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| 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, 10000 Zagreb
mailing address: use street address
telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200
FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
| 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 |
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