Map of Albania | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: In 1990 Albania ended 44 years of xenophobic communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with severe unemployment the collapse of a fraudulent nationwide investment scheme widespread gangsterism and massive refugee influxes from neighboring Kosovo.


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

Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N 20 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries

Coastline: 362 km

Maritime claims

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

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum natural gas coal chromium copper timber nickel hydropower

Land use

Irrigated land: 3,410 km² (1993 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast

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


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Population: 3,490,435 (July 2000 est.)
Growth rate: 0.26% (2000 est.)
Below poverty line: 19.6% (1996 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic groups: Albanian 95% Greeks 3% other 2% (Vlachs Gypsies Serbs and Bulgarians) (1989 est.)

Languages: Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect) Greek

Religions: Muslim 70% Albanian Orthodox 20% Roman Catholic 10%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 0.26% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 19.47 births/1000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 6.5 deaths/1000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -10.36 migrant(s)/1000 population (2000 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 41.33 deaths/1000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate: 2.37 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name

Government type: emerging democracy

Capital: Tirana

Administrative divisions: 36 districts (rrethe singular - rreth) and 1 municipality* (bashki); Berat Bulqize Delvine Devoll (Bilisht) Diber (Peshkopi) Durres Elbasan Fier Gjirokaster Gramsh Has (Krume) Kavaje Kolonje (Erseke) Korce Kruje Kucove Kukes Kurbin Lezhe Librazhd Lushnje Malesi e Madhe (Koplik) Mallakaster (Ballsh) Mat (Burrel) Mirdite (Rreshen) Peqin Permet Pogradec Puke Sarande Shkoder Skrapar (Corovode) Tepelene Tirane (Tirana) Tirane* (Tirana) Tropoje (Bajram Curri) Vlore

Dependent areas

Independence: 28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire)

National holiday: Independence Day 28 November (1912)

Constitution: a new constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote

Legal system: has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch

Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly or Kuvendi Popullor (155 seats; most members are elected by direct popular vote and some by proportional vote for four-year terms)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court chairman of the Supreme Court is elected by the People's Assembly for a four-year term

Political parties and leaders: Albanian Republican Party or PR [Fatmir MEHDIU]; Albanian Socialist Party or PS (formerly the Albania Workers Party) [Fatos NANO chairman]; Albanian United Right or DBSH (includes PBK Albanian Republican Party or PRS AND PDD) [Abaz ERMENJI]; Christian Democratic Party or PDK [Zef BUSHATI]; Democratic Alliance or PAD [Neritan CEKA]; Democratic Party or PD [Sali BERISHA]; Democratic Party of the Right or PDD [Petrit KALAKULA]; Liberal Union Party [Teodor LACO]; Movement of Legality Party or PLL [Ekrem SPAHIA]; National Front (Balli Kombetar) or PBK [Abaz ERMENJI]; Party of National Unity or PUK [Idajet BEQIRI]; Right National Front [Hysni SELFO]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Skender GJINUSHI]; Unity for Human Rights Party or PBDNJ [Vasil MELO chairman]; note - Teodar LACO of the Liberal Union Party was leader of the Social Democratic Union of Albania or PBSD

International organization participation: BSEC CCC CE CEI EAPC EBRD ECE FAO IAEA IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Intelsat (nonsignatory user) Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITU OIC OPCW OSCE PFP UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UNOMIG UPU WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation

Flag description: red with a black two-headed eagle in the center

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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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. However a weakening of government resolve to maintain stabilization policies in the election year of 1996 contributed to renewal of inflationary pressures spurred by the budget deficit which exceeded 12%. The collapse of financial pyramid schemes in early 1997 - which had attracted deposits from a substantial portion of Albania's population - triggered severe social unrest which led to more than 1500 deaths widespread destruction of property and an 8% drop in GDP. The new government installed in July 1997 has taken strong measures to restore public order and to revive economic activity and trade. The economy continues to be bolstered by remittances of some 20% of the labor force that works abroad mostly in Greece and Italy. These remittances supplement GDP and help offset the large foreign trade deficit. Most agricultural land was privatized in 1992 substantially improving peasant incomes. In 1998 Albania recovered the 8% drop in GDP of 1997 and pushed ahead by 7% in 1999. International aid has helped defray the high costs of receiving and returning refugees from the Kosovo conflict.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 8% (1999 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1650 (1999 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: wheat corn potatoes vegetables fruits sugar beets grapes; meat dairy products

Industries: food processing textiles and clothing; lumber oil cement chemicals mining basic metals hydropower

Industrial production growth rate: 7% (1999 est.)

Labor force: 1.692 million (including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (1994 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 49.5%
By occupation industry and services: 50.5%

Unemployment rate: 14% (October 1997) officially but may be as high as 28%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 19.6% (1996 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 0.5% (1999 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $242 million (f.o.b. 1999 est.)
Commodities: textiles and footwear; asphalt metals and metallic ores crude oil; vegetables fruits tobacco
Partners: Italy 63% Greece 12% Germany 6% Netherlands Belgium US (1998)

Imports: $925 million (f.o.b. 1999 est.)
Commodities: machinery and equipment foodstuffs textiles chemicals
Partners: Italy 43% Greece 29% Turkey 4% Germany 4% Bulgaria The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1998)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $820 million (1998)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: leke (L) per US$1 - 135.31 (December 1999) 137.69 (1999) 150.63 (1998) 148.93 (1997) 104.50 (1996) 92.70 (1995)


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Electricity
Production: 5.15 billion kWh (1998)
Consumption: 5.29 billion kWh (1998)
Exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Imports: 500 million kWh (1998)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 42,000 (1995)
Mobile cellular: 3,100 (1999)

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet
Service providers isps: 2 (1999)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $42 million (FY99)
Percent of gdp: 1.5% (FY99)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 10 (1999 est.)

Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 145 km; petroleum products 55 km; natural gas 64 km (1991)

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 43 km plus Albanian sections of Lake Scutari Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa (1990)

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: the Albanian Government supports protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians outside of its borders but has downplayed them to further its primary foreign policy goal of regional cooperation; Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Serbian Republic; Albanians in The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia claim discrimination in education access to public-sector jobs and representation in government

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: increasingly active transshipment point for Southwest Asian opiates hashish and cannabis transiting the Balkan route and - to a far lesser extent - cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; limited opium and cannabis production; ethnic Albanian narcotrafficking organizations active and rapidly expanding in Europe