|
 |
|
|
Geography |
|
Within
Bosnia and Herzegovina's recognized borders, the
country is divided into a joint Bosniak/Croat
Federation (about 51% of the territory) and the
Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska or RS (about 49%
of the territory); the region called Herzegovina is
contiguous to Croatia and Montenegro, and
traditionally has been settled by an ethnic Croat
majority in the west and an ethnic Serb majority in
the east. |
|
Location: |
Southeastern
Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Croatia |
|
Geographic
coordinates: |
44 00 N, 18 00 E |
|
Area: |
total: 51,209.2 sq
km
land: 51,197 sq km
water: 12.2 sq km
Size comparison: slightly smaller
than West Virginia |
|
Land Boundaries: |
total: 1,538 km
border countries: Croatia 932 km, Montenegro 249 km,
Serbia 357 km |
|
Coastline: |
20 km |
|
Maritime claims: |
no data available |
|
Climate: |
hot summers and
cold winters; areas of high elevation have short,
cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy
winters along coast |
|
Terrain: |
mountains and
valleys |
|
Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maglic 2,386 m |
|
Natural resources: |
coal, iron ore,
bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, cobalt,
manganese, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand,
forests, hydropower |
|
Land use: |
arable land:
19.61%
permanent crops: 1.89%
other: 78.5% (2005) |
|
Irrigated land: |
30 sq km (2003) |
|
Natural hazards: |
destructive
earthquakes |
|
Current Environment
Issues: |
air pollution from
metallurgical plants; sites for disposing of urban
waste are limited; water shortages and destruction
of infrastructure because of the 1992-95 civil
strife; deforestation |
|
International
Environment Agreements: |
party to: Air
Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation,
Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
|
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|
People |
|
Population: |
4,590,310 (July
2008 est.) |
|
Age structure: |
0-14 years: 14.7%
(male 347,679/female 326,091)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 1,634,053/female 1,606,341)
65 years and over: 14.7% (male 277,504/female
398,642) (2008 est.) |
|
Median age: |
total: 39.4 years
male: 38.2 years
female: 40.5 years (2008 est.) |
|
Population growth
rate: |
0.666% (2008 est.) |
|
Birth rate: |
8.82 births/1,000
population (2008 est.) |
|
Death rate: |
8.54 deaths/1,000
population (2008 est.) |
|
Net migration rate: |
6.38
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.) |
|
Sex ratio: |
at birth: 1.07
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2008 est.) |
|
Infant mortality
rate: |
total: 9.34
deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 7.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.) |
|
Life expectancy at
birth: |
total population:
78.33 years
male: 74.74 years
female: 82.19 years (2008 est.) |
|
Total fertility
rate: |
1.24 children
born/woman (2008 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult
prevalence rate: |
less than 0.1%
(2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - people
living with HIV/AIDS: |
900 (2003 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths: |
100 (2001 est.) |
|
Nationality: |
noun: Bosnian(s),
Herzegovinian(s)
adjective: Bosnian, Herzegovinian |
|
Ethnic groups: |
Bosniak 48%, Serb
37.1%, Croat 14.3%, other 0.6% (2000) note: Bosniak
has replaced Muslim as an ethnic term in part to
avoid confusion with the religious term Muslim - an
adherent of Islam |
|
Religions: |
Muslim 40%,
Orthodox 31%, Roman Catholic 15%, other 14% |
|
Languages: |
Bosnian, Croatian,
Serbian |
|
Literacy: |
definition: age 15
and over can read and write
total population: 96.7%
male: 99%
female: 94.4% (2000 est.) |
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|
Government |
|
Country name: |
conventional long
form: none
conventional short form: Bosnia and Herzegovina
local long form: none
local short form: Bosna i Hercegovina
former: People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
|
Government type: |
emerging federal
democratic republic |
|
Capital: |
name: Sarajevo
geographic coordinates: 43 52 N, 18 25 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington,
DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in
March; ends last Sunday in October |
|
Administrative
divisions: |
2 first-order
administrative divisions and 1 internationally
supervised district* - Brcko district (Brcko
Distrikt)*, the Bosniak/Croat Federation of Bosnia
and Herzegovina (Federacija Bosna i Hercegovina) and
the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska; note - Brcko
district is in northeastern Bosnia and is an
administrative unit under the sovereignty of Bosnia
and Herzegovina; the district remains under
international supervision |
|
Independence: |
1 March 1992 (from
Yugoslavia; referendum for independence completed 1
March 1992; independence declared 3 March 1992) |
|
National holiday: |
National Day, 25
November (1943) |
|
Constitution: |
the Dayton
Agreement, signed 14 December 1995 in Paris,
included a new constitution now in force; note -
each of the entities also has its own constitution |
|
Legal system: |
based on civil law
system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
|
Suffrage: |
18 years of age,
universal |
|
Executive branch: |
chief of state:
Chairman of the Presidency Haris SILAJDZIC (chairman
since 6 March 2008; presidency member since 1
October 2006 - Bosniak); other members of the
three-member presidency rotating (every eight
months): Nebojsa RADMANOVIC (presidency member since
1 October 2006 - Serb); and Zeljko KOMSIC
(presidency member since 1 October 2006 - Croat)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of
Ministers Nikola SPIRIC (since 11 January 2007)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the
council chairman; approved by the National House of
Representatives
elections: the three members of the presidency (one
Bosniak, one Croat, one Serb) are elected by popular
vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second
term, but then ineligible for four years); the
chairmanship rotates every eight months and resumes
where it left off following each national election;
election last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held
in 2010); the chairman of the Council of Ministers
is appointed by the presidency and confirmed by the
National House of Representatives
election results: percent of vote - Nebojsa
RADMANOVIC with 53.3% of the votes for the Serb
seat; Zeljko KOMSIC received 39.6% of the votes for
the Croat seat; Haris SILAJDZIC received 62.8% of
the votes for the Bosniak seat
note: President of the Federation of Bosnia and
Herzegovina: Borjana KRISTO (since 21 February
2007); Vice Presidents Spomenka MICIC (since NA
2007) and Mirsad KEBO (since NA 2007); President of
the Republika Srpska: Rajko KUSMANOVIC (since 28
December 2007) |
|
Legislative branch: |
bicameral
Parliamentary Assembly or Skupstina consists of the
national House of Representatives or Predstavnicki
Dom (42 seats, 28 seats allocated for the Federation
of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 14 seats for the
Republika Srpska; members elected by popular vote on
the basis of proportional representation, to serve
four-year terms); and the House of Peoples or Dom
Naroda (15 seats, 5 Bosniak, 5 Croat, 5 Serb;
members elected by the Bosniak/Croat Federation's
House of Representatives and the Republika Srpska's
National Assembly to serve four-year terms); note -
Bosnia's election law specifies four-year terms for
the state and first-order administrative division
entity legislatures
elections: national House of Representatives -
elections last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held
in 2010); House of Peoples - last constituted in
January 2003 (next to be constituted in 2007)
election results: national House of Representatives
- percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by
party/coalition - SDA 9, SBH 8, SNSD 7, SDP 5, SDS
3, HDZ-BH 3, HDZ1990 2, other 5; House of Peoples -
percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by
party/coalition - NA
note: the Bosniak/Croat Federation has a bicameral
legislature that consists of a House of
Representatives (98 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections
last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in October
2010); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party/coalition - SDA 28, SBH 24, SDP 17, HDZ-BH 8,
HDZ100 7, other 14; and a House of Peoples (58 seats
- 17 Bosniak, 17 Croat, 17 Serb, 7 other); last
constituted December 2002; the Republika Srpska has
a National Assembly (83 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections
last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in the
fall of 2010); percent of vote by party - NA; seats
by party/coalition - SNSD 41, SDS 17, PDP 8, DNS 4,
SBH 4, SPRS 3, SDA 3, other 3; as a result of the
2002 constitutional reform process, a 28-member
Republika Srpska Council of Peoples (COP) was
established in the Republika Srpska National
Assembly including eight Croats, eight Bosniaks,
eight Serbs, and four members of the smaller
communities |
|
Judicial branch: |
BH Constitutional
Court (consists of nine members: four members are
selected by the Bosniak/Croat Federation's House of
Representatives, two members by the Republika
Srpska's National Assembly, and three non-Bosnian
members by the president of the European Court of
Human Rights); BH State Court (consists of nine
judges and three divisions - Administrative,
Appellate and Criminal - having jurisdiction over
cases related to state-level law and appellate
jurisdiction over cases initiated in the entities);
a War Crimes Chamber opened in March 2005
note: the entities each have a Supreme Court; each
entity also has a number of lower courts; there are
10 cantonal courts in the Federation, plus a number
of municipal courts; the Republika Srpska has five
municipal courts |
|
Political parties
and leaders: |
Alliance of
Independent Social Democrats or SNSD [Milorad
DODIK]; Bosnian Party or BOSS [Mirnes AJANOVIC];
Civic Democratic Party or GDS [Ibrahim SPAHIC];
Croat Christian Democratic Union of Bosnia and
Herzegovina or HKDU [Marin TOPIC]; Croat Party of
Rights or HSP [Zvonko JURISIC]; Croat Peasants Party
or HSS [Marko TADIC]; Croatian Democratic Union of
Bosnia and Herzegovina or HDZ-BH [Dragan COVIC];
Croatian Democratic Union 1990 or HDZ1990 [Bozo
LJUBIC]; Croatian Democratic Union 100 or HDZ100;
Croatian Peoples Union [Milenko BRKIC]; Democratic
National Union or DNZ [Rifet DOLIC]; Democratic
Peoples Alliance or DNS [Marko PAVIC]; Liberal
Democratic Party or LDS [Rasim KADIC]; New Croat
Initiative or NHI [Kresimir ZUBAK]; Party for Bosnia
and Herzegovina or SBH [Haris SILAJDZIC]; Party for
Democratic Action or SDA [Sulejman TIHIC]; Party of
Democratic Progress or PDP [Mladen IVANIC]; Serb
Democratic Party or SDS [Mladen BOSIC]; Serb Radical
Party of the Republika Srpska or SRS-RS [Milanko
MIHAJLICA]; Serb Radical Party-Dr. Vojislav Seselj
or SRS-VS [Radislav KANJERIC]; Social Democratic
Party of BIH or SDP [Zlatko LAGUMDZIJA]; Social
Democratic Union or SDU [Sejfudin TOKIC]; Socialist
Party of Republika Srpska or SPRS [Petar DJOKIC] |
|
Political pressure
groups and leaders: |
other: displaced
persons associations; student councils; war veterans |
|
International
organization participation: |
BIS, CE, CEI,
EAPC, EBRD, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA,
NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC (observer),
OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UNMEE, UNWTO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
|
Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Bisera TURKOVIC
chancery: 2109 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone: [1] (202) 337-1500
FAX: [1] (202) 337-1502
consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York |
|
Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles L. ENGLISH
embassy: Alipasina 43, 71000 Sarajevo
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [387] (33) 445-700
FAX: [387] (33) 659-722
branch office(s): Banja Luka, Mostar |
|
Executive branch: |
chief of state:
Chairman of the Presidency Haris SILAJDZIC (chairman
since 6 March 2008; presidency member since 1
October 2006 - Bosniak); other members of the
three-member presidency rotating (every eight
months): Nebojsa RADMANOVIC (presidency member since
1 October 2006 - Serb); and Zeljko KOMSIC
(presidency member since 1 October 2006 - Croat)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of
Ministers Nikola SPIRIC (since 11 January 2007)
cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the
council chairman; approved by the National House of
Representatives elections: the three members of the
presidency (one Bosniak, one Croat, one Serb) are
elected by popular vote for a four-year term
(eligible for a second term, but then ineligible for
four years); the chairmanship rotates every eight
months and resumes where it left off following each
national election; election last held 1 October 2006
(next to be held in 2010); the chairman of the
Council of Ministers is appointed by the presidency
and confirmed by the National House of
Representatives election results: percent of vote -
Nebojsa RADMANOVIC with 53.3% of the votes for the
Serb seat; Zeljko KOMSIC received 39.6% of the votes
for the Croat seat; Haris SILAJDZIC received 62.8%
of the votes for the Bosniak seat note: President of
the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Borjana
KRISTO (since 21 February 2007); Vice Presidents
Spomenka MICIC (since NA 2007) and Mirsad KEBO
(since NA 2007); President of the Republika Srpska:
Rajko KUSMANOVIC (since 28 December 2007) |
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|
Economy |
|
Bosnia
and Herzegovina ranked next to Macedonia as the
poorest republic in the old Yugoslav federation.
Although agriculture is almost all in private hands,
farms are small and inefficient, and the republic
traditionally is a net importer of food. The private
sector is growing and foreign investment is slowly
increasing, but government spending, at nearly 40%
of adjusted GDP, remains unreasonably high. The
interethnic warfare in Bosnia caused production to
plummet by 80% from 1992 to 1995 and unemployment to
soar. With an uneasy peace in place, output
recovered in 1996-99 at high percentage rates from a
low base; but output growth slowed in 2000-02. Part
of the lag in output was made up in 2003-07 when GDP
growth exceeded 5% per year. National-level
statistics are limited and do not capture the large
share of black market activity. The konvertibilna
marka (convertible mark or BAM)- the national
currency introduced in 1998 - is pegged to the euro,
and confidence in the currency and the banking
sector has increased. Implementing privatization,
however, has been slow, particularly in the
Federation, although more successful in the
Republika Srpska. Banking reform accelerated in 2001
as all the Communist-era payments bureaus were shut
down; foreign banks, primarily from Western Europe,
now control most of the banking sector. A sizeable
current account deficit and high unemployment rate
remain the two most serious macroeconomic problems.
On 1 January 2006 a new value-added tax (VAT) went
into effect. The VAT has been successful in
capturing much of the gray market economy and has
developed into a significant and predictable source
of revenues for all layers of government. Bosnia and
Herzegovina became a full member of the Central
European Free Trade Agreement in September 2007. The
country receives substantial reconstruction
assistance and humanitarian aid from the
international community but will have to prepare for
an era of declining assistance. |
|
GDP (purchasing
power parity): |
$27.7 billion
note: Bosnia has a large informal sector that could
also be as much as 50% of official GDP (2007 est.) |
|
GDP (official
exchange rate): |
$14.78 billion
(2007 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth
rate: |
6% (2007 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita
(PPP): |
$6,100 (2007 est.) |
|
GDP - composition
by sector: |
agriculture: 10.2%
industry: 23.9%
services: 66% (2006 est.) |
|
Labor force: |
1.026 million
(2001) |
|
Labor force - by
occupation: |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
|
Unemployment rate: |
45.5% official
rate; grey economy may reduce actual unemployment to
25-30% (31 December 2004 est.) |
|
Population below
poverty line: |
25% (2004 est.) |
|
Household income or
consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: 3.9%
highest 10%: 21.4% (2001) |
|
Distribution of
family income - Gini index: |
26.2 (2001) |
|
Inflation rate
(consumer prices): |
1.6% (2007 est.) |
|
Budget: |
revenues: $7.094
billion
expenditures: $7.137 billion (2007 est.) |
|
Public debt: |
34% of GDP (2007
est.) |
|
Agriculture -
products: |
wheat, corn,
fruits, vegetables; livestock |
|
Industries: |
steel, coal, iron
ore, lead, zinc, manganese, bauxite, vehicle
assembly, textiles, tobacco products, wooden
furniture, tank and aircraft assembly, domestic
appliances, oil refining |
|
Industrial
production growth rate: |
6.7% (2007 est.) |
|
Electricity -
production: |
12.22 billion kWh
(2005) |
|
Electricity -
consumption: |
8.574 billion kWh
(2005) |
|
Electricity -
exports: |
3.58 billion kWh
(2005) |
|
Electricity -
imports: |
2.174 billion kWh
(2005) |
|
Oil - production: |
0 bbl/day (2005) |
|
Oil - consumption: |
26,000 bbl/day
(2005 est.) |
|
Oil - exports: |
0 bbl/day (2004) |
|
Oil - imports: |
24,940 bbl/day
(2004) |
|
Oil - proved
reserves: |
0 bbl (1 January
2006 est.) |
|
Natural gas -
production: |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
|
Natural gas -
consumption: |
383.6 million cu m
(2005 est.) |
|
Natural gas -
exports: |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
|
Natural gas -
imports: |
383.6 million cu m
(2005) |
|
Natural gas -
proved reserves: |
0 cu m (1 January
2006) |
|
Current account
balance: |
-$1.939 billion
(2007 est.) |
|
Exports: |
$4.243 billion
f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
|
Exports -
commodities: |
metals, clothing,
wood products |
|
Exports - partners: |
Croatia 21%,
Slovenia 16.5%, Italy 16.2%, Germany 13.4%, Austria
9.6%, Hungary 5.7% (2007) |
|
Imports: |
$9.947 billion
f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
|
Imports -
commodities: |
machinery and
equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs |
|
Imports - partners: |
Croatia 24.7%,
Slovenia 13.3%, Germany 13.1%, Italy 10.4%, Austria
7%, Turkey 6.5%, Hungary 5.4% (2007) |
|
Reserves of foreign
exchange and gold: |
$4.525 billion (31
December 2007 est.) |
|
Debt - external: |
$6.734 billion (31
December 2007 est.) |
|
Market value of
publicly traded shares: |
$NA |
|
Currency (code): |
konvertibilna
marka (convertible mark) (BAM) |
|
Exchange rates: |
konvertibilna
maraka per US dollar - 1.4419 (2007), 1.5576 (2006),
1.5727 (2005), 1.5752 (2004), 1.7329 (2003) note:
the convertible mark is pegged to the euro |
|
Fiscal year: |
calendar year |
|
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|
Communications |
|
Telephones in use: |
1.065 million
(2007) |
|
Cellular Phones in
use: |
2.45 million
(2007) |
|
Telephone system: |
general
assessment: post-war reconstruction of the
telecommunications network, aided by a
internationally sponsored program under ERBD,
resulted in sharp increases in the number of main
telephone lines available; mobile cellular
subscribership has been increasing rapidly
domestic: fixed-line teledensity roughly 25 per 100
persons; mobile-cellular telephone density exceeds
50 per 100 persons
international: country code - 387; no satellite
earth stations (2007) |
|
Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 8, FM 16,
shortwave 1 (1998) |
|
Television
broadcast stations: |
33 (plus 277
repeaters) (September 1995) |
|
Internet country
code: |
.ba |
|
Internet hosts: |
56,032 (2008) |
|
Internet users: |
1.055 million
(2007) |
|
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|
Transportation |
|
Airports: |
28 (2007) |
|
Airports (paved
runways): |
total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
|
Airports (unpaved
runways): |
total: 20
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 12 (2007) |
|
Heliports: |
5 (2007) |
|
Railways: |
total: 608 km
standard gauge: 608 km 1.435-m gauge (2006) |
|
Roadways: |
total: 21,846 km
paved: 11,425 km (4,714 km of interurban roads)
unpaved: 10,421 km (2006) |
|
Waterways: |
Sava River
(northern border) open to shipping but use limited
(2006) |
|
Ports and
terminals: |
Bosanska Gradiska,
Bosanski Brod, Bosanski Samac, and Brcko (all inland
waterway ports on the Sava), Orasje |
|
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|
Military |
| |
|
Military branches: |
Bosnia and
Herzegovina Armed Forces (OSBiH): Army of Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Air and Air Defense Forces of Bosnia
and Herzegovina (Zrakoplovstvo i Protuzracna Obrana,
ZPO) (2007) |
|
Military service
age and obligation: |
17 years of age
for voluntary military service in the Federation and
in the Republika Srpska; conscription abolished
January 2006; 4-month service obligation (2006) |
|
Manpower available
for military service: |
males age 16-49:
1,212,007
females age 16-49: 1,170,645 (2008 est.) |
|
Manpower fit for
military service: |
males age 16-49:
996,225
females age 16-49: 962,927 (2008 est.) |
|
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