new government; the government has asked all military personnel to return totheir stations; a large number of former resistance groups also field
irregular military forces; the Ministry of State Security (WAD) has been
disbanded
Manpower availability:
males 15-49, 3,989,232; 2,139,771 fit for military service; 150,572 reach
military age (22) annually
Defense expenditures:
the new government has not yet adopted a defense budget
:Albania Geography
Total area:
28,750 km2
Land area:
27,400 km2
Comparative area:
slightly larger than Maryland
Land boundaries:
720 km total; Greece 282 km, Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km
(114 km with Serbia, 173 km with Montenegro)
Coastline:
362 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf:
not specified
Territorial sea:
12 nm
Disputes:
Kosovo question with Serbia and Montenegro; Northern Epirus question with
Greece
Climate:
mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior
is cooler and wetter
Terrain:
mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast
Natural resources:
crude oil, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, timber, nickel
Land use:
arable land 21%; permanent crops 4%; meadows and pastures 15%; forest and
woodland 38%; other 22%; includes irrigated 1%
Environment:
subject to destructive earthquakes; tsunami occur along southwestern coast
Note:
strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea
and Mediterranean Sea)
:Albania People
Population:
3,285,224 (July 1992), growth rate 1.1% (1992)
Birth rate:
23 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
5 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
—6 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
27 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
71 years male, 78 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
2.8 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
noun - Albanian(s); adjective - Albanian
Ethnic divisions:
Albanian 90%, Greeks 8%, other 2% (Vlachs, Gypsies, Serbs, and Bulgarians)
(1989 est.)
Religions:
all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious observances
prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing private religious
practice; estimates of religious affiliation - Muslim 70%, Greek Orthodox
20%, Roman Catholic 10%
Languages:
Albanian (Tosk is official dialect), Greek
Literacy:
72% (male 80%, female 63%) age 9 and over can read and write (1955)
Labor force:
1,500,000 (1987); agriculture about 60%, industry and commerce 40% (1986)
Organized labor:
Independent Trade Union Federation of Albania; Confederation of Trade Unions
:Albania Government
Long-form name:
Republic of Albania
Type:
nascent democracy
Capital:
Tirane
Administrative divisions:
26 districts (rrethe, singular - rreth); Berat, Dibre, Durres, Elbasan,
Fier, Gjirokaster, Gramsh, Kolonje, Kore, Kruje, Kukes, Lezhe, Librazhd,
Lushnje, Mat, Mirdite, Permet, Pogradec, Puke, Sarande, Shkoder, Skrapar,
Tepelene, Tirane, Tropoje, Vlore
Independence:
28 November 1912 (from Ottoman Empire); People's Socialist Republic of
Albania declared 11 January 1946
Constitution:
an interim basic law was approved by the People's Assembly on 29 April 1991;
a new constitution is to be drafted for adoption in 1992
Legal system:
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
Liberation Day, 29 November (1944)
