The 1990 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

automatic telephone system with 89,000 telephones; tropospheric scatter link to Trinidad and St. Lucia; stations—3 AM, 2 FM, 2 (1 is pay) TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

      - Defense Forces

       Branches: Royal Barbados Defense Force, Royal Barbados Police Force,

       Coast Guard

      Military manpower: males 15–49, 67,677; 47,566 fit for military service, no conscription

      Defense expenditures: 0.6% of GDP (1986)

      ——————————————————————————

       Country: Bassas da India

       (French possession)

       - Geography

       Total area: undetermined

      Comparative area: undetermined

      Land boundaries: none

      Coastline: 35.2 km

      Maritime claims:

      Contiguous zone: 12 nm;

      Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;

      Extended economic zone: 200 nm;

      Territorial sea: 12 nm

      Disputes: claimed by Madagascar

      Climate: tropical

      Terrain: a volcanic rock 2.4 m high

      Natural resources: none

      Land use: 0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 100% other (rock)

      Environment: surrounded by reefs; subject to periodic cyclones

      Note: navigational hazard since it is usually under water during high tide; located in southern Mozambique Channel about halfway between Africa and Madagascar

      - People

       Population: uninhabited

      - Government

       Long-form name: none

      Type: French possession administered by Commissioner of the Republic

       Daniel CONSTANTIN, resident in Reunion

      - Economy

       Overview: no economic activity

      - Communications

       Ports: none; offshore anchorage only

      - Defense Forces

       Note: defense is the responsibility of France

      ——————————————————————————

       Country: Belgium

       - Geography

       Total area: 30,510 km2; land area: 30,230 km2

      Comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland

      Land boundaries: 1,385 km total; France 620 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km, FRG 167 km

      Coastline: 64 km

      Maritime claims:

      Continental shelf: not specific;

      Exclusive fishing zone: equidistant line with neighbors (extends about 68 km from coast);

      Territorial sea: 12 nm

      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

      Natural resources: coal, natural gas

      Land use: 24% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 20% meadows and pastures; 21% forest and woodland; 34% other; includes NEGL% irrigated

      Environment: air and water pollution

      Note: majority of West European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels; crossroads of Western Europe; Brussels is the seat of the EC

      - People

       Population: 9,909,285 (July 1990), growth rate 0.1% (1990)

      Birth rate: 12 births/1,000 population (1990)

      Death rate: 11 deaths/1,000 population (1990)

      Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)

      Infant mortality rate: 6 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)

      Life expectancy at birth: 73 years male, 80 years female (1990)

      Total fertility rate: 1.6 children born/woman (1990)

      Nationality: noun—Belgian(s); adjective—Belgian

      Ethnic divisions: 55% Fleming, 33% Walloon, 12% mixed or other

      Religion: 75% Roman Catholic; remainder Protestant or other

      Language: 56% Flemish (Dutch), 32% French, 1% German; 11% legally bilingual; divided along ethnic lines

      Literacy: 98%

      Labor force: 4,000,000; 58% services, 37% industry, 5% agriculture (1987)

      Organized labor: 70% of labor force

      - Government

       Long-form name: Kingdom of Belgium

      Type: constitutional monarchy

      Capital: Brussels

      Administrative divisions: 9 provinces (French—provinces,

       singular—province; Flemish—provincien, singular—provincie); Antwerpen,

       Brabant, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen,

       West-Vlaanderen

      Independence: 4 October 1830 (from the Netherlands)

      Constitution: 7 February 1831, last revised 8–9 August 1980; the government is in the process of revising the Constitution, with the aim of federalizing the Belgian state

      Legal system: civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

      National holiday: National Day, 21 July (ascension of King Leopold to the throne in 1831)

      Executive branch: monarch, prime minister, five deputy prime ministers,

       Cabinet

      Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of an upper chamber or

       Senate (Flemish—Senaat, French—Senat) and a lower chamber or Chamber of

       Representatives (Flemish—Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers, French—Chambre

       des Representants)

      Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Flemish—Hof van Cassatie,

       French—Cour de Cassation)

      Leaders:

       Chief of State—King BAUDOUIN I (since 17 July 1951);

       Heir Apparent Prince ALBERT of Liege (brother of the King; born 6

       June 1934);

      Head of Government—Prime Minister Wilfried MARTENS, (since April 1979, with a 10-month interruption in 1981)

      Political parties and leaders: Flemish Social Christian (CVP), Herman van Rompuy, president; Walloon Social Christian (PSC), Gerard Deprez, president; Flemish Socialist (SP), Frank Vandenbroucke, president; Walloon Socialist (PS), Guy Spitaels, president; Flemish Liberal (PVV), Guy Verhofstadt, president; Walloon Liberal (PRL), Antoine Duquesne, president; Francophone Democratic Front (FDF), Georges Clerfayt, president; Volksunie (VU), Jaak Gabriels, president; Communist Party (PCB), Louis van Geyt, president; Vlaams Blok (VB), Karel Dillen; other minor parties

      Suffrage: universal and compulsory at