Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare South Africa (2002) - Bulgaria (2002)

Compare South Africa (2002) z Bulgaria (2002)

 South Africa (2002)Bulgaria (2002)
 South AfricaBulgaria
Administrative divisions 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Western Cape 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: 31.6% (male 6,943,761; female 6,849,745)


15-64 years: 63.4% (male 13,377,011; female 14,300,850)


65 years and over: 5% (male 816,222; female 1,360,069) (2002 est.)
0-14 years: 14.6% (male 572,961; female 543,004)


15-64 years: 68.5% (male 2,569,199; female 2,648,461)


65 years and over: 16.9% (male 540,109; female 747,603) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets
Airports 740 (2001) 215 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 143


over 3,047 m: 10


2,438 to 3,047 m: 5


1,524 to 2,437 m: 50


914 to 1,523 m: 67


under 914 m: 11 (2002)
total: 128


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 19


1,524 to 2,437 m: 15


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 92 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 584


1,524 to 2,437 m: 34


914 to 1,523 m: 298


under 914 m: 252 (2002)
total: 87


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 10


under 914 m: 75 (2002)
Area total: 1,219,912 sq km


land: 1,219,912 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
total: 110,910 sq km


land: 110,550 sq km


water: 360 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than twice the size of Texas slightly larger than Tennessee
Background After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many of the Dutch settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native inhabitants. The Boers resisted British encroachments, but were defeated in the Boer War (1899-1902). The resulting Union of South Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid politically and ushered in black majority rule. 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 20.63 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 8.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $22.6 billion


expenditures: $24.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (FY02/03 )
revenues: $5.57 billion


expenditures: $5.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital Pretoria; note - Cape Town is the legislative center and Bloemfontein the judicial center Sofia
Climate mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers
Coastline 2,798 km 354 km
Constitution 10 December 1996; this new constitution was certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases adopted 12 July 1991
Country name conventional long form: Republic of South Africa


conventional short form: South Africa


former: Union of South Africa


abbreviation: RSA
conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria


conventional short form: Bulgaria
Currency rand (ZAR) lev (BGL)
Death rate 18.86 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 14.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $25.5 billion (2001 est.) $10.3 billion (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Cameron H. HUME


embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria


mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001


telephone: [27] (12) 342-1048


FAX: [27] (12) 342-2244


consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg
chief of mission: Ambassador James William PARDEW


embassy: 1 Suborna Street, Sofia 1000


mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5740


telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100


FAX: [359] (2) 981-89-77
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Makate Sheila SISULU


chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400


FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Elena POPTODOROVA


chancery: 1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 387-7969


FAX: [1] (202) 234-7973


consulate(s): New York
Disputes - international Swaziland continues to press South Africa into ceding ethnic Swazi lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-Natal province, that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom because of a shift in the Danube course since the last correction of the boundary in 1920, a joint Bulgarian-Romanian team will recommend sovereignty changes to several islands and redefine the boundary
Economic aid - recipient $539 million (1999) $300 million (2000 est.)
Economy - overview South Africa is a middle-income, developing country with an abundant supply of resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange that ranks among the 10 largest in the world, and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. However, growth has not been strong enough to cut into high unemployment, and daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era, especially the problems of poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. Other problems are crime, corruption, and HIV/AIDS. At the start of 2000, President MBEKI vowed to promote economic growth and foreign investment, and to reduce poverty by relaxing restrictive labor laws, stepping up the pace of privatization, and cutting unneeded governmental spending. The economy slowed in 2001, largely the result of the slowing of the international economy. Bulgaria, a former communist country striving to enter the European Union, has experienced macroeconomic stability and positive growth rates since a major economic downturn in 1996 led to the fall of the then socialist government. A $300 million stand-by agreement negotiated with the IMF at the end of 2001 will help the government maintain economic stability as it seeks to overcome high rates of poverty and unemployment and, at the same time, cut the budget deficit and contain inflation.
Electricity - consumption 181.52 billion kWh (2000) 34.42 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 4.549 billion kWh (2000) 3.2 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 5.294 billion kWh (2000) 1.5 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 194.38 billion kWh (2000) 38.84 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 93%


hydro: 1%


nuclear: 7%


other: 0% (2000)
fossil fuel: 48%


hydro: 8%


nuclear: 44%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 m
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m


highest point: Musala 2,925 m
Environment - current issues lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% Bulgarian 83.6%, Turk 9.5%, Roma 4.6%, other 2.3% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (1998)
Exchange rates rand per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997) leva per US dollar - 2.2147 (January 2002), 2.1847 (2001), 2.1233 (2000), 1.8364 (1999), 1,760.36 (1998), 1,681.88 (1997)


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 Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president


elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June 1999 (next scheduled for sometime between May and July 2004)


election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation)


note: ANC-IFP is the governing coalition
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), Kostadin PASKALEV (since 24 July 2001), and Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001)


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 $32.3 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) $5.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels
Exports - partners EU 33%, US 20%, Japan 6%, Mozambique 2.5% (2001 est.) Italy 14%, Turkey 10%, Germany 9%, Greece 8%, Serbia and Montenegro 8% (2001)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March calendar year
Flag description two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a central green band which splits into a horizontal Y, the arms of which end at the corners of the hoist side; the Y embraces a black isosceles triangle from which the arms are separated by narrow yellow bands; the red and blue bands are separated from the green band and its arms by narrow white stripes


note: prior to 26 April 1994, the flag was actually four flags in one - three miniature flags reproduced in the center of the white band of the former flag of the Netherlands, which had three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and blue; the miniature flags were a vertically hanging flag of the old Orange Free State with a horizontal flag of the UK adjoining on the hoist side and a horizontal flag of the old Transvaal Republic adjoining on the other side
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 - $412 billion (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $50.6 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 3%


industry: 31%


services: 66% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 14%


industry: 29%


services: 58% (2001)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $9,400 (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $6,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.6% (2001 est.) 3.4% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 29 00 S, 24 00 E 43 00 N, 25 00 E
Geography - note South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia
Heliports - 1 (2002)
Highways total: 358,596 km


paved: 59,753 km (including 1,927 km of expressways)


unpaved: 298,843 km (1996)
total: 37,288 km


paved: 33,786 km (including 324 km of expressways)


unpaved: 3,502 km (2001)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1%


highest 10%: 46% (1994) (1994)
lowest 10%: 5%


highest 10%: 23% (1997)
Illicit drugs transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and possibly cocaine; cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries; illicit cultivation of marijuana; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the region 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 $28.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) $6.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery, foodstuffs and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles
Imports - partners EU 41%, US 11.4%, Saudi Arabia 7.3%, Japan 7% (2001 est.) Russia 19.9%, Germany 15.3%, Italy 9.6%, France 6.0% (2001)
Independence 31 May 1910 (from UK) 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire)
Industrial production growth rate 7% (2001 est.) 2% (2002 est.)
Industries mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel
Infant mortality rate 61.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) 14.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 5.8% (2001 est.) 5.9% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, 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, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 150 (2001) 200 (2001)
Irrigated land 13,500 sq km (1998 est.) 8,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts 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 17 million economically active (2000) 3.83 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (1999 est.) agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries total: 4,862 km


border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 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: 12.13%


permanent crops: 0.77%


other: 87.1% (1998 est.)
arable land: 39%


permanent crops: 1.8%


other: 59.2% (1998 est.)
Languages 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown
Legal system based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament consisting of the National Assembly (400 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a system of proportional representation to serve five-year terms) and the National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members elected by each of the nine provincial legislatures for five-year terms; has special powers to protect regional interests, including the safeguarding of cultural and linguistic traditions among ethnic minorities); note - following the implementation of the new constitution on 3 February 1997 the former Senate was disbanded and replaced by the National Council of Provinces with essentially no change in membership and party affiliations, although the new institution's responsibilities have been changed somewhat by the new constitution


elections: National Assembly and National Council of Provinces - last held 2 June 1999 (next to be held by 2 August 2004)


election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NP 6.9%, UDM 3.4%, ACDP 1.4%, FF 0.8%, other 2.9%; seats by party - ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NP 28, UDM 14, ACDP 6, FF 3, other 11; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ANC 61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3
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: 45.43 years


male: 45.19 years


female: 45.68 years (2002 est.)
total population: 71.5 years


male: 67.98 years


female: 75.22 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 85%


male: 86%


female: 85% (2000 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 98%


male: 99%


female: 98% (1999)
Location Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey
Map references Africa Europe
Maritime claims contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 271,650 GRT/268,604 DWT


ships by type: container 6, petroleum tanker 2


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 3, Netherlands 1 (2002 est.)
total: 77 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 881,758 GRT/1,312,833 DWT


ships by type: bulk 43, cargo 15, chemical tanker 4, container 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.)
Military - note the National Defense Force continues to integrate former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces -
Military branches South African National Defense Force (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service 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 $1.79 billion (FY01) $356 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.6% (FY01) 2.7% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 11,557,242 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 1,873,052 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 7,031,337 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 1,566,816 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2002 est.) 19 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 466,399 (2002 est.) males: 56,104 (2002 est.)
National holiday Freedom Day, 27 April (1994) Liberation Day, 3 March (1878)
Nationality noun: South African(s)


adjective: South African
noun: Bulgarian(s)


adjective: Bulgarian
Natural hazards prolonged droughts earthquakes, landslides
Natural resources gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land
Net migration rate -1.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) -4.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 931 km; petroleum products 1,748 km; natural gas 322 km petroleum products 525 km; natural gas 1,500 km (1999)
Political parties and leaders African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president]; African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president]; Democratic Alliance (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the New National Party or NP; note - NP split from DP in 2001) [Anthony LEON]; Freedom Front or FF [Dr. Pieter MULDER, president]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president]; New National Party or NP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA] 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]; People's Union or PU (includes Bulgarian Agrarian National Union and Democratic Party) [Anastasiya MOZER]; St. George's Day [Lyuben DILOV, Jr.]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Ekaterina NADEZHDA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtdDF (a coalition between the UDF and PU, dominated by the former)
Political pressure groups and leaders Congress of South African Trade Unions or COSATU [Zwelinzima VAVI, general secretary]; South African Communist Party or SACP [Blade NZIMANDE, general secretary]; South African National Civics Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE, national president]; note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance with the ANC agrarian movement; Bulgarian Democratic Center; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Democratic Alliance for the Republic or DAR; New Union for Democracy or NUD; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas
Population 43,647,658


note: South Africa took a census October 1996 that showed a population of 40,583,611 (after an official adjustment for a 6.8% underenumeration based on a postenumeration survey); estimates for this country explicitly 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 and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)
7,621,337 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 50% (2000 est.) 35% (2000 est.)
Population growth rate 0.02% (2002 est.) -1.11% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin
Radio broadcast stations AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001)
Radios 17 million (2001) 4.51 million (1997)
Railways total: 20,384 km


narrow gauge: 20,070 km 1.067-m gauge (9,090 km electrified); 314 km 0.610-m gauge


note: in addition, South Africa has an electrified 1.065-m gauge commuter rail system, with a total length of 1,254 km, which serves Johannesburg-Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban, East London, and Port Elizabeth (2001)
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 Christian 68% (includes most whites and Coloreds, about 60% of blacks and about 40% of Indians), Muslim 2%, Hindu 1.5% (60% of Indians), indigenous beliefs and animist 28.5% 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: 1.02 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 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: 0.72 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa


domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable, radiotelephone communication stations, and wireless local loops; key centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, and Pretoria


international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 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 more than 5 million (2001) 3,186,731 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7.06 million (2001) 1.054 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997) 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001)
Terrain vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast
Total fertility rate 2.38 children born/woman (2002 est.) 1.13 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 37% (2001 est.) 18% (2002 est.)
Waterways NA 470 km (1987)
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.