Saint Helena (2004) | Serbia (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* | 29 districts (okrugov; singular - okrug), 1 capital city*
Serbia Proper: Belgrad*, Bor, Branicevo, Jablanica, Kolubara, Macva, Moravica, Nisava, Pcinja, Pirot, Podunavlje, Pomoravlje, Rasina, Raska, Sumadija, Toplica, Zajecar, Zlatibor Vojvodina Autonomous Province: Central Banat, North Backa, North Banat, South Backa, South Banat, Srem, West Backa Kosovo and Metojia Autonomous Province: Kosovo, Kosovska-Mitrovica, Kosovo-Pomoravlje, Pec, Prizren |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.9% (male 710; female 689)
15-64 years: 71.4% (male 2,739; female 2,559) 65 years and over: 9.7% (male 319; female 399) (2004 est.) |
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Agriculture - products | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) | wheat, maize, sugar beets, sunflower, beef, pork, milk |
Airports | 1 (2003 est.) | 39 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 23
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 12 (2006) |
Area | total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
total: 88,361 sq km
land: 88,361 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than South Carolina |
Background | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. | The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in 1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941 was resisted by various paramilitary bands that fought each other as well as the invaders. The group headed by Josip TITO took full control of Yugoslavia upon German expulsion in 1945. Although Communist, his new government and its successors (he died in 1980) managed to steer their own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In the early 1990s, post-TITO Yugoslavia began to unravel along ethnic lines: Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina were recognized as independent states in 1992. The remaining republics of Serbia and Montenegro declared a new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) in April 1992 and, under President Slobodan MILOSEVIC, Serbia led various military intervention efforts to unite ethnic Serbs in neighboring republics into a "Greater Serbia." These actions led to Yugoslavia being ousted from the UN in 1992, but Serbia continued its campaign until signing the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995. In 1998-99, massive expulsions by FRY forces and Serb paramilitaries of ethnic Albanians living in Kosovo provoked an international response, including the NATO bombing of Belgrade and the stationing of a NATO-led force (KFOR), in Kosovo. Federal elections in the fall of 2000, brought about the ouster of MILOSEVIC and installed Vojislav KOSTUNICA as president. The arrest of MILOSEVIC in 2001 allowed for his subsequent transfer to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague to be tried for crimes against humanity. In 2001, the country's suspension from the UN was lifted, and it was once more accepted into UN organizations under the name of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Kosovo has been governed by the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) since June 1999, under the authority of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, pending a determination by the international community of its future status. In 2002, the Serbian and Montenegrin components of Yugoslavia began negotiations to forge a looser relationship. In February 2003 lawmakers restructured the country into a loose federation of two republics called Serbia and Montenegro. The Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro included a provision that allowed either republic to hold a referendum after three years that would allow for their independence from the state union. In the spring of 2006, Montenegro took advantage of the provision to undertake a successful independence vote enabling it to secede on 3 June. Two days later, Serbia declared that it was the successor state to the union of Serbia and Montenegro. |
Birth rate | 12.68 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Budget | revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY92/93) |
revenues: $11.45 billion
expenditures: $11.12 billion; including capital expenditures $NA; note - figures are for Serbia and Montenegro; Serbian Statistical Office indicates that for 2006 budget, Serbia will have revenues of $7.08 billion (2005 est.) |
Capital | Jamestown | name: Belgrade
geographic coordinates: 44 50 N, 20 30 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 |
Climate | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) | in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall); in other parts, continental and Mediterranean climate (hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall) |
Coastline | 60 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1 January 1989 | 28 September 1990; note - a new draft constitution approved by Parliament on 30 September 2006 stresses that Kosovo is an integral part of Serbia; the draft must still be approved by a national referendum |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
conventional long form: Republic of Serbia
conventional short form: Serbia local long form: Republika Srbija local short form: Srbija former: People's Republic of Serbia, Socialist Republic of Serbia |
Currency | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) | - |
Death rate | 6.47 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Debt - external | NA (1996) | $15.43 billion (including Montenegro) (2005 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael C. POLT
embassy: Kneza Milosa 50, 11000 Belgrade mailing address: 5070 Belgrade Place, Washington, DC 20521-5070 telephone: [381] (11) 361-9344 FAX: [381] (11) 361-8230 note: there is a branch office in Pristina at 30 Nazim Hikmet 38000 Prstina, Kososvo; telephone: [381] (38) 549-516; FAX:[381] (38) 549-890 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Ivan VUJACIC
chancery: 2134 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-0333 FAX: [1] (202) 332-3933 consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York |
Disputes - international | none | the final status of the Serbian province of Kosovo remains unresolved and several thousand peacekeepers from the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) have administered the region since 1999, with Kosovar Albanians overwhelmingly supporting and Serbian officials opposing Kosovo independence; the international community had agreed to begin a process to determine final status but contingency of solidifying multi-ethnic democracy in Kosovo has not been satisfied; ethnic Albanians in Kosovo refuse demarcation of the boundary with Macedonia in accordance with the 2000 Macedonia-Serbia and Montenegro delimitation agreement; Serbia and Montenegro delimited about half of the boundary with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but sections with Serbia along the Drina River remain in dispute |
Economic aid - recipient | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) | $2 billion pledged in 2001 to Serbia and Montenegro (disbursements to follow over several years; aid pledged by EU and US has been placed on hold because of lack of cooperation by Serbia in handing over General Ratco MLADIC to the criminal court in The Hague) |
Economy - overview | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. | MILOSEVIC-era mismanagement of the economy, an extended period of economic sanctions, and the damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry during the NATO airstrikes in 1999 left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. After the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President MILOSEVIC in October 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government implemented stabilization measures and embarked on a market reform program. After renewing its membership in the IMF in December 2000, a down-sized Yugoslavia continued to reintegrate into the international community by rejoining the World Bank (IBRD) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). A World Bank-European Commission sponsored Donors' Conference held in June 2001 raised $1.3 billion for economic restructuring. In November 2001, the Paris Club agreed to reschedule the country's $4.5 billion public debt and wrote off 66% of the debt. In July 2004, the London Club of private creditors forgave $1.7 billion of debt, just over half the total owed. Belgrade has made only minimal progress in restructuring and privatizing its holdings in major sectors of the economy, including energy and telecommunications. It has made halting progress towards EU membership and is currently pursuing a Stabilization and Association Agreement with Brussels. Serbia is also pursuing membership in the World Trade Organization. Unemployment remains an ongoing political and economic problem. The Republic of Montenegro severed its economy from Serbia during the MILOSEVIC era; therefore, the formal separation of Serbia and Montenegro in June 2006 had little real impact on either economy. Kosovo's economy continues to transition to a market-based system and is largely dependent on the international community and the diaspora for financial and technical assistance. The euro and the Yugoslav dinar are both accepted currencies in Kosovo. While maintaining ultimate oversight, UNMIK continues to work with the EU and Kosovo's local provisional government to accelerate economic growth, lower unemployment, and attract foreign investment to help Kosovo integrate into regional economic structures. The complexity of Serbia and Kosovo's political and legal relationships has created uncertainty over property rights and hindered the privatization of state-owned assets in Kosovo. Most of Kosovo's population lives in rural towns outside of the largest city, Pristina. Inefficient, near-subsistence farming is common.
note: economic data for Serbia currently reflects information for the former Serbia and Montenegro, unless otherwise noted; data for Serbia alone will be added when available |
Electricity - consumption | 4.65 million kWh (2001) | NA |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 12.05 billion kWh (excluding Kosovo; exported to Montenegro) (2004) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 11.23 billion kWh (excluding Kosovo; imports from Montenegro) (2004) |
Electricity - production | 5 million kWh (2001) | 33.87 billion kWh (excluding Kosovo and Montenegro) (2004) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
lowest point: NA
highest point: Daravica 2,656 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | air pollution around Belgrade and other industrial cities; water pollution from industrial wastes dumped into the Sava which flows into the Danube |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% | Serb 66%, Albanian 17%, Hungarian 3.5%, other 13.5% (1991) |
Exchange rates | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), | new Yugoslav dinars per US dollar - 58.6925 (2005) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief David HOLLAMBY (since 1999); Michael CLANCY (taking office in October 2004) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Boris TADIC (since 11 July 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Vojislav KOSTUNICA (since 3 March 2004) cabinet: Federal Ministries act as cabinet elections: president elected by direct vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 27 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009); prime minister elected by the Assembly election results: Boris TADIC elected president in the second round of voting; Boris TADIC received 53% of the vote |
Exports | NA (2001) | 0 cu m |
Exports - commodities | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts | manufactured goods, food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment |
Exports - partners | US 26.7%, Tanzania 21.9%, Indonesia 9.4%, UK 8.7%, Japan 7.4%, Netherlands 7.2%, Nigeria 6.8%, Poland 5%, Spain 4.9% (2003) | - |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | - |
Flag description | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship | three equal horizontal stripes of red (top), blue, and white; charged with the coat of arms of Serbia shifted slightly to the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 16.6%
industry: 25.5% services: 57.9% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 5.9% for Serbia alone (excluding Kosovo) (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 56 S, 5 42 W | 44 00 N, 21 00 E |
Geography - note | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns | controls one of the major land routes from Western Europe to Turkey and the Near East |
Heliports | - | 4 (2006) |
Highways | total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western Europe on the Balkan route; economy vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | NA (2001) | 0 cu m |
Imports - commodities | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts | - |
Imports - partners | UK 29.1%, South Africa 24.7%, Spain 16.4%, Italy 8.8%, Tanzania 8.2%, US 5.8% (2003) | - |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 5 June 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 1.4% (2006 est.) |
Industries | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing | sugar, agricultural machinery, electrical and communication equipment, paper and pulp, lead, transportation equipment |
Infant mortality rate | total: 19.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (1997 est.) | 15.5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ICFTU, UPU | ABEDA, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, EBRD, FAO, G-9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD (suspended), IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court | Constitutional Court (nine justices with life tenure) |
Labor force | 3,500
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
2.961 million for Serbia (including Kosovo) (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) | agriculture: 30%
industry: 46% services: 24% note: excluding Kosovo and Montenegro (2002) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,027 km
border countries: Albania 115 km, Bosnia and Herzegovina 302 km, Bulgaria 318 km, Croatia 241 km, Hungary 151 km, Macedonia 221 km, Montenegro 203 km, Romania 476 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2001) |
arable land: NA
permanent crops: NA other: NA |
Languages | English | Serbian (official nationwide); Romanian, Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, and Croatian (all official in Vojvodina); Albanian (official in Kosovo) |
Legal system | NA | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 15 |
unicameral National Assembly (250 deputies elected by direct vote for a four-year term)
elections: last held 28 December 2003 (next to be held December 2007) election results: SRS 83, DSS 53, DS 37, G17 Plus 34, SPO-NS 22, SPS 22 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.57 years
male: 74.67 years female: 80.61 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74 years
male: 71 years female: 76 years |
Literacy | definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.4% male: 98.9% female: 94.1% (2002 est.) |
Location | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa | Southeastern Europe, between Macedonia and Hungary |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none | note: see entry for Montenegro |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | Serbian Armed Forces (Vojska Srbije, VS): Serbian Land Forces (Kopnene Vojska, KoV), Air Force and Air Defense Force (Vozduhoplostvo i Protivozduhoplovna Odbrana, ViPO), naval force to be determined (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $14.85 million |
National holiday | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) | National Day, 27 April |
Nationality | noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
noun: Serb(s)
adjective: Serbian |
Natural hazards | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | fish | oil, gas, coal, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, antimony, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, magnesium, pyrite, limestone, marble, salt, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
Pipelines | - | gas 3,177 km; oil 393 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Democratic Party of Serbia or DSS [Vojislav KOSTUNICA]; Democratic Party or DS [Boris TADIC]; G17 Plus [Mladjan DINKIC is acting leader]; Serbian Radical Party or SRS [Vojislav SESELJ, but Tomislav NIKOLIC is acting leader]; Socialist Party of Serbia or SPS [vacant, but Ivica DACIC is head of the SPS Main Board]; New Serbia or NS [Velimir ILIC]; Serbian Renewal Movement or SPO [Vuk DRASKOVIC] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | - |
Population | 7,415 (July 2004 est.) | 9,396,411 (2002 census) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 30%
note: data covers the former Serbia and Montenegro (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.62% (2004 est.) | - |
Ports and harbors | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | 153 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 4,135 km
standard guage: 4,135 km 1.435-m guage (electrified 1,195 km) (2005) |
Religions | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic | Serbian Orthodox, Muslim, Roman Catholic, Protestant |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Suffrage | NA years of age | 18 universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network international: country code - 290; HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension Island, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: modernization of the telecommunications network has been slow as a result of damage stemming from the 1999 war and transition to a competitive market-based system; network was only 65% digitalized in 2005
domestic: teledensity remains below the average for neighboring states; GSM wireless service, available through two providers with national coverage, is growing very rapidly; best telecommunications service limited to urban centers international: country code - 381 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,200 (2002) | 2,685,400 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1997) | 5.229 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
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Terrain | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient mountains and hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.54 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.78 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14% (1998 est.) | 31.6%
note: unemployment is approximately 50% in Kosovo (2005 est.) |
Waterways | - | 587 km - primarily on Danube and Sava rivers (2005) |