Oil - imports:
158,400 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:
15 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
5.6 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
5.179 billion cu m (2005)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
5.663 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:
-$8.53 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$18.44 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels
Exports - partners:
Turkey 11.5%, Germany 10.3%, Italy 10.2%, Greece 9.1%, Belgium 6.2%,
Romania 4.9% (2007)
Imports:
$28.67 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics;
fuels, minerals, and raw materials
Imports - partners:
Russia 12.3%, Germany 12.3%, Italy 8.7%, Ukraine 7.2%, Turkey 6.9%,
Greece 6.2%, Romania 4.5%, Austria 4.3% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$742 million (2005-06 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$17.38 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$34.88 billion (30 June 2007)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$33.91 billion (2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$559 million (2007 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$10.32 billion (2006)
Currency (code):
lev (BGN)
Currency code:
BGN
Exchange rates:
leva (BGN) per US dollar - 1.4366 (2007), 1.5576 (2006), 1.5741
(2005), 1.5751 (2004), 1.7327 (2003)
Communications
Bulgaria
Telephones - main lines in use:
2.3 million (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
9.897 million (2007)
Telephone system:
general assessment: an extensive but antiquated telecommunications
network inherited from the Soviet era; quality has improved; the
Bulgaria Telecommunications Company's fixed-line monopoly terminated
in 2005 when alternative fixed-line operators were given access to
its network; a drop in fixed-line connections in recent years has
been more than offset by a sharp increase in mobile-cellular
telephone use fostered by multiple service providers; the number of
cellular telephone subscriptions now exceeds the population
domestic: a fairly modern digital cable trunk line now connects
switching centers in most of the regions; the others are connected
by digital microwave radio relay
international: country code - 359; submarine cable provides
connectivity to Ukraine and Russia; a combination submarine cable
and land fiber-optic system provides connectivity to Italy, Albania,
and Macedonia; satellite earth stations - 3 (1 Intersputnik in the
Atlantic Ocean region, 2 Intelsat in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean
regions) (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001)
Radios:
4.51 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001)
Televisions:
3.31 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.bg
Internet hosts:
513,470 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
200 (2001)
Internet users:
1.899 million (2007)
Transportation
Bulgaria
Airports:
214 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 131
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 95 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 83
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 72 (2007)
Heliports:
4 (2007)
Pipelines:
gas 2,500 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2007)
Railways:
total: 4,294 km
standard gauge: 4,049 km 1.435-m gauge (2,710 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 245 km 0.760-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:
total: 40,231 km
paved: 39,587 km (includes 331 km of expressways)
unpaved: 644 km (2005)
Waterways:
470 km (2007)
Merchant marine:
total: 74
by type: bulk carrier 37, cargo 14, chemical tanker 5, container 6,
liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll
off 4, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 65 (Germany 63, Ireland 1, Russia 1)
registered in other countries: 31 (Comoros 2, Malta 5, Panama 3,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 15, Slovakia 6) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Burgas, Varna
Military
Bulgaria
Military branches:
Bulgarian Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Bulgarian Air
Forces (Bulgarski Voennovazdyshni Sily, BVVS) (2008)
Military service age and obligation:
18-27 years of age for voluntary military service; conscript service
obligation - 9 months; as of May 2006, 67% of the Bulgarian Army
comprised of professional soldiers; conscription ended as of 1
January 2008; Air and Air Defense Forces and Naval Forces became
fully professional at the end of 2006 (2008)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,701,979
females age 16-49: 1,691,092 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,364,029
females age 16-49: 1,401,348 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 39,477
female: 37,339 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
2.6% of GDP (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues
Bulgaria
Disputes - international:
none
Illicit drugs:
major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and,
to a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market;
limited producer of precursor chemicals; some money laundering of
drug-related proceeds through financial institutions
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
======================================================================
@Burkina Faso
Introduction
Burkina Faso
Background:
Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from
France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s
were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current
President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and
has won every election since then. Burkina Faso's high population
density and limited natural resources result in poor economic
prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote
d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several
hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment
in neighboring countries.
Geography
Burkina Faso
Location:
Western Africa, north of Ghana
Geographic coordinates:
13 00 N, 2 00 W
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 274,200 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km
water: 400 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Colorado
Land boundaries:
total: 3,193 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 549 km,
Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Terrain:
mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and
southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m
Natural resources:
manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates,
pumice, salt
Land use:
arable land: 17.66%
permanent crops: 0.22%
other: 82.12% (2005)
Irrigated land:
250 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
17.5 cu km (2001)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 0.8 cu km/yr (13%/1%/86%)
per capita: 60 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
recurring droughts
Environment - current issues:
recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural
activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing;
soil degradation; deforestation
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black,
Red, and White Voltas
People
Burkina Faso
Population:
15,264,735
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, higher death rates, lower
population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 46.3% (male 3,549,034/female 3,521,684)
15-64 years: 51.1% (male 3,885,124/female 3,922,198)
65 years and over: 2.5% (male 154,476/female 232,219) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 16.7 years
male: 16.5 years
female: 16.9 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.109% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
44.68 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
13.59 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
NA (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 86.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 93.68 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 78.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 52.55 years
male: 50.67 years
female: 54.49 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.34 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
4.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
300,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
29,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in
this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases
possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2008)
Nationality:
noun: Burkinabe (singular and plural)
adjective: Burkinabe
Ethnic groups:
Mossi over 40%, other approximately 60% (includes Gurunsi, Senufo,
Lobi, Bobo, Mande, and Fulani)
Religions:
Muslim 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian (mainly Roman
Catholic) 10%
Languages:
French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic
family spoken by 90% of the population
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 21.8%
male: 29.4%
female: 15.2% (2003 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 5 years
male: 5 years
female: 4 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
4.2% of GDP (2006)
Government
Burkina Faso
Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Burkina Faso
local long form: none
local short form: Burkina Faso
former: Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta
Government type:
parliamentary republic
Capital:
name: Ouagadougou
geographic coordinates: 12 22 N, 1 31 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
45 provinces; Bale, Bam, Banwa, Bazega, Bougouriba, Boulgou,
Boulkiemde, Comoe, Ganzourgou, Gnagna, Gourma, Houet, Ioba, Kadiogo,
Kenedougou, Komondjari, Kompienga, Kossi, Koulpelogo, Kouritenga,
Kourweogo, Leraba, Loroum, Mouhoun, Nahouri, Namentenga, Nayala,
Noumbiel, Oubritenga, Oudalan, Passore, Poni, Sanguie, Sanmatenga,
Seno, Sissili, Soum, Sourou, Tapoa, Tuy, Yagha, Yatenga, Ziro,
Zondoma, Zoundweogo
Independence:
5 August 1960 (from France)
National holiday:
Republic Day, 11 December (1958)
Constitution:
2 June 1991 approved by referendum, 11 June 1991 formally adopted;
last amended January 2002
Legal system:
based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Blaise COMPAORE (since 15 October 1987)
head of government: Prime Minister Tertius ZONGO (since 4 June 2007)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the
recommendation of the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 13 November 2005
(next to be held in 2010); in April 2000, the constitution was
amended reducing the presidential term from seven to five years,
enforceable as of 2005; prime minister appointed by the president
with the consent of the legislature
election results: Blaise COMPAORE reelected president; percent of
popular vote - Blaise COMPAORE 80.3%, Benewende Stanislas SANKARA
4.9%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (111 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly election last held 6 May 2007 (next to
be held in May 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
CDP 73, ADF-RDA 14, UPR 5, UNIR-MS 4, CFD-B 3, UPS 2, PDP-PS 2, RDB
2, PDS 2, PAREN 1, PAI 1, RPC 1, UDPS 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; Appeals Court
Political parties and leaders:
African Democratic Rally-Alliance for Democracy and Federation or
ADF-RDA [Gilbert OUEDRAOGO]; Citizen's Popular Rally or RPC [Antoine
QUARE]; Coalition of Democratic Forces of Burkina or CFD-B [Amadou
Diemdioda DICKO]; Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP [Roch
Marc-Christian KABORE]; Movement for Tolerance and Progress or MTP
[Nayabtigungou Congo KABORE]; Party for African Independence or PAI
[Philippe OUEDRAOGO]; Party for Democracy and Progress/Socialist
Party or PDP/PS [Ali LANKOANDE]; Party for Democracy and Socialism
or PDS [Felix SOUBEIGA]; Party for National Rebirth or PAREN [Oumar
DJIGUIMDE]; Rally for the Development of Burkina or RDB [Antoine
KARGOUGOU]; Rally of Ecologists of Burkina Faso or RDEB [Ram
OUEDRAGO]; Republican Party for Integration and Solidarity or PARIS
[Cyril GOUNGOUNGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS
[Fidele HIEN]; Union for Rebirth - Sankarist Movement or UNIR-MS
[Benewende STANISLAS]; Union for the Republic or UPR [Toussaint Abel
COULIBALY]; Union of Sankarist Parties or UPS [Ernest Nongma
OUEDRAOGO]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Burkinabe General Confederation of Labor or CGTB [Tole SAGNON];
Burkinabe Movement for Human Rights or MBDHP [Chrysigone ZOUGMORE];
Group of 14 February [Benewende STANISLAS]; National Confederation
of Burkinabe Workers or CNTB [Laurent OUEDRAOGO]; National
Organization of Free Unions or ONSL [Paul KABORE]
other: watchdog/political action groups throughout the country in
both organizations and communities
International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA,
MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council
(temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIS, UNOCI,
UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Paramanga Ernest YONLI
chancery: 2340 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 332-5577
FAX: [1] (202) 667-1882
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jeanine E. JACKSON
embassy: 602 Avenue Raoul Follereau, Koulouba, Secteur 4
mailing address: 01 B. P. 35, Ouagadougou 01; pouch mail - US
Department of State, 2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC
20521-2440
telephone: [226] 50-30-67-23
FAX: [226] 50-30-38-90
Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a yellow
five-pointed star in the center
note: uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
Economy
Burkina Faso
Economy - overview:
One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso
has few natural resources and a weak industrial base. About 90% of
the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture, which is
vulnerable to periodic drought. Cotton is the main cash crop and the
government has joined with three other cotton producing countries in
the region - Mali, Niger, and Chad - to lobby in the World Trade
Organization for fewer subsidies to producers in other competing
countries. Since 1998, Burkina Faso has embarked upon a gradual but
successful privatization of state-owned enterprises. Having revised
its investment code in 2004, Burkina Faso hopes to attract foreign
investors. Thanks to this new code and other legislation favoring
the mining sector, the country has seen an upswing in gold
exploration and production. While the bitter internal crisis in
neighboring Cote d'Ivoire is beginning to be resolved, it is still
having a negative effect on Burkina Faso's trade and employment. In
2007 higher costs for energy and imported foodstuffs, as well as low
cotton prices, dampened a GDP growth rate that had averaged 6% in
the last 10 years. Burkina Faso received a Millennium Challenge
Account threshold grant to improve girls' education at the primary
school level, and appears likely to receive a grant in the areas of
infrastructure, agriculture, and land reform.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$17.41 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$6.977 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4.2% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$1,200 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 29.7%
industry: 19.4%
services: 50.9% (2007 est.)
Labor force:
5 million
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to
neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2003)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
77% (2004)
Population below poverty line:
46.4% (2004)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.2% (2004)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
39.5 (2007)
Investment (gross fixed):
21.1% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $1.415 billion
expenditures: $1.847 billion (2007 est.)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
-0.2% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
4.25% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
NA
Stock of money:
$1.051 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$663 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$905.1 million (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:
cotton, peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, sorghum, millet, corn, rice;
livestock
Industries:
cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes,
textiles, gold
Industrial production growth rate:
5.2% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
611.6 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
509.3 million kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 69.9%
hydro: 30.1%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
8,470 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
0 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
8,446 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
-$706 million (2007 est.)
Exports:
$617 million f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
cotton, livestock, gold
Exports - partners:
China 29.6%, Singapore 15.7%, Thailand 7.2%, Ghana 6.4%, Niger 4.8%
(2007)
Imports:
$1.296 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum
Imports - partners:
Cote d'Ivoire 25.8%, France 20.6%, Togo 7.1% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$659.6 million (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.029 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$1.33 billion (2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA
Currency (code):
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible
authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Currency code:
XOF
Exchange rates:
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51
(2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)
note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the
euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
Communications
Burkina Faso
Telephones - main lines in use:
94,800 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.611 million (2007)
Telephone system:
general assessment: services only fair; in 2006 the government sold
a 51 percent stake in the national telephone company and ultimately
plans to retain only a 23 percent stake in the company; fixed-line
connections stand at less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular
usage, fostered by multiple providers, is increasing rapidly from a
low base
domestic: microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone
communication stations
international: country code - 226; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 26, shortwave 3
Radios:
394,020 (2000)
Television broadcast stations:
3 (1 national, 2 private)
Televisions:
131,340 (2002)
Internet country code:
.bf
Internet hosts:
116 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)
Internet users:
80,000 (2006)
Transportation
Burkina Faso
Airports:
33 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 11
under 914 m: 17 (2007)
Railways:
total: 622 km
narrow gauge: 622 km 1.000-m gauge
note: another 660 km of this railway extends into Cote D'Ivoire
(2006)
Roadways:
total: 92,495 km
paved: 3,857 km
unpaved: 88,638 km (2004)
Military
Burkina Faso
Military branches:
Army, Air Force of Burkina Faso (Force Aerienne de Burkina Faso,
FABF), National Gendarmerie (2008)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory military service; 20 years of age for
voluntary military service (2001)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 3,364,288 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,115,948 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 176,358
female: 173,856 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
1.2% of GDP (2006)
Transnational Issues
Burkina Faso
Disputes - international:
in September 2007, Economic Community of West African States
(ECOWAS) intervened to attempt to resolve the dispute over two
villages along the Benin-Burkina Faso border that remain from 2005
ICJ decision; in recent years citizens and rogue security forces rob
and harass local populations on both sides of the poorly-defined
Burkina Faso-Niger border; despite the presence of over 9,000 UN
forces (UNOCI) in Cote d'Ivoire since 2004, ethnic conflict
continues to spread into neighboring states who can no longer send
their migrant workers to work in Ivorian cocoa plantations
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
======================================================================
@Burma
Introduction
Burma
Background: