West Bank (2002) | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of (2001) | |
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-Poloska, Novaci, Novo Selo, Oblesevo, Ohrid, Orasac, Orizari, Oslomej, Pehcevo, Petrovec, Plasnia, Podares, Prilep, Probistip, Radovis, Rankovce, Resen, Rosoman, Rostusa, Samokov, Saraj, Sipkovica, Sopiste, Sopotnika, 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, Zileno, Zitose, Zletovo, Zrnovci
note: the seven municipalities followed by Skopje in parentheses collectively constitute "greater Skopje" |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.4% (male 492,446; female 468,321)
15-64 years: 52% (male 575,282; female 550,793) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 33,163; female 43,662) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
22.92% (male 243,715; female 225,349) 15-64 years: 66.94% (male 688,484; female 681,225) 65 years and over: 10.14% (male 92,043; female 115,393) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products | rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, millet, cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus, vegetables; beef, pork, poultry, mutton |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 16 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 5,860 sq km
land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
total:
25,333 sq km land: 24,856 sq km water: 477 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly larger than Vermont |
Background | The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank had begun in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but have been derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement. | International recognition of The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's (FYROM) 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 FYROM's use of "Macedonia." FYROM's large Albanian minority and the de facto independence of neighboring Kosovo continue to be sources of ethnic tension. |
Birth rate | 34.94 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.5 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $930 million
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $15 million note: includes Gaza Strip (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$1.06 billion expenditures: $1 billion, including capital expenditures of $107 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | - | Skopje |
Climate | temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters | warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | - | adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991
note: Democratic Party for Albanians (DPA), which is now a member party of the government, is calling for a rewrite of the constitution to declare ethnic Albanians a constituent national group and allow for greater regional autonomy |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: West Bank |
conventional long form:
The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia conventional short form: none local long form: Republika Makedonija local short form: Makedonija abbreviation: FYROM |
Currency | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) | Macedonian denar (MKD) |
Death rate | 4.26 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 7.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) | $1.4 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael M. EINIK embassy: Bul. Ilinden bb, 91000 Skopje mailing address: American Embassy Skopje, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7120 (pouch) telephone: [389] (91) 116-180 FAX: [389] (91) 117-103 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ljubica Z. ACEVSKA chancery: 3050 K Street, NW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 337 3063 FAX: [1] (202) 337-3093 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation | dispute with Greece over its name; February 2001 agreement with Yugoslavia settled alignment of boundary, stipulating implementation within two years |
Economic aid - recipient | $800 million disbursed (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) | $100 million from the EU (2000) |
Economy - overview | Economic output in the West Bank is governed by the Paris Economic Protocol of April 1994 between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996 due to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures during the next five years decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of Palestinian violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and severely disrupted trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, internal turmoil and Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas have resulted in the destruction of much capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Another major loss has been the decline in earnings of Palestinian workers in Israel. | 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 its largest market Yugoslavia, and a Greek economic embargo hindered economic growth until 1996. GDP has subsequently increased each year, rising by 5% in 2000. Successful privatization in 2000 boosted the country's reserves to over $700 million. Also, the leadership demonstrated a continuing commitment to economic reform, free trade, and regional integration. Inflation jumped to 11% in 2000, largely due to higher oil prices. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 5.992 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | - | 30 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | 75 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants | 6.395 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
fossil fuel:
82.25% hydro: 17.75% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
lowest point:
Vardar River 50 m highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,753 m |
Environment - current issues | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment | air pollution from metallurgical plants |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% | Macedonian 66.6%, Albanian 22.7%, Turkish 4%, Roma 2.2%, Serb 2.1%, other 2.4% (1994) |
Exchange rates | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.2757 (December 2001), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) | Macedonian denars per US dollar - 64.757 (January 2001), 65.904 (2000), 56.902 (1999), 54.462 (1998), 50.004 (1997), 39.981 (1996) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state:
President Boris TRAJKOVSKI (since 15 December 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Ljubco GEORGIEVSKI (since 30 November 1998) 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 VMRO-DPMNE, LDP, and DPA 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 parliament; election last held NA November 1998 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: Boris TRAJKOVSKI elected president on second-round ballot; percent of vote - Boris TRAJKOVSKI 52.4%, Tito PETKOVSKI 46.2% |
Exports | $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip (2001 est.) | $1.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone | food, beverages, tobacco; miscellaneous manufactures, iron and steel |
Exports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | Germany 22%, Yugoslavia 22%, US 12%, Greece 7%, Italy 6% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) | calendar year |
Flag description | - | a rising yellow sun with eight rays extending to the edges of the red field |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.1 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9%
industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
12% industry: 25% services: 63% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -35% (2001 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 35 15 E | 41 50 N, 22 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) | landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe |
Highways | total: 4,500 km
paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.) note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements |
total:
8,684 km paved: 5,540 km (including 133 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,144 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | increasing transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish; minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe |
Imports | $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip (2001 est.) | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food, consumer goods, construction materials | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; food products |
Imports - partners | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip | Germany 13%, Ukraine 13%, Russia 10%, Yugoslavia 8%, Greece 8% (2000) |
Independence | - | 17 September 1991 (from Yugoslavia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3% (2000) |
Industries | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers | coal, metallic chromium, lead, zinc, ferronickel, textiles, wood products, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | 21.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 12.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) | 11% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACCT (associate), BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (1999) | 6 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 830 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Constitutional Court; Judicial Court of the Republic; judges for both courts are elected by the Judicial Council |
Labor force | NA | 1 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 404 km
border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
total:
748 km border countries: Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 228 km, Yugoslavia 221 km |
Land use | arable land: NEGL%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
24% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 25% forests and woodland: 39% other: 10% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) | Macedonian 70%, Albanian 21%, Turkish 3%, Serbo-Croatian 3%, other 3% |
Legal system | - | based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral Assembly or Sobranje (120 seats - 85 members are elected by popular vote, 35 members come from lists of candidates submitted by parties based on the percentage that parties gain from the overall vote; all serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 October and 1 November 1998 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - VMRO-DPMNE 43, SDSM 27, PDP 14, DA 13, DPA 11, VMRO-VMRO 6, LDP 4, SP 1, Roma Party 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.47 years
male: 70.76 years female: 74.29 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
74.02 years male: 71.79 years female: 76.43 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Middle East, west of Jordan | Southeastern Europe, north of Greece |
Map references | Middle East | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | - | Army (includes Air and Air Defense Forces), Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $76.3 million (FY00/01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.17% (FY00/01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
548,183 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
442,053 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
17,905 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | - | Uprising Day, 2 August (1903) |
Nationality | noun: NA
adjective: NA |
noun:
Macedonian(s) adjective: Macedonian |
Natural hazards | droughts | high seismic risks |
Natural resources | arable land | chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulfur, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 3.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -1.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | 10 km |
Political parties and leaders | - | Democratic Alternative or DA [Vasil TUPURKOVSKI, president]; Democratic Party for Albanians or DPA [Arben XHAFERI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization - Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity or VMRO-DPMNE [Ljubcho GEORGIEVSKI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-True Macedonian Reform Option or VMRO-VMRO [Boris STOJMANOV]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Risto GUSTERVO]; Party for Democratic Prosperity or PDP [Imeri IMERI, president]; Social-Democratic Alliance of Macedonia or SDSM (former Communist Party) [Branko CRVENKOVSKI, president]; Socialist Party of Macedonia or SP [Ljubisav IVANOV, president]; Union of Romanies of Macedonia or SRM [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 2,163,667 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) |
2,046,209 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 50% (2001 est.) | 25% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.39% (2002 est.) | 0.43% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
AM 29, FM 20, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999) | 410,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
699 km standard gauge: 699 km 1.435-m gauge (233 km electrified) note: a 56-km extension of the Kumanovo-Beljakovci line to the Bulgarian border at Gyveshevo is under construction (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% | Macedonian Orthodox 67%, Muslim 30%, other 3% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) | 408,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 12,362 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 31 (plus 166 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east | mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River |
Total fertility rate | 4.77 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 26% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.) | 32% (2000) |
Waterways | none | note:
lake transport only, on the Greek and Albanian borders |