| The World Factbook | ||
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Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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| Introduction | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Background:
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International recognition of The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's (F.Y.R.O.M.) independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 was delayed by Greece's objection to the new state's use of what it considered a Hellenic name and symbols. Greece finally lifted its trade blockade in 1995, and the two countries agreed to normalize relations, despite continued disagreement over F.Y.R.O.M.'s use of "Macedonia." F.Y.R.O.M.'s large Albanian minority, an ethnic Albanian armed insurgency in F.Y.R.O.M. in 2001, and the status of neighboring Kosovo continue to be sources of ethnic tension. |
| Geography | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Location:
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Southeastern Europe, north of Greece |
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Geographic coordinates:
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41 50 N, 22 00 E |
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Map references:
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Europe |
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Area:
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total: 25,333 sq km
water: 477 sq km land: 24,856 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly larger than Vermont |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 766 km
border countries: Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 246 km, Serbia and Montenegro 221 km |
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked) |
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked) |
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Climate:
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warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall |
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Terrain:
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mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Vardar River 50 m
highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,753 m |
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Natural resources:
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chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulfur, timber, arable land |
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Land use:
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arable land: 23.59%
permanent crops: 1.85% other: 74.56% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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550 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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high seismic risks |
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Environment - current issues:
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air pollution from metallurgical plants |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe |
| People | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Population:
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2,063,122
note: a census was taken 1-15 November 2002, but results are not yet available (July 2003 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 21.9% (male 235,102; female 217,574)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 700,929; female 691,552) 65 years and over: 10.6% (male 96,039; female 121,926) (2003 est.) |
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Median age:
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total: 32.5 years
male: 31.4 years female: 33.6 years (2002) |
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Population growth rate:
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0.4% (2003 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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13.2 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Death rate:
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7.78 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-1.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 12.14 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 11.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 13.08 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 74.49 years
male: 72.23 years female: 76.94 years (2003 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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1.75 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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less than 0.1% (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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less than 100 (1999 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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less than 100 (2001 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Macedonian(s)
adjective: Macedonian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Macedonian 66.6%, Albanian 22.7%, Turkish 4%, Roma 2.2%, Serb 2.1%, other 2.4% (1994) |
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Religions:
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Macedonian Orthodox 67%, Muslim 30%, other 3% |
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Languages:
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Macedonian 70%, Albanian 21%, Turkish 3%, Serbo-Croatian 3%, other 3% |
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Literacy:
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definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
| Government | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
conventional short form: none local long form: Republika Makedonija abbreviation: F.Y.R.O.M. local short form: Makedonija |
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy |
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Capital:
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Skopje |
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Administrative divisions:
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123 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Aracinovo, Bac, Belcista, Berovo, Bistrica, Bitola, Blatec, Bogdanci, Bogomila, Bogovinje, Bosilovo, Brvenica, Cair (Skopje), Capari, Caska, Cegrane, Centar (Skopje), Centar Zupa, Cesinovo, Cucer-Sandevo, Debar, Delcevo, Delogozdi, Demir Hisar, Demir Kapija, Dobrusevo, Dolna Banjica, Dolneni, Dorce Petrov (Skopje), Drugovo, Dzepciste, Gazi Baba (Skopje), Gevgelija, Gostivar, Gradsko, Ilinden, Izvor, Jegunovce, Kamenjane, Karbinci, Karpos (Skopje), Kavadarci, Kicevo, Kisela Voda (Skopje), Klecevce, Kocani, Konce, Kondovo, Konopiste, Kosel, Kratovo, Kriva Palanka, Krivogastani, Krusevo, Kuklis, Kukurecani, Kumanovo, Labunista, Lipkovo, Lozovo, Lukovo, Makedonska Kamenica, Makedonski Brod, Mavrovi Anovi, Meseista, Miravci, Mogila, Murtino, Negotino, Negotino-Polosko, Novaci, Novo Selo, Oblesevo, Ohrid, Orasac, Orizari, Oslomej, Pehcevo, Petrovec, Plasnica, Podares, Prilep, Probistip, Radovis, Rankovce, Resen, Rosoman, Rostusa, Samokov, Saraj, Sipkovica, Sopiste, Sopotnica, Srbinovo, Star Dojran, Staravina, Staro Nagoricane, Stip, Struga, Strumica, Studenicani, Suto Orizari (Skopje), Sveti Nikole, Tearce, Tetovo, Topolcani, Valandovo, Vasilevo, Velesta, Veles, Vevcani, Vinica, Vitoliste, Vranestica, Vrapciste, Vratnica, Vrutok, Zajas, Zelenikovo, Zeleno, Zitose, Zletovo, Zrnovci
note: the seven municipalities followed by Skopje in parentheses collectively constitute "greater Skopje" |
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Independence:
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8 September 1991 referendum by registered voters endorsing independence (from Yugoslavia) |
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National holiday:
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Uprising Day, 2 August (1903); note - also known as Saint Elijah's Day and Ilinden |
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Constitution:
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adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991
note: in November of 2001, the Macedonian Parliament approved a series of new constitutional amendments strengthening minority rights |
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Legal system:
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based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Boris TRAJKOVSKI (since 15 December 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Branko CRVENKOVSKI (since 1 November 2002) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 November 1999 (next to be held NA October 2004); prime minister elected by the Assembly; election last held 1 November 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Boris TRAJKOVSKI elected president on second-round ballot; percent of vote - Boris TRAJKOVSKI 52.4%, Tito PETKOVSKI 46.2%; Branko CRVENKOVSKI elected prime minister by Parliament with 72% of the vote cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the majority vote of all the deputies in the Assembly; note - current cabinet formed by the government coalition parties SDSM, LDP, and DUI (or BDI) |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Assembly or Sobranje (120 seats - 85 members are elected by popular vote, 35 members come from lists of candidates submitted by parties based on the percentage that a party gains from the overall vote; all serve four-year terms)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Together for Macedonia coalition (SDSM and LDP) 60, VMRO-DPMNE 33, Democratic Union for Integration 16, Democratic Party of Albanians 7, Party for Democratic Prosperity 2, National Democratic Party 1, Socialist Party of Macedonia 1 elections: last held 15 September 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Constitutional Court - Parliament appoints the judges; Republican Judicial Council - Parliament appoints the judges |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Democratic Alternative or DA [Vasil TUPURKOVSKI, president]; Democratic Union for Integration or DUI (also BDI) [Ali AHMETI]; Democratic Party of Albanians or PDSH [Arben XHAFERI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity or VMRO-DPMNE [Ljubco GEORGIEVSKI, president]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-True Macedonian Reform Option or VMRO-VMRO [Boris ZMEJKOVSKI]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Macedonian [Boris STOJMENOV]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Risto PENOV]; Liberal Party [Stojan ANDOV]; National Democratic Party or PDK [Kastriot HAXHIREXHA]; Party for Democratic Prosperity or PPD [Abdurrahman HALITI]; Social-Democratic Alliance of Macedonia or SDSM [Branko CRVENKOVSKI, president]; Socialist Party of Macedonia or SP [Ljubisav IVANOV, president]; Together for Macedonia coalition (including the SDSM and LDP) [Branko CRVENKOVSKI]; Union of Romanies of Macedonia or SRM [leader NA] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International organization participation:
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ACCT, BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Nikola DIMITROV
chancery: Suite 302, 1101 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 consulate(s) general: New York FAX: [1] (202) 337-3093 telephone: [1] (202) 337-3063 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Laurence Edward BUTLER
embassy: Ilinden bb, 1000 Skopje mailing address: American Embassy Skopje, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7120 (pouch) telephone: [389] (02) 116-180 FAX: [389] (02) 117-103 |
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Flag description:
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a yellow sun with eight broadening rays extending to the edges of the red field |
| Economy | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Economy - overview:
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At independence in November 1991, Macedonia was the least developed of the Yugoslav republics, producing a mere 5% of the total federal output of goods and services. The collapse of Yugoslavia ended transfer payments from the center and eliminated advantages from inclusion in a de facto free trade area. An absence of infrastructure, UN sanctions on Yugoslavia, one of its largest markets, and a Greek economic embargo over a dispute about the country's constitutional name and flag hindered economic growth until 1996. GDP subsequently rose each year through 2000. However, the leadership's commitment to economic reform, free trade, and regional integration was undermined by the ethnic Albanian insurgency of 2001. The economy shrank 4.6% because of decreased trade, intermittent border closures, increased deficit spending on security needs, and investor uncertainty. Growth barely recovered in 2002. Unemployment at one-third of the workforce remains a critical problem. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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0.3% (2002 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 11%
industry: 31% services: 58% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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24% (2001 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.1% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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1.1 million (2000 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
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Unemployment rate:
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37% (2002 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $1.13 billion
expenditures: $1.02 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
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Industries:
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coal, metallic chromium, lead, zinc, ferronickel, textiles, wood products, tobacco, food processing, buses |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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-5% (2002 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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6.465 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 83.7%
hydro: 16.3% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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6.112 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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100 million kWh (2001) |
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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20,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA (2001) |
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Oil - imports:
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NA (2001) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, millet, cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus, vegetables; beef, pork, poultry, mutton |
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Exports:
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$1.1 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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food, beverages, tobacco; miscellaneous manufactures, iron and steel |
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Exports - partners:
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Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) 23.1%, Germany 20.6%, Greece 8.8%, Italy 8.6%, US 7.7% (2000) |
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Imports:
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$1.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels; food products |
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Imports - partners:
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Germany 12.6%, Greece 10.9%, Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) 9.3%, Russia 8.3%, Slovenia 7.0% (2000) |
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Debt - external:
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$1.3 billion (2001 est.) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$150 million (2001 est.) |
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Currency:
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Macedonian denar (MKD) |
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Currency code:
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MKD |
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Exchange rates:
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Macedonian denars per US dollar - 64.3538 (2002), 68.0371 (2001), 65.9039 (2000), 56.9018 (1999), 54.4617 (1998) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year |
| Communications | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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408,000 (1997) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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12,362 (1997) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 29, FM 20, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Radios:
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410,000 (1997) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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31 (plus 166 repeaters) (1995) |
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Televisions:
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510,000 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.mk |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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6 (2000) |
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Internet users:
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100,000 (2001) |
| Transportation | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Railways:
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total: 699 km
standard gauge: 699 km 1.435-m gauge (233 km electrified) (2002) |
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Highways:
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total: 8,684 km
paved: 5,540 km (including 133 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,144 km (1997) |
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Waterways:
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note: lake transport only, on the Greek and Albanian borders |
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Pipelines:
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10 km |
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Ports and harbors:
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none |
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Airports:
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18 (2002) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 4 (2002) |
| Military | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Military branches:
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Army (ARM), Air and Air Defense Forces, Police Force |
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Military manpower - military age:
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19 years of age (2003 est.) |
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Military manpower - availability:
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males age 15-49: 553,988 (2003 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
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males age 15-49: 446,726 (2003 est.) |
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Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
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males: 17,909 (2003 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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$200 million (FY01/02 est.) |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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6% (FY01/02 est.) |
| Transnational Issues | Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of |
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Disputes - international:
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the Albanian government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in F.Y.R.O.M. while continuing to seek regional cooperation; ethnic Albanians in Kosovo continue to protest 2000 F.Y.R.O.M.-Serbia and Montenegro boundary treaty, which transfers small tracts of land to F.Y.R.O.M.; dispute with Greece over country's name persists |
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Illicit drugs:
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major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish; minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe; while money laundering is a problem on a local level due to organized crime activities, the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center |
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This page was last updated on 1 August, 2003 |