Dominican Republic (2001) | Bulgaria (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 29 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Baoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, Elias Pina, El Seibo, Espaillat, Hato Mayor, Independencia, La Altagracia, La Romana, La Vega, Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Monsenor Nouel, Monte Cristi, Monte Plata, Pedernales, Peravia, Puerto Plata, Salcedo, Samana, Sanchez Ramirez, San Cristobal, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Valverde | 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:
34.11% (male 1,495,477; female 1,431,406) 15-64 years: 60.99% (male 2,664,679; female 2,569,398) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 199,240; female 221,277) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 14.2% (male 549,142; female 520,057)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 2,551,548; female 2,632,978) 65 years and over: 17% (male 535,165; female 749,039) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets |
Airports | 29 (2000 est.) | 216 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 128
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 20 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 92 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
16 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
total: 88
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 74 (2002) |
Area | total:
48,730 sq km land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km |
total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire | slightly larger than Tennessee |
Background | A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative, rule for much of the 20th century was brought to an end in 1996 when free and open elections ushered in a new government. | 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. Bulgaria regained its independence in 1878, but having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, it 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. Today, reforms and democratization keep Bulgaria on a path toward eventual integration into NATO and the EU - with which it began accession negotiations in 2000. |
Birth rate | 24.77 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 8.02 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.3 billion expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $867 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $5.57 billion
expenditures: $5.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Santo Domingo | Sofia |
Climate | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 1,288 km | 354 km |
Constitution | 28 November 1966 | adopted 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Dominican Republic conventional short form: none local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: none |
conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria |
Currency | Dominican peso (DOP) | lev (BGL) |
Death rate | 4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 14.34 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.7 billion (2000 est.) | $10.3 billion (yearend 2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles T. MANATT embassy: corner of Calle Cesar Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo mailing address: Unit 5500, APO AA 34041-5500 telephone: [1] (809) 221-2171 FAX: [1] (809) 686-7437 |
chief of mission: Ambassador James William PARDEW
embassy: 1 Suborna Street, Sofia 1000 mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, Department of State, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 981-89-77 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Roberto Bienvenido SALADIN-SELIN chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280 FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Houston, Jacksonville, Mobile, and Ponce (Puerto Rico) |
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): New York |
Disputes - international | none | joint boundary commission is rectifying boundary with Romania based on shifts in Danube since last delimitation in 1920 |
Economic aid - recipient | $239.6 million (1995) | $300 million (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | The Dominican economy experienced dramatic growth over the last decade, even though the economy was hit hard by Hurricane Georges in 1998. Although the country has long been viewed primarily as an exporter of sugar, coffee, and tobacco, in recent years the service sector has overtaken agriculture as the economy's largest employer, due to growth in tourism and free trade zones. The country suffers from marked income inequality; the poorest half of the population receives less than one-fifth of GNP, while the richest ten percent enjoy 40% of national income. In December 2000, the new MEJIA administration passed broad new tax legislation which it hopes will provide enough revenue to offset rising oil prices and to service foreign debt. | Bulgaria, a former communist country striving to enter the European Union, has experienced macroeconomic stability and strong growth since a major economic downturn in 1996 led to the fall of the then socialist government. As a result, the government became committed to economic reform and responsible fiscal planning. A $300 million stand-by agreement negotiated with the IMF at the end of 2001 has supported government efforts to overcome high rates of poverty and unemployment. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.78 billion kWh (1999) | 32.52 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 6.79 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 830 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7.29 billion kWh (1999) | 41.38 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
87.19% hydro: 12.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0.41% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 47.8%
hydro: 8.1% nuclear: 44.1% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Lago Enriquillo -46 m highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m |
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
Environment - current issues | water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation; Hurricane Georges damage | 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:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, 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-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73% | Bulgarian 83.6%, Turk 9.5%, Roma 4.6%, other 2.3% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (1998) |
Exchange rates | Dominican pesos per US dollar - 16.888 (January 2001), 16.415 (2000), 16.033 (1999), 15.267 (1998), 14.265 (1997), 13.775 (1996) | leva per US dollar - 2.08 (2002), 2.18 (2001), 2.12 (2000), 1.84 (1999), 1.76 (1998)
note: on 5 July 1999, the lev was redenominated; the post-5 July 1999 lev is equal to 1,000 of the pre-5 July 1999 lev |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (since 16 August 2000); Vice President Milagros ORTIZ-BOSCH (since 16 August 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (since 16 August 2000); Vice President Milagros ORTIZ-BOSCH (since 16 August 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term; election last held 16 May 2000 (next to be held NA May 2004) election results: Raphael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez elected president; percent of vote - Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (PRD) 49.87%, Danilo MEDINA (PLD) 24.95%, Joaquin BALAGUER (PRSC) 24.6% |
chief of state: President Georgi PURVANOV (since 22 January 2002); Vice President Angel MARIN (since 22 January 2002)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA (since 24 July 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers Nikolay VASILEV (since 24 July 2001), and Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001), Plamen PANAYOTOV (since 17 July 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 11 November and 18 November 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) nominated by the president; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister election results: Georgi PURVANOV elected president; percent of vote - Georgi PURVANOV 54.13%, Petar STOYANOV 45.87% |
Exports | $5.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels |
Exports - partners | US 66.1%, Netherlands 7.8%, Canada 7.6%, Russia 7.4%, UK 4.5% (1999 est.) | Italy 15.5%, Germany 9.6%, Turkey 9.4%, Greece 9.2%, France 5.3%, US 4.8% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a centered white cross that extends to the edges divides the flag into four rectangles - the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue; a small coat of arms is at the center of the cross | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, and red; the national emblem formerly on the hoist side of the white stripe has been removed - it contained a rampant lion within a wreath of wheat ears below a red five-pointed star and above a ribbon bearing the dates 681 (first Bulgarian state established) and 1944 (liberation from Nazi control) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $48.3 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $49.23 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
11.3% industry: 32.2% services: 56.5% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 13.7%
industry: 28.5% services: 57.9% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | 4.8% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 00 N, 70 40 W | 43 00 N, 25 00 E |
Geography - note | shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti (eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic, western one-third is Haiti) | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
12,600 km paved: 6,224 km unpaved: 6,376 km (1996) |
total: 37,286 km
paved: 35,049 km (including 324 km of expressways) unpaved: 2,237 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.6% highest 10%: 39.6% (1989) |
lowest 10%: 4.5%
highest 10%: 22.8% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; has become a transshipment point for ecstasy from the Netherlands and Belgium destined for US and Canada | 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 | $9.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals | fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles |
Imports - partners | US 25.7%, Venezuela 9.2%, Mexico 4%, Japan 3%, Panama 2.6% (1999 est.) | Russia 14.6%, Germany 14.4%, Italy 11.4%, Greece 6.1%, France 5.7%, Turkey 5% (2002) |
Independence | 27 February 1844 (from Haiti) | 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | 2% (2002 est.) |
Industries | tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco | electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel |
Infant mortality rate | 34.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 13.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.9% (2000 est.) | 5.9% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, Caricom (observer), ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 24 (2000) | 200 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 2,300 sq km (1993 est.) | 8,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are elected by a Council made up of members of the legislative and executive branches with the president presiding) | 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 | 2.3 million - 2.6 million | 3.83 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services and government 58.7%, industry 24.3%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.) | agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
275 km border countries: Haiti 275 km |
total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia and Montenegro 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
Land use | arable land:
21% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 43% forests and woodland: 12% other: 15% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 39%
permanent crops: 1.8% other: 59.2% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish | Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown |
Legal system | based on French civil codes | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (149 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 24, PLD 3, PRSC 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 83, PLD 49, PRSC 17 |
unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sobranie (240 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NMS2 42.74%, UtdDF 18.18%, CfB 17.15%, MRF 7.45%; seats by party - NMS2 120, UtdDF 51, CfB 48, MRF 21; note - seating as of March 2003 - NMS2 110, UtdDF 50, CfB 48, MRF 20, independents 12 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.44 years male: 71.34 years female: 75.64 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.8 years
male: 68.26 years female: 75.56 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 82.1% male: 82% female: 82.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 6 NM |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 69 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 829,421 GRT/1,252,496 DWT
ships by type: bulk 42, cargo 10, chemical tanker 4, container 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Defense), Internal Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Interior), Civil Defense Forces (subordinate to the president) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $180 million (FY98) | $356 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (FY98) | 2.7% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,281,035 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,854,049 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,430,776 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,551,485 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
87,404 (2001 est.) |
males: 54,107 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 February (1844) | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) |
Nationality | noun:
Dominican(s) adjective: Dominican |
noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
Natural hazards | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts | earthquakes, landslides |
Natural resources | nickel, bauxite, gold, silver | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | -3.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -4.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 96 km; petroleum products 8 km | gas 2,425 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Hatuey DE CAMPS]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Joaquin BALAGUER Ricardo] | Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or VMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Simeon II or NMS2 [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Nadezhda MIKHAYLOVA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtdDF (a coalition between the UDF and other center-right parties) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Collective of Popular Organizations or COP | agrarian movement; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas |
Population | 8,581,477 (July 2001 est.) | 7,537,929 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25% (1999 est.) | 12.6% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.63% (2001 est.) | -1.09% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Barahona, La Romana, Puerto Plata, San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo | Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | 1.44 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
757 km standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge (Central Romana Railroad) narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge (Dominican Republic Government Railway) note: 240 km operated by sugar companies in various gauges (0.558-m, 0.762-m, 1.067-m gauges) (2000) |
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 (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95% | Bulgarian Orthodox 83.8%, Muslim 12.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 2.3% (1998) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons regardless of age
note: members of the armed forces and police cannot vote |
18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: relatively efficient system based on islandwide microwave radio relay network international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: extensive but antiquated
domestic: more than two-thirds of the lines are residential; telephone service is available in most villages; 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: direct dialing to 58 countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 2 Intelsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 709,000 (1997) | 3,186,731 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 130,149 (1997) | 1.054 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 25 (1997) | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast |
Total fertility rate | 2.97 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.13 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 13.8% (1999 est.) | 18% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | 470 km (1987) |