Statistical information Ukraine 1999

Ukraine in the World
top of pageBackground: Richly endowed in natural resources Ukraine has been fought over and subjugated for centuries; its 20th-century struggle for liberty is not yet complete. A short-lived independence from Russia (1917-1920) was followed by brutal Soviet rule that engineered two artificial famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died and World War II in which German and Soviet armies were responsible for some 7 million more deaths. Although independence was attained in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR true freedom remains elusive as many of the former Soviet elite remain entrenched stalling efforts at economic reform privatization and civic liberties.
top of pageLocation: Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 49 00 N, 32 00 E
Map reference:
Commonwealth of Independent StatesAreaTotal: 603,700 km²
Land: 603,700 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundariesTotal: 4,558 km
Border countries: (7) Belarus 891 km;
, Hungary 103 km;
, Moldova 939 km;
, Poland 428 km;
, Romania (south) 169 km;
, Romania (west) 362 km;
, Russia 1,576 km;
, Slovakia 90 kmCoastline: 2,782 km
Maritime claimsContinental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: temperate continental; Mediterranean only on the southern Crimean coast; precipitation disproportionately distributed, highest in west and north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary from cool along the Black Sea to cold farther inland; summers are warm across the greater part of the country, hot in the south
Terrain: most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
ElevationExtremes lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m
Natural resources: iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber
Land useArable land: 58%
Permanent crops: 2%
Permanent pastures: 13%
Forests and woodland: 18%
Other: 9% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 26,050 km² (1993 est.)
Major riversMajor watersheds area km²Total water withdrawalTotal renewable water resourcesNatural hazards: NA
GeographyNote: strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe
top of pagePopulation: 49,811,174 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: -0.62% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: 50% (1997 est.)
NationalityNoun: Ukrainian(s)
Adjective: Ukrainian
Ethnic groups: Ukrainian 73%, Russian 22%, Jewish 1%, other 4%
Languages: Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian
Religions: Ukrainian Orthodox_Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox_Kiev Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic (Uniate), Protestant, Jewish
Demographic profileAge structure0-14 years: 18% (male 4,690,318; female 4,498,239)
15-64 years: 68% (male 16,136,296; female 17,572,011)
65 years and over: 14% (male 2,251,664; female 4,662,646) (1999 est.)
Dependency ratiosMedian agePopulation growth rate: -0.62% (1999 est.)
Birth rate: 9.54 births/1000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate: 16.38 deaths/1000 population (1999 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.63 migrant(s)/1000 population (1999 est.)
Population distributionUrbanizationMajor urban areasEnvironmentCurrent issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; air and water pollution; deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea
Air pollutantsSex ratioAt birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
Mothers mean age at first birthMaternal mortality ratioInfant mortality rate: 21.73 deaths/1000 live births (1999 est.)
Life expectancy at birthTotal population: 65.91 years
Male: 60.23 years
Female: 71.87 years (1999 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.34 children born/woman (1999 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rateDrinking water sourceCurrent health expenditurePhysicians densityHospital bed densitySanitation facility accessHiv/AidsMajor infectious diseasesObesity adult prevalence rateAlcohol consumptionTobacco useChildren under the age of 5 years underweightEducation expendituresLiteracyDefinition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 98%
Male: 100%
Female: 97% (1989 est.)
School life expectancy primary to tertiary educationYouth unemploymenttop of pageCountry nameConventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Ukraine
Local long form: none
Local short form: Ukrayina
Former: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Government type: republic
Capital: Kiev (Kyyiv)
Administrative divisions: 24 oblasti (singular_oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtomnaya respublika), and 2 municipalities (mista, singular_misto) with oblast status**; Cherkas'ka (Cherkasy), Chernihivs'ka (Chernihiv), Chernivets'ka (Chernivtsi), Dnipropetrovs'ka (Dnipropetrovs'k), Donets'ka (Donets'k), Ivano-Frankivs'ka (Ivano-Frankivs'k), Kharkivs'ka (Kharkiv), Khersons'ka (Kherson), Khmel'nyts'ka (Khmel'nyts'kyy), Kirovohrads'ka (Kirovohrad), Kyyiv**, Kyyivs'ka (Kiev), Luhans'ka (Luhans'k), L'vivs'ka (L'viv), Mykolayivs'ka (Mykolayiv), Odes'ka (Odesa), Poltavs'ka (Poltava), Avtonomna Respublika Krym* (Simferopol'), Rivnens'ka (Rivne), Sevastopol'**, Sums'ka (Sumy), Ternopil's'ka (Ternopil'), Vinnyts'ka (Vinnytsya), Volyns'ka (Luts'k), Zakarpats'ka (Uzhhorod), Zaporiz'ka (Zaporizhzhya), Zhytomyrs'ka (Zhytomyr)
Note: oblasts have the administrative center name following in parentheses
Dependent areasIndependence: 1 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 24 August (1991)
Constitution: adopted 28 June 1996
Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts
International law organization participationCitizenshipSuffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branchChief of state: President Leonid D. KUCHMA (since 19 July 1994)
Head of government: Prime Minister Valeriy PUSTOVOYTENKO (since 16 July 1997), First Deputy Prime Minister Volodymyr KURATCHENKO (since 14 January 1999), and three deputy prime ministers
Cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council
Note: there is also a National Security and Defense Council or NSDC originally created in 1992 as the National Security Council, but significantly revamped and strengthened under President KUCHMA; the NSDC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president; a Presidential Administration that helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president; and a Council of Regions that serves as an advisory body created by President KUCHMA in September 1994 that includes chairmen of the Kyyiv (Kiev) and Sevastopol' municipalities and chairmen of the Oblasti
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 26 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA October 1999); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and approved by the People's Council
Election results: Leonid D. KUCHMA elected president; percent of vote_Leonid KUCHMA 52.15%, Leonid KRAVCHUK 45.06%
Legislative branch: unicameral Supreme Council or Verkhovna Rada (450 seats; under Ukraine's new election law, half of the Rada's seats are allocated on a proportional basis to those parties that gain 4% of the national electoral vote; the other 225 members are elected by popular vote in single-mandate constituencies; all serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held 29 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2002); note_repeat elections continuing to fill vacant seats
Election results: percent of vote by party (for parties clearing 4% hurdle on 29 March 1998)_Communist 24.7%, Rukh 9.4%, Socialist/Peasant 8.6%, Green 5.3%, People's Democratic Party 5.0%, Hromada 4.7%, Progressive Socialist 4.0%, United Social Democratic Party 4.0%; seats by party (as of 8 July 1998)_Communist 120, People's Democratic Party 88, Rukh 47, Hromada 45, Socialist/Peasant 33, United Social Democratic 25, Green 24, Progressive Socialist 14, independents 26, vacant 28
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court
Political parties and leadersInternational organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MONUA, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNPREDEP, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representationIn the us chief of mission: Ambassador Anton Denysovych BUTEYKO
In the us chancery: 3,350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 333-0606
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 333-0817
In the us consulates general: Chicago and New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Steven Karl PIFER
From the us embassy: 10 Yuria Kotsubynskoho, 254,053 Kiev 53
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [380] (44) 246-9,750
From the us FAX: [380] (44) 244-7,350
Flag description
: two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow represent grainfields under a blue sky
National symbolsNational anthemNational heritagetop of pageEconomy overview: After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was far and away the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, producing about four times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil generated more than one-fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain, and vegetables to other republics. Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied equipment and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR. Ukraine depends on imports of energy, especially natural gas. Shortly after the implosion of the USSR in December 1991, the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Output in 1992-98 fell to less than half the 1991 level. Loose monetary policies pushed inflation to hyperinflationary levels in late 1993. Since his election in July 1994, President KUCHMA has pushed economic reforms, maintained financial discipline, and tried to remove almost all remaining controls over prices and foreign trade. The onset of the financial crisis in Russia dashed Ukraine's hopes for its first year of economic growth in 1998 due to a sharp fall in export revenue and reduced domestic demand. Although administrative currency controls will be lifted in early 1999, they are likely to be reimposed when the hryvnia next comes under pressure. The currency is only likely to collapse further if Ukraine abandons tight monetary policies or threatens default. Despite increasing pressure from the IMF to accelerate reform, significant economic restructuring remains unlikely in 1999.
Real gdp purchasing power parityReal gdp growth rate: -1.7% (1998 est.)
Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity: $2,200 (1998 est.)
Gross national savingGdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end useGdp composition by sector of originAgriculture: 14%
Industry: 30%
Services: 56% (1997 est.)
Agriculture products: grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables; beef, milk
Industries: coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food-processing (especially sugar)
Industrial production growth rate: -1.5% (1998 est.)
Labor force: 22.8 million (yearend 1997)
By occupation industry and construction: 32%
By occupation agriculture and forestry: 24%
By occupation health education andculture: 17%
By occupation tradeanddistribution: 8%
By occupation transportandcommunication: 7%
By occupation other: 12% (1996)
Unemployment rate: 3.7% officially registered; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers (December 1998)
Youth unemploymentPopulation below poverty line: 50% (1997 est.)
Gini indexHousehold income or consumption by percentage shareDistribution of family income gini indexBudgetRevenues: $18 billion
Expenditures: $21 billion, including capital expenditures of $N/A (1997 est.)
Taxes and other revenuesPublic debtRevenueFiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate consumer pricesCentral bank discount rateCommercial bank prime lending rateStock of narrow moneyStock of broad moneyStock of domestic creditMarket value of publicly traded sharesCurrent account balanceExports: $11.3 billion (1998 est.)
Commodities: ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, food products
Partners: Russia, China,, Turkey, Germany, Belarus (1998)
Imports: $13.1 billion (1998 est.)
Commodities: energy, machinery and parts, transportation equipment, chemicals, plastics and rubber
Partners: Russia, Germany, US, Poland, Italy (1998)
Reserves of foreign exchange and goldDebt external: $10.9 billion (October 1998)
Stock of direct foreign investment at homeStock of direct foreign investment abroadExchange rates: hryvnia per US$1_3.4270 (February 1999), 2.4495 (1998), 1.8617 (1997), 1.8295 (1996), 1.4731 (1995), 0.3275 (1994)
Note: in August 1998, Ukraine introduced currency controls in an attempt to fend off the impact of the Russian financial crisis; it created an exchange rate corridor for the hryvnia of 2.5-3.5 hryvnia per US$1
top of pageElectricityProduction: 171.8 billion kWh (1998)
Production by source fossil fuel: 47%
Production by source hydro: 9.2%
Production by source nuclear: 43.8%
Production by source other: 0% (1998)
Consumption: 174 billion kWh (1998)
Exports: 5 billion kWh (1998)
Imports: 7 billion kWh (1998)
CoalPetroleumCrude oilRefined petroleumNatural gasCarbon dioxide emissionsEnergy consumption per capitatop of pageTelephones: 12,531,277 (1998)
Telephone system: Ukraine's phone systems are administered through the State Committee for Communications; Ukraine has a telecommunication development plan through 2005; Internet service is available in large cities
Domestic: local_Kiev has a digital loop connected to the national digital backbone; Kiev has several cellular phone companies providing service in the different standards; some companies offer intercity roaming and even limited international roaming; cellular phone service is offered in at least 100 cities nationwide
International: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved the Ukrainian telephone system; Ukraine's two main fiber-optic lines are part of the Trans-Asia-Europe Fiber-Optic Line (TAE); these lines connect Ukraine to worldwide service through Belarus, Hungary, and Poland; Odesa is a landing point for the Italy-Turkey-Ukraine-Russia Undersea Fiber-Optic Cable (ITUR) giving Ukraine an additional fiber-optic link to worldwide service; Ukraine has Intelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik earth stations
Broadcast mediaInternetBroadband fixed subscriptionstop of pageMilitary expendituresDollar figure: $414 million (1999)
Percent of gdp: 1.4% (1999)
Military and security forcesMilitary service age and obligationSpace programTerrorist groupstop of pageNational air transport systemCivil aircraft registration country code prefixAirports: 706 (1994 est.)
With paved runways total: 163
With paved runways over 3047 m: 14
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 55
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 34
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 3
With paved runways under 914 m: 57 (1994 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 543
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 7
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 7
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 16
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 37
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 476 (1994 est.)
HeliportsPipelines: crude oil 4,000 km (1995; petroleum products 4,500 km (1995; natural gas 34,400 km (1998)
RailwaysTotal: 23,350 km
Broad gauge: 23,350 km 1.524-m gauge (8,600 km electrified)
RoadwaysWaterways: 4,400 km navigable waterways, of which 1,672 km were on the Pryp''yat' and Dnistr (1990)
Merchant marineTotal: 181 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,022,047 GRT/1,101,278 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 9, cargo 117, liquefied gas tanker 1, container 4, multifunction large-load carrier 2, oil tanker 16, passenger 12, passenger-cargo 3, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 10, short-sea passenger 3 (1998 est.)
Ports and terminalsUkraine - Transnational issues 1999
top of pageDisputes international: dispute with Romania over continental shelf of the Black Sea under which significant gas and oil deposits may exist; agreed in 1997 to two-year negotiating period, after which either party can refer dispute to the International Court of Justice (ICJ; has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation
Refugees and internally displaced personsIllicit drugs: limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; some synthetic drug production for export to West; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Africa, Latin America, and Turkey, and to Europe and Russia; drug-related money laundering a minor, but growing, problem