Albania

Albania 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 720 km, Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km (114 km with Serbia, 173 km with Montenegro)

Coastline

362 km

Maritime Claims

International Disputes

The Albanian Government supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders; Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Serbian Republic; Albanians in Macedonia claim discrimination in education, access to public sector jobs and representation in government; Albania is involved in a bilaterlal dispute with Greece over border demarcation, the treatment of Albania's ethnic Greek minority, and migrant Albanian workers in Greece

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
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit 2,753 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

4,230 sq km (1989)

Environment

Note: Strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea)

PEOPLE

Population

3,413,904 (July 1995 est.) 3,249,136 (July 1996 est.)

Note: IMF, working with Albanian government figures, estimates the population at 3,120,000 in 1993 and that the population has fallen since 1990

Age Structure

0-14 Years

32% (female 520,186; male 563,953) (1995) 34% (male 570,978; female 529,147) (1996)

15-64 Years

62% (female 1,026,321; male 1,104,371) (1995) 60% (male 910,873; female 1,049,662) (1996)

65 Years and Over

6% (female 112,252; male 86,821) (July 1995 est.) 6% (male 77,799; female 110,677) (July 1996 est.)

Population Growth Rate

1.16% (1995 est.) 1.34% (1996 est.)

Birth Rate

21.7 births/1,000 population (1995 est.) 22.21 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death Rate

5.22 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.) 7.64 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net Migration Rate

-4.88 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.) -1.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.87 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.92 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

28.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.) 49.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

2.71 children born/woman (1995 est.) 2.65 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

  • note: in 1989, other estimates of the Greek population ranged from 1% (official Albanian statistics) to 12% (from a Greek organization)

    Religions

    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

    Age 9 and over that can read and write (1955)

    Labor Force

    1.5 million (1987) 1.692 million (1994 est.) (including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed)

    By occupation:

    GOVERNMENT

    Names

    Digraph

    AL

    Type

    Emerging democracy

    Capital

    Tirane

    Administrative Divisions

    26 districts (rrethe, singular - rreth); Berat, Dibre, Durres, Elbasan, Fier, Gjirokaster, Gramsh, Kolonje, Korce, Kruje, Kukes, Lezhe, Librazhd, Lushnje, Mat, Mirdite, Permet, Pogradec, Puke, Sarande, Shkoder, Skrapar, Tepelene, Tirane, Tropoje, Vlore; note - some new administrative units may have been created

    Independence

    28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire)

    National Holiday

    Independence Day, 28 November (1912)

    Constitution

    An interim basic law was approved by the People's Assembly on 29 April 1991; a draft constitution was rejected by popular referendum in the fall of 1994 and a new draft is pending

    Legal System

    Has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

    Suffrage

    18 years of age; universal and compulsory

    Executive Branch

    Legislative Branch

    Unicameral

    People's Assembly (Kuvendi Popullor)

    Elections last held 22 March 1992; results - DP 62.29%, ASP 25.57%, SDP 4.33%, RP 3.15%, UHP 2.92%, other 1.74%; seats - (140 total) DP 92, ASP 38, SDP 7, RP 1, UHP 2

    Note: 6 members of the Democratic Party defected making the present seating in the Assembly DP 86, ASP 38, SDP 7, DAP 6, RP 1, UHP 2

    Judicial Branch

    Supreme Court

    Political Parties and Leaders

    There are at least 28 political parties; most prominent are the Albanian Socialist Party (ASP; formerly the Albania Workers Party), Fatos NANO, first secretary; Democratic Party (DP); Albanian Republican Party (RP), Sabri GODO; Omonia (Greek minority party), Sotir QIRJAZATI, first secretary; Social Democratic Party (SDP), Skender GJINUSHI; Democratic Alliance Party (DAP), Neritan CEKA, chairman; Unity for Human Rights Party (UHP), Vasil MELO, chairman; Ecology Party (EP), Namik HOTI, chairman

    Member of

    BSEC, CCC, CE (guest), EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NACC, OIC, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

    National Anthem

    Flag

    Red with a black two-headed eagle in the center

    ECONOMY

    Overview

    An extremely poor country 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 collapse of the previous centrally planned system in 1990 and 1991. Stabilization policies - including a strict monetary policy, public sector layoffs, and reduced social services - have improved the government's fiscal situation and reduced inflation. The recovery has been spurred by the remittances of some 20% of the labor force which works abroad, mostly in Greece and Italy. These remittances supplement GDP and help offset the large foreign trade deficit. Foreign assistance and humanitarian aid also supported the recovery. Most agricultural land was privatized in 1992, substantially improving peasant incomes. Albania's industrial sector ended its five-year, 78% decline in 1995, recording roughly 6% growth. A sharp fall in chromium prices has reduced hard currency receipts from the mining sector. Large segments of the population, especially those living in urban areas, continue to depend on humanitarian aid to meet basic food requirements. Unemployment remains a severe problem accounting for approximately one-fifth of the work force. Now that sanctions on Serbia have been suspended, the falloff in hard currency earnings from smuggling will aggravate unemployment problems. Growth is expected to continue in 1996, but could falter if workers' remittances from Greece are reduced or foreign assistance declines.

    National Product

    GDP - purchasing power parity - $3.8 billion (1994 est.) $4.1 billion (1995 est.)

    National Product Real Growth Rate

    11% (1994 est.) 6% (1995 est.)

    National Product Per Capita

    $1,110 (1994 est.) $1,210 (1995 est.)

    Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

    16% (1994)

    Unemployment Rate

    18% (1994 est.)

    Budget

    Exports

    $112 million (f.o.b., 1993) $141 million (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

    Commodities:

    Partners:

    Imports

    $601 million (f.o.b., 1993)

    Commodities:

    Partners:

    External Debt

    $920 million (1994 est.)

    Industrial Production

    Growth rate -10% (1993 est.); accounts for 16% of GDP (1993 est.)

    Electricity

    Industries

    Agriculture

    Accounts for 55% of GDP; arable land per capita among lowest in Europe; 80% of arable land now in private hands; 60% of the work force engaged in farming; produces wide range of temperate-zone crops and livestock

    Illicit Drugs

    Transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium production

    External Debt

    $977 million (1994 est.)

    Economic Aid

    Currency

    1 lek (L) = 100 qintars

    Exchange Rates

    leke (L) per US$1 - 95.65 (January 1996), 100.00 (January 1995), 99.00 (January 1994), 97.00 (January 1993), 50.00 (January 1992), 25.00 (September 1991)

    Fiscal Year

    Calendar year

    TRANSPORTATION

    Railroads

    Highways

    Inland Waterways

    43 km plus 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

    Durres, Sarande, Shergjin, Vlore

    Merchant Marine

    Airports

    COMMUNICATIONS

    Telephone System

    About 55,000 telephones; about 15 telephones/1,000 persons

    Radio

    Television

    DEFENSE FORCES

    Branches

    Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards

    Manpower Availability

    Males age 15-49 723,231; males fit for military service 588,304; males reach military age (19) annually 29,340 (1996 est.)

    Defense Expenditures

    exchange rate conversion - $45 million, 2.5% of GDP (1995) World Atlas