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Compare World (2004) - Belgium (2006)
Compare World (2004) z Belgium (2006)
| World (2004) | Belgium (2006) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 271 nations, dependent areas, and other entities | 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Dutch: provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (French: regions; Dutch: gewesten); Antwerpen, Brabant Wallon, Brussels* (Bruxelles), Flanders*, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams-Brabant, Wallonia*, West-Vlaanderen
note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.2% (male 925,276,767; female 875,567,830)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 2,083,789,165; female 2,033,226,759) 65 years and over: 7.2% (male 203,286,504; female 257,705,851) note: some countries do not maintain age structure information, thus a slight discrepancy exists between the total world population and the total for world age structure (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.7% (male 883,254/female 846,099)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 3,450,879/female 3,389,565) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 746,569/female 1,062,701) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | - | sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk |
| Airports | - | 43 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 25
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 7 (2006) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 18
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 16 (2006) |
| Area | total: 510.072 million sq km
land: 148.94 million sq km water: 361.132 million sq km note: 70.8% of the world's surface is water, 29.2% is land |
total: 30,528 sq km
land: 30,278 sq km water: 250 sq km |
| Area - comparative | land area about 16 times the size of the US | about the size of Maryland |
| Background | Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages of energy and water, the decline in biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war). | Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy. |
| Birth rate | 20.24 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.38 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | - | revenues: $180.4 billion
expenditures: $180.5 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.56 billion (2005 est.) |
| Capital | - | name: Brussels
geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 20 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 | two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones form a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates | temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy |
| Coastline | 356,000 km
note: 98 nations and other entities are islands that border no other countries, they include: American Samoa, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Baker Island, Barbados, Bassas da India, Bermuda, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Christmas Island, Clipperton Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Comoros, Cook Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Cuba, Cyprus, Dominica, Europa Island, Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Faroe Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands, Greenland, Grenada, Guam, Guernsey, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Howland Island, Iceland, Jamaica, Jan Mayen, Japan, Jarvis Island, Jersey, Johnston Atoll, Juan de Nova Island, Kingman Reef, Kiribati, Madagascar, Maldives, Malta, Isle of Man, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Federated States of Micronesia, Midway Islands, Montserrat, Nauru, Navassa Island, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Palmyra Atoll, Paracel Islands, Philippines, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Spratly Islands, Sri Lanka, Svalbard, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tromelin Island, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Virgin Islands, Wake Island, Wallis and Futuna, Taiwan |
66.5 km |
| Constitution | - | 7 February 1831; amended many times; revised 14 July 1993 to create a federal state |
| Country name | - | conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie local short form: Belgique/Belgie |
| Death rate | 8.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.27 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2 trillion for less developed countries (2002 est.) | $980.1 billion (30 June 2005 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Tom C. KOROLOGOS
embassy: Regentlaan 27 Boulevard du Regent, B-1000 Brussels mailing address: PSC 82, Box 002, APO AE 09710 telephone: [32] (2) 508-2111 FAX: [32] (2) 511-2725 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Franciskus VAN DAELE
chancery: 3330 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 333-3079 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York consulate(s): Atlanta |
| Disputes - international | stretching over 250,000 km, the world's 325 international land boundaries separate the 192 independent states and 72 dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, and other miscellaneous entities; ethnicity, culture, race, religion, and language have divided states into separate political entities as much as history, physical terrain, political fiat, or conquest, resulting in sometimes arbitrary and imposed boundaries; maritime states have claimed limits and have so far established over 130 maritime boundaries and joint development zones to allocate ocean resources and to provide for national security at sea; boundary, borderland/resource, and territorial disputes vary in intensity from managed or dormant to violent or militarized; most disputes over the alignment of political boundaries are confined to short segments and are today less common and less hostile than borderland, resource, and territorial disputes; undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries, however, encourage illegal cross-border activities, uncontrolled migration, and confrontation; territorial disputes may evolve from historical and/or cultural claims, or they may be brought on by resource competition; ethnic clashes continue to be responsible for much of the territorial fragmentation around the world; disputes over islands at sea or in rivers frequently form the source of territorial and boundary conflict; other sources of contention include access to water and mineral (especially petroleum) resources, fisheries, and arable land; nonetheless, most nations cooperate to clarify their international boundaries and to resolve territorial and resource disputes peacefully; regional discord directly affects the sustenance and welfare of local populations, often leaving the world community to cope with resultant refugees, hunger, disease, impoverishment, deforestation, and desertification | none |
| Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.072 billion (2002) |
| Economic aid - recipient | official development assistance (ODA) $50 billion | - |
| Economy - overview | Global output rose by 3.7% in 2003, led by China (9.1%), India (7.6%), and Russia (7.3%). The other 14 successor nations of the USSR and the other old Warsaw Pact nations again experienced widely divergent growth rates; the three Baltic nations continued as strong performers, in the 5%-7% range of growth. Growth results posted by the major industrial countries varied from a loss by Germany (-0.1%) to a strong gain by the United States (3.1%). The developing nations also varied in their growth results, with many countries facing population increases that erode gains in output. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government often finds its control over resources slipping as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in many of the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, in India, in Iraq, in Indonesia, and in Canada. Externally, the central government is losing decision-making powers to international bodies. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries devote insufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, poses economic risks because of varying levels of income and cultural and political differences among the participating nations. The terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuate a further growing risk to global prosperity, illustrated, for example, by the reallocation of resources away from investment to anti-terrorist programs. The opening of war in March 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq added new uncertainties to global economic prospects. After the coalition victory, the complex political difficulties and the high economic cost of establishing domestic order in Iraq became major global problems that continue into 2004. | This modern, private-enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Roughly three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is nearly 100% of GDP. On the positive side, the government has succeeded in balancing its budget, and income distribution is relatively equal. Belgium began circulating the euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-03 dropped sharply because of the global economic slowdown, with moderate recovery in 2004-05. |
| Electricity - consumption | 13.94 trillion kWh (2001 est.) | 79.66 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | - | 8.3 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - imports | - | 14.7 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production | 14.93 trillion kWh (2001 est.) | 78.77 billion kWh (2003) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Bentley Subglacial Trench -2,540 m
note: in the oceanic realm, Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench is the lowest point, lying -10,924 m below the surface of the Pacific Ocean highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
lowest point: North Sea 0 m
highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m |
| Environment - current issues | large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion | the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry, extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries; uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now resolved) have slowed progress in tackling environmental challenges |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
| Ethnic groups | - | Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11% |
| Exchange rates | - | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) |
| Executive branch | - | chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August 1993); Heir Apparent Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary and constitutional; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and then approved by parliament note: government coalition - VLD, MR, PS, SP.A-Spirit |
| Exports | 712 billion cu m (2001 est.) | 450,000 bbl/day (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs |
| Exports - partners | US 16.4%, Germany 7.9%, UK 5.2%, France 5.1%, China 5%, Japan 4.6% (2003) | Germany 19.4%, France 17.3%, Netherlands 11.7%, UK 8.2%, US 6.4%, Italy 5.3% (2005) |
| Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
| Flag description | - | three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the design was based on the flag of France |
| GDP | GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $51.48 trillion (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 32% services: 64% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 24% services: 74.9% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (2003 est.) | 1.5% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | - | 50 50 N, 4 00 E |
| Geography - note | the world is now thought to be about 4.55 billion years old, just about one-third of the 13-billion-year age estimated for the universe | crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the European Union and NATO |
| Heliports | - | 1 (2006) |
| Highways | total: NA km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 23% (1996) |
| Illicit drugs | cocaine: worldwide, coca is grown on an estimated 173,450 hectares-almost exclusively in South America with 70% in Colombia; potential cocaine production during 2003 is estimated at 728 metric tons (or 835 metric tons of export quality cocaine); coca eradication programs continue in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru; 376 metric tons of export quality cocaine are documented to have been seized in 2003, and 26 metric tons disrupted (jettisoned or destroyed); consumption of export quality cocaine is estimated to have been 800 metric tons
opiates: cultivation of opium poppy occurred on an estimated 137,944 hectares in 2003-mostly in Southwest and Southeast Asia-with 44% in Afghanistan, potentially produced 3,775 metric tons of opium - which conceivably could be converted to the equivalent of 429 metric tons of pure heroin; opium eradication programs have been undertaken in Afghanistan, Burma, Colombia, Mexico, Pakistan, Thailand, and Vietnam |
growing producer of synthetic drugs; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine, heroin, hashish, and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation, the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics, automobiles, alcohol, and tobacco |
| Imports | 697.5 billion cu m (2001 est.) | 1.042 million bbl/day (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services | machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products |
| Imports - partners | US 9.9%, Germany 9.4%, China 7.9%, Japan 6.7%, France 4.7% (2003) | Netherlands 17.8%, Germany 17.2%, France 11.4%, UK 6.8%, Ireland 6.5%, US 5.4% (2005) |
| Independence | - | 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2002 est.) | -0.2% (2005 est.) |
| Industries | dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems | engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 50.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 52.17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 4.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | developed countries 1% to 4% typically; developing countries 5% to 60% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from declining prices in Japan to hyperinflation in several Third World countries (2003 est.) | 2.8% (2005 est.) |
| International organization participation | - | ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
| Irrigated land | 2,714,320 sq km (1998 est.) | 400 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) or Cour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by the government; candidacies have to be submitted by the High Justice Council) |
| Labor force | NA | 4.77 million (2005 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA | agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 24.5% services: 74.2% (2003 est.) |
| Land boundaries | the land boundaries in the world total 250,472 km (not counting shared boundaries twice); two nations, China and Russia, each border 14 other countries
note: 43 nations and other areas are landlocked, these include: Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe; two of these, Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan, are doubly landlocked |
total: 1,385 km
border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km |
| Land use | arable land: 10.73%
permanent crops: 1% other: 88.27% (2001) |
arable land: 27.42%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 71.89% note: includes Luxembourg (2005) |
| Languages | Chinese, Mandarin 14.37%, Hindi 6.02%, English 5.61%, Spanish 5.59%, Bengali 3.4%, Portuguese 2.63%, Russian 2.75%, Japanese 2.06%, German, Standard 1.64%, Korean 1.28%, French 1.27% (2000 est.)
note: percents are for "first language" speakers only |
Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French) |
| Legal system | all members of the UN are parties to the statute that established the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court | civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Legislative branch | - | bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate and Chamber of Deputies - last held 18 May 2003 (next to be held no later than May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - SP.A-Spirit 15.5%, VLD 15.4%, CD & V 12.7%, PS 12.8%, MR 12.1%, VB 9.4%, CDH 5.6%; seats by party - SP.A-Spirit 7, VLD 7, CD & V 6, PS 6, MR 5, VB 5, CDH 2, other 2 (note - there are also 31 indirectly elected senators); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - VLD 15.4%, SP.A-Spirit 14.9%, CD & V 13.3%, PS 13.0%, VB 11.6%, MR 11.4%, CDH 5.5%, Ecolo 3.1%; seats by party - VLD 25, SP.A-Spirit 23, CD & V 21, PS 25, VB 18, MR 24, CDH 8, Ecolo 4, other 2 note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.05 years
male: 62.48 years female: 65.7 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 78.77 years
male: 75.59 years female: 82.09 years (2006 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 77% male: 83% female: 71% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
| Location | - | Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands |
| Map references | Physical Map of the World, Political Map of the World, Standard Time Zones of the World | Europe |
| Maritime claims | a variety of situations exist, but in general, most countries make the following claims measured from the mean low-tide baseline as described in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea: territorial sea - 12 nm, contiguous zone - 24 nm, and exclusive economic zone - 200 nm; additional zones provide for exploitation of continental shelf resources and an exclusive fishing zone; boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit continental shelf: median line with neighbors |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 66 ships (1000 GRT or over) 3,952,159 GRT/6,521,645 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 19, cargo 4, chemical tanker 2, container 10, liquefied gas 15, petroleum tanker 12, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 10 (Denmark 4, Greece 4, UK 2) registered in other countries: 113 (Antigua and Barbuda 4, Bahamas 13, Bermuda 4, Cyprus 1, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 6, Georgia 1, Gibraltar 2, Greece 12, Hong Kong 3, Luxembourg 9, Malta 10, Mozambique 2, Netherlands 2, Netherlands Antilles 4, Panama 11, Portugal 8, Russia 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, Singapore 12, Sweden 2) (2006) |
| Military branches | - | Belgian Armed Forces: Land, Naval, and Air Operations Commands (2005) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | aggregate real expenditure on arms worldwide in 1999 remained at approximately the 1998 level, about three-quarters of a trillion dollars (1999 est.) | $3.999 billion (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | roughly 2% of gross world product (1999 est.) | 1.3% (2003) |
| National holiday | - | 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I |
| Nationality | - | noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian |
| Natural hazards | large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions) | flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes |
| Natural resources | the rapid depletion of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe, the former USSR, and China) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address | construction materials, silica sand, carbonates |
| Net migration rate | - | 1.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | gas 1,561 km; oil 158 km; refined products 535 km (2006) |
| Political parties and leaders | - | Flemish parties: Christian Democrats and Flemish or CD & V [Jo VANDEURZEN]; Flemish Liberal Democrats or VLD [Bart SOMERS]; GROEN! (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens) [Vera DUA]; New Flemish Alliance or NVA [Bart DE WEVER]; Social Progressive Alternative or SP.A [Johan Vande LANOTTE]; Spirit [Geert LAMBERT] (new party now associated with SP.A); Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) or VB [Frank VANHECKE]
Francophone parties: Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Isabelle DURANT, Claude BROUIR]; Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; Reform Movement or MR [Didier REYNDERS]; Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; other minor parties |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | - | Christian, Socialist, and Liberal Trade Unions; Federation of Belgian Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia; various peace groups such as Pax Christi and groups representing immigrants |
| Population | 6,379,157,361 (July 2004 est.) | 10,379,067 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | - | 4% (1989 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 1.14% (2004 est.) | 0.13% (2006 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA | FM 79, AM 7, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 1,115,205 km
broad gauge: 257,481 km standard gauge: 671,413 km narrow gauge: 186,311 km (2003) |
total: 3,521 km
standard gauge: 3,521 km 1.435-m gauge (2,927 km electrified) (2005) |
| Religions | Christians 32.71% (of which Roman Catholics 17.28%, Protestants 5.61%, Orthodox 3.49%, Anglicans 1.31%), Muslims 19.67%, Hindus 13.28%, Buddhists 5.84%, Sikhs 0.38%, Jews 0.23%, other religions 13.05%, non-religious 12.43%, atheists 2.41% (2002 est.) | Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
| Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA |
general assessment: highly developed, technologically advanced, and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities
domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; extensive cable network; limited microwave radio relay network international: country code - 32; submarine cables - 5; satellite earth stations - 7 (Intelsat - 3) (2005) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 843,923,500 (2003) | 4.801 million (2004) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 9.46 million (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | NA | 25 (plus 10 repeaters) (1997) |
| Terrain | the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in the Pacific Ocean | flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast |
| Total fertility rate | 2.62 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment | 8.4% (2005 est.) |
| Waterways | - | 2,043 km (1,528 km in regular commercial use) (2003) |
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Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.