|
Home
World
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antarctica
Antigua Barbuda
Arctic Ocean
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Ashmore Cartier Isle
Atlantic Ocean
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Baker Island
Bangladesh
Barbados
Bassas da India
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia Herzegovina
Botswana
Bouvet Island
Brazil
British Indian Ocean
British Virgin Islands
Brunei
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burma
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Rep
Chad
Chile
China
Christmas Island
Clipperton Island
Cocos
Colombia
Comoros
Congo
Congo Republic
Cook Islands
Coral Sea Islands
Costa Rica
Cote d'Ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Europa Island
Falkland Islands
Faroe Islands
Fiji
Finland
France
French Guiana
French Polynesia
Antarctic Lands
Gabon
Gambia
Gaza Strip
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Glorioso Islands
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
Heard McDonald Isle
Honduras
Hong Kong
Howland Island
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indian Ocean
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Isle of Man
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jarvis Island
Jersey
Johnston Atoll
Jordan
Juan de Nova Island
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kingman Reef
Kiribati
Jan Mayen
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Marshall Islands
Martinique
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mayotte
Mexico
Micronesia
Midway Islands
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Nauru
Navassa Island
Nepal
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria
Niue
Norfolk Island
North Korea
N Mariana Islands
Norway
Oman
Pacific Ocean
Pakistan
Palau
Palmyra Atoll
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paracel Islands
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn Islands
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Reunion
Romania
Russia
Rwanda
St Helena
St Kitts Nevis
St Lucia
St Pierre Miquelon
St Vincent Grenadines
Samoa
Sandwich Islands
San Marino
Sao Tome Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa
South Korea
S Ocean
Spain
Spratly Islands
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Svalbard
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Tokelau
Tonga
Trinidad Tobago
Tromelin Island
Tunisia
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Turks Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Vatican
Venezuela
Vietnam
Virgin Islands
Wake Island
Wallis and Futuna
West Bank
Western Sahara
Yemen
Yugoslavia
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Guide
Introduction
| |
| Background: |
In 1990 Albania ended 44
years of xenophobic communist rule and established a multiparty
democracy. The transition has proven difficult as corrupt governments
have tried to deal with high unemployment, a dilapidated infrastructure,
widespread gangsterism, and disruptive political opponents.
International observers judged local elections in 2000 to be acceptable
and a step toward democratic development, but serious deficiencies
remain to be corrected before the the 2001 parliamentary elections. |
| Location: |
Southeastern Europe,
bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
41 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Area: |
total: 28,748 sq
km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller than
Maryland |
| Land
boundaries: |
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Yugoslavia 287 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
mild temperate; cool, cloudy,
wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter |
| Terrain: |
mostly mountains and hills;
small plains along coast |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,753 m |
| Natural
resources: |
petroleum, natural gas, coal,
chromium, copper, timber, nickel, hydropower |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 21%
permanent crops: 5%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 38%
other: 21% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
3,410 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
destructive earthquakes;
tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; drought |
| Environment
- current issues: |
deforestation; soil erosion;
water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone
Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
strategic location along
Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean
Sea) |
| Population: |
3,510,484 (July 2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
29.53% (male 536,495; female 500,026)
15-64 years: 63.48% (male 1,073,351; female 1,155,115)
65 years and over: 6.99% (male 107,476; female 138,021)
(2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.88% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
19.01 births/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
6.5 deaths/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-3.69 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.08
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
39.99 deaths/1,000 live
births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population:
71.83 years
male: 69.01 years
female: 74.87 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
2.32 children born/woman
(2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
less than 0.01% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
less than 100 (2000 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
less than 100 (1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Albanian(s)
adjective: Albanian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Albanian 95%, Greeks 3%,
other 2% (Vlachs, Gypsies, Serbs, and Bulgarians) (1989 est.)
note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population
ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek
organization) |
| Religions: |
Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox
20%, Roman Catholic 10%
note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and
religious observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began
allowing private religious practice |
| Languages: |
Albanian (Tosk is the
official dialect), Greek |
| Literacy: |
definition: age
9 and over can read and write
total population: 93% (1997 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA% |
| Country
name: |
conventional long form:
Republic of Albania
conventional short form: Albania
local long form: Republika e Shqiperise
local short form: Shqiperia
former: People's Socialist Republic of Albania |
| Government
type: |
emerging democracy |
| Administrative
divisions: |
36 districts (rrethe,
singular - rreth) and 1 municipality* (bashki); Berat, Bulqize, Delvine,
Devoll (Bilisht), Diber (Peshkopi), Durres, Elbasan, Fier, Gjirokaster,
Gramsh, Has (Krume), Kavaje, Kolonje (Erseke), Korce, Kruje, Kucove,
Kukes, Kurbin, Lezhe, Librazhd, Lushnje, Malesi e Madhe (Koplik),
Mallakaster (Ballsh), Mat (Burrel), Mirdite (Rreshen), Peqin, Permet,
Pogradec, Puke, Sarande, Shkoder, Skrapar (Corovode), Tepelene, Tirane
(Tirana), Tirane* (Tirana), Tropoje (Bajram Curri), Vlore
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their
administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name
following in parentheses) |
| Independence: |
28 November 1912 (from
Ottoman Empire) |
| National
holiday: |
Independence Day, 28 November
(1912) |
| Constitution: |
a new constitution was
adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition
Democratic Party boycotted the vote |
| Legal
system: |
has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age; universal
and compulsory |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of state:
President of the Republic Rexhep MEIDANI (since 24 July 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Ilir META (since 29
October 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime
minister and approved by the president
elections: president elected by the People's Assembly for a
five-year term; election last held 24 July 1997 (next to be held NA
2002); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Rexhep MEIDANI elected president;
People's Assembly vote by number - total votes 122, for 110, against 3,
abstained 2, invalid 7 |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral People's Assembly
or Kuvendi Popullor (155 seats; most members are elected by direct
popular vote and some by proportional vote for four-year terms)
elections: last held 29 June 1997 (next held 24 June 2001,
2nd round 8 July 2001)
election results: percent of vote by party - PS 53.36%, PD
25.33%, PSD 2.5%, PBDNJ 2.78%, PBK 2.36%, PAD 2.85%, PR 2.25%, PLL
3.09%, PDK 1.00%, PBSD 0.84%; seats by party - PS 101, PD 27, PSD 8,
PBDNJ 4, PBK 3, PAD 2, PR 2, PLL 2, PDK 1, PBSD 1, PUK 1, independents 3 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court (chairman is
elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Albanian National Front (Balli
Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; Albanian Republican Party or PR [Fatmir
MEDIU]; Albanian Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albania Workers
Party) [Fatos NANO, chairman]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef
BUSHATI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Neritan CEKA]; Democratic Party or
PD [Sali BERISHA]; Group of Reformist Democrats [Leonard NDOKA]; Liberal
Union Party [Teodor LACO]; note - Teodor LACO of the Liberal Union Party
was leader of the Social Democratic Union of Albania or PBSD; Movement
of Legality Party or PLL [Nderim KUPI]; OMONIA [Vagjelis DULES]; Party
of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQUIRI]; Social Democratic Party or
PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Unity for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil
MELO, chairman] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
| International
organization participation: |
ACCT (associate), BSEC, CCC,
CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD,
IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC,
IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNIDO, UNOMIG, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Petrit BUSHATI
chancery: 2100 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 223-4942
FAX: [1] (202) 628-7342 |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph LIMPRECHT
embassy: Rruga Elbasanit Labinoti 103, Tirana
mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100(A), APO AE 09624
telephone: [355] (42) 32875, 33520
FAX: [355] (42) 32222 |
| Flag
description: |
red with a black two-headed
eagle in the center |
| Economy
- overview: |
Poor by European standards,
Albania is making the difficult transition to a more open-market
economy. The economy rebounded in 1993-95 after a severe depression
accompanying the end of the previous centrally planned system in 1990
and 1991. However, a weakening of government resolve to maintain
stabilization policies in the election year of 1996 contributed to
renewal of inflationary pressures, spurred by the budget deficit which
exceeded 12% of GDP. The collapse of financial pyramid schemes in early
1997 - which had attracted deposits from a substantial portion of
Albania's population - triggered severe social unrest which led to more
than 1,500 deaths, widespread destruction of property, and a 7% drop in
GDP. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to
revive economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by
remittances from some 20% of the labor force that works abroad, mostly
in Greece and Italy. These remittances supplement GDP and help offset
the large foreign trade deficit. Most agricultural land was privatized
in 1992, substantially improving peasant incomes. In 1998, Albania
recovered the 7% drop in GDP of 1997 and pushed ahead by 8% in 1999 and
by 7.5% in 2000. International aid helped defray the high costs of
receiving and returning refugees from the Kosovo conflict. Privatization
scored some successes in 2000, but other reforms lagged. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity -
$10.5 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
7.5% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity -
$3,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 55%
industry: 24%
services: 21% (2000) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
19.6% (1996 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
1% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
1.692 million (including
352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (1994
est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 50%, industry and
services 50% |
| Unemployment
rate: |
16% (2000 est.) officially;
may be as high as 25% |
| Budget: |
revenues: $393
million
expenditures: $676 million, including capital expenditures
of $NA (1997 est.) |
| Industries: |
food processing, textiles and
clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals,
hydropower |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
9% (2000 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
5.332 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
3.81%
hydro: 96.19%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
5.379 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
100 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
600 million kWh (2000) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
wheat, corn, potatoes,
vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products |
| Exports: |
$310 million (f.o.b., 2000
est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
textiles and footwear;
asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits,
tobacco |
| Exports
- partners: |
Italy 67%, Greece 15%,
Germany 5%, Austria 2%, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 2%
(2000) |
| Imports: |
$1 billion (f.o.b., 2000
est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and equipment,
foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals |
| Imports
- partners: |
Italy 37%, Greece 28%, Turkey
6%, Germany 6%, Bulgaria 3% (2000) |
| Debt
- external: |
$1 billion (2000) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$NA; aid for energy from
China, Germany, Norway (2000) |
| Exchange
rates: |
leke per US dollar - 146.08
(December 2000),143.71 (2000) 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998), 148.93
(1997), 104.50 (1996); note - leke is the plural of lek |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
87,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
3,100 (1999) |
| Telephone
system: |
general assessment:
Albania has the poorest telephone service in Europe with fewer than two
telephones per 100 inhabitants; it is doubtful that every village has
telephone service
domestic: obsolete wire system; no longer provides a
telephone for every village; in 1992, following the fall of the
communist government, peasants cut the wire to about 1,000 villages and
used it to build fences
international: inadequate; international traffic carried by
microwave radio relay from the Tirana exchange to Italy and Greece |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 16, FM 3, shortwave 2
(1999) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
9 (plus 264 repeaters) (1995) |
| Televisions: |
405,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.al |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
7 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
2,500 (2000) |
| Railways: |
total: 447 km
standard gauge: 447 km 1.435-m gauge (2001) |
| Highways: |
total: 18,000 km
paved: 5,400 km
unpaved: 12,600 km (1998 est.) |
| Waterways: |
43 km
note: includes Albanian sections of Lake Scutari, Lake
Ohrid, and Lake Prespa (1990) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 145 km; petroleum
products 55 km; natural gas 64 km (1991) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Durres, Sarande, Shengjin,
Vlore |
| Merchant
marine: |
total: 9 ships
(1,000 GRT or over) totaling 17,797 GRT/26,324 DWT
ships by type: cargo 9 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Army, Navy, Air and Air
Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
19 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age 15-49:
870,768 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age 15-49:
712,763 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males: 35,792
(2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$42 million (FY99) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1.5% (FY99) |
| Disputes
- international: |
the Albanian Government
supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its
borders but has downplayed them to further its primary foreign policy
goal of regional cooperation; Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks
independence from Yugoslavia; Albanians in The Former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia claim discrimination in education, access to public-sector
jobs, and representation in government |
| Illicit
drugs: |
increasingly active
transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates, hashish, and cannabis
transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser extent - cocaine from
South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium and cannabis
production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and
rapidly expanding in Europe |
|
