Part 14
Economy - overview: Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. The start of the Port Charles Marina project in Speightstown helped the tourism industry continue to expand in 1996-2000. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, encourage direct foreign investment, and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. Growth should remain steady in 2001, with new tourist facilities a plus factor.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $4 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.8% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $14,500 (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4%
industry: 16%
services: 80% (1998)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 136,000 (1998 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.)
Unemployment rate: 11% (1999 est.)
Budget: revenues: $725.5 million
expenditures: $750.6 million, including capital expenditures of $126.3 million (FY97/98 est.)
Industries: tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Industrial production growth rate: 0.8% (1996)
Electricity - production: 718 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999)
Electricity - consumption: 667.7 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1999)
Agriculture - products: sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Exports: $260 million (2000 est.)
Exports - commodities: sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components, clothing
Exports - partners: UK 14.8%, US 11.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.6%, Venezuela 6.1%, Jamaica 5.8% (1998)
Imports: $800.3 million (2000 est.)
Imports - commodities: consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners: US 30.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 10.2%, Japan 8.3%, UK 7.7%, Canada 2.2% (1998)
Debt - external: $425 million (2000 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $9.1 million (1995)
Currency: Barbadian dollar (BBD)
Currency code: BBD
Exchange rates: Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Barbados Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 108,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 8,013 (1997)
Telephone system: general assessment: NA
domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system
international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 237,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997)
Televisions: 76,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .bb
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 19 (2000)
Internet users: 6,000 (2000)
Barbados Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways: total: 1,600 km
paved: 1,578 km
unpaved: 22 km (1998)
Waterways: none
Ports and harbors: Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina)
Merchant marine: total: 47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 671,545 GRT/1,125,635 DWT
ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 28, combination bulk 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1
note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 2, Hong Kong 1 (2000 est.)
Airports: 1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.)
Barbados Military
Military branches: Royal Barbados Defense Force (includes Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 78,069 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 53,576 (2001 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
Barbados Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US
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@Bassas da India
Bassas da India Introduction
Background: This atoll is a volcanic rock surrounded by reefs and is awash at high tide. A French possession since 1897, it was placed under the administration of a commissioner residing in Reunion in 1968.
Bassas da India Geography
Location: Southern Africa, islands in the southern Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from Madagascar to Mozambique
Geographic coordinates: 21 30 S, 39 50 E
Map references: Africa
Area: total: 0.2 sq km
land: 0.2 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: about one-third the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 35.2 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: tropical
Terrain: volcanic rock
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 2.4 m
Natural resources: none
Land use: arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (all rock)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: maritime hazard since it is usually under water during high tide and surrounded by reefs; subject to periodic cyclones
Environment - current issues: NA
Bassas da India People
Population: uninhabited (July 2001 est.)
Bassas da India Government
Country name: conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Bassas da India
Dependency status: possession of France; administered by a high commissioner of the Republic, resident in Reunion
Legal system: the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Flag description: the flag of France is used
Bassas da India Economy
Economy - overview: no economic activity
Bassas da India Transportation
Waterways: none
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Bassas da India Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of France
Bassas da India Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: claimed by Madagascar
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@Belarus
Belarus Introduction
Background: After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration but, to date, neither side has actively sought to implement the accord.
Belarus Geography
Location: Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Geographic coordinates: 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area: total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Kansas
Land boundaries: total: 3,098 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Terrain: generally flat and contains much marshland
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Natural resources: forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas
Land use: arable land: 29%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 34%
other: 21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 1,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note: landlocked
Belarus People
Population: 10,350,194 (July 2001 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 17.93% (male 947,820; female 908,210)
15-64 years: 68.21% (male 3,428,920; female 3,631,290)
65 years and over: 13.86% (male 473,992; female 959,962) (2001 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.15% (2001 est.)
Birth rate: 9.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Death rate: 13.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female
total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 14.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 68.14 years
male: 62.06 years
female: 74.52 years (2001 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.28% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 14,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 400 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian
Ethnic groups: Byelorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
Religions: Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Languages: Byelorussian, Russian, other
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 99%
female: 97% (1989 est.)
Belarus Government
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
conventional short form: Belarus
local long form: Respublika Byelarus'
local short form: none
former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic
Government type: republic
Capital: Minsk
Administrative divisions: 6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular - horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk); note - when using a place name with the adjectival ending 'skaya' the word voblasts' should be added to the place name
note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses
Independence: 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union
Constitution: 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir YERMOSHIN (since 18 February 2000); First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Mikhail DEMCHUK (since 14 July 2000), Mikhail KHORSTOV (since 27 November 2000), Valeriy KOKOREV (since 23 August 1994), Leonid KOZIK (since 4 February 1997), Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 11 February 1997), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998)
cabinet: Council of Ministers
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via the November 1996 referendum); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president
election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 85%, Vyacheslav KEBICH 15%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA)
election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives)
Political parties and leaders: Agrarian Party or AP [Semyon SHARETSKY, chairman]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Stanislav BOGDANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party Nadezhda [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Valeriy TSEPAKLO
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604
FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805
consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael KOZAK
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83
FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853
Flag description: red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears the Belarusian national ornament in red
Belarus Economy
Economy - overview: Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by extremely high inflation, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, and retroactive application of new business regulations prohibiting practices that had been legal. Further economic problems are two consecutive bad harvests, 1998-99, and persistent trade deficits. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,500 (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 13%
industry: 46%
services: 41% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 22% (1995 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 4.9%
highest 10%: 19.4% (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 200% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 4.8 million (2000)
Labor force - by occupation: industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA%
Unemployment rate: 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers
Budget: revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.)
Industries: metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earth movers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Industrial production growth rate: 5% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production: 24.911 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 99.9%
hydro: 0.1%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999)
Electricity - consumption: 27.647 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports: 2.62 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports: 7.1 billion kWh (1999)
Agriculture - products: grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Exports: $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000)
Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners: Russia 66%, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Lithuania (1998)
Imports: $8.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000)
Imports - commodities: mineral products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, foodstuffs
Imports - partners: Russia 54%, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Lithuania (1998)
Debt - external: $1 billion (2000 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $194.3 million (1995)
Currency: Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)
Currency code: BYB/BYR
Exchange rates: Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,180 (yearend 2000), 730,000 (15 December 1999), 139,000 (25 January 1999), 46,080 (second quarter 1998), 25,964 (1997), 15,500 (yearend 1996); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles
Fiscal year: calendar year
Belarus Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 2.313 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 8,167 (1997)
Telephone system: general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly
domestic: local - Minsk has a digital metropolitan network and a cellular NMT-450 network; waiting lists for telephones are long; local service outside Minsk is neglected and poor; intercity - Belarus has a partly developed fiber-optic backbone system presently serving at least 13 major cities (1998); Belarus's fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational
international: Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations
Radio broadcast stations: AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Radios: 3.02 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 2.52 million (1997)
Internet country code: .by
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 4 (2000)
Internet users: 10,000 (2000)
Belarus Transportation
Railways: total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000)
Highways: total: 63,355 km
paved: 60,567 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather)
unpaved: 2,788 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998)
Waterways: NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems
Pipelines: crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992)
Ports and harbors: Mazyr
Airports: 136 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 33
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 19
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 103
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 11
914 to 1,523 m: 14
under 914 m: 65 (2000 est.)
Belarus Military
Military branches: Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,729,956 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 2,138,743 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 86,396 (2001 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $156 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.2% (FY98)
Belarus Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe
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@Belgium
Belgium Introduction
Background: Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830 and was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. It has 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.
Belgium Geography
Location: Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands
Geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 30,510 sq km
land: 30,230 sq km
water: 280 sq km
Area - comparative: about the size of Maryland
Land boundaries: total: 1,385 km
border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km
Coastline: 66 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: median line with neighbors
exclusive fishing zone: median line with neighbors (extends about 68 km from coast)
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy
Terrain: flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast
Elevation extremes: lowest point: North Sea 0 m
highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m
Natural resources: coal, natural gas
Land use: arable land: 24%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 20%
forests and woodland: 21%
other: 34%
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: flooding is a threat in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes
Environment - current issues: the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry, intense animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries; uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now resolved) have impeded progress in tackling environmental challenges
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note: crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels which is the seat of both the EU and NATO
Belgium People
Population: 10,258,762 (July 2001 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 17.48% (male 916,957; female 876,029)
15-64 years: 65.57% (male 3,390,145; female 3,336,908)
65 years and over: 16.95% (male 709,212; female 1,029,511) (2001 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.16% (2001 est.)
Birth rate: 10.74 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Death rate: 10.1 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.96 years
male: 74.63 years
female: 81.46 years (2001 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.61 children born/woman (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.15% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 7,700 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian
Ethnic groups: Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11%
Religions: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%
Languages: Dutch 58%, French 32%, German 10%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: NA%
female: NA%
Belgium Government
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
Government type: federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch
Capital: Brussels
Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Flemish: provincien, singular - provincie); Antwerpen, Brabant Wallon, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams Brabant, West-Vlaanderen; note - the Brussels Capitol Region is not included within the 10 provinces
Independence: 21 July 1831 (from the Netherlands)
National holiday: Independence Day, 21 July (1831)
Constitution: 7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a constitutional package creating a federal state
Legal system: civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
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 appointed by the monarch and approved by Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch and then approved by Parliament
note: government coalition - VLD, PRL, PS, SP, AGALEV, and ECOLO
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 13 June 1999 (next to be held in NA 2003)