Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of (2003) | Burma (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 123 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Aracinovo, Bac, Belcista, Berovo, Bistrica, Bitola, Blatec, Bogdanci, Bogomila, Bogovinje, Bosilovo, Brvenica, Cair (Skopje), Capari, Caska, Cegrane, Centar (Skopje), Centar Zupa, Cesinovo, Cucer-Sandevo, Debar, Delcevo, Delogozdi, Demir Hisar, Demir Kapija, Dobrusevo, Dolna Banjica, Dolneni, Dorce Petrov (Skopje), Drugovo, Dzepciste, Gazi Baba (Skopje), Gevgelija, Gostivar, Gradsko, Ilinden, Izvor, Jegunovce, Kamenjane, Karbinci, Karpos (Skopje), Kavadarci, Kicevo, Kisela Voda (Skopje), Klecevce, Kocani, Konce, Kondovo, Konopiste, Kosel, Kratovo, Kriva Palanka, Krivogastani, Krusevo, Kuklis, Kukurecani, Kumanovo, Labunista, Lipkovo, Lozovo, Lukovo, Makedonska Kamenica, Makedonski Brod, Mavrovi Anovi, Meseista, Miravci, Mogila, Murtino, Negotino, Negotino-Polosko, Novaci, Novo Selo, Oblesevo, Ohrid, Orasac, Orizari, Oslomej, Pehcevo, Petrovec, Plasnica, Podares, Prilep, Probistip, Radovis, Rankovce, Resen, Rosoman, Rostusa, Samokov, Saraj, Sipkovica, Sopiste, Sopotnica, Srbinovo, Star Dojran, Staravina, Staro Nagoricane, Stip, Struga, Strumica, Studenicani, Suto Orizari (Skopje), Sveti Nikole, Tearce, Tetovo, Topolcani, Valandovo, Vasilevo, Velesta, Veles, Vevcani, Vinica, Vitoliste, Vranestica, Vrapciste, Vratnica, Vrutok, Zajas, Zelenikovo, Zeleno, Zitose, Zletovo, Zrnovci
note: the seven municipalities followed by Skopje in parentheses collectively constitute "greater Skopje" |
7 divisions (taing-myar, singular - taing) and 7 states (pyi ne-myar, singular - pyi ne)
divisions: Ayeyarwady, Bago, Magway, Mandalay, Sagaing, Tanintharyi, Yangon states: Chin State, Kachin State, Kayin State, Kayah State, Mon State, Rakhine State, Shan State |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.9% (male 235,102; female 217,574)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 700,929; female 691,552) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 96,039; female 121,926) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 27.2% (male 5,967,487/female 5,717,795)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 14,448,887/female 14,641,419) 65 years and over: 5% (male 939,092/female 1,194,784) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, millet, cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus, vegetables; beef, pork, poultry, mutton | rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products |
Airports | 18 (2002) | 78 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
total: 69
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 31 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 25,333 sq km
land: 24,856 sq km water: 477 sq km |
total: 678,500 sq km
land: 657,740 sq km water: 20,760 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Vermont | slightly smaller than Texas |
Background | International recognition of The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's (F.Y.R.O.M.) independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 was delayed by Greece's objection to the new state's use of what it considered a Hellenic name and symbols. Greece finally lifted its trade blockade in 1995, and the two countries agreed to normalize relations, despite continued disagreement over F.Y.R.O.M.'s use of "Macedonia." F.Y.R.O.M.'s large Albanian minority, an ethnic Albanian armed insurgency in F.Y.R.O.M. in 2001, and the status of neighboring Kosovo continue to be sources of ethnic tension. | Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence from the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the ruling junta refused to hand over power. NLD leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who was under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 and 2000 to 2002, was imprisoned in May 2003 and is currently under house arrest. In December 2004, the junta announced it was extending her detention for at least an additional year. Her supporters, as well as all those who promote democracy and improved human rights, are routinely harassed or jailed. |
Birth rate | 13.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 18.11 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.13 billion
expenditures: $1.02 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $474.9 million
expenditures: $955.5 million, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (2004 est.) |
Capital | Skopje | Rangoon (government refers to the capital as Yangon) |
Climate | warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall | tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,930 km |
Constitution | adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991
note: in November of 2001, the Macedonian Parliament approved a series of new constitutional amendments strengthening minority rights |
3 January 1974; suspended since 18 September 1988; national convention convened in 1993 to draft a new constitution but collapsed in 1996; reconvened in 2004 but does not include participation of democratic opposition |
Country name | conventional long form: The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
conventional short form: none local long form: Republika Makedonija local short form: Makedonija abbreviation: F.Y.R.O.M. |
conventional long form: Union of Burma
conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma note: since 1989 the military authorities in Burma have promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name for their state; this decision was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma, and the US Government did not adopt the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw |
Currency | Macedonian denar (MKD) | - |
Death rate | 7.78 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 12.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2001 est.) | $6.752 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Laurence Edward BUTLER
embassy: Bul. Ilinden bb, 91000 Skopje mailing address: American Embassy Skopje, Department of State, 7120 Skopje Place, Washington, DC 20521-7120 (pouch) telephone: [389] 116-180 FAX: [389] 117-103 |
chief of mission: Charge d'Affaires Carmen M. MARTINEZ
embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (GPO 521) mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 379 880, 379 881 FAX: [95] (1) 256 018 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Nikola DIMITROV
chancery: Suite 302, 1101 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337-3063 FAX: [1] (202) 337-3093 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: vacant
chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-9044 FAX: [1] (202) 332-9046 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | the Albanian government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in F.Y.R.O.M. while continuing to seek regional cooperation; ethnic Albanians in Kosovo continue to protest 2000 F.Y.R.O.M.-Serbia and Montenegro boundary treaty, which transfers small tracts of land to F.Y.R.O.M.; dispute with Greece over country's name persists | over half of Burma's population consists of diverse ethnic groups with substantial numbers of kin beyond its borders; despite continuing border committee talks, significant differences remain with Thailand over boundary alignment and the handling of ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities; ethnic Karens flee into Thailand to escape fighting between Karen rebels and Burmese troops, in 2004 Thailand sheltered about 118,000 Burmese refugees; Karens also protest Thai support for a Burmese hydroelectric dam on the Salween River near the border; environmentalists in Burma and Thailand continue to voice concern over China's construction of hydroelectric dams upstream on the Nujiang/Salween River in Yunnan Province; India seeks cooperation from Burma to keep Indian Nagaland separatists from hiding in remote Burmese uplands |
Economic aid - recipient | $150 million (2001 est.) | $127 million (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | At independence in November 1991, Macedonia was the least developed of the Yugoslav republics, producing a mere 5% of the total federal output of goods and services. The collapse of Yugoslavia ended transfer payments from the center and eliminated advantages from inclusion in a de facto free trade area. An absence of infrastructure, UN sanctions on Yugoslavia, one of its largest markets, and a Greek economic embargo over a dispute about the country's constitutional name and flag hindered economic growth until 1996. GDP subsequently rose each year through 2000. However, the leadership's commitment to economic reform, free trade, and regional integration was undermined by the ethnic Albanian insurgency of 2001. The economy shrank 4.5% because of decreased trade, intermittent border closures, increased deficit spending on security needs, and investor uncertainty. Growth barely recovered in 2002 to 0.3%, then rose to 2.8% in 2003. Unemployment at one-third of the workforce remains the most critical economic problem. But even this issue is overshadowed by the fragile political situation. | Burma is a resource-rich country that suffers from government controls, inefficient economic policies, and abject rural poverty. The junta took steps in the early 1990s to liberalize the economy after decades of failure under the "Burmese Way to Socialism", but those efforts have since stalled and some of the liberalization measures have been rescinded. Burma has been unable to achieve monetary or fiscal stability, resulting in an economy that suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including inflation and multiple official exchange rates that overvalue the Burmese kyat. In addition, most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta began to suppress the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently ignored the results of the 1990 legislative elections. Economic sanctions against Burma by the United States - including a ban on imports of Burmese products and a ban on provision of financial services by US persons in response to the government of Burma's attack in May 2003 on AUNG SAN SUU KYI and her convoy - further slowed the inflow of foreign exchange. Official statistics are inaccurate. Published statistics on foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and unofficial border trade - often estimated to be one to two times the size of the official economy. Though the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbors, a better investment climate and an improved political situation are needed to promote foreign investment, exports, and tourism. In February 2003, a major banking crisis hit the country's 20 private banks, shutting them down and disrupting the economy. As of January 2004, the largest private banks remained moribund, leaving the private sector with little formal access to credit. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.112 billion kWh (2001) | 3.484 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 100 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2004) |
Electricity - production | 6.465 billion kWh (2001) | 5.068 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 83.7%
hydro: 16.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Vardar River 50 m
highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,753 m |
lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from metallurgical plants | deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Macedonian 64.2%, Albanian 25.2%, Turkish 3.8%, Roma 2.7%, Serb 1.8%, other 2.3% (1994) | Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | Macedonian denars per US dollar - 64.35 (2002), 68.04 (2001), 65.9 (2000), 56.9 (1999), 54.46 (1998) | kyats per US dollar - 5.7459 (2004), 6.0764 (2003), 6.5734 (2002), 6.6841 (2001), 6.4257 (2000)
note: these are official exchange rates; unofficial exchange rates ranged in 2004 from 815 kyat/US dollar to nearly 970 kyat/US dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Boris TRAJKOVSKI (since 15 December 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Branko CRVENKOVSKI (since 1 November 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the majority vote of all the deputies in the Assembly; note - current cabinet formed by the government coalition parties SDSM, LDP, and DUI (or BDI) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 November 1999 (next to be held NA October 2004); prime minister elected by the Assembly; election last held 1 November 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Boris TRAJKOVSKI elected president on second-round ballot; percent of vote - Boris TRAJKOVSKI 52.4%, Tito PETKOVSKI 46.2%; Branko CRVENKOVSKI elected prime minister by Parliament with 72% of the vote |
chief of state: Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister, Gen SOE WIN (since 19 October 2004) cabinet: State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); military junta, so named 15 November 1997, which initially assumed power 18 September 1988 under the name State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC); the SPDC oversees the cabinet elections: none |
Exports | NA (2001) | 3,356 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | food, beverages, tobacco; miscellaneous manufactures, iron and steel | clothing, gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice |
Exports - partners | Germany 19.2%, Italy 9.2%, US 6.7%, Croatia 5.5%, Greece 4.6% (2002) | Thailand 37.8%, India 11.7%, China 6%, Japan 5.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | a yellow sun with eight broadening rays extending to the edges of the red field | red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing, 14 white five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 7 administrative divisions and 7 states |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.57 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11%
industry: 31% services: 58% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 56.6%
industry: 8.8% services: 34.5% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,100 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.7% (2002 est.) | -1.3% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 41 50 N, 22 00 E | 22 00 N, 98 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe | strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes |
Heliports | - | 1 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total: 8,684 km
paved: 5,540 km (including 133 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,144 km (1999 est.) |
total: 28,200 km
paved: 3,440 km unpaved: 24,760 km (1996 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish; minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe; while money laundering is a problem on a local level due to organized crime activities, the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | remains world's second largest producer of illicit opium (estimated production in 2004 - 292 metric tons, down 40% from 2003 due to eradication efforts and drought; cultivation in 2004 - 30,900 hectares, a 34% decline from 2003); lack of government will and ability to take on major narcotrafficking groups and lack of serious commitment against money laundering continues to hinder the overall antidrug effort; major source of methamphetamine and heroin for regional consumption; currently under Financial Action Task Force countermeasures due to continued failure to address its inadequate money-laundering controls (2005) |
Imports | NA (2001) | 49,230 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; food products | fabric, petroleum products, plastics, machinery, transport equipment, construction materials, crude oil; food products |
Imports - partners | Greece 19.4%, Germany 14.4%, Bulgaria 7.5%, Slovenia 6.9%, Italy 6.9%, Turkey 5.9%, Ukraine 5%, Austria 4.1% (2002) | China 29.8%, Singapore 20.8%, Thailand 19.3%, South Korea 5.2%, Malaysia 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | 8 September 1991 referendum by registered voters endorsing independence (from Yugoslavia) | 4 January 1948 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -5% (2002 est.) | NA |
Industries | coal, metallic chromium, lead, zinc, ferronickel, textiles, wood products, tobacco, food processing, buses | agricultural processing; knit and woven apparel; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; cement |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 67.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 73.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 61.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.1% (2002 est.) | 17.2% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 550 sq km (1998 est.) | 15,920 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Constitutional Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Republican Judicial Council - Parliament appoints the judges | remnants of the British-era legal system are in place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive |
Labor force | 1.1 million (2000 est.) | 27.01 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 70%, industry 7%, services 23% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 766 km
border countries: Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 246 km, Serbia and Montenegro 221 km |
total: 5,876 km
border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km |
Land use | arable land: 23.59%
permanent crops: 1.85% other: 74.56% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 15.19%
permanent crops: 0.97% other: 83.84% (2001) |
Languages | Macedonian 70%, Albanian 21%, Turkish 3%, Serbo-Croatian 3%, other 3% | Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages |
Legal system | based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts | has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly or Sobranie (120 seats - 85 members are elected by popular vote, 35 members come from lists of candidates submitted by parties based on the percentage that a party gains from the overall vote; all serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 September 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Together for Macedonia coalition (SDSM and LDP) 60, VMRO-DPMNE 33, Democratic Union for Integration 16, Democratic Party of Albanians 7, Party for Democratic Prosperity 2, National Democratic Party 1, Socialist Party of Macedonia 1 |
unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never allowed by junta to convene election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NLD 392 (opposition), SNLD 23 (opposition), NUP 10 (pro-government), other 60 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.49 years
male: 72.23 years female: 76.94 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 60.7 years
male: 57.8 years female: 63.78 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.3% male: 89.2% female: 81.4% (2002) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, north of Greece | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand |
Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | - | total: 37 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 429,144 GRT/659,622 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 8, cargo 19, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 3, roll on'roll off 3, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 10 (Germany 4, Japan 5, United Kingdom 1) (2005) |
Military branches | Army (ARM), Air and Air Defense Forces, Police Force | Myanmar Armed Forces (Tatmadaw): Army, Navy, Air Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $200 million (FY01/02 est.) | $39 million (FY97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 6% (FY01/02 est.) | 2.1% (FY97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 553,988 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 446,726 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 17,909 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Uprising Day, 2 August (1903); note - also known as Saint Elijah's Day and Ilinden | Independence Day, 4 January (1948); Union Day, 12 February (1947) |
Nationality | noun: Macedonian(s)
adjective: Macedonian |
noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
adjective: Burmese |
Natural hazards | high seismic risks | destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts |
Natural resources | chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulfur, timber, arable land | petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -1.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -1.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 268 km; oil 120 km (2003) | gas 2,056 km; oil 558 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Alternative or DA [Vasil TUPURKOVSKI, president]; Democratic Union for Integration or DUI (also BDI) [Ali AHMETI]; Democratic Party of Albanians or PDSH [Arben XHAFERI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity or VMRO-DPMNE [Ljubco GEORGIEVSKI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-True Macedonian Reform Option or VMRO-VMRO [Boris ZMEJKOVSKI]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Macedonian [Boris STOJMENOV]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Risto PENOV]; Liberal Party [Stojan ANDOV]; National Democratic Party or PDK [Kastriot HAXHIREXHA]; Party for Democratic Prosperity or PPD [Abdurrahman HALITI]; Social-Democratic Alliance of Macedonia or SDSM [Branko CRVENKOVSKI, president]; Socialist Party of Macedonia or SP [Ljubisav IVANOV, president]; Together for Macedonia coalition (including the SDSM and LDP) [Branko CRVENKOVSKI]; Union of Romanies of Macedonia or SRM [leader NA] | National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, chairman, AUNG SAN SUU KYI, general secretary]; National Unity Party or NUP (pro-government) [THA KYAW]; Shan Nationalities League for Democracy or SNLD [KHUN HTUN OO]; and other smaller parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma or NCGUB (self-proclaimed government in exile) ["Prime Minister" Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals, some legitimately elected to the People's Assembly in 1990 (the group fled to a border area and joined insurgents in December 1990 to form parallel government in exile); Kachin Independence Army or KIA; Karen National Union or KNU; several Shan factions; United Wa State Army or UWSA; Union Solidarity and Development Association or USDA (pro-government, a social and political organization) [THAN AUNG, general secretary] |
Population | 2,063,122
note: a census was taken 1-15 November 2002, but results are not yet available (July 2003 est.) |
42,909,464
note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 24% (2001 est.) | 25% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2003 est.) | 0.42% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Moulmein, Rangoon, Sittwe |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 20, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1 (2004) |
Railways | total: 699 km
standard gauge: 699 km 1.435-m gauge (233 km electrified) (2002) |
total: 3,955 km
narrow gauge: 3,955 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Macedonian Orthodox 67%, Muslim 30%, other 3% | Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA |
general assessment: barely meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government; international service is fair
domestic: NA international: country code - 95; satellite earth station - 2, Intelsat (Indian Ocean), and ShinSat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 408,000 (1997) | 357,300 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 12,362 (1997) | 66,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 31 (plus 166 repeaters) (1995) | 2 (2004) |
Terrain | mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River | central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands |
Total fertility rate | 1.75 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 2.01 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 37% (2002 est.) | 5.2% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | note: lake transport only, on the Greek and Albanian borders | 12,800 km (2004) |