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Compare Kosovo (2008) - British Virgin Islands (2006)

Compare Kosovo (2008) z British Virgin Islands (2006)

 Kosovo (2008)British Virgin Islands (2006)
 KosovoBritish Virgin Islands
Administrative divisions 30 municipalities (komunat, singular - komuna in Albanian; opstine, singular - opstina in Serbian); Decan (Decani), Dragash (Dragas), Ferizaj (Urosevac), Fushe Kosove (Kosovo Polje), Gjakove (Dakovica), Gllogoc/Drenas (Glogovac), Gjilan (Gnjilane), Istog (Istok), Kacanik, Kline (Klina), Kamenice/Dardana (Kamenica), Leposaviq (Leposavic), Lipjan (Lipljan), Malisheve (Malisevo), Mitrovice (Mitrovica), Novoberde (Novo Brdo), Obiliq (Obilic), Peje (Pec), Podujeve (Podujevo), Prishtine (Pristina), Prizren, Rahovec (Orahovac), Shtime (Stimlje), Shterpce (Strpce), Skenderaj (Srbica), Suhareke (Suva Reka), Viti (Vitina), Vushtrri (Vucitrn), Zubin Potok, Zvecan none (overseas territory of the UK)
Age structure - 0-14 years: 20.5% (male 2,403/female 2,331)


15-64 years: 74.3% (male 8,811/female 8,340)


65 years and over: 5.3% (male 636/female 577) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products NA fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish
Airports 10 (2008) 3 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 6


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


under 914 m: 4 (2008)
total: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 4


under 914 m: 4 (2008)
total: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Area total: 10,887 sq km


land: 10,887 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 153 sq km


land: 153 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke
Area - comparative slightly larger than Delaware about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
Background Serbs migrated to the territories of modern Kosovo in the 7th century, but did not fully incorporate them into the Serbian realm until the early 13th century. The Serbian defeat at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 led to five centuries of Ottoman rule, during which large numbers of Turks and Albanians moved to Kosovo. By the end of the 19th century, Albanians replaced the Serbs as the dominant ethnic group in Kosovo. Serbia reacquired control over Kosovo from the Ottoman Empire during the First Balkan War (1912), and after World War II (1945) the government of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia led by Josip Broz TITO reorganized Kosovo as an autonomous province within the constituent republic of Serbia. Over the next four decades, Kosovo Albanians lobbied for greater autonomy and Kosovo was granted the status almost equal to that of a republic in the 1974 Yugoslav Constitution. Despite the legislative concessions, Albanian nationalism increased in the 1980s leading to nationalist riots and calls for Kosovo's independence. Serbs in Kosovo complained of mistreatment and Serb nationalist leaders, such as Slobodan MILOSEVIC, exploited those charges to win support among Serbian voters, many of whom viewed Kosovo as their cultural heartland. Under MILOSEVIC's leadership, Serbia instituted a new constitution in 1989 that drastically curtailed Kosovo's autonomy and Kosovo Albanian leaders responded in 1991 by organizing a referendum that declared Kosovo independent from Serbia. The MILOSEVIC regime carried out repressive measures against the Albanians in the early 1990s as the unofficial government of Kosovo, led by Ibrahim RUGOVA, tried to use passive resistance to gain international assistance and recognition of its demands for independence. In 1995, Albanians dissatisfied with RUGOVA's nonviolent strategy created the Kosovo Liberation Army and launched an insurgency. In 1998, MILOSEVIC authorized a counterinsurgency campaign that resulted in massacres and massive expulsions of ethnic Albanians by Serbian military, police, and paramilitary forces. The international community tried to resolve the conflict peacefully, but MILOSEVIC rejected the proposed international settlement - the Rambouillet Accords - leading to a three-month NATO bombing of Serbia beginning in March 1999, which forced Serbia to withdraw its military and police forces from Kosovo in June 1999. UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999) placed Kosovo under a transitional administration, the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), pending a determination of Kosovo's future status. Under the resolution, Serbia's territorial integrity was protected, but it was UNMIK who assumed responsibility for governing Kosovo. In 2001, UNMIK promulgated a Constitutional Framework, which established Kosovo's Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG), and in succeeding years UNMIK increasingly devolved responsibilities to the PISG. A UN-led process began in late 2005 to determine Kosovo's future status. Negotiations held intermittently between 2006 and 2007 on issues related to decentralization, religious heritage, and minority rights failed to yield a resolution between Serbia's willingness to grant a high degree of autonomy and the Albanians' call for full independence for Kosovo. On 17 February 2008, the Kosovo Assembly declared its independence from Serbia. First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.
Birth rate - 14.89 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $893.2 million


expenditures: $796.6 million (2006 est.)
revenues: $204.7 million


expenditures: $180.4 million; including capital expenditures of $33.8 million (1997)
Capital name: Pristina (Prishtine)


geographic coordinates: 42 40 N, 21 10 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
name: Road Town


geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W


time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate influenced by continental air masses resulting in relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns; Mediterranean and alpine influences create regional variation; maximum rainfall between October and December subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 80 km
Constitution Constitutional Framework of 2001; note - the Kosovo Government is charged with putting forward an AHTISAARI (UN Special Envoy) Plan-compliant draft of a new constitution soon after independence 1 June 1977, amended in 2000
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Kosovo


conventional short form: Kosovo


local long form: Republika e Kosoves (Republika Kosova)


local short form: Kosova (Kosovo)


former: Kosovo i Metohija, Autonomna Pokrajina
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: British Virgin Islands


abbreviation: BVI
Death rate - 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external Serbia continued to pay Kosovo's external debt, which it claimed was around $1.2 billion; Kosovo was willing to accept around $900 million, according to the national bank of Serbia (2007) $36.1 million (1997)
Dependency status - overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing
Diplomatic representation from the US - none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US - none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international Serbia with several other states protest the US and other states' recognition of Kosovo's declaring itself as a sovereign and independent state in February 2008; ethnic Serbian municipalities along Kosovo's northern border challenge final status of Kosovo-Serbia boundary; several thousand NATO-led KFOR peacekeepers under UNMIK authority continue to keep the peace within Kosovo between the ethnic Albanian majority and the Serb minority in Kosovo; Kosovo authorities object to alignment of the Kosovo boundary with Macedonia in accordance with the 2000 Macedonia-Serbia and Montenegro delimitation agreement none
Economic aid - recipient $252 million (2006) $NA
Economy - overview Kosovo's economy has largely transitioned to a market-based system but is highly dependent on the international community and the diaspora for financial and technical assistance. Remittances from the diaspora - located mainly in Germany and Switzerland - account for about 30% of GDP. Kosovo's citizens are the poorest in Europe with an average per capita income of only $1900 - about one-third the level of neighboring Albania. Unemployment - at 50% of the population - is a severe problem that encourages outward migration. Most of Kosovo's population lives in rural towns outside of the largest city, Pristina. Inefficient, near-subsistence farming is common - the result of small plots, limited mechanization, and lack of technical expertise. The complexity of Serbia and Kosovo's political and legal relationships created uncertainty over property rights and hindered the privatization of state-owned assets. Minerals and metals - including lignite, lead, zinc, nickel, chrome, aluminum, magnesium, and a wide variety of construction materials - once formed the backbone of industry, but output has declined because investment is insufficient to replace ageing Eastern Bloc equipment. Technical and financial problems in the power sector also impede industrial development, and deter foreign investment. Economic growth is largely driven by the private sector - mostly small-scale retail businesses. Both the euro and the Serbian dinar circulate. Kosovo's tie to the euro has helped keep inflation low. Kosovo has maintained a budget surplus as a result of efficient tax collection and inefficient spending. While maintaining ultimate oversight, UNMIK continues to work with the EU and Kosovo's provisional government to accelerate economic growth, lower unemployment, and attract foreign investment. In order to help integrate Kosovo into regional economic structures, UNMIK signed (on behalf of Kosovo) its accession to the Central Europe Free Trade Area (CEFTA) in 2006. The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959.
Electricity - consumption 4.281 billion kWh (2006) 32.13 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports - 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 3.996 billion kWh (2006) 34.55 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Drini i Bardhe/Beli Drim 297 m (located on the border with Albania)


highest point: Gjeravica/Deravica 2,565 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Mount Sage 521 m
Environment - current issues - limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments)
Ethnic groups Albanians 88%, Serbs 7%, other 5% (Bosniak, Gorani, Roma, Turk) black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed
Exchange rates Serbian dinars per US dollar - 54.5 (2008 est.) the US dollar is used
Executive branch chief of state: President Fatmir SEJDIU (since 10 February 2006)


head of government: Prime Minister Hashim THACI (since 9 January 2008)


cabinet: ministers; elected by the Kosovo Assembly


elections: the president is elected for a 5-year term by the Kosovo Assembly; the prime minister is elected by the Kosovo Assembly


election results: Fatmir SEJDIU and Hashim THACI elected to be president and prime minister respectively by the Assembly
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)


head of government: Chief Minister Dr. Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003)


cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor
Exports $13.08 million (2006) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities scrap metals, mining and processed metal products, plastics, wood rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand
Exports - partners Central Europe Free Trade Area (CFTA) 56% (2006) Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2004)
Fiscal year - 1 April - 31 March
Flag description centered on a dark blue field is the shape of Kosovo in a gold color surmounted by six white, five-pointed stars - each representing one of the major ethnic groups of Kosovo - arrayed in a slight arc blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: NA


industry: NA


services: NA
agriculture: 1.8%


industry: 6.2%


services: 92% (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.6% (2007) 1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 42 35 N, 21 00 E 18 30 N, 64 30 W
Geography - note - strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico
Heliports 2 (2008) -
Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering
Imports $84.99 million (2006) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and electrical equipment building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery
Imports - partners Central Europe Free Trade Area (CFTA) 48% (2006) Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2004)
Independence - none (overseas territory of the UK)
Industrial production growth rate - NA%
Industries NA tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center
Infant mortality rate - total: 16.72 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 19.5 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 13.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2% (2007 est.) 2% (2005)
International organization participation - Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU
Irrigated land - NA
Judicial branch Supreme Court judges are appointed by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG); district courts judges are appointed by the SRSG; municipal courts judges are appointed by the SRSG Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction
Labor force 832,000 (June 2007 est.) 12,770 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 21.4%


industry: NA


services: NA (2006)
agriculture: 0.6%


industry: 40%


services: 59.4%
Land boundaries total: 700.7 km


border countries: Albania 111.8 km, Macedonia 158.7 km, Montenegro 78.6 km, Serbia 351.6 km
0 km
Land use - arable land: 20%


permanent crops: 6.67%


other: 73.33% (2005)
Languages Albanian, Serbian, Bosniak, Turkish English (official)
Legal system evolving legal system based on terms of UN Special Envoy Martii AHTISAARI's Plan for Kosovo's supervised independence English law
Legislative branch unicameral Kosovo Assembly of the Provisional Government (120 seats; 100 seats directly elected, 10 seats for Serbs, 10 seats for other minorities; to serve three-year terms)


elections: last held 17 November 2007 (next to be held NA)


election results: percent of vote by party - Democratic Party of Kosovo 34.3%, Democratic League of Kosovo 22.6%, New Kosovo Alliance 12.3%, Democratic League of Dardania-Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo 10.0%, Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 9.6%; seats by party - Democratic Party of Kosovo 37, Democratic League of Kosovo 25, New Kosovo Alliance 13, Democratic League of Dardania-Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo 11, Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 10
unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; members serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held in 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5
Life expectancy at birth - total population: 76.68 years


male: 75.56 years


female: 77.84 years (2006 est.)
Literacy - definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97.8% (1991 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Southeast Europe, between Serbia and Macedonia Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
Map references Europe Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 3 nm


exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine - registered in other countries: 1 (North Korea 1) (2006)
Military - note - defense is the responsibility of the UK
National holiday - Territory Day, 1 July
Nationality noun: Kosovoan


adjective: Kosovoan
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)


adjective: British Virgin Islander
Natural hazards - hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)
Natural resources nickel, lead, zinc, magnesium, lignite, kaolin, chrome, bauxite NEGL
Net migration rate - 9.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo or PSHDK [Mark KRASNIQI]; Alliance for the Future of Kosovo or AAK [Ramush HARADINAJ]; Alliance of Independent Social Democrats of Kososvo and Metohija or SDSKiM [Slavisa PETKOVIC]; Autonomous Liberal Party of SLS [Slobodan PETROVIC]; Bosniak Vakat Coalition [ Dzezair MURATI]; Citizens' Initiative of Gora or GIG [Murselj HALILI]; Council of Independent Social Democrats of Kosovo or SNSDKIM [Ljubisa ZIVIC]; Democratic League of Dardania or LDD [Nexhat DACI]; Democratic League of Kosovo or LDK [Fatmir SEJDIU]; Democratic Party of Ashkali of Kosovo or PDAK [Sabit RRAHMANI]; Democratic Party of Kosovo or PDK [Hashim THACI]; Kosovo Democratic Turkish Party of KDTP [Mahir YAGCILAR]; New Democratic Initiative of Kosovo or IRDK [Xhevdet Neziraj]; New Democratic Party or ND [Branislav GRBIC]; New Kosovo Alliance [Behgjet PACOLLI]; Popular Movement of Kosovo or LPK [Emrush XHEMAJLI]; Reform Party Ora; Serb National Party or SNS [Mihailo SCEPANOVIC]; Serbian Kosovo and Metohija Party or SKMS [Dragisa MIRIC]; United Roma Party of Kosovo or PREBK [Haxhi Zylfi MERXHA]; Democratic Action Party or SDA [Numan BALIC] Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL]
Political pressure groups and leaders - NA
Population 2,126,708 (2007 est.) 23,098 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line 30% (2006 est.) NA%
Population growth rate - 1.97% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations - AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)
Railways total: 430 km (2005) -
Religions Muslim, Serbian Orthodox, Roman Catholic Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991)
Sex ratio - at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female


total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system - general assessment: worldwide telephone service


domestic: NA


international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda
Telephones - main lines in use 106,300 (2006) 11,700 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 562,000 (2006) 8,000 (2002)
Television broadcast stations - 1 (plus one cable company) (1997)
Terrain flat fluvial basin with an elevation of 400-700 m above sea level surrounded by several high mountain ranges with elevations of 2,000 to 2,500 m coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly
Total fertility rate - 1.72 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate 50% (2007 est.) 3.6% (1997)
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