Chapter XXII: Front Matter (22)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.73 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.91 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.04 years
male: 66.58 years
female: 77.83 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.4 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
7,800 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian

Ethnic groups:
Estonian 67.9%, Russian 25.6%, Ukrainian 2.1%, Belarusian 1.3%,
Finn 0.9%, other 2.2% (2000 census)

Religions:
Evangelical Lutheran 13.6%, Orthodox 12.8%, other Christian
(including Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic,
Pentecostal) 1.4%, unaffiliated 34.1%, other and unspecified 32%,
none 6.1% (2000 census)

Languages:
Estonian (official) 67.3%, Russian 29.7%, other 2.3%, unknown 0.7%
(2000 census)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.8% (2003 est.)

Government Estonia

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia
local long form: Eesti Vabariik
local short form: Eesti
former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type:
parliamentary republic

Capital:
name: Tallinn
geographic coordinates: 59 25 N, 24 45 E
time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October

Administrative divisions:
15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn),
Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa
(Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa
(Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare),
Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa
(Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in
parentheses

Independence:
20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 is
the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20
August 1991 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet
Union

Constitution:
adopted 28 June 1992

Legal system:
based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Toomas Hendrik ILVES (since 9 October
2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Andrus ANSIP (since 12 April 2005)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister,
approved by Parliament
elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); if a candidate does not secure
two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the
Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus
members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between
the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election
last held 23 September 2006 (next to be held fall of 2011); prime
minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament
election results: Toomas Hendrik ILVES elected president on 23
September 2006 by a 345-member electoral assembly; ILVES received
174 votes to incumbent Arnold RUUTEL's 162; remaining 9 ballots left
blank or invalid

Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected
by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - Center Party of Estonia
25.4%, Res Publica 24.6%, Estonian Reform Party 17.7%, Estonian
People's Union 13%, Pro Patria Union (Fatherland League) 7.3%
People's Party Moodukad 7%; seats by party - Res Publica 26, Center
Party 20, Reform Party 19, Estonian People's Union 13, Pro Patria
Union 7, Social Democrats (formerly People's Party Moodukad) 6,
non-affiliated (Social Liberals and independents) 10

Judicial branch:
National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life)

Political parties and leaders:
Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman];
Estonian People's Union (Rahvaliit) [Villu REILJAN, chairman];
Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Andrus ANSIP]; Estonian
United Russian People's Party or EUVRP [Yevgeniy TOMBERG, chairman];
Social Democratic Party (formerly People's Party Moodukad or
Moderates) [Ivari PADAR, chairman]; Social Liberals (group of eight
parliamentarians, former Center Party members) [Peeter KREITZBERG];
Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Isamaa je Res Publica Liit)
[Tonis LUKAS and Taavi VESKIMAGI, co-chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new
member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU,
MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juri LUIK
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101
FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Aldona Zofia WOS
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [372] 668-8100
FAX: [372] 668-8134

Flag description:
pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal
horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white

Economy Estonia

Economy - overview:
Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization and the
European Union, has transitioned effectively to a modern market
economy with strong ties to the West, including the pegging of its
currency to the euro. The economy benefits from strong electronics
and telecommunications sectors and is greatly influenced by
developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading
partners. The current account deficit remains high; however, the
state budget is essentially in balance, and public debt is low.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$23.34 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$12.19 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
10.5% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$17,500 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4%
industry: 29.4%
services: 66.6% (2005 est.)

Labor force:
670,000 (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 11%
industry: 20%
services: 69% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate:
7.8% (2005)

Population below poverty line:
Below $2.15 per day (PPP) 5% (2003)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.9%
highest 10%: 28.5% (2000)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
33 (2003)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.1% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
29.1% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $4.91 billion
expenditures: $4.7 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA
(2005 est.)

Public debt:
4.8% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:
potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish

Industries:
engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile;
information technology, telecommunications

Industrial production growth rate:
9.7% (2005 est.)

Electricity - production:
10.304 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 99.8%
hydro: 0.1%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0.2% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
6.26 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
2.141 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
347 million kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
6,000 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - consumption:
60,000 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports:
54,000 bbl/day (2004)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004)

Natural gas - consumption:
1.42 billion cu m (2004)

Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2004)

Natural gas - imports:
1.42 billion cu m (2004)

Current account balance:
$-1.375 billion (2005 est.)

Exports:
$7.439 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:
machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food
products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001)

Exports - partners:
Finland 26.5%, Sweden 12.9%, Latvia 8.8%, Russia 6.5%, Germany
6.2%, Lithuania 4.8% (2005)

Imports:
$9.189 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles
10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001)

Imports - partners:
Finland 19.8%, Germany 13.8%, Russia 9.4%, Sweden 8.8%, Lithuania
6.1%, Latvia 4.7% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.948 billion (2005 est.)

Debt - external:
$11.03 billion (2005 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$735 million (2004-06)

Currency (code):
Estonian kroon (EEK)

Currency code:
EEK

Exchange rates:
krooni per US dollar - 12.584 (2005), 12.596 (2004), 13.856 (2003),
16.612 (2002), 17.478 (2001), note - the krooni is pegged to the euro

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Estonia

Telephones - main lines in use:
442,000 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.445 million (2005)

Telephone system:
general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint
business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial
fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in
the digital mode; Internet services are available throughout most of
the country
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and Internet
services is available throughout the country
international: country code - 372; fiber-optic cables to Finland,
Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched
service; two international switches are located in Tallinn (2001)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios:
1.01 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
3 (2001)

Televisions:
605,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.ee

Internet hosts:
52,241 (2006)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
38 (2001)

Internet users:
690,000 (2005)

Transportation Estonia

Airports:
24 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 5 (2006)

Heliports:
1 (2006)

Pipelines:
gas 859 km (2006)

Railways:
total: 958 km
broad gauge: 958 km 1.520 m/1.524-m gauge (2005)

Roadways:
total: 56,849 km
paved: 13,303 km (including 99 km of expressways)
unpaved: 45,546 km (2003)

Waterways:
500 km (2005)

Merchant marine:
total: 35 ships (1000 GRT or over) 388,723 GRT/98,393 DWT
by type: cargo 7, passenger/cargo 26, petroleum tanker 2
foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 2)
registered in other countries: 72 (Antigua and Barbuda 12, Bahamas
1, Belize 3, Cyprus 6, Dominica 11, Isle of Man 2, Liberia 1, Malta
4, Norway 1, Panama 3, Russia 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
25, Slovakia 1, Vanuatu 1) (2006)

Ports and terminals:
Kopli, Kuivastu, Muuga, Tallinn, Virtsu

Military Estonia

Military branches:
Estonian Defense Forces: Land Force, Navy, Air Force, Volunteer
Defense League (Kaitseliit, KL) (2006)

Military service age and obligation:
compulsory military service for men between 19 and 28; conscription
lasts 11 months for junior NCOs and reserve platoon leaders; reserve
officers and designated specialists have a different conscript
service obligation; Estonia has committed to retaining conscription
for men up to 2010 and, unlike Latvia and Lithuania, has no plan to
transition to a contract armed forces; 17 years of age for
volunteers; reserve commitment up to the age of 60 (2006)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 291,696
females age 18-49: 304,961 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 200,382 (in 2004, 51% of the young men called up
for service were determined to be unfit; main obstacles to
conscription were psychiatric and behavioral)
females age 18-49: 250,351 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 11,146
females age 18-49: 10,605 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$155 million (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
2% (2002 est.)

Transnational Issues Estonia

Disputes - international:
in 2005, Russia refuses to sign the 1996 technical border agreement
with Estonia when Estonia prepares a unilateral declaration
referencing Soviet occupation and territorial losses; Russia demands
better accommodation of Russian-speaking population in Estonia;
Estonian citizen groups continue to press for realignment of the
boundary based on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the
now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within
Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external
border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules

Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia
and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western
Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to
Scandinavia; increasing domestic drug abuse problem; possible
precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking; potential money
laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a
concern, as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds

This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006

======================================================================

@Ethiopia

Introduction Ethiopia

Background:
Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy
maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of the
1936-41 Italian occupation during World War II. In 1974, a military
junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since
1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups,
uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the
regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces,
the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A
constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty
elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the
1990's ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. Final demarcation
of the boundary is currently on hold due to Ethiopian objections to
an international commission's finding requiring it to surrender
territory considered sensitive to Ethiopia.

Geography Ethiopia

Location:
Eastern Africa, west of Somalia

Geographic coordinates:
8 00 N, 38 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 1,127,127 sq km
land: 1,119,683 sq km
water: 7,444 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries:
total: 5,328 km
border countries: Djibouti 349 km, Eritrea 912 km, Kenya 861 km,
Somalia 1,600 km, Sudan 1,606 km

Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)

Climate:
tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation

Terrain:
high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift
Valley

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Denakil Depression -125 m
highest point: Ras Dejen 4,620 m

Natural resources:
small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas,
hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 10.01%
permanent crops: 0.65%
other: 89.34% (2005)

Irrigated land:
2,900 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes,
volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water
shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor
management

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea

Geography - note:
landlocked - entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the
de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May 1993; the Blue Nile, the
chief headstream of the Nile by water volume, rises in T'ana Hayk
(Lake Tana) in northwest Ethiopia; three major crops are believed to
have originated in Ethiopia: coffee, grain sorghum, and castor bean

People Ethiopia

Population:
74,777,981
note: 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
2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.7% (male 16,373,718/female 16,280,766)
15-64 years: 53.6% (male 19,999,482/female 20,077,014)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 929,349/female 1,117,652) (2006 est.)

Median age:
total: 17.8 years
male: 17.7 years
female: 17.9 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.31% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
37.98 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
14.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: repatriation of Ethiopian refugees residing in Sudan is
expected to continue for several years; some Sudanese, Somali, and
Eritrean refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine
in their own countries, continue to return to their homes (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 93.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 103.43 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 83.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.03 years
male: 47.86 years
female: 50.24 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.22 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
4.4% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1.5 million (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
120,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, typhoid fever, and hepatitis E
vectorborne diseases: malaria and cutaneous leishmaniasis are high
risks in some locations
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
animal contact disease: rabies
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2005)

Nationality:
noun: Ethiopian(s)
adjective: Ethiopian

Ethnic groups:
Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigre 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali
6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1%

Religions:
Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, animist 12%, other 3%-8%

Languages:
Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other
local languages, English (major foreign language taught in schools)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.7%
male: 50.3%
female: 35.1% (2003 est.)

Government Ethiopia

Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
conventional short form: Ethiopia
local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik
local short form: Ityop'iya
former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa
abbreviation: FDRE

Government type:
federal republic

Capital:
name: Addis Ababa
geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:
9 ethnically-based states (kililoch, singular - kilil) and 2
self-governing administrations* (astedaderoch, singular -
astedader); Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa), Afar, Amara (Amhara),
Binshangul Gumuz, Dire Dawa*, Gambela Hizboch (Gambela Peoples),
Hareri Hizb (Harari People), Oromiya (Oromia), Sumale (Somali),
Tigray, Ye Debub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations,
Nationalities and Peoples)

Independence:
oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the
world - at least 2,000 years

National holiday:
National Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)

Constitution:
ratified December 1994, effective 22 August 1995

Legal system:
currently transitional mix of national and regional courts

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President GIRMA Woldegiorgis (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister MELES Zenawi (since NA August
1995)
cabinet: Council of Ministers as provided for in the December 1994
constitution; ministers are selected by the prime minister and
approved by the House of People's Representatives
elections: president elected by the House of People's
Representatives for a six-year term (eligible for a second term);
election last held 8 October 2001 (next to be held October 2007);
prime minister designated by the party in power following
legislative elections
election results: GIRMA Woldegiorgis elected president; percent of
vote by the House of People's Representatives - 100%

Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation or upper
chamber (108 seats; members are chosen by state assemblies to serve
five-year terms) and the House of People's Representatives or lower
chamber (547 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote
from single-member districts to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 May 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPRDF 327,
CUD 109, UEDF 52, SPDP 23, OFDM 11, BGPDUF 8, ANDP 8, independent 1,
others 6, undeclared 2
note: irregularities at some polling stations necessitated the
rescheduling of voting in certain constituencies

Judicial branch:
Federal Supreme Court (the president and vice president of the
Federal Supreme Court are recommended by the prime minister and
appointed by the House of People's Representatives; for other
federal judges, the prime minister submits to the House of People's
Representatives for appointment candidates selected by the Federal
Judicial Administrative Council)

Political parties and leaders:
Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP; Benishangul Gumuz People's
Democratic Unity Front or BGPDUF [Mulualem BESSE]; Coalition for
Unity and Democracy or CUD [HAILU Shawel]; Ethiopian People's
Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [MELES Zenawi] (an alliance
of Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM, Oromo People's
Democratic Organization or OPDO, the South Ethiopean People's
Democratic Front or SEPDF, and TigrAyan Peoples' Liberation Front or
TPLF); Gurage Nationalities' Democratic Movement or GNDM; Oromo
Federalist Democratic Movement or OFDM [BULCHA Demeksa]; Somali
People's Democratic Party or SPDP; United Ethopian Democratic Forces
or UEDF [BEYENE Petros]; dozens of small parties

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Afar Revolutionary Democratic Union Front or ARDUF; Oromo
Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa]; Oromo National Liberation
Front or ONLF

International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Samuel ASSEFA
chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200
FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
consulate(s): New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Vicki
HUDDLESTON
embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa
mailing address: P. O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa
telephone: [251] (1) 517-4000
FAX: [251] (1) 517-4888

Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red with a
yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles
between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands;
Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three
main colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African
countries upon independence that they became known as the
pan-African colors

Economy Ethiopia

Economy - overview:
Ethiopia's poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture,
accounting for half of GDP, 60% of exports, and 80% of total
employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought
and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian
economy with exports of some $156 million in 2002, but historically
low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to supplement
income. The war with Eritrea in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have
buffeted the economy, in particular coffee production. In November
2001, Ethiopia qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted
Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in December 2005 the
International Monetary Fund voted to forgive Ethiopia's debt to the
body. Under Ethiopia's land tenure system, the government owns all
land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; the system
continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector as entrepreneurs
are unable to use land as collateral for loans. Drought struck again
late in 2002, leading to a 2% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather
patterns late in 2003 helped agricultural and GDP growth recover in
2004-05.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$64.73 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$8.819 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
8.9% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$900 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 47.5%
industry: 9.9%
services: 42.6% (2005 est.)

Labor force:
27.27 million

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 80%
industry: 8%
services: 12% (1985)

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
50% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 33.7% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
30 (2000)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
11.6% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
21.9% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $2.338 billion
expenditures: $2.88 billion; including capital expenditures of $788
million (2005 est.)

Public debt:
106.2% of GDP

Agriculture - products:
cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qat,
cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish

Industries:
food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals
processing, cement

Industrial production growth rate:
6.7% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production:
2.058 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 1.3%
hydro: 97.6%
nuclear: 0%
other: 1.2% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
1.914 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
27,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day

Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day

Oil - proved reserves:
214,000 bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
24.92 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$-844 million (2005 est.)

Exports:
$612 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:
coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds

Exports - partners:
Saudi Arabia 6.9%, Djibouti 6.8%, Switzerland 6.4%, Italy 5.9%, US
5.5%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005)

Imports:
$2.722 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities:
food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals,
machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles

Imports - partners:
Saudi Arabia 14.7%, China 12.6%, US 12.4%, **COUNTRY** 9.6%, India
6.7%, Italy 4.6% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.226 billion (2005 est.)

Debt - external:
$5.101 billion (2005 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$308 million (FY00/01)

Currency (code):
birr (ETB)

Currency code:
ETB

Exchange rates:
birr per US dollar - 8.68 (2005), 8.6356 (2004), 8.5997 (2003),
8.5678 (2002), 8.4575 (2001)
note: since 24 October 2001 exchange rates are determined on a daily
basis via interbank transactions regulated by the Central Bank

Fiscal year:
8 July - 7 July

Communications Ethiopia

Telephones - main lines in use:
610,300 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
410,600 (2005)

Telephone system:
general assessment: adequate for government use
domestic: open-wire; microwave radio relay; radio communication in
the HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies; two domestic satellites provide
the national trunk service
international: country code - 251; open-wire to Sudan and Djibouti;
microwave radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; satellite earth
stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Pacific Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 8, FM 0, shortwave 1 (2001)

Radios:
15.2 million (2002)

Television broadcast stations:
1 plus 24 repeaters (2002)

Televisions:
682,000 (2002)

Internet country code:
.et

Internet hosts:
88 (2006)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)

Internet users:
113,000 (2005)

Transportation Ethiopia

Airports:
84 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 70
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 28
under 914 m: 23 (2006)

Railways:
total: 681 km (Ethiopian segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti
railroad)
narrow gauge: 681 km 1.000-m gauge
note: railway under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2005)

Roadways:
total: 33,856 km
paved: 4,367 km
unpaved: 29,489 km (2003)

Merchant marine:
total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 79,441 GRT/97,669 DWT
by type: cargo 6, roll on/roll off 2 (2006)

Ports and terminals:
Ethiopia is landlocked and has used ports of Assab and Massawa in
Eritrea and port of Djibouti

Military Ethiopia

Military branches:
Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian
Air Force
note: Ethiopia is landlocked and has no navy; following the
secession of Eritrea, Ethiopian naval facilities remained in
Eritrean possession

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service (2001)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 14,568,277
females age 18-49: 14,482,885 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 8,072,755
females age 18-49: 7,902,660 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 803,777
females age 18-49: 801,789 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$295.9 million (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3.4% (2005 est.)

Transnational Issues Ethiopia

Disputes - international:
Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia
Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but mutual
animosities, accusations, and armed posturing prevail, preventing
demarcation despite international intervention; Ethiopia refuses to
withdraw to the delimited boundary until technical errors made by
the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the
award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that
the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications;
Ethiopia has only an administrative line and no international border
with the Oromo region of southern Somalia where it maintains
alliances with local clans in opposition to the unrecognized Somali
Interim Government in Mogadishu; "Somaliland" secessionists provide
port facilities and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; efforts to
demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan have been delayed by civil
war

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 90,451 (Sudan) 16,470 (Somalia) 8,719
(Eritrea)
IDPs: 132,000 (border war with Eritrea from 1998-2000 and ethnic
clashes in Gambela; most IDPs are in Tigray and Gambela Provinces)
(2005)

Illicit drugs:
transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia
and destined for Europe and North America, as well as cocaine
destined for markets in southern Africa; cultivates qat (khat) for
local use and regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia
(legal in all three countries); the lack of a well-developed
financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering
center

This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006

======================================================================

@European Union

Introduction European Union

Preliminary statement:
The evolution of the European Union (EU) from a regional economic
agreement among six neighboring states in 1951 to today's
supranational organization of 25 countries across the European
continent stands as an unprecedented phenomenon in the annals of
history. Dynastic unions for territorial consolidation were long the
norm in Europe. On a few occasions even country-level unions were
arranged - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the
Austro-Hungarian Empire were examples - but for such a large number
of nation-states to cede some of their sovereignty to an overarching
entity is truly unique. Although the EU is not a federation in the
strict sense, it is far more than a free-trade association such as
ASEAN, NAFTA, or Mercosur, and it has many of the attributes
associated with independent nations: its own flag, anthem, founding
date, and currency, as well as an incipient common foreign and
security policy in its dealings with other nations. In the future,
many of these nation-like characteristics are likely to be expanded.
Thus, inclusion of basic intelligence on the EU has been deemed
appropriate as a new, separate entity in The World Factbook.
However, because of the EU's special status, this description is
placed after the regular country entries.

Background:
Following the two devastating World Wars of the first half of the
20th century, a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became
convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to
unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both
economically and politically. In 1950, the French Foreign Minister
Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all Europe, the first
step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel
industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal
and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members, Belgium,
France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed
the Treaty of Paris. The ECSC was so successful that within a few
years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the
countries' economies. In 1957, the Treaties of Rome created the
European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy
Community (Euratom), and the six member states undertook to
eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common
market. In 1967, the institutions of all three communities were
formally merged into the European Community (EC), creating a single
Commission, a single Council of Ministers, and the European
Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially
selected by national parliaments, but in 1979 the first direct
elections were undertaken and they have been held every five years
since. In 1973, the first enlargement of the EC took place with the
addition of Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw
further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain
and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis
for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy, in
judicial and internal affairs, and in the creation of an economic
and monetary union - including a common currency. This further
integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995, Austria,
Finland, and Sweden joined the EU, raising the membership total to
15. A new currency, the euro, was launched in world money markets on
1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU
states except the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002,
citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using the euro
banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 -
Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania,
Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia - bringing the current
membership to 25. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to
function efficiently with an expanded membership, the 2003 Treaty of
Nice set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU
institutions. An EU Constitutional Treaty, signed in Rome on 29
October 2004, gave member states two years to ratify the document
before it was scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006. Referenda
held in France and the Netherlands in May-June 2005 rejected the
proposed constitution. This development suspended the ratification
effort and left the longer-term political integration of the EU in
limbo.

Geography European Union

Location:
Europe between Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, southeastern Europe, and
the North Atlantic Ocean

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 3,976,372 sq km

Area - comparative:
less than one-half the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 11,214.8 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050
km, Bulgaria 494 km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein
34.9 km, Macedonia 246 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km, Romania
443 km, Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia 151 km,
Switzerland 1,811 km, Turkey 206 km, Ukraine 726 km
note: data for European Continent only

Coastline:
65,413.9 km

Maritime claims:
NA

Climate:
cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate;
mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south

Terrain:
fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the
central and southern areas

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands
-7 m
highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m; note - situated on the border
between France and Italy

Natural resources:
iron ore, arable land, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead,
zinc, hydropower, uranium, potash, fish

Land use:
arable land: NA
permanent crops: NA
other: NA

Irrigated land:
131,250 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards:
flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes
in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in
Spain; ice floes in the Baltic

Environment - current issues:
NA

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical
Timber 94
signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds

People European Union

Population:
456,953,258 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.03% (male 37,608,010/female 35,632,351)
15-64 years: 67.17% (male 154,439,536/female 152,479,619)
65 years and over: 16.81% (male 31,515,921/female 45,277,821) (2006
est.)

Median age:
NA

Population growth rate:
0.15% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
10 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
10.1 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: NA
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and older: 0.69 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female

Infant mortality rate:
total: 5.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.3 years
male: 75.1 years
female: 81.6 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.47 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Religions:
Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish

Languages:
Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German,
Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish,
Portuguese, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish; note - only official
languages are listed; Irish (Gaelic) will become the 21st language
on 1 January 2007

Government European Union

Union name:
conventional long form: European Union
abbreviation: EU

Political structure:
a hybrid intergovernmental and supranational organization

Capital:
name: Brussels (Belgium)
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
note: the Council of the European Union meets in Brussels, the
European Parliament meets in Strasbourg, France, and the Court of
Justice of the European Communities meets in Luxembourg

Member states:
25 countries: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy,
Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK; note - Canary Islands
(Spain), Azores and Madeira (Portugal), French Guyana, Guadeloupe,
Martinique, and Reunion (France) are sometimes listed separately
even though they are legally a part of Spain, Portugal, and France;
candidate countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Romania, Turkey

Independence:
7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1
November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)

National holiday:
Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that
Robert SCHUMAN proposed the creation of an organized Europe

Constitution:
based on a series of treaties: the Treaty of Paris, which set up
the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1951; the Treaties
of Rome, which set up the European Economic Community (EEC) and the
European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957; the Single
European Act in 1986; the Treaty on European Union (Maastricht) in
1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in
2001; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty, signed on 29 October
2004 in Rome, gave member states two years for ratification either
by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it was scheduled
to take effect on 1 November 2006; defeat in French and Dutch
referenda in May-June 2005 caused a suspension of the ratification
process

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose Manuel
DURAO BARROSO (since 22 November 2004)
cabinet: European Commission (composed of 25 members, one from each
member country; each commissioner responsible for one or more policy
areas)
elections: the president of the European Commission is designated by
member governments; the president-designate then chooses the other
Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire
Commission for a five-year term; election last held 18 November 2004
(next to be held 2009)
election results: European Parliament approved the European
Commission by an approval vote of 449 to 149 with 82 abstentions
note: the European Council brings together heads of state and
government and the president of the European Commission and meets at
least twice a year; its aim is to provide the impetus for the major
political issues relating to European integration and to issue
general policy guidelines

Legislative branch:
Council of the European Union (25 member-state ministers having 321
votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states'
population); note - the Council is the main decision-making body of
the EU; European Parliament (732 seats; seats allocated among member
states by proportion to population); members elected by direct
universal suffrage for a five-year term
elections: last held 10-13 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPP-ED
268, PES 202, ALDE 88, Greens/EFA 42, EUL/NGL 41, IND/DEM 36, UEN
27, independents 28

Judicial branch:
Court of Justice of the European Communities (ensures that the
treaties are interpreted and applied correctly) - 25 justices (one
from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for
the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 11 justices known as
the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 25 justices appointed
for a six-year term

Political parties and leaders:
Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or
EUL/NGL [Francis WURTZ]; European People's Party-European Democrats
or EPP-ED [Hans-Gert POETTERING]; Group of the Alliance of Liberals
and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Graham R. WATSON]; Group of
Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Monica FRASSONI and
Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT]; Independence/Democracy Group or IND/DEM
[Jens-Peter BONDE and Nigel FARAGE]; Socialist Group in the European
Parliament or PES [Martin SCHULZ]; Union for Europe of the Nations
Group or UEN [Brian CROWLEY and Cristiana MUSCARDINI]

International organization participation:
European Union: ASEAN (dialogue member), ARF (dialogue member),
IDA, OAS (observer), UN (observer), WTO
European Commission: Australian Group, CBSS, CERN, FAO, EBRD, G-10,
NSG (observer), OECD, UNRWA, ZC (observer)
European Central Bank: BIS
European Investment Bank: EBRD, WADB (nonregional member)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador John BRUTON
chancery: 2300 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone: [1] (202) 862-9500
FAX: [1] (202) 429-1766

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador C. Boyden GRAY
embassy: 13 Zinnerstraat/Rue Zinner, B-1000 Brussels
mailing address: same as above
telephone: [32] (2) 508-2222
FAX: [32] (2) 512-5720

Flag description:
on a blue field, 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle,
representing the union of the peoples of Europe; the number of stars
is fixed

Economy European Union

Economy - overview:
Domestically, the European Union attempts to lower trade barriers,
adopt a common currency, and move toward convergence of living
standards. Internationally, the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade
position and its political and economic power. Because of the great
differences in per capita income (from $15,000 to $56,000) and
historic national animosities, the European Community faces
difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. For example,
since 2003 Germany and France have flouted the member states' treaty
obligation to prevent their national budgets from running more than
a 3% deficit. In 2004, the EU admitted 10 central and eastern
European countries that are, in general, less advanced
technologically and economically than the other 15. Twelve EU member
states introduced the euro as their common currency on 1 January
1999, but the UK, Sweden, and Denmark do not participate. The 10 new
member states may choose to adopt the euro when they meet the EU's
fiscal and monetary criteria and the other euro states so agree.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$12.18 trillion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$13.31 trillion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
1.7% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$28,100 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.2%
industry: 27.3%
services: 70.5% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
218.5 million (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 4.4%
industry: 27.2%
services: 67.2%
note: the remainder is in miscellaneous public and private sector
industries and services (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate:
9.4% (2005 est.)

Population below poverty line:
see individual country listings

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.5% (1995 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
32 (2003 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.2% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
19.6% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:
wheat, barley, oilseeds, sugar beets, wine, grapes; dairy products,
cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry; fish

Industries:
among the world's largest and most technologically advanced, the
European Union industrial base includes: ferrous and non-ferrous
metal production and processing, metal products, petroleum, coal,
cement, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, rail transportation
equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, construction
equipment, industrial equipment, shipbuilding, electrical power
equipment, machine tools and automated manufacturing systems,
electronics and telecommunications equipment, fishing, food and
beverage processing, furniture, paper, textiles, tourism

Industrial production growth rate:
1.3% (2005 est.)

Electricity - production:
2.925 trillion kWh (2002 est.)

Electricity - consumption:
2.711 trillion kWh (2002 est.)

Electricity - exports:
282.6 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
281.2 billion kWh (2002 est.)

Oil - production:
3.424 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - consumption:
14.59 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - exports:
5.322 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
15.69 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves:
7.294 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
239.2 billion cu m (2001)

Natural gas - consumption:
465.6 billion cu m (2001)

Natural gas - exports:
78.1 billion cu m (2001)

Natural gas - imports:
297.8 billion cu m (2001)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
3.256 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$NA

Exports:
$1.318 trillion; note - external exports, excluding intra-EU trade
(2004)

Exports - commodities:
machinery, motor vehicles, aircraft, plastics, pharmaceuticals and
other chemicals, fuels, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, wood pulp
and paper products, textiles, meat, dairy products, fish, alcoholic
beverages.

Exports - partners:
US 24.2%, Switzerland 7.7%, China 5%, Russia 4.7% (2004)

Imports:
$1.402 trillion; note - external imports, excluding intra-EU trade
(2004)

Imports - commodities:
machinery, vehicles, aircraft, plastics, crude oil, chemicals,
textiles, metals, foodstuffs, clothing

Imports - partners:
US 15.3%, China 12.4%, Russia 7.8%, Japan 7.2% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$NA

Currency (code):
euro, British pound, Cypriot pound, Czech koruna, Danish krone,
Estonian kroon, Hungarian forint, Latvian lat, Lithuanian litas,
Maltese lira, Polish zloty, Slovak koruna, Slovenian tolar, Swedish
krona

Currency code:
EUR

Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003),
1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)

Fiscal year:
NA

Communications European Union

Telephones - main lines in use:
238,763,162 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
314,644,700 (2002)

Telephone system:
note - see individual country entries of member states

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 866, FM 13,396, shortwave 73 (1998); note - sum of individual
country radio broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide
station (Euroradio)

Television broadcast stations:
2,791 (1995); note - does not include repeaters; sum of individual
country television broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide
station (Eurovision)

Internet country code:
.eu (effective 2005); note - see country entries of member states
for individual country codes

Internet hosts:
22,000,414 (2004); note - sum of individual country Internet hosts

Internet users:
239,881,917 (2006)

Transportation European Union

Airports:
3,115 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways:
1,863 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
1,252 (2006)

Heliports:
93 (2006)

Railways:
total: 222,293 km
broad gauge: 28,438 km
standard gauge: 186,405 km
narrow gauge: 7,427 km
other: 23 km (2003)

Roadways:
total: 4,634,810 km (including 56,704 km of expressways)
paved: 4,161,318 km
unpaved: 473,492 km (1999-2000)

Waterways:
53,512 km

Ports and terminals:
Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Bremen (Germany), Copenhagen
(Denmark), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland),
Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon
(Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Naples (Italy),
Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Riga (Latvia), Rotterdam
(Netherlands), Stockholm (Sweden), Talinn (Estonia)

Military European Union

Military - note:
In November 2004, the European Union heads of government signed a
"Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe" that offers
possibilities - with some limits - for increased defense and
security cooperation. If ratified, in a process that may take some
two years, this treaty will in effect make operational the European
Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) approved in the 2000 Nice Treaty.
Despite limits of cooperation for some EU members, development of a
European military planning unit is likely to continue. So is
creation of a rapid-reaction military force and a humanitarian aid
system, which the planning unit will support. France, Germany,
Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy continue to press for
wider coordination. The five-nation Eurocorps - created in 1992 by
France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Luxembourg - has already
deployed troops and police on peacekeeping missions to Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Macedonia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo and
assumed command of the International Security Assistance Force
(ISAF) in Afghanistan in August 2004. Eurocorps directly commands
the 5,000-man Franco-German Brigade, the Multinational Command
Support Brigade, and EUFOR, which took over from SFOR in Bosnia in
December 2004. Other troop contributions are under national command
- commitments to provide 67,100 troops were made at the Helsinki EU
session in 2000. Some 56,000 EU troops were actually deployed in
2003. In August 2004, the new European Defense Agency, tasked with
promoting cooperative European defense capabilities, began
operations. In November 2004, the EU Council of Ministers formally
committed to creating thirteen 1,500-man "battle groups" by the end
of 2007, to respond to international crises on a rotating basis.
Twenty-two of the EU's 25 nations have agreed to supply troops.
France, Italy, and the UK are to form the first three battle groups
in 2005, with Spain to follow. In May 2005, Norway, Sweden, and
Finland agreed to establish one of the battle groups, possibly to
include Estonian forces. The remaining groups are to be formed by
2007. (2005)

Transnational Issues European Union

Disputes - international:
as a political union, the EU has no border disputes with
neighboring countries, but Estonia and Latvia have no land boundary
agreements with Russia, Slovenia disputes its land and maritime
boundaries with Croatia, and Spain has territorial and maritime
disputes with Morocco; the EU has set up a Schengen area -
consisting of 13 EU member states that have signed the convention
implementing the Schengen agreements (1985 and 1990) on the free
movement of persons and the harmonization of border controls in
Europe; the Schengen agreements ("acquis") became incorporated into
EU law with the implementation of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam on 1
May 1999; member states are: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland,
France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal,
Spain, and Sweden; in addition, non-EU states Iceland and Norway (as
part of the Nordic Union) have been included in the Schengen area
since 1996 (full members in 2001), bringing the total current
membership to 15; the UK (since 2000) and Ireland (since 2002) take
part in some aspects of the Schengen area, especially with respect
to police and criminal matters; the 10 new member states that joined
the EU in 2004 eventually are expected to participate in Schengen,
following a transition period to upgrade their border controls and
procedures

This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006

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@Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Introduction Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Background:
Although first sighted by an English navigator in 1592, the first
landing (English) did not occur until almost a century later in
1690, and the first settlement (French) was not established until
1764. The colony was turned over to Spain two years later and the
islands have since been the subject of a territorial dispute, first
between Britain and Spain, then between Britain and Argentina. The
UK asserted its claim to the islands by establishing a naval
garrison there in 1833. Argentina invaded the islands on 2 April
1982. The British responded with an expeditionary force that landed
seven weeks later and after fierce fighting forced Argentine
surrender on 14 June 1982.

Geography Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Location:
Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east
of southern Argentina

Geographic coordinates:
51 45 S, 59 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 12,173 sq km
land: 12,173 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes the two main islands of East and West Falkland and
about 200 small islands

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Connecticut

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
1,288 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm

Climate:
cold marine; strong westerly winds, cloudy, humid; rain occurs on
more than half of days in year; average annual rainfall is 24 inches
in Stanley; occasional snow all year, except in January and
February, but does not accumulate

Terrain:
rocky, hilly, mountainous with some boggy, undulating plains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Usborne 705 m

Natural resources:
fish, squid, wildlife, calcified seaweed, sphagnum moss

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (99% permanent pastures, 1% other) (2005)

Irrigated land:
NA

Natural hazards:
strong winds persist throughout the year

Environment - current issues:
overfishing by unlicensed vessels is a problem; reindeer were
introduced to the islands in 2001 for commercial reasons; this is
the only commercial reindeer herd in the world unaffected by the
Chornobyl disaster

Geography - note:
deeply indented coast provides good natural harbors; short growing
season

People Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Population:
2,967 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA
65 years and over: NA (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.44% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
NA births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
NA deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate:
NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: NA
male: NA
female: NA

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA

Total fertility rate:
NA children born/woman

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Falkland Islander(s)
adjective: Falkland Island

Ethnic groups:
British

Religions:
primarily Anglican, Roman Catholic, United Free Church, Evangelist
Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, Lutheran, Seventh-Day Adventist

Languages:
English

Literacy:
NA

Government Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Dependency status:
overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina

Government type:
NA

Capital:
name: Stanley
geographic coordinates: 51 42 S, 57 41 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in September; ends
third Sunday in April

Administrative divisions:
none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina)

Independence:
none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina)

National holiday:
Liberation Day, 14 June (1982)

Constitution:
3 October 1985; amended 1997 and 1998

Legal system:
English common law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor Alan HUCKLE (since 25 August 2006);
Chief Executive Chris SIMPKINS (since March 2003); Financial
Secretary Derek F. HOWATT (since NA)
cabinet: Executive Council; three members elected by the Legislative
Council, two ex officio members (chief executive and the financial
secretary), and the governor
elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; governor appointed by
the monarch

Legislative branch:
unicameral Legislative Council (10 seats - two ex officio, eight
elected by popular vote, members serve four-year terms); presided
over by the governor
elections: last held 17 November 2005 (next to be held November 2009)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 8

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (chief justice is a nonresident); Magistrates Court
(senior magistrate presides over civil and criminal divisions);
Court of Summary Jurisdiction

Political parties and leaders:
none; all independents

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

International organization participation:
ICFTU, UPU

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (overseas territory of the UK; also claimed by Argentina)