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Guide
Introduction
| |
| Background: |
In 1918, the Croats, Serbs,
and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following
World War II, Yugoslavia became an independent communist state under the
strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence
from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often
bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from
Croatian lands. Under UN supervision the last Serb-held enclave in
eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. |
| Location: |
Southeastern Europe,
bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
45 10 N, 15 30 E |
| Area: |
total: 56,542 sq
km
land: 56,414 sq km
water: 128 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller than West
Virginia |
| Land
boundaries: |
total: 2,028 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary
329 km, Yugoslavia 266 km, Slovenia 501 km |
| Coastline: |
5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km,
islands 4,058 km) |
| Maritime
claims: |
continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
Mediterranean and
continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold
winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast |
| Terrain: |
geographically diverse; flat
plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic
coastline and islands |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 m |
| Natural
resources: |
oil, some coal, bauxite,
low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt,
hydropower |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 21%
permanent crops: 2%
permanent pastures: 20%
forests and woodland: 38%
other: 19% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
30 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
destructive earthquakes |
| Environment
- current issues: |
air pollution (from
metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests;
coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal
and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to: Air
Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
| Geography
- note: |
controls most land routes
from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits |
| Population: |
4,334,142 (July 2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
18.16% (male 403,722; female 383,151)
15-64 years: 66.61% (male 1,452,872; female 1,434,086)
65 years and over: 15.23% (male 245,727; female 414,584)
(2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
1.48% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
12.82 births/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
11.41 deaths/1,000 population
(2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
13.37 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.06
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
7.21 deaths/1,000 live births
(2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population:
73.9 years
male: 70.28 years
female: 77.73 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
1.94 children born/woman
(2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.02% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
350 (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
less than 100 (1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Croat(s)
adjective: Croatian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Croat 78.1%, Serb 12.2%,
Bosniak 0.9%, Hungarian 0.5%, Slovenian 0.5%, Czech 0.4%, Albanian 0.3%,
Montenegrin 0.3%, Roma 0.2%, others 6.6% (1991) |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic 76.5%,
Orthodox 11.1%, Muslim 1.2%, Protestant 0.4%, others and unknown 10.8%
(1991) |
| Languages: |
Croatian 96%, other 4%
(including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) |
| Literacy: |
definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 99%
female: 95% (1991 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional long form:
Republic of Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia
local long form: Republika Hrvatska
local short form: Hrvatska |
| Government
type: |
presidential/parliamentary
democracy |
| Administrative
divisions: |
20 counties (zupanije,
zupanija - singular), 1 city (grad -singular)*: Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska
Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija,
Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija,
Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija,
Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija,
Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija,
Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska
Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija,
Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija |
| Independence: |
25 June 1991 (from
Yugoslavia) |
| National
holiday: |
Republic Day/Statehood Day,
30 May (1990) |
| Constitution: |
adopted on 22 December 1990 |
| Legal
system: |
based on civil law system |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age; universal
(16 years of age, if employed) |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of state:
President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27
January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January
2000), Zeljka ANTUNOVIC (since 27 January 2000), Slavko LINIC (since 27
January 2000)
cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister
and approved by the House of Representatives
elections: president elected by popular vote for a
five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA
2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the
balance of power in the Assembly
election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent
of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44%
note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS, IDS |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral Assembly or Sabor
consists of the House of Counties or Zupanijski Dom (68 seats, 63
directly elected by popular vote, 5 appointed by the president; members
serve four-year terms; note - House of Counties to be abolished in 2001)
and House of Representatives or the Zastupnicki Dom (151 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Counties - last held 13 April 1997;
House of Representatives - last held 2-3 January 2000 (next to be held
NA 2004)
election results: House of Counties - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - HDZ 42, HSLS/HSS 11, HSS 2, IDS 2, SDP/PGS/HNS
2, SDP/HNS 2, HSLS/HSS/HNS 1, HSLS 1; note - in some districts certain
parties ran as coalitions, while in others they ran alone; House of
Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - HDZ
46, SDP 44, HSLS 24, HSS 17, HSP/HKDU 5, IDS 4, HNS 2, independents 4,
minority representatives 5 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court; Constitutional
Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the
Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of
Representatives |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Alliance of Croatian Coast
and Mountains Department or PGS [Luciano SUSANJ]; Croatian Christian
Democratic Union or HKDU [Marko VESELICA]; Croatian Democratic Union or
HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Dobroslav PARAGA];
Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party
or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen
BUDISA]; Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav
STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC];
Liberal Party or LP [leader NA]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or
SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian
Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP,
and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in
the 2000 lower house parliamentary election |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
NA |
| International
organization participation: |
BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD,
ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899
FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, New
York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Lawrence G. ROSSIN
embassy: Andrije Hebranga 2, 100000 Zagreb
mailing address: use street address
telephone: [385] (1) 455-55-00
FAX: [385] (1) 455-85-85 |
| Flag
description: |
red, white, and blue
horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) |
| Economy
- overview: |
Before the dissolution of
Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most
prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps
one-third above the Yugoslav average. Croatia faces considerable
economic problems stemming from: the legacy of longtime communist
mismanagement of the economy; damage during the internecine fighting to
bridges, factories, power lines, buildings, and houses; the large
refugee and displaced population, both Croatian and Bosnian; and the
disruption of economic ties. Stepped-up Western aid and investment,
especially in the tourist and oil industries, would help bolster the
economy. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with
tourism the main factor. Massive unemployment remains a key negative
element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed
to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public
resistance, particularly from the trade unions, to measures that would
cut jobs, wages, or social benefits. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity -
$24.9 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
3.2% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity -
$5,800 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 10%
industry: 19%
services: 71% (1999 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
4% (1999 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
6% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
1.68 million (October 2000) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture NA%, industry
NA%, services NA% |
| Unemployment
rate: |
22% (October 2000) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $6
billion
expenditures: $4.7 billion, including capital expenditures
of $NA (1999 est.) |
| Industries: |
chemicals and plastics,
machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel
products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials,
textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and
beverages; tourism |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
1.7% (2000) |
| Electricity
- production: |
10.96 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
40.89%
hydro: 59%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0.11% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
13.643 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
1 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
4.45 billion kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
wheat, corn, sugar beets,
sunflower seed, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soy beans,
potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
| Exports: |
$4.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
transport equipment,
textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels |
| Exports
- partners: |
Italy 18%, Germany 15.7%,
Bosnia and Herzegovina 12.8%, Slovenia 10.6%, Austria 6.2% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$7.8 billion (c.i.f., 1999) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery, transport and
electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs |
| Imports
- partners: |
Germany 18.5%, Italy 15.9%,
Russia 8.6%, Slovenia 7.9%, Austria 7.1% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$9.9 billion (December 1999) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$NA |
| Exchange
rates: |
kuna per US dollar - 8.089
(January 2001), 8.277 (2000), 7.112 (1999), 6.362 (1998), 6.101 (1997),
5.434 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
1.488 million (1997) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
187,000 (yearend 1998) |
| Telephone
system: |
general assessment:
NA
domestic: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all
analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be
included in the plan for the main trunk
international: digital international service is provided
through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the
Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project which consists of two
fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line
from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA
1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5
(1999) |
| Radios: |
1.51 million (1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
36 (plus 321 repeaters)
(September 1995) |
| Televisions: |
1.22 million (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.hr |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
9 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
100,000 (1999) |
| Railways: |
total: 2,296 km
standard gauge: 2,296 km 1.435-m gauge (983 km electrified)
(2000) |
| Highways: |
total: 27,840 km
paved: 23,497 km (including 330 km of expressways)
unpaved: 4,343 km (1998) |
| Waterways: |
785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava
blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil 670 km; petroleum
products 20 km; natural gas 310 km (1992) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj,
Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on
Danube), Zadar |
| Merchant
marine: |
total: 53 ships
(1,000 GRT or over) totaling 631,853 GRT/969,739 DWT
ships by type: bulk 11, cargo 18, chemical tanker 1,
combination bulk 5, container 3, multi-functional large-load carrier 3,
passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off
4, short-sea passenger 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total: 45
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Ground Forces, Naval Forces,
Air and Air Defense Forces |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
19 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age 15-49:
1,085,877 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age 15-49:
859,621 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males: 30,037
(2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$575 million (2000) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
3.8% (2000) |
| Disputes
- international: |
Croatia and Italy made
progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II
over property and ethnic minority rights; progress with Slovenia on
discussions of adjustments to land boundary, but problems remain in
defining maritime boundary in Gulf of Piran; Croatia and Yugoslavia are
negotiating the status of the strategically important Prevlaka
Peninsula, which is currently under a UN military observer mission (UNMOP) |
| Illicit
drugs: |
transit point along the
Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; a minor
transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for
Western Europe |
|
