year=2017&name=Belgium - Gheos Worldguide

Statistics Belgium

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Belgium in the World

Belgium - Introduction 2017

Background: Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Political divisions between the Dutch-speaking Flemish of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy. Its capital Brussels is home to numerous international organizations including the EU and NATO.

Geographic coordinates: 50 50 N 4 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 30,528 km²
Land: 30,278 km²
Water: 250 km²
Rank: 141
Comparative: about the size of Maryland

Land boundaries
Total: 1297 km
Border countries: (4) France 556 km; Germany 133 km; Luxembourg 130 km; Netherlands 478 km

Coastline: 66.5 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit
Continental shelf: median line with neighbors

Climate: temperate; mild winters cool summers; rainy humid cloudy

Terrain: flat coastal plains in northwest central rolling hills rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast

Elevation
Mean elevation: 181 m
Elevation extremes: lowest point: North Sea 0 m: highest point: Botrange 694 m

Natural resources: construction materials silica sand carbonates arable land

Land use
Agricultural land: 44.1%

arable land: 27.2%
permanent crops: 0.8%
permanent pasture: 16.1%

Forest: 22.4%
Other: 33.5%

Irrigated land: 230 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land protected from the sea by concrete dikes

Geography
Note: crossroads of Western Europe; most West European capitals are within 1000 km of Brussels the seat of both the European Union and NATO

Belgium - People 2017

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Population
Distribution: most of the population concentrated in the northern two-thirds of the country; the southeast is more thinly populated; considered to have one of the highest population densities in the world; approximately 97% live in urban areas: 11,491,346 (July 2017 est.)
Rank: 77
Growth rate: 0.7% (2017 est.)
Growth rate rank: 142
Below poverty line: 15.1% (2013 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Belgian
Adjective: Belgian

Ethnic groups: Belgian 75% Italian 4.1% Moroccan 3.7% French 2.4% Turkish 2% Dutch 2% other 12.8% (2011 est.)

Languages: Dutch (official) 60% French (official) 40% German (official) less than 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 50% Protestant and other Christian 2.5% Muslim 5% Jewish 0.4% Buddhist 0.3% atheist 9.2% none 32.6% (2009 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 17.16%
15-24 years: 11.34%
25-54 years: 40.05%
55-64 years: 12.86%
65 years and over: 18.58% (2017 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 54.2
Youth dependency ratio: 26.2
Elderly dependency ratio: 28
Potential support ratio: 3.6

Median age
Total: 41.4 years
Male: 40.2 years
Female: 42.7 years
Rank: 37

Population growth rate: 0.7% (2017 est.)
Rank: 142

Birth rate: 11.3 births/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 175

Death rate: 9.7 deaths/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 46

Net migration rate: 5.4 migrant(s)/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 23

Population distribution: most of the population concentrated in the northern two-thirds of the country; the southeast is more thinly populated; considered to have one of the highest population densities in the world; approximately 97% live in urban areas

Urbanization
Urban population: 97.9% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 0.36% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: BRUSSELS (capital) 2.045 million; Antwerp 994,000 (2015)

Environment
Current issues: intense pressures from human activities: urbanization dense transportation network industry extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries
International agreements party to: Air Pollution Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Air Pollution-Sulfur 85 Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds Antarctic-Environmental Protocol Antarctic-Marine Living Resources Antarctic Seals Antarctic Treaty Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Environmental Modification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Marine Dumping Marine Life Conservation Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Tropical Timber 83 Tropical Timber 94 Wetlands Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
0-14 years: 1.05 male/female
15-24 years: 1.04 male/female
25-54 years: 1.02 male/female
55-64 years: 0.98 male/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth: 28.6 years (2013 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 3.4 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 3.8 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 3 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 207

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 81.1 years
Male: 78.5 years
Female: 83.8 years
Rank: 30

Total fertility rate: 1.78 children born/woman (2017 est.)
Rank: 155

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 66.8%
Note: percent of women aged 15-54

Drinking water source:

urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2015 est.)

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 2.97 physicians/1000 population (2014)

Hospital bed density: 6.5 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

urban: 99.5% of population
rural: 99.4% of population
total: 99.5% of population
urban: 0.5% of population
rural: 0.6% of population
total: 0.5% of population (2015 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: NA
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 22.1% (2016)
Rank: 81

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures: 6.4% of GDP (2011)
Rank: 30

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 20 years
Male: 19 years
Female: 21 years

Youth unemployment

Belgium - Government 2017

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Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
Conventional short form: Belgium
Local long form: Royaume de Belgique /Koninkrijk Belgie (Dutch)/Koenigreich Belgien (German)
Local short form: Belgique/Belgie/Belgien
Etymology: the name derives from the Belgae an ancient Celtic tribal confederation that inhabited an area between the English Channel and the west bank of the Rhine in the first centuries B.C.

Government type: federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Brussels
Geographic coordinates: 50 50 N 4 20 E
Time difference: UTC+1
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions: 3 regions (French: regions singular - region; Dutch: gewesten singular - gewest); Brussels-Capital Region also known as Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest (Dutch) Region de Bruxelles-Capitale (French long form) Bruxelles-Capitale (French short form); Flemish Region (Flanders) also known as Vlaams Gewest (Dutch long form) Vlaanderen (Dutch short form) Region Flamande (French long form) Flandre (French short form); Walloon Region (Wallonia) also known as Region Wallone (French long form) Wallonie (French short form) Waals Gewest (Dutch long form) Wallonie (Dutch short form)
Note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state there are now three levels of government with a complex division of responsibilities; the 2012 sixth state reform transferred additional competencies from the federal state to the regions and linguistic communities

Dependent areas

Independence: 4 October 1830 (a provisional government declared independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King LEOPOLD I ascended to the throne)

National holiday: Belgian National Day (ascension to the throne of King LEOPOLD I) 21 July (1831)

Constitution
History: drafted 25 November 1830 approved 7 February 1831 entered into force 26 July 1831 revised 14 July 1993
Amendments: 'revisions' proposed as declarations by the federal government in accord with the king or by Parliament followed by dissolution of Parliament and new elections; adoption requires two-thirds majority vote of a two-thirds quorum in both houses of the next elected Parliament; amended many times last in 2014

Legal system: civil law system based on the French Civil Code; note - Belgian law continues to be modified in conformance with the legislative norms mandated by the European Union; judicial review of legislative acts

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Belgium
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch
Chief of state: King PHILIPPE ; Heir Apparent Princess ELISABETH daughter of the monarch
Head of government: Prime Minister Charles MICHEL ; Deputy Prime Ministers Alexander DE CROO (since 22 October 2012) Jan JAMBON (since 11 October 2014) Kris PEETERS Didier REYNDERS (since 30 December 2008)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary and constitutional; following legislative elections the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and approved by Parliament

Legislative branch
Description: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate or Senaat Senat (in French) (60 seats; 50 members indirectly elected by the community and regional parliaments based on their election results and 10 elected by the 50 other senators; members serve 5-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers (in Dutch) Chambre des Representants (in French) (150 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
Note: the 1993 constitutional revision that further devolved Belgium into a federal state created three levels of government with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly; changes above occurred since the sixth state reform
Elections: Chamber of Representatives - last held on 25 May 2014 ; note - elections will coincide with the EU's elections
Election results: Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - N-VA 20.3% PS 11.7% CD&V 11.6% Open VLD 9.8% MR 9.6% SP.A 8.8% Groen! 5.3% CDH 5.0% Workers' Party 3.7% VB 3.7% Ecolo 3.3% Defi 1.8% PP 1.5% other 3.9%; seats by party - N-VA 33 PS 23 MR 20 CD&V 18 Open VLD 14 SP.A 13 Groen! 6 CDH 9 Workers' Party 2 VB 3 Ecolo 6 Defi 2 PP 1

Judicial branch
Highest court: Constitutional Court or Grondwettelijk Hof in Dutch and Cour constitutionelle in French ; Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie in Dutch and Cour de Cassation in French (court organized into 3 chambers: civil and commercial; criminal; social fiscal and armed forces; each chamber includes a Dutch division and a French division each with a chairperson and 5-6 judges)
Judge selection and term of office: Constitutional Court judges appointed by the monarch from candidates submitted by Parliament; judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 70; Supreme Court judges appointed by the monarch from candidates submitted by the High Council of Justice a 44-member independent body of judicial and non-judicial members; judges appointed for life
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; regional courts; specialized courts for administrative commercial labor immigration and audit issues; magistrate's courts; justices of the peace

Political parties and leaders:

Humanist and Democratic Center or CDH [Benoit LUTGEN]
People's Party or PP [Mischael MODRIKAMEN]
Reform Movement or MR [Olivier CHASTEL]
Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]
Workers' Party or PTB [Peter MERTENS]
other minor parties

International organization participation: ADB (nonregional members) AfDB (nonregional members) Australia Group Benelux BIS CD CE CERN EAPC EBRD ECB EIB EITI (implementing country) EMU ESA EU FAO FATF G-9 G-10 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICCt ICRM IDA IEA IFAD IFC IFRCS IGAD (partners) IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) MIGA MONUSCO NATO NEA NSG OAS (observer) OECD OIF OPCW OSCE Pacific Alliance (observer) Paris Club PCA Schengen Convention SELEC (observer) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNIFIL UNRWA UNTSO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Dirk Jozef M. WOUTERS
In the us chancery: 3,330 Garfield Street NW Washington DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] 333-6,900
In the us FAX: [1] 333-3,079
In the us consulate general: Atlanta Los Angeles New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador ; Charge d'Affaires Matthew LUSSENHOP (since 20 January 2017)
From the us embassy: 27 Boulevard du Regent [Regentlaan] B-1000 Brussels
From the us mailing address: PSC 82 Box 002 APO AE 9,710
From the us telephone: [32] 811-4,000
From the us FAX: [32] 811-4,500

Flag description

: three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side) yellow and red; the vertical design was based on the flag of France; the colors are those of the arms of the duchy of Brabant (yellow lion with red claws and tongue on a black field)

National symbols: golden rampant lion; national colors: red black yellow

National anthem
Name: 'La Brabanconne'
Lyrics and music: Louis-Alexandre DECHET[French] Victor CEULEMANS [Dutch]/Francois VAN CAMPENHOUT
Note: adopted 1830; according to legend Louis-Alexandre DECHET an actor at the theater in which the revolution against the Netherlands began wrote the lyrics with a group of young people in a Brussels cafe

National heritage

Belgium - Economy 2017

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Economy overview:

Belgium’s central geographic location and highly developed transport network have helped develop a well-diversified economy with a broad mix of transport services manufacturing and high tech. Industry is concentrated mainly in the more heavily-populated region of Flanders in the north. Belgium is 100% reliant on foreign sources of fossil fuels and the planned closure of its seven nuclear plants by 2025 should increase its dependence on foreign energy. Its role as a regional logistical hub makes its economy vulnerable to shifts in foreign demand particularly with EU trading partners. Roughly three-quarters of Belgium's trade is with other EU countries.
Belgium’s GDP grew by 1.4% in 2016 unemployment at yearend was 8.4% and the budget deficit was 2.7% of GDP. The economy largely recovered from the March 2016 terrorist attacks which mainly impacted the Brussels region tourist and hospitality industry. Prime Minister Charles MICHEL's center-right government has pledged to further reduce the deficit in response to EU pressure to decrease Belgium's high public debt of about 107% of GDP but such efforts could also dampen economic growth. In addition to restrained public spending low wage growth and higher inflation promise to curtail a more robust recovery in private consumption.
The government has pledged to pursue a reform program to improve Belgium’s competitiveness including changes to tax policy labor market rules and welfare benefits. These changes have generally made Belgian wages more competitive regionally but risk worsening tensions with trade unions and triggering extended strikes.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:

$509 billion (2016 est.)
$496.7 billion (2015 est.)
$484.2 billion (2014 est.)

Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 38

Real gdp growth rate:

1.2% (2016 est.)
1.5% (2015 est.)
1.6% (2014 est.)

Rank: 167

Real gdp per capita:

$45,000 (2016 est.)
$44,800 (2015 est.)
$44,300 (2014 est.)

Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 36

Gross national saving:

22.3% of GDP (2016 est.)
23.6% of GDP (2015 est.)
22.4% of GDP (2014 est.)

Rank: 73

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 51.2%
Government consumption: 23.6%
Investment in fixed capital: 23%
Investment in inventories: -0.2%
Exports of goods and services: 84.5%
Imports of goods and services: -82.1%

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 0.7%
Industry: 22.3%
Services: 77%

Agriculture products: sugar beets fresh vegetables fruits grain tobacco; beef veal pork milk

Industries: engineering and metal products motor vehicle assembly transportation equipment scientific instruments processed food and beverages chemicals pharmaceuticals base metals textiles glass petroleum

Industrial production growth rate: 2.2% (2016 est.)
Rank: 103

Labor force: 5.291 million (2016 est.)
Rank: 77
By occupation agriculture: 1.3%
By occupation industry: 18.6%
By occupation services: 80.1%

Unemployment rate:

7.9% (2016 est.)
8.5% (2015 est.)

Rank: 98

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 15.1% (2013 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.4%
Highest 10: 28.4%

Distribution of family income gini index:

25.9 (2013 est.)
28.7 (1996)

Rank: 143

Budget
Revenues: $236.9 billion
Expenditures: $249.1 billion
Surplus or deficit: -2.6% of GDP (2016 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 107

Taxes and other revenues: 50.7% of GDP (2016 est.)
Rank: 15

Public debt:

106% of GDP (2016 est.)
106% of GDP (2015 est.)

Note: data cover general government debt and includes debt instruments issued by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds such as for retirement medical care and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions; general government debt is defined by the Maastricht definition and calculated by the National Bank of Belgium as consolidated gross debt; the debt is defined in European Regulation EC479/2009 concerning the implementation of the protocol on the excessive deficit procedure annexed to the Treaty on European Union (Treaty of Maastricht) of 7 February 1992; the sub-sectors of consolidated gross debt are: federal government communities and regions local government and social security funds
Rank: 17

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:

1.8% (2016 est.)
0.6% (2015 est.)

Rank: 118

Central bank discount rate:

0.25% (31 December 2016)
0.3% (31 December 2010)

Note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal lending facility which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro area
Rank: 139

Commercial bank prime lending rate:

2.01% (31 December 2016 est.)
2.46% (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 177

Stock of narrow money:

$198 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$181.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Note: see entry for the European Union for money supply for the entire euro area; the European Central Bank controls monetary policy for the 18 members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU); individual members of the EMU do not control the quantity of money circulating within their own borders
Rank: 22

Stock of broad money:

$525.8 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$524.9 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 21

Stock of domestic credit:

$684.8 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$661.2 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 20

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$414.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$378.5 billion (31 December 2014 est.)
$374.3 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

Rank: 25

Current account balance:

$-1.849 billion (2016 est.)
$1.936 billion (2015 est.)

Rank: 149

Exports:

$277.7 billion (2016 est.)
$254.8 billion (2015 est.)

Rank: 20
Commodities: chemicals machinery and equipment finished diamonds metals and metal products foodstuffs
Partners: Germany 16.7% France 15.4% Netherlands 11.2% UK 8.9% US 5.8% Italy 5.2% (2016)

Imports:

$271.2 billion (2016 est.)
$251.9 billion (2015 est.)

Rank: 17
Commodities: raw materials machinery and equipment chemicals raw diamonds pharmaceuticals foodstuffs transportation equipment oil products
Partners: Netherlands 16.1% Germany 13.6% France 9.5% US 8.1% UK 4.8% Ireland 4.5% China 4.3% (2016)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$23.57 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$24.1 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 58

Debt external:

$1.281 trillion (31 March 2016 est.)
$1.214 trillion (31 March 2015 est.)

Rank: 16

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:

$1.054 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$1.034 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 11

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:

$1.016 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$1.012 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)

Rank: 13

Exchange rates:

euros (EUR) per US dollar -
0.9214 (2016 est.)
0.885 (2015 est.)
0.885 (2014 est.)
0.7634 (2013 est.)
0.7752 (2012 est.)

Belgium - Energy 2017

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Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 110
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 94
Crude oil imports: 639,500 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 17
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2017 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 110

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 701,700 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products production rank: 25
Products consumption: 662,400 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products consumption rank: 31
Products exports: 597,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products exports rank: 12
Products imports: 585,700 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products imports rank: 13

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2014 est.)
Production rank: 108
Consumption: 23.01 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 41
Exports: 1.694 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 39
Imports: 18.81 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Imports rank: 18
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2014 es)
Proven reserves rank: 115

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 93.62 million Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 41

Energy consumption per capita

Belgium - Communication 2017

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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 4,371,055
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 38
Fixed lines rank: 32
Mobile cellular total: 12,457,820
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 109
Mobile cellular rank: 73

Telephone system
General assessment: highly developed technologically advanced and completely automated domestic and international telephone and telegraph facilities
Domestic: nationwide mobile-cellular telephone system; extensive cable network; limited microwave radio relay network
International: country code - 32; landing point for a number of submarine cables that provide links to Europe the Middle East and Asia; satellite earth stations - 7 (2015)

Broadcast media: a segmented market with the three major communities (Flemish French and German-speaking) each having responsibility for their own broadcast media; multiple TV channels exist for each community; additionally in excess of 90% of households are connected to cable and can access broadcasts of TV stations from neighboring countries; each community has a public radio network coexisting with private broadcasters (2009)

Internet
Country code: .be
Users total: 9,870,734
Users percent of population: 86.5%
Users rank: 46

Broadband fixed subscriptions

Belgium - Military 2017

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Military expenditures:

0.87% of GDP (2016)
0.93% of GDP (2015)
0.97% of GDP (2014)
1.01% of GDP (2013)
1.04% of GDP (2012)

Rank: 97

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; conscription abolished in 1994 (2012)

Space program

Terrorist groups

Belgium - Transportation 2017

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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 7
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 117
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 11,193,023
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,464,316,900 mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: OO (2016)

Airports: 41 (2013)
Rank: 102
With paved runways total: 26
With paved runways over 3047 m: 6
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 9
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1
With paved runways under 914 m: 8
With unpaved runways total: 15
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 15

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: gas 3,139 km; oil 154 km; refined products 535 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 3,592 km
Standard gauge: 3,592 km 1.435-m gauge (2014)
Rank: 50

Roadways
Total: 154,012 km
Paved: 120,514 km
Unpaved: 33,498 km
Rank: 33

Waterways: 2,043 km (1528 km in regular commercial use) (2012)
Rank: 41

Merchant marine
Total: 87
By type: bulk carrier 23 cargo 15 chemical tanker 5 container 4 liquefied gas 23 passenger 2 petroleum tanker 8 roll on/roll off 7
Foreign owned: 15
Registered in other countries: 107 (2010)
Rank: 57

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Oostende Zeebrugge
River port: Antwerp Gent ; Brussels (Senne River); Liege (Meuse River)
Container port: Antwerp (9,654,000) Zeebrugge (1,569,000) (2015)
LNG terminal: Zeebrugge

Belgium - Transnational issues 2017

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Disputes international
Rank: li>a href='../rankorder/rankorderguide.html'>Guide to Country Comparisons: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 9,080 (Syria) (2016)
Stateless persons: 2,630

Illicit drugs: growing producer of synthetic drugs and cannabis; transit point for US-bound ecstasy; source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for cocaine heroin hashish and marijuana entering Western Europe; despite a strengthening of legislation the country remains vulnerable to money laundering related to narcotics automobiles alcohol and tobacco; significant domestic consumption of ecstasy

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