Compare Sri Lanka (2003) - Albania (2003)

Compare Sri Lanka (2003) z Albania (2003)

	Sri Lanka (2003)	Albania (2003)

Administrative divisions	8 provinces; Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western; note - North Eastern province may have been divided in two - Northern and Eastern	12 counties (qarqe, singular - qark); Qarku i Beratit, Qarku i Dibres, Qarku i Durresit, Qarku i Elbasanit, Qarku i Fierit, Qarku i Gjirokastres, Qarku i Korces, Qarku i Kukesit, Qarku i Lezhes, Qarku i Shkodres, Qarku i Tiranes, Qarku i Vlores
Age structure	0-14 years: 25.2% (male 2,543,336; female 2,431,223) 15-64 years: 67.9% (male 6,518,145; female 6,890,424) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 641,708; female 717,603) (2003 est.)	0-14 years: 28.1% (male 520,714; female 486,911) 15-64 years: 64.6% (male 1,115,887; female 1,196,477) 65 years and over: 7.3% (male 115,754; female 146,462) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef	wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products
Airports	15 (2002)	12 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 14 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 6 (2002)	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002)	total: 8 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2002)
Area	total: 65,610 sq km land: 64,740 sq km water: 870 sq km	total: 28,748 sq km land: 27,398 sq km water: 1,350 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia	slightly smaller than Maryland
Background	The Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced beginning in about the mid-third century B.C., and a great civilization developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (kingdom from circa 200 B.C. to circa 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty seized power in the north and established a Tamil kingdom. Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an ethnic war that continues to fester. After two decades of fighting, the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam began a ceasefire in December 2001, with Norway brokering peace negotiations.	Between 1990 and 1992 Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic Communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, a dilapidated infrastructure, widespread gangsterism, and disruptive political opponents. International observers judged legislative elections in 2001 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic development, but identified serious deficiencies that should be addressed through reforms in the Albanian electoral code.
Birth rate	16.12 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	18.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $2.8 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)	revenues: $697 million expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.)
Capital	Colombo; note - Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital	Tirana
Climate	tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)	mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter
Coastline	1,340 km	362 km
Constitution	adopted 16 August 1978	a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote
Country name	conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Serendib, Ceylon	conventional long form: Republic of Albania conventional short form: Albania local long form: Republika e Shqiperise local short form: Shqiperia former: People's Socialist Republic of Albania
Currency	Sri Lankan rupee (LKR)	lek (ALL)
Death rate	6.46 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$9.8 billion (2002)	$784 million (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador E. Ashley WILLS embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3 mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo telephone: [94] (1) 448007 FAX: [94] (1) 437345	chief of mission: Ambassador James F. JEFFREY embassy: Rruga Elbasanit, Labinoti #103, Tirana mailing address: U. S. Department of State, 9510 Tirana Place, Washington, DC 20521-9510 telephone: [355] (4) 247285 FAX: [355] (4) 232222
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Devinda R. SUBASINGHE chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4025 (through 4028) FAX: [1] (202) 232-7181 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Fatos TARIFA chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4942 FAX: [1] (202) 628-7342
Disputes - international	none	the Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside its borders in the Kosovo region of Serbia and Montenegro, and in the northern Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, while continuing to seek regional cooperation; some outside ethnic Albanian groups voice union with Albania
Economic aid - recipient	$577 million (1998)	ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.)
Economy - overview	In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic sectors now are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% in the early 1990s until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997-2000 with average growth of 5.3%, but 2001 saw the first contraction in the country's history, -1.4%, due to a combination of power shortages, severe budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. Growth recovered to 3.2% in 2002. About 800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% in the Middle East. They send home about $1 billion a year.	Poor and backward by European standards, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to spur economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from abroad of $400-$600 million annually, mostly from Greece and Italy; this helps offset the sizable trade deficit. Agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, is held back because of frequent drought and the need to modernize equipment and consolidate small plots of land. Severe energy shortages are forcing small firms out of business, increasing unemployment, scaring off foreign investors, and spurring inflation. The government plans to boost energy imports to relieve the shortages. In addition, the government is moving to improve the poor national road network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth.
Electricity - consumption	5.915 billion kWh (2001)	5.898 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	221 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	1.2 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	6.36 billion kWh (2001)	5.289 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 51.7% hydro: 48.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)	fossil fuel: 2.9% hydro: 97.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m	lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo	deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents
Environment - international agreements	party to: 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: Marine Life Conservation	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%	Albanian 95%, Greek 3%, other 2% (Vlach, Gypsy, Serb, and Bulgarian) (1989 est.) note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization)
Exchange rates	Sri Lankan rupees per US dollar - 95.66 (2002), 89.38 (2001), 77.01 (2000), 70.64 (1999), 64.45 (1998)	leke per US dollar - NA (2002), 143.49 (2001), 143.71 (2000), 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (since 12 November 1994); note - Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (since 9 December 2001) is the prime minister; the president is considered both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 21 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2005) election results: Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA reelected president; percent of vote - Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA (PA) 51%, Ranil WICKREMASINGHE (UNP) 42%, other 7%	chief of state: President of the Republic Alfred MOISIU (since 24 July 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Fatos NANO (since 31 July 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president elections: president elected by the People's Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 24 June 2002 (next to be held NA June 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Alfred MOISIU elected president; People's Assembly vote by number - total votes 116, for 97, against 19
Exports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	textiles and apparel, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products	textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco
Exports - partners	US 39.1%, UK 12.9%, Belgium 4.7%, Germany 4.5% (2002)	Italy 76.6%, Germany 5.6%, Greece 2.7% (2002)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels	red with a black two-headed eagle in the center
GDP	purchasing power parity - $73.7 billion (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $15.69 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 20% industry: 26% services: 54% (2001)	agriculture: 49% industry: 27% services: 24% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.2% (2002 est.)	7.3% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	7 00 N, 81 00 E	41 00 N, 20 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes	strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea)
Heliports	-	1 (2002)
Highways	total: 96,695 km paved: 91,860 km unpaved: 4,835 km (1999)	total: 18,000 km paved: 5,400 km unpaved: 12,600 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.5% highest 10%: 28% (1995)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs	-	increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates, hashish, and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium and growing cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe; vulnerable to money laundering associated with regional trafficking in narcotics, arms, contraband, and illegal aliens
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	textiles, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment	machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals
Imports - partners	India 11%, Hong Kong 7.6%, Singapore 7.1%, China 6.3%, Taiwan 5.9%, South Korea 5.7%, Japan 5.3%, Iran 4.2% (2002)	Italy 39.4%, Greece 24.5%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2002)
Independence	4 February 1948 (from UK)	28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire)
Industrial production growth rate	1.1% (2002)	9% (2000 est.)
Industries	rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco	food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower
Infant mortality rate	total: 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)	total: 37.28 deaths/1,000 live births male: 39.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 34.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	9.6% (2002 est.)	6% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	AsDB, C, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-15, 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, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO	ACCT, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	5 (2000)	10 (2001)
Irrigated land	6,510 sq km (1998 est.)	3,400 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courts are appointed by the president	Supreme Court (chairman is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term)
Labor force	6.6 million (1998)	1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.)	agriculture 50%, industry and services 50%
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 720 km border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km
Land use	arable land: 13.43% permanent crops: 15.78% other: 70.79% (1998 est.)	arable land: 21.09% permanent crops: 4.45% other: 74.46% (1998 est.)
Languages	Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8% note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken competently by about 10% of the population	Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek
Legal system	a highly complex mixture of English common law, Roman-Dutch, Muslim, Sinhalese, and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral Parliament (225 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of a modified proportional representation system by district to serve six-year terms) elections: last held 7 December 2001 (next to be held NA December 2007) election results: percent of vote by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 46.8%, PA and EPDP 38%, JVP 9.1%, TNA 3.89%, PLOTE 0.19%; seats by party or electoral alliance - UNP, SLMC and CWC 114, PA and EPDP 79, JVP 16, TNA 15, PLOTE 1	unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor (140 seats; 100 are elected by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote for four-year terms) elections: last held 24 June 2001 with subsequent rounds on 8 July, 22 July, 29 July, 19 August 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PS 41.5%, PD and coalition allies 36.8%, NDP 5.2%, PSD 3.6%, PBDNJ 2.6%, PASH 2.6%, PAD 2.5%; seats by party - PS 73, PD and coalition allies 46, NDP 6, PSD 4, PBDNJ 3, PASH 3, PAD 3, independents 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 72.62 years male: 70.09 years female: 75.29 years (2003 est.)	total population: 72.37 years male: 69.53 years female: 75.42 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.3% male: 94.8% female: 90% (2003 est.)	definition: age 9 and over can read and write total population: 86.5% male: 93.3% female: 79.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India	Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro
Map references	Asia	Europe
Maritime claims	contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM	continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	total: 15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 62,157 GRT/84,898 DWT ships by type: cargo 13, container 1, petroleum tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 9, Hong Kong 1, UAE 1 (2002 est.)	total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 21,954 GRT/34,412 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 11, roll on/roll off 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Honduras 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force	Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$719 million (FY98)	$56.5 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	4.2% (FY98)	1.49% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 5,383,661 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 906,168 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 4,172,921 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 742,837 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	19 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 186,691 (2003 est.)	males: 36,985 (2003 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 4 February (1948)	Independence Day, 28 November (1912)
Nationality	noun: Sri Lankan(s) adjective: Sri Lankan	noun: Albanian(s) adjective: Albanian
Natural hazards	occasional cyclones and tornadoes	destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought
Natural resources	limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower	petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower
Net migration rate	-1.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	-1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines	crude oil and petroleum products 62 km (1987)	gas 339 km; oil 207 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders	All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC [KUMARGURUPARAM]; Ceylon Workers Congress or CWC [Arumugam THONDAMAN]; Communist Party or CP [D. GUNASEKERA]; Democratic United National (Lalith) Front or DUNLF [Shrimani ATULATHMUDALI]; Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]; Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]; Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Tilvan SILVA]; National Unity Alliance or NUA [Ferial ASHRAFF]; People's Alliance or PA [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [leader NA]; Sihala Urumaya or SU [Tilak KARUNARATNE]; Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Chandrika Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]; Sri Lanka Progressive Front or SLPF [P. Nelson PERERA]; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [SABARATNAM]; Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Nadarajah RAVIRAJ]; Tamil United Liberation Front or TULF [R. SAMPATHAN]; United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMASINGHE]; Upcountry People's Front or UPF [P. CHANDRASEKARAN]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in either Parliament or provincial councils	Agrarian Party of Albania or PASH [Lufter XHUVELI]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef BUSHATI]; Communist Party of Albania or PKSH [Hysni MILLOSHI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Nerltan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Legality Movement Party or PLL [Guri DUROLLARI]; National Front Party (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQUIRI]; Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEDIU]; Social Democracy or DS [Paskal MILO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albanian Party of Labor) [Fatos NANO]; Union for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil MELO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Buddhist clergy; labor unions; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE [Velupillai PRABHAKARAN](insurgent group fighting for a separate state); radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups such as the National Movement Against Terrorism; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups	Omonia [Vangjel DULES]
Population	19,742,439 (2003 est.) note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of yearend 2000, approximately 65,000 were housed in 131 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2003 est.)	3,582,205 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	22% (1997 est.)	30% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	0.83% (2003 est.)	1.03% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee	Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore
Radio broadcast stations	AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 13, FM 4, shortwave 2 (2001)
Railways	total: 1,508 km broad gauge: 1,449 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 59 km 0.762-m gauge (2002)	total: 447 km standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2002)
Religions	Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Muslim 7% (1999)	Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10% note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing private religious practice
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.)	at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Telephone system	general assessment: very inadequate domestic service, particularly in rural areas; likely improvement with privatization of national telephone company and encouragement to private investment; good international service (1999) domestic: national trunk network consists mostly of digital microwave radio relay; fiber-optic links now in use in Colombo area and two fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems; telephone density remains low at 2.6 main lines per 100 persons (1999) international: submarine cables to Indonesia and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (1999)	general assessment: Albania has the poorest telephone service in Europe with fewer than two telephones per 100 inhabitants; it is doubtful that every village has telephone service domestic: obsolete wire system; no longer provides a telephone for every village; in 1992, following the fall of the Communist government, peasants cut the wire to about 1,000 villages and used it to build fences international: inadequate; international traffic carried by microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece
Telephones - main lines in use	494,509 (1998)	120,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular	228,604 (1999)	250,000 (2001)
Television broadcast stations	21 (1997)	3 (plus 58 repeaters) (2001)
Terrain	mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior	mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast
Total fertility rate	1.9 children born/woman (2003 est.)	2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	8% (2002)	17% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.)
Waterways	430 km (navigable by shallow-draft craft)	43 km note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990)

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