The 2001 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

Species, Environmental

       Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban,

       Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

      signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

      Geography - note: strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia

      Bulgaria People

      Population: 7,707,495 (July 2001 est.)

      Age structure: 0–14 years: 15.11% (male 597,765; female 567,030)

      15–64 years: 68.17% (male 2,588,805; female 2,665,736)

      65 years and over: 16.72% (male 543,665; female 744,494) (2001 est.)

      Population growth rate: −1.14% (2001 est.)

      Birth rate: 8.06 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

      Death rate: 14.53 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

      Net migration rate: −4.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

      Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

      under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

      15–64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female

      65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female

      total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

      Infant mortality rate: 14.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

      Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.2 years

      male: 67.72 years

      female: 74.89 years (2001 est.)

      Total fertility rate: 1.13 children born/woman (2001 est.)

      HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.01% (1999 est.)

      HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: NA

      HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (1999 est.)

      Nationality: noun: Bulgarian(s)

      adjective: Bulgarian

      Ethnic groups: Bulgarian 83%, Turk 8.5%, Roma 2.6%, Macedonian,

       Armenian, Tatar, Gagauz, Circassian, others (1998)

      Religions: Bulgarian Orthodox 83.5%, Muslim 13%, Roman Catholic 1.5%, Uniate Catholic 0.2%, Jewish 0.8%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 1% (1998)

      Languages: Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown

      Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write

      total population: 98%

      male: 99%

      female: 98% (1999)

      Bulgaria Government

      Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria

      conventional short form: Bulgaria

      Government type: parliamentary democracy

      Capital: Sofia

      Administrative divisions: 28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast);

       Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali,

       Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv,

       Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya,

       Sofiya-Grad, Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo,

       Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol

      Independence: 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire)

      National holiday: Liberation Day, 3 March (1878)

      Constitution: adopted 12 July 1991

      Legal system: civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

      Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

      Executive branch: chief of state: President Petar STOYANOV (since 22 January 1997); Vice President Todor KAVALDZHIEV (since 22 January 1997)

      head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) Ivan KOSTOV (since 19 May 1997); Deputy Prime Minister Petur ZHOTEV (since 21 December 1999)

      cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly

      elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 27 October and 3 November 1996 (next to be held NA 2001); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) nominated by the president; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister

      election results: Petar STOYANOV elected president; percent of vote - Petar STOYANOV 59.73%

      Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sobranie (240 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

      elections: last held 17 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005)

      election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - National Movement for Simeon II 120, UDF 51, BSP 48, DPS 21

      Judicial branch: Supreme Administrative Court; Supreme Court of Cassation; Constitutional Court (12 justices appointed or elected for nine-year terms); Supreme Judicial Council (consists of the chairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22 other members; responsible for appointing the justices, prosecutors, and investigating magistrates in the justice system; members of the Supreme Judicial Council elected for five-year terms, 11 elected by the National Assembly and 11 by bodies of the judiciary)

      Political parties and leaders: Alliance for National Salvation or

       ANS (coalition led mainly by Movement for Rights and Freedoms or

       MRF) [Ahmed DOGAN]; Bulgarian Business Bloc or BBB [Georgi GANCHEV];

       Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Georgi PURVANOV, chairman];

       Democratic Left or DL (bloc led by BSP, includes Ecoglasnost

       Political Club and Bulgarian Agrarian National Union) [leader NA];

       Euro-left [Aleksandur TOMOV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary

       Organization or UMRO [Aleksander KARAKACHNOV]; Kingdom of Bulgaria

       Federation [leader NA]; Movement for Rights and Freedom or DPS

       [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Simeon II [Simeon II, former

       king]; New Civic Party for Bulgaria [Bogomil BONEV]; People's Union

       or PU (includes Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union and Democratic

       Party) [Anastasiya MOZER]; St. George's Day [Lyuben DILOV]; Union of

       Democratic Forces or UDF (an alliance of pro-democratic parties)

       [Ivan KOSTOV]

      Political pressure groups and leaders: agrarian movement; Bulgarian

       Democratic Center; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of

       Bulgaria or CITUB; Democratic Alliance for the Republic or DAR; New

       Union for Democracy or NUD; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous

       regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas

      International organization participation: ACCT, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE,

       CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD,

       ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO,

       Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG,

       OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,