a staff of three to four at the meteorological station (2004 est.) |
22,271,839 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 44.5% (2000) |
Population growth rate | - | -0.21% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Braila, Constanta, Galati, Mangalia, Sulina, Tulcea |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 40, FM 202, shortwave 3 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 11,385 km (3,888 km electrified)
standard gauge: 10,898 km 1.435-m gauge broad gage: 60 km 1.524-m gauge narrow gauge: 427 km 0.760-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | - | Eastern Orthodox (including all sub-denominations) 87%, Protestant 6.8%, Catholic 5.6%, other (mostly Muslim) 0.4%, unaffiliated 0.2% (2002) |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: poor domestic service, but improving
domestic: 90% of telephone network is automatic; trunk network is mostly microwave radio relay, with some fiber-optic cable; about one-third of exchange capacity is digital; roughly 3,300 villages have no service international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; new digital, international, direct-dial exchanges operate in Bucharest; note - Romania is an active participant in several international telecommunication network projects (1999) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 3.777 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 645,500 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 48 (plus 392 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | sand and coral reefs and islands (or cays) | central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain of Moldavia on the east by the Carpathian Mountains and separated from the Walachian Plain on the south by the Transylvanian Alps |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.36 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | 8.3% (2002) |
Waterways | - | 1,724 km (1984) |