2003 Edition

Administrative divisions

England - 47 boroughs, 36 counties*, 29 London boroughs**, 12 cities and boroughs***, 10 districts****, 12 cities*****, 3 royal boroughs******; Barking and Dagenham**, Barnet**, Barnsley, Bath and North East Somerset****, Bedfordshire*, Bexley**, Birmingham***, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bracknell Forest, Bradford***, Brent**, Brighton and Hove, City of Bristol*****, Bromley**, Buckinghamshire*, Bury, Calderdale, Cambridgeshire*, Camden**, Cheshire*, Cornwall*, Coventry***, Croydon**, Cumbria*, Darlington, Derby*****, Derbyshire*, Devon*, Doncaster, Dorset*, Dudley, Durham*, Ealing**, East Riding of Yorkshire****, East Sussex*, Enfield**, Essex*, Gateshead, Gloucestershire*, Greenwich**, Hackney**, Halton, Hammersmith and Fulham**, Hampshire*, Haringey**, Harrow**, Hartlepool, Havering**, Herefordshire*, Hertfordshire*, Hillingdon**, Hounslow**, Isle of Wight*, Islington**, Kensington and Chelsea******, Kent*, City of Kingston upon Hull*****, Kingston upon Thames******, Kirklees, Knowsley, Lambeth**, Lancashire*, Leeds***, Leicester*****, Leicestershire*, Lewisham**, Lincolnshire*, Liverpool***, City of London*****, Luton, Manchester***, Medway, Merton**, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne***, Newham**, Norfolk*, Northamptonshire*, North East Lincolnshire****, North Lincolnshire****, North Somerset****, North Tyneside, Northumberland*, North Yorkshire*, Nottingham*****, Nottinghamshire*, Oldham, Oxfordshire*, Peterborough*****, Plymouth*****, Poole, Portsmouth*****, Reading, Redbridge**, Redcar and Cleveland, Richmond upon Thames**, Rochdale, Rotherham, Rutland****, Salford***, Shropshire*, Sandwell, Sefton, Sheffield***, Slough, Solihull, Somerset*, Southampton*****, Southend-on-Sea, South Gloucestershire****, South Tyneside, Southwark**, Staffordshire*, St. Helens, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent*****, Suffolk*, Sunderland***, Surrey*, Sutton**, Swindon, Tameside, Telford and Wrekin****, Thurrock, Torbay, Tower Hamlets**, Trafford, Wakefield***, Walsall, Waltham Forest**, Wandsworth**, Warrington, Warwickshire*, West Berkshire****, Westminster***, West Sussex*, Wigan, Wiltshire*, Windsor and Maidenhead******, Wirral, Wokingham****, Wolverhampton, Worcestershire*, York*****; Northern Ireland - 24 districts, 2 cities*, 6 counties**; Antrim, County Antrim**, Ards, Armagh, County Armagh**, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge, Belfast*, Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon, Down, County Down**, Dungannon, Fermanagh, County Fermanagh**, Larne, Limavady, Lisburn, County Londonderry**, Derry*, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh, Strabane, County Tyrone**; Scotland - 32 council areas; Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, The Scottish Borders, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow City, Highland, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Moray, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, Renfrewshire, Shetland Islands, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, Stirling, West Dunbartonshire, Eilean Siar (Western Isles), West Lothian; Wales - 11 county boroughs, 9 counties*, 2 cities and counties**; Isle of Anglesey*, Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff**, Ceredigion*, Carmarthenshire*, Conwy, Denbighshire*, Flintshire*, Gwynedd, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire*, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Pembrokeshire*, Powys*, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Swansea**, Torfaen, The Vale of Glamorgan*, Wrexham

Age structure

0-14 years: 18.3% (male 5,621,590; female 5,350,319) 15-64 years: 66.1% (male 20,067,529; female 19,626,123) 65 years and over: 15.6% (male 3,987,457; female 5,441,630) (2003 est.)

Agriculture - products

cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish

Airports

470 (2002)

Airports - with paved runways

over 3,047 m

8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 33 914 to 1,523 m: 83

total

334

under 914 m

59 (2002) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 151

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

136 2438 to 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1

under 914 m

112 (2002) 914 to 1,523 m: 22

Area

land

241,590 sq km

note

includes Rockall and Shetland Islands

total

244,820 sq km

water

3,230 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than Oregon

Background

Great Britain, the dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, a founding member of NATO, and of the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy; it currently is weighing the degree of its integration with continental Europe. A member of the EU, it chose to remain outside the European Monetary Union for the time being. Constitutional reform is also a significant issue in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1999. Geography United Kingdom

Birth rate

10.99 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)

Budget

expenditures

$540 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 01)

revenues

$565 billion

Capital

London

Climate

temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast

Coastline

12,429 km

Constitution

unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice

Country name

abbreviation

UK

conventional long form

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

conventional short form

United Kingdom

Currency

British pound (GBP)

Currency code

GBP

Death rate

10.21 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)

Debt - external

$NA

Dependent areas

Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador William S. FARISH

embassy

24/31 Grosvenor Square, London, W1A1AE

mailing address

PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040

telephone

[44] (0) 7499-9000

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador David G. MANNING

Disputes - international

Gibraltar residents vote overwhelmingly in referendum against "total shared sovereignty" arrangement worked out between Spain and UK to change 300-year rule over colony; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory) and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; Argentina claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM

Distribution of family income - Gini index

36.8 (1995)

Economic aid - donor

ODA, $4.5 billion (2000)

Economy - overview

The UK, a leading trading power and financial center, is one of the quartet of trillion dollar economies of Western Europe. Over the past two decades the government has greatly reduced public ownership and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards, producing about 60% of food needs with only 1% of the labor force. The UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves; primary energy production accounts for 10% of GDP, one of the highest shares of any industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP while industry continues to decline in importance. GDP growth slipped in 2001-03 as the global downturn, the high value of the pound, and the bursting of the "new economy" bubble hurt manufacturing and exports. Still, the economy is one of the strongest in Europe; inflation, interest rates, and unemployment remain low. The relatively good economic performance has complicated the BLAIR government's efforts to make a case for Britain to join the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Critics point out, however, that the economy is doing well outside of EMU, and they point to public opinion polls that continue to show a majority of Britons opposed to the single currency. Meantime, the government has been speeding up the improvement of education, transport, and health services, at a cost in higher taxes. The war in March-April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq, together with the subsequent problems of restoring the economy and the polity, involve a heavy commitment of British military forces.

Electricity - consumption

346.1 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports

264 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

10.66 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production

360.9 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

73.8%

hydro

0.9%

nuclear

23.7%

other

1.6% (2001)

Elevation extremes

highest point

Ben Nevis 1,343 m

lowest point

The Fens -4 m

Environment - current issues

continues to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (has met Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5% reduction from 1990 levels and intends to meet the legally binding target and move towards a domestic goal of a 20% cut in emissions by 2010); by 2005 the government aims to reduce the amount of industrial and commercial waste disposed of in landfill sites to 85% of 1998 levels and to recycle or compost at least 25% of household waste, increasing to 33% by 2015; between 1998-99 and 1999-2000, household recycling increased from 8.8% to 10.3%

Environment - international agreements

party to

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified

Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Ethnic groups

English 81.5%, Scottish 9.6%, Irish 2.4%, Welsh 1.9%, Ulster 1.8%, West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%

Exchange rates

British pounds per US dollar - 0.67 (2002), 0.69 (2001), 0.66 (2000), 0.62 (1999), 0.6 (1998)

Executive branch

cabinet

Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the prime minister

chief of state

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November 1948)

elections

none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually the prime minister

head of government

Prime Minister Anthony (Tony) BLAIR (since 2 May 1997)

Exports

$286.3 billion f.o.b. (2002)

Exports - commodities

manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco

Exports - partners

US 15.5%, Germany 11.2%, France 9.4%, Ireland 8%, Netherlands 7.1%, Belgium 5.2%, Italy 4.4%, Spain 4.3% (2002)

FAX

[1] (202) 588-7870

[44] (0) 7629-9124

consulate(s)

Dallas, Denver, Miami, and Seattle

consulate(s) general

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco

consulate(s) general

Belfast, Edinburgh

telephone

[1] (202) 588-6500

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March Communications United Kingdom

Flag description

blue field with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland), which is superimposed on the diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); properly known as the Union Flag, but commonly called the Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the Blue Ensign) have been the basis for a number of other flags including other Commonwealth countries and their constituent states or provinces, as well as British overseas territories Economy United Kingdom

GDP

purchasing power parity - $1.528 trillion (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

1.4%

industry

24.9%

services

73.7% (2000)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $25,500 (2002 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

1.8% (2002 est.)

Geographic coordinates

54 00 N, 2 00 W

Geography - note

lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km from France and now linked by tunnel under the English Channel; because of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km from tidal waters People United Kingdom

Government type

constitutional monarchy

Heliports

11 (2002) Military United Kingdom

Highways

paved

371,913 km (including 3,358 km of expressways)

total

371,913 km

unpaved

0 km (1999)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

460 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

34,000 (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

highest 10%

27.7% (1995)

lowest 10%

2.3%

Illicit drugs

gateway country for Latin American cocaine entering the European market; major consumer of synthetic drugs, producer of limited amounts of synthetic drugs and synthetic precursor chemicals; major consumer of Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering center This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003

Imports

$330.1 billion f.o.b. (2002)

Imports - commodities

manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs

Imports - partners

Germany 12.9%, US 11.9%, France 7.8%, Netherlands 6.3%, Belgium 5%, Italy 4.4% (2002)

Independence

England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th century; the union between England and Wales, begun in 1284 with the Statute of Rhuddlan, was not formalized until 1536 with an Act of Union; in another Act of Union in 1707, England and Scotland agreed to permanently join as Great Britain; the legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927

Industrial production growth rate

-3.4% (2002 est.)

Industries

machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods

Infant mortality rate

female

4.63 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)

male

5.89 deaths/1,000 live births

total

5.28 deaths/1,000 live births

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

2.1% (2002 est.)

International organization participation

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, C, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC

Internet country code

.uk

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

more than 400 (2000)

Internet users

34.3 million (2002) Transportation United Kingdom

Irrigated land

1,080 sq km (1998 est.)

Judicial branch

House of Lords (highest court of appeal; several Lords of Appeal in Ordinary are appointed by the monarch for life); Supreme Courts of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland (comprising the Courts of Appeal, the High Courts of Justice, and the Crown Courts); Scotland's Court of Session and Court of the Justiciary

Labor force

29.7 million (2001)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 1%, industry 25%, services 74% (1999)

Land boundaries

border countries

Ireland 360 km

total

360 km

Land use

arable land

26.41%

other

73.41% (1998 est.)

permanent crops

0.18%

Languages

English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland)

Legal system

common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences; has judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament comprised of House of Lords (consists of approximately 500 life peers, 92 hereditary peers and 26 clergy) and House of Commons (659 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier)

election results

House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Labor 42.1%, Conservative and Unionist 32.7%, Liberal Democrats 18.8%, other 6.4%; seats by party - Labor 412, Conservative and Unionist 166, Liberal Democrat 52, other 29; note - seating as of 15 February 2002: Labor 410, Conservative 164, Liberal Democrats 53, other 32

elections

House of Lords - no elections (note - in 1999, as provided by the House of Lords Act, elections were held in the House of Lords to determine the 92 hereditary peers who would remain there; pending further reforms, elections are held only as vacancies in the hereditary peerage arise); House of Commons - last held 7 June 2001 (next to be held by NA May 2006)

note

in 1998 elections were held for a Northern Ireland Parliament (because of unresolved disputes among existing parties, the transfer of power from London to Northern Ireland came only at the end of 1999 and has been rescinded three times the latest occurring in October 2002; since October 2002 the Northern Ireland Parliament has been suspended); in 1999 there were elections for a new Scottish Parliament and a new Welsh Assembly

Life expectancy at birth

female

80.7 years (2003 est.)

male

75.74 years

total population

78.16 years

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling

female

NA% Government United Kingdom

male

NA%

total population

99% (2000 est.)

Location

Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

continental shelf

as defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed upon boundaries

exclusive fishing zone

200 NM

territorial sea

12 NM

Median age

female

39.5 years (2002)

male

37.3 years

total

38.4 years

Merchant marine

convenience

Bermuda 1, Cyprus 1, Denmark 21, Germany 6, Greece 3, Hong Kong 4, Italy 1, Monaco 4, Netherlands 1, Norway 9, Russia 1, South Africa 2, Sweden 11, Taiwan 2, US 5 (2002 est.)

note

includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of

ships by type

bulk 14, cargo 43, chemical tanker 19, combination ore/oil 1, container 95, liquefied gas 4, livestock carrier 1, passenger 18, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 50, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 37, short-sea passenger 8, specialized tanker 1

total

295 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,752,179 GRT/6,963,112 DWT

Military branches

Army, Royal Navy (including Royal Marines), Royal Air Force

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$31.7 billion (2002)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.32% (2002) Transnational Issues United Kingdom

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49

14,877,666 (2003 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49

12,353,942 (2003 est.)

National holiday

Official Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, celebrated on the second Saturday in June (1926)

Nationality

adjective

British

noun

Briton(s), British (collective plural)

Natural gas - consumption

92.85 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports

15.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports

2.7 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - production

105.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

714.9 billion cu m (37257)

Natural hazards

winter windstorms; floods

Natural resources

coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land

Net migration rate

2.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption

1.71 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

2.205 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports

1.418 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - production

2.541 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

4.741 billion bbl (37257)

Pipelines

condensate 370 km; gas 21,263 km; liquid petroleum gas 59 km; oil 6,420 km; oil/gas/water 63 km; refined products 4,474 km; water 650 km (2003)

Political parties and leaders

Conservative and Unionist Party [Michael HOWARD]; Democratic Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [Rev. Ian PAISLEY]; Labor Party [Anthony (Tony) BLAIR]; Liberal Democrats [Charles KENNEDY]; Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru) [Ieuan Wyn Jones]; Scottish National Party or SNP [John SWINNEY]; Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland) [Gerry ADAMS]; Social Democratic and Labor Party or SDLP (Northern Ireland) [Mark DURKAN]; Ulster Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [David TRIMBLE]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament; Confederation of British Industry; National Farmers' Union; Trades Union Congress

Population

60,094,648 (July 2003 est.)

Population below poverty line

17%

Population growth rate

0.3% (2003 est.)

Ports and harbors

Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport, Tyne

Radio broadcast stations

AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998)

Radios

84.5 million (1997)

Railways

broad gauge

357 km 1.600-m gauge (in Northern Ireland) (2002)

standard gauge

16,536 km 1.435-m gauge (4,928 km electrified)

total

16,893 km

Religions

Anglican and Roman Catholic 40 million, Muslim 1.5 million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 500,000, Hindu 500,000, Jewish 350,000

Sex ratio

at birth

1.05 male(s)/female

total population

0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)

under 15 years

1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Telephone system

domestic

equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems

general assessment

technologically advanced domestic and international system

international

40 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat; at least 8 large international switching centers

Telephones - main lines in use

34.878 million (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular

43.5 million (yearend 1998)

Television broadcast stations

228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions

30.5 million (1997)

Terrain

mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast

Total fertility rate

1.66 children born/woman (2003 est.)

Unemployment rate

5.2% (2002 est.)

Waterways

3,200 km