Part 46
Executive branch: chief of state: President Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez (since 27 January 1994); First Vice President General (Ret.) Walter LOPEZ; Second Vice President Juan DE LA CRUZ Avelar; Third Vice President Guadeloupe JEREZANO; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez (since 27 January 1994) First Vice President General (Ret.) Walter LOPEZ; Second Vice President Juan DE LA CRUZ Avelar; Third Vice President Guadeloupe JEREZANO; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 28 November 1993 (next to be held NA November 1997) election results: Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez elected president; percent of vote - Carlos Roberto REINA Idiaquez (PLH) 53%, Oswaldo RAMOS Soto (PNH) 41%, other 6%
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (128 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections : last held on 27 November 1993 (next to be held November 1997) election results: percent of vote by party - PNH 53%, PLH 41%, PDCH 1.0%, PINU-SD 2.5%, other 2.5%; seats by party - PLH 71, PNH 55, PINU-SD 2
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justica), judges are elected for four-year terms by the National Assembly
Political parties and leaders: Liberal Party (PLH), Carlos FLORES Facusse, president; National Party of Honduras (PNH), Oswaldo RAMOS Soto, president; National Innovation and Unity Party (PINU), Olban VALLADARES, president; Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Efrain DIAZ Arrivillaga, president
Political pressure groups and leaders: National Association of Honduran Campesinos (ANACH); Honduran Council of Private Enterprise (COHEP); Confederation of Honduran Workers (CTH); National Union of Campesinos (UNC); General Workers Confederation (CGT); United Federation of Honduran Workers (FUTH); Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras (CODEH); Coordinating Committee of Popular Organizations (CCOP)
International organization participation: BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIH, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Roberto FLORES Bermudez chancery: 3007 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-7702, 2604, 5008, 4596 FAX: [1] (202) 966-9751 consulate(s) general : Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Boston, Detroit, and Jacksonville
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador James Francis CREAGAN (29 July 1996) embassy : Avenida La Paz, Apartado Postal No. 3453, Tegucigalpa mailing address: American Embassy, APO AA 34022, Tegucigalpa telephone: [504] 36-9320, 38-5114 FAX: [504] 36-9037
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and blue with five blue five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band; the stars represent the members of the former Federal Republic of Central America - Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Nicaragua, which features a triangle encircled by the word REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom, centered in the white band
Economy
Economy - overview: Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Agriculture employs nearly two-thirds of the labor force and produces two-thirds of exports. Productivity remains low. Manufacturing, mining, and construction account for 30 % of GDP and generate 20% of exports. Basic problems include rapid population growth, high underemployment, inflation, a lack of basic services, a large and inefficient public sector, and the dependence of the export sector mostly on coffee and bananas, which are subject to sharp price fluctuations.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $11.5 billion (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,000 (1996 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture : 28% industry: 30% services: 42% (1995)
Inflation rate - consumer price index: 25.4% (1996)
Labor force: total: 1.3 million by occupation: agriculture 62%, services 20%, manufacturing 9%, construction 3%, other 6% (1985)
Unemployment rate: 15%; underemployed about 40% (1996 est.)
Budget: revenues: $655 million expenditures: $850 million, including capital expenditures of $150 million (1997 est.)
Industries: sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products
Industrial production growth rate: 10% (1992 est.)
Electricity - capacity: 605,900 kW (1995)
Electricity - production: 2.742 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity - consumption per capita: 361 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture - products: bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp;
Exports: total value: $2.401 billion (f.o.b., 1996) commodities: bananas, coffee, shrimp, lobster, minerals, meat, lumber partners : US 65%, Germany 7%, Japan 7%, Spain 3%, Belgium 2%
Imports: total value: $3.133 billion (c.i.f. 1996) commodities: machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, manufactured goods, fuel and oil, foodstuffs partners : US 50%, Guatemala 5%, Japan 5%, Mexico 3%, El Salvador 3%
Debt - external: $4.6 billion (1995)
Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $NA
Currency: 1 lempira (L) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: lempiras (L) per US$1 (end of period) - 13.0330 (January 1997), 12.8694 (1996), 10.3432 (1995), 9.4001 (1994), 7.2600 (1993), 5.8300 (1992)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Honduras:Communications
Telephones: 105,000 (1992 est.)
Telephone system: inadequate system domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations: AM 176, FM 0, shortwave 7
Radios: 2.115 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 28
Televisions: 400,000 (1992 est.)
@Honduras:Transportation
Railways: total: 595 km narrow gauge: 190 km 1.067-m gauge; 128 km 1.057-m gauge; 277 km 0.914-m gauge note: in 1993, there was a total of 988 km of track (1995)
Highways: total: 15,100 km paved: 3,050 km unpaved: 12,050 km (1995 est.)
Waterways: 465 km navigable by small craft
Ports and harbors: La Ceiba, Puerto Castilla, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela, Puerto Lempira
Merchant marine: total: 251 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 714,755 GRT/1,066,043 DWT ships by type: bulk 28, cargo 153, chemical tanker 3, combination bulk 1, container 5, liquefied gas tanker 1, livestock carrier 3, oil tanker 21, passenger 1, passenger-cargo 3, refrigerated cargo 22, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 1, vehicle carrier 1 note: a flag of convenience registry; Russia owns 8 ships, Vietnam 3, North Korea 2, Greece 1, Japan 1, Singapore 1, Iran 1 (1996 est.)
Airports: 107 (1996 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 88 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m : 5 under 914 m: 78 (1996 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 19 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, Public Security Forces (FUSEP)
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 1,370,116 (1997 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males: 816,054 (1997 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males : 66,304 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $42.5 million (1997)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: about 1.5% (1997)
Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: land boundary dispute with El Salvador mostly resolved by 11 September 1992 International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision; with respect to the maritime boundary in the Golfo de Fonseca, ICJ referred to an earlier agreement in this century and advised that some tripartite resolution among El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua likely would be required; maritime boundary dispute with Nicaragua
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local consumption ______________________________________________________________________
HONG KONG
(dependent territory of the UK)
@Hong Kong:Geography
Location: Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China
Geographic coordinates: 22 15 N, 114 10 E
Map references: Southeast Asia
Area: total: 1,092 sq km land: 1,042 sq km water: 50 sq km
Area - comparative: six times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: total: 30 km border countries: China 30 km
Coastline: 733 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall
Terrain: hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north
Elevation extremes: lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m
Natural resources: outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar
Land use: arable land: 6% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland : 22% other: 70% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 20 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: occasional typhoons
Environment - current issues: air and water pollution from rapid urbanization
Environment - international agreements: party to: NA signed, but not ratified: NA
Geography - note: more than 200 islands
@Hong Kong:People
Population: 6,547,189 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 19% (male 629,981; female 584,807) 15-64 years: 71% (male 2,319,009; female 2,348,794) 65 years and over: 10% (male 299,503; female 365,095) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.59% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 12.72 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 5.79 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 18.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years : 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.71 years male: 75.98 years female: 81.62 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.33 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality: noun: Chinese adjective: Chinese
Ethnic groups: Chinese 95%, other 5%
Religions: eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%
Languages: Chinese (Cantonese), English
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population : 92.2% male: 96% female: 88.2% (1996 est.)
@Hong Kong:Government
Country name: conventional long form : none conventional short form: Hong Kong abbreviation : HK
Data code: HK
Dependency status: dependent territory of the UK; note - scheduled to revert to China on 1 July 1997
Government type: NA
National capital: Victoria
Administrative divisions: none (dependent territory of the UK)
Independence: none (dependent territory of the UK; the UK signed an agreement with China on 19 December 1984 to return Hong Kong to China on 1 July 1997; in the joint declaration, China promises to respect Hong Kong's existing social and economic systems and lifestyle)
National holiday: Liberation Day, 29 August (1945)
Constitution: the Letters Patent together with the Royal Instructions form the written constitution of Hong Kong; new Basic Law approved in March 1990 in preparation for scheduled reversion to China on 1 July 1997
Legal system: based on English common law
Suffrage: direct election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election limited to about 100,000 professionals of electoral college and functional constituencies
Executive branch: chief of state : Queen ELIZABETH II of the UK (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Governor and President of the Executive Council Christopher Francis PATTEN (since 9 July 1992); Chief Secretary Anson CHAN Fang On-Sang (since 29 November 1993) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor elections: none; the queen is a hereditary monarch; governor appointed by the queen
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Council (60 seats; 30 indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 20 elected by popular vote, and 10 elected by election committee; members serve four-year terms); note - the Legislative Council will be replaced by a provisional legislature on 1 July 1997 elections: indirect and direct elections last held 17 September 1995; note - elections for the first post-reversion Legislative Council are scheduled to be held in 1998 election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 21, Liberal Party 10, Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong 6, other parties and independents 23; note - subsequent to the election, there has been a change in the distribution of seats; the new distribution is as follows - Democratic Party 19, Liberal Party 10, Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong 6, other parties and independents 25
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party, Martin LEE, chairman; Liberal Party, Allen LEE, chairman; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, TSANG Yuk-shing, chairman; Hong Kong Democratic Foundation, Dr. Patrick SHIU Kin-ying, chairman
Political pressure groups and leaders: Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood (ADPL), Frederick FUNG Kin Kee, chairman; Liberal Democratic Federation, HU Fa-kuang, chairman; Federation of Trade Unions (pro-China), LEE Chark-tim, president; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Confederation of Trade Unions (pro-democracy), LEE Cheuk-yan, chairman; Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union, CHEUNG Man-kwong, president; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China, Szeto WAH, chairman
International organization participation: APEC, AsDB, BIS (pending member), CCC, ESCAP (associate), ICFTU, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), WCL, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (dependent territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Consul General Richard A. BOUCHER consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong mailing address: PSC 464, Box 30, FPO AP 96522-0002 telephone: [852] 2523-9011 FAX : [852] 2845-1598
Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with the Hong Kong coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms contains a shield (bearing two junks below a crown) held by a lion (representing the UK) and a dragon (representing China) with another lion above the shield and a banner bearing the words HONG KONG below the shield note: to be replaced on 1 July 1997 by a red flag with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center
Economy
Economy - overview: Hong Kong has a bustling free market economy with few tariffs or nontariff barriers. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Manufacturing and construction account for about 18% of GDP. Goods and services exports account for about 50% of GDP. Real GDP growth averaged a remarkable 8% in 1987-88, slowed to 3.0% in 1989-90, and picked up to 4.2% in 1991, 5.0% in 1992, 5.2% in 1993, 5.5% in 1994, 4.8% in 1995, and 4.7% in 1996. A shortage of labor continues to put upward pressure on prices and the cost of living. Prospects for 1997 remain bright so long as major trading partners continue to be reasonably prosperous and so long as investors feel China will support free market practices after the takeover on 1 July 1997.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $163.6 billion (1996 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.7% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $26,000 (1996 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture : 0.2% industry: 18.4% services: 81.4% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate - consumer price index: 6.5% (1996)
Labor force: total: 3.251 million (1996) by occupation: wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 34.4%, services 19.8%, manufacturing 14.2%, financing, insurance, and real estate 12.4%, transport and communications 5.1%, construction 2.1%, other 12% (1994)
Unemployment rate: 3.1% (1996 est.)
Budget: revenues: $19 billion expenditures: $14.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $289 million (FY95/96 est.)
Industries: textiles, clothing, tourism, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks
Industrial production growth rate: -2.6% (1996)
Electricity - capacity: 10.32 million kW (1994)
Electricity - production: 25.14 billion kWh (1994)
Electricity - consumption per capita: 3,716 kWh (1995 est.)
Agriculture - products: fresh vegetables; poultry
Exports: total value : $197.2 billion (including reexports; f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: clothing, textiles, yarn and fabric, footwear, electrical appliances, watches and clocks, toys partners: China 33%, US 22%, Japan 6%, Germany 4%, UK 3%, Singapore 3% (1995)
Imports: total value: $217.2 billion (c.i.f., 1996 est.) commodities: foodstuffs, transport equipment, raw materials, semimanufactures, petroleum; a large share is reexported partners: China 36%, Japan 15%, Taiwan 9%, US 8%, Singapore 5%, South Korea 5% (1995)
Debt - external: none (1996)
Economic aid: $NA
Currency: 1 Hong Kong dollar (HK$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Hong Kong dollars (HK$) per US$ - 7.730 (1996), 7.800 (1995), 7.800 (1994), 7.800 (1993), 7.741 (1992); note - linked to the US dollar at the rate of about 7.8 HK$ per 1 US$
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
@Hong Kong:Communications
Telephones: 3.31 million (1996)
Telephone system: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; access to 5 international submarine cables providing connections to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe
Radio broadcast stations: AM 6, FM 6, shortwave 0
Radios: 3 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (British Broadcasting Corporation repeater 1; British Forces Broadcasting Service repeater 1)
Televisions: 1.75 million (1992 est.)
@Hong Kong:Transportation
Railways: total : 34 km standard gauge: 34 km 1.435-m gauge (1996 est.) note: also has 43 km of metro with 38 stations
Highways: total: 1,717 km paved : 1,717 km unpaved: 0 km (1995 est.)
Ports and harbors: Hong Kong
Merchant marine: total: 221 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,908,237 GRT/13,580,012 DWT ships by type: bulk 124, cargo 31, combination bulk 4, combination ore/oil 2, container 38, liquefied gas tanker 2, multifunction large load carrier 2, oil tanker 11, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, short-sea passenger 1, vehicle carrier 3 note: a flag of convenience registry; includes ships from 15 countries among which are UK 50, South Africa 12, Belgium 10, China 9, Japan 8, Bermuda 5, US 5, Israel 4, Germany 3, and Switzerland 3; Hong Kong owns an additional 498 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 18,810,794 DWT that operate under the registries of The Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, Cyprus, Liberia, Malta, Panama, Philippines, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Vanuatu
Airports: 2 (1996 est.) note: new international airport under construction and will open in 1998
Airports - with paved runways: total : 2 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (1996 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1996 est.)
Military
Military branches: Headquarters of British Forces, Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force, Royal Hong Kong Police Force
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 1,884,488 (1997 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males: 1,427,567 (1997 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 46,601 (1997 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $207 million (FY92/93); note - this represents 65% of the total cost of defending the colony, the remainder being paid by the UK
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 0.2% (FY92/93)
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the UK until 1 July 1997, when China will assume command
Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: a hub for Southeast Asian heroin trade; transshipment and money-laundering center; increasing indigenous amphetamine abuse ______________________________________________________________________
HOWLAND ISLAND
(territory of the US)
@Howland Island:Geography
Location: Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia
Geographic coordinates: 0 48 N, 176 38 W
Map references: Oceania
Area: total: 1.6 sq km land : 1.6 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: about three times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 6.4 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea : 12 nm
Climate: equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun
Terrain: low-lying, nearly level, sandy, coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef; depressed central area
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point : unnamed location 3 m
Natural resources: guano (deposits worked until late 1800s)
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops : 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 5% other: 95%
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard
Environment - current issues: no natural fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements: party to : NA signed, but not ratified: NA
Geography - note: almost totally covered with grasses, prostrate vines, and low-growing shrubs; small area of trees in the center; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife; feral cats
@Howland Island:People
Population: uninhabited note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit only and generally restricted to scientists and educators
@Howland Island:Government
Country name: conventional long form : none conventional short form: Howland Island
Data code: HQ
Dependency status: unincorporated territory of the US; administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System
National capital: none; administered from Washington, DC
Flag description: the flag of the US is used
Economy
Economy - overview: no economic activity
@Howland Island:Transportation
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only; note - there is one boat landing area along the middle of the west coast
Airports: airstrip constructed in 1937 for scheduled refueling stop on the round-the-world flight of Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan - they left Lae, New Guinea, for Howland Island, but were never seen again; the airstrip is no longer serviceable
Transportation - note: Earhart Light is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast that was partially destroyed during World War II, but has since been rebuilt; named in memory of famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart
Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard
Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none ______________________________________________________________________
HUNGARY
@Hungary:Geography
Location: Central Europe, northwest of Romania
Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 20 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 93,030 sq km land: 92,340 sq km water: 690 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Indiana
Land boundaries: total: 2,009 km border countries: Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km (all with Serbia), Slovakia 515 km, Slovenia 102 km, Ukraine 103 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers
Terrain: mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Tisza River 78 m highest point: Kekes 1,014 m
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils
Land use: arable land: 51% permanent crops : 2% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 19% other: 15% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 2,060 sq km (1993 est.)
Environment - current issues: an early-1996 government study identified 179 areas that suffer from air pollution, 54 areas with polluted soil, and 32 areas with polluted underground water; the study estimated clean-up costs at $350 million, but the 1996 government budget allocated only about $7 million for this purpose
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea
Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin
@Hungary:People
Population: 10,232,404 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 18% (male 924,864; female 881,728) 15-64 years: 68% (male 3,419,485; female 3,541,823) 65 years and over: 14% (male 549,091; female 915,413) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.25% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 10.73 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 13.67 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)