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

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Background: Formerly part of Romania Moldova was incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although independent from the USSR since 1991 Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Dniester River supporting the Slavic majority population mostly Ukrainians and Russians who have proclaimed a 'Transnistria' republic. The poorest nation in Europe Moldova became the first former Soviet state to elect a Communist as its president in 2001.


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Location: Eastern Europe northeast of Romania

Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N 29 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 33,843 km²
Land: 33,371 km²
Water: 472 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than Maryland

Land boundaries
Total: 1,389 km
Border countries: (2) Romania 450 km; , Ukraine 939 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: moderate winters warm summers

Terrain: rolling steppe gradual slope south to Black Sea

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Dniester River 2 m
Extremes highest point: Dealul Balanesti 430 m

Natural resources: lignite phosphorites gypsum arable land: limestone

Land use
Arable land: 54.52%
Permanent crops: 8.81%
Other: 36.67% (2005)

Irrigated land: 3,000 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: landslides (57 cases in 1998)

Geography
Note: landlocked; well endowed with various sedimentary rocks and minerals including sand gravel gypsum and limestone


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Population: 4,320,490 (July 2006 est.)
Growth rate: -0.11% (2006 est.)
Below poverty line: 29.5% (2005)

Nationality
Noun: Moldovan
Adjective: Moldovan

Ethnic groups
Note: internal disputes with ethnic Slavs in the Transnistrian region

Languages: Moldovan (official virtually the same as the Romanian language) Russian Gagauz (a Turkish dialect)

Religions: Eastern Orthodox 98% Jewish 1.5% Baptist and other 0.5% (2000)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 16.5% (male 365,733/female 347,305)
15-64 years: 72.6% (male 1,520,094/female 1,616,014)
65 years and over: 10.9% (male 175,113/female 296,231) (2006 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 34 years
Male: 32.1 years
Female: 36.1 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.11% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 10.88 births/1000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 10.85 deaths/1000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.13 migrant(s)/1000 population (2006 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: heavy use of agricultural chemicals including banned pesticides such as DDT has contaminated soil and groundwater; extensive soil erosion from poor farming methods
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.053 male/female
15-64 years: 0.941 male/female
65 years and over: 0.591 male/female
Total population: 0.912 male/female (2006 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 13.88 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 15.35 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 12.33 deaths/1000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 70.2 years
Male: 66.51 years
Female: 74.11 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.25 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.2% (2001 est.)
People living with hivaids: 5,500 (2001 est.)
Deaths: less than 300 (2001 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 99.1%
Male: 99.7%
Female: 98.6% (2005 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Moldova
Conventional short form: Moldova
Local long form: Republica Moldova
Local short form: Moldova
Former: Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic; Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic

Government type: republic

Capital
Name: Chisinau (Kishinev)
Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 28 51 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions
Raions: Anenii Noi, Basarabeasca, Briceni, Cahul, Cantemir, Calarasi, Causeni, Cimislia, Criuleni, Donduseni, Drochia, Dubasari, Edinet, Falesti, Floresti, Glodeni, Hincesti, Ialoveni, Leova, Nisporeni, Ocnita, Orhei, Rezina, Riscani, Singerei, Soldanesti, Soroca, Stefan-Voda, Straseni, Taraclia, Telenesti, Ungheni
Municipalities: Balti, Bender, Chisinau
Autonomous territorial unit: Gagauzia
Territorial unit: Stinga Nistrului

Dependent areas

Independence: 27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day 27 August (1991)

Constitution: new constitution adopted 29 July 1994 effective 27 August 1994; replaced old Soviet constitution of 1979

Legal system: based on civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews legality of legislative acts and governmental decisions of resolution; accepts many UN and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) documents; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Vladimir VORONIN (since 4 April 2001)
Head of government: Prime Minister Vasile TARLEV (since 15 April 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Zinaida GRECIANII (since 10 October 2005)
Cabinet: Cabinet selected by president, subject to approval of Parliament
Elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 4 April 2005 (next to be held in 2009); note - prime minister designated by the president upon consultation with Parliament; within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence from the Parliament regarding his/her work program and entire cabinet; prime minister designated 15 April 2001; cabinet received a vote of confidence 19 April 2001
Election results: Vladimir VORONIN reelected president; parliamentary votes - Vladimir VORONIN 75, Gheorghe DUCA 1; Vasile TARLEV designated prime minister; parliamentary votes of confidence - 75 of 101

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 6 March 2005 (next to be held in 2009)
Election results: percent of vote by party - PCRM 46.1%, Democratic Moldova Bloc 28.4%, PPCD 9.1%, other parties 16.4%; seats by party - PCRM 56, Democratic Moldova Bloc 34, PPCD 11

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court (the sole authority for constitutional judicature)

Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic People's Party or PPCD [Iurie ROSCA]; Communist Party of the Republic of Moldova or PCRM [Vladimir VORONIN]; Democratic Party or PD [Dumitru DIACOV]; National Liberal Party or NLP [Vitalia PAVLICENKO]; Our Moldova Alliance or AMN [Serafim URECHEAN]; Party for Social Democracy or PSD [Dumitru BRAGHIS]; Social Liberal Party or PSL [Oleg SEREBRIAN]

International organization participation: ACCT BSEC CE CEI CIS EAEC (observer) EAPC EBRD FAO GCTU GUAM IAEA IBRD ICAO ICCt (signatory) IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO (correspondent) ITU ITUC MIGA OIF OPCW OSCE PFP SECI UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO Union Latina UNMIL UNMIS UNOCI UNWTO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Nicolae CHIRTOACA
In the us chancery: 2,101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 667-1130
In the us fax: [1] (202) 667-1204
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Michael D. KIRBY
From the us embassy: 103 Mateevici Street, Chisinau MD-2009
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [373] (22) 40-8,300
From the us fax: [373] (22) 23-3,044

Flag description: same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side) yellow and red; emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized ox head star rose and crescent all in black-outlined yellow

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Moldova remains one of the poorest countries in Europe despite recent progress from its small economic base. It enjoys a favorable climate and good farmland but has no major mineral deposits. As a result the economy depends heavily on agriculture featuring fruits vegetables wine and tobacco. Moldova must import almost all of its energy supplies. Moldova's dependence on Russian energy was underscored at the end of 2005 when a Russian-owned electrical station in Moldova's separatist Transnistria region cut off power to Moldova and Russia's Gazprom cut off natural gas to Moldova in disputes over pricing. The economy achieved 6% or more GDP growth every year from 2000-05 though this was based largely on consumption fueled by remittances received from Moldovans working abroad. Russia's decision to ban Moldovan wine and agricultural products coupled with its decision to double the price Moldova paid for Russian natural gas slowed GDP growth in 2006 and greatly exacerbated Moldova's economic troubles. Economic reforms have been slow because of corruption and strong political forces backing government controls; nevertheless the government's primary goal of EU integration has resulted in some market-oriented progress. The economy remains vulnerable to higher fuel prices poor agricultural weather and the skepticism of foreign investors. Also the presence of an illegal separatist regime in Moldova's Transnistria region continues to be a drag on the Moldovan economy.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $9.066 billion (2006 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 4% (2006 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $2000 (2006 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 21.5%
Industry: 22%
Services: 56.5% (2006 est.)

Agriculture products: vegetables fruits wine grain sugar beets sunflower seed tobacco; beef milk

Industries: sugar vegetable oil food processing agricultural machinery; foundry equipment refrigerators and freezers washing machines; hosiery shoes textiles

Industrial production growth rate: 6.9% (2006 est.)

Labor force: 1.339 million (2006 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 40.7%
By occupation industry: 12.1%
By occupation services: 47.2% (2005)

Unemployment rate: 7.3%; note - roughly 25% of working age Moldovans are employed abroad (2005 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 29.5% (2005)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.2%
Highest 10: 26.4% (2003)

Distribution of family income gini index: 33.2 (2003)

Budget
Revenues: $1.359 billion
Expenditures: $1.368 billion (2006 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt: 30% of GDP (2006 est.)

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 12.7% (2006 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: $573.9 million (2004)

Current account balance: $-403.6 million (2006 est.)

Exports: $1.054 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: foodstuffs textiles machinery
Partners: Russia 22.8% Germany 12.2% Italy 11.1% Romania 9.7% Ukraine 9.6% Belarus 5.7% (2006)

Imports: $2.644 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: mineral products and fuel machinery and equipment chemicals textiles
Partners: Russia 20.8% Ukraine 16.9% Romania 13.4% Germany 8.7% Italy 6.1% Poland 4.4% (2006)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $775.5 million (2006 est.)

Debt external: $2.482 billion (2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $NA

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $NA

Exchange rates: lei per US dollar - 13.131 (2006) 12.6 (2005) 12.33 (2004) 13.945 (2003) 13.571 (2002)


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Electricity
Production: 3.881 billion kWh (2005)
Consumption: 5.551 billion kWh (2005)
Exports: 220 million kWh (2005)
Imports: 3.361 billion kWh (2005)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2005 est.)
Consumption: 2.35 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2005 est.)
Imports: 2.35 billion m³ (2005)

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 1.018 million (2006)
Mobile cellular: 1.358 million (2006)

Telephone system
General assessment: inadequate, outmoded, poor service outside Chisinau; some modernization is under way
Domestic: depending on location, new subscribers may face long wait for service; 2 private operators of GSM mobile cellular telephone service are operating; GPRS system is being introduced; license for 1 CDMA mobile telephone network currently being tendered
International: country code - 373; service through Romania and Russia via landline; satellite earth stations - Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik (2006)

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .md
Hosts: 112,026 (2006)
Users: 727,700 (2006)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 0.4% (2005 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory military service; 12-month service obligation (2006)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 10 (2006)
With paved runways total: 6
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With paved runways under 914 m: 1 (2006)
With unpaved runways total: 4
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 1 (2006)

Heliports

Pipelines: gas 606 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 1,138 km
Broad gauge: 1,124 km 1.520-m gauge
Standard gauge: 14 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)

Roadways
Total: 12,733 km
Paved: 10,976 km
Unpaved: 1,757 km (2004)

Waterways: 424 km (on Dniester and Prut rivers) (2006)

Merchant marine
Total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 15,668 GRT/17,585 DWT
By type: cargo 8
Foreign owned: 3 (Ukraine 3) (2006)

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor the transit of people and commodities through Moldova's break-away Transnistria region which remains under OSCE supervision

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis mostly for CIS consumption; transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central Asia to Russia Western Europe and possibly the US; widespread crime and underground economic activity