Country List | World Factbook Home
The World Factbook 2002
| Yugoslavia |

Introduction | Yugoslavia

Background:

The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in 1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941 was resisted by various paramilitary bands that fought themselves as well as the invaders. The group headed by Marshal TITO took full control upon German expulsion in 1945. Although Communist, his new government successfully steered its own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In the early 1990s, post-TITO Yugoslavia began to unravel along ethnic lines: Slovenia, Croatia, and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia all declared their independence in 1991; Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992. The remaining republics of Serbia and Montenegro declared a new "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" (FRY)in 1992 and, under President Slobodan MILOSEVIC, Serbia led various military intervention efforts to unite Serbs in neighboring republics into a "Greater Serbia." All of these efforts were ultimately unsuccessful. In 1999, massive expulsions by FRY forces and Serb paramilitaries of ethnic Albanians living in Kosovo provoked an international response, including the NATO bombing of Serbia and the stationing of NATO and Russian peacekeepers in Kosovo. There are Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS)-led coalitions governing at the federal and Serbian Republic levels, implementing a wide-ranging political and economic reform program. The governing coalition in Montenegro is seeking independence from the Federation. Kosovo has been governed by the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) since June 1999, under the authority of UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

Geography | Yugoslavia

Location: | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina
Geographic coordinates: | 44 00 N, 21 00 E
Map references: | Europe
Area: | total: 102,350 sq km water: 214 sq km land: 102,136 sq km
Area - comparative: | slightly smaller than Kentucky
Land boundaries: | total: 2,246 km border countries: Albania 287 km, Bosnia and Herzegovina 527 km, Bulgaria 318 km, Croatia (north) 241 km, Croatia (south) 25 km, Hungary 151 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 221 km, Romania 476 km
Coastline: | 199 km
Maritime claims: | NA
Climate: | in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall); central portion, continental and Mediterranean climate; to the south, Adriatic climate along the coast, hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall inland
Terrain: | extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient mountains and hills; to the southwest, extremely high shoreline with no islands off the coast
Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m highest point: Daravica 2,656 m
Natural resources: | oil, gas, coal, antimony, copper, lead, zinc, nickel, gold, pyrite, chrome, hydropower, arable land
Land use: | arable land: 36% permanent crops: 4% other: 60% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: | 570 sq km
Natural hazards: | destructive earthquakes
Environment - current issues: | pollution of coastal waters from sewage outlets, especially in tourist-related areas such as Kotor; air pollution around Belgrade and other industrial cities; water pollution from industrial wastes dumped into the Sava which flows into the Danube
Environment - international agreements: | party to: Air Pollution, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity
Geography - note: | controls one of the major land routes from Western Europe to Turkey and the Near East; strategic location along the Adriatic coast

People | Yugoslavia

Population: | 10,656,929 note: all data dealing with population is subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by military action and ethnic cleansing (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: | 0-14 years: 19.6% (male 1,077,581; female 1,005,379) 15-64 years: 65.3% (male 3,415,929; female 3,546,410) 65 years and over: 15.1% (male 690,014; female 921,616) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: | -0.12% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: | 12.8 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate: | 10.59 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate: | -3.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: | 17.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 73.72 years female: 76.89 years (2002 est.) male: 70.78 years
Total fertility rate: | 1.78 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA
Nationality: | noun: Serb(s); Montenegrin(s) adjective: Serbian; Montenegrin
Ethnic groups: | Serb 62.6%, Albanian 16.5%, Montenegrin 5%, Hungarian 3.3%, other 12.6% (1991)
Religions: | Orthodox 65%, Muslim 19%, Roman Catholic 4%, Protestant 1%, other 11%
Languages: | Serbian 95%, Albanian 5%
Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 97.2% female: 88.9% (1991)

Government | Yugoslavia

Country name: | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Yugoslavia conventional short form: Yugoslavia local short form: Jugoslavija local long form: Savezna Republika Jugoslavija
Government type: | republic
Capital: | Belgrade
Administrative divisions: | 2 republics (republike, singular - republika); and 2 nominally autonomous provinces* (autonomn pokrajine, singular - autonomna pokrajina); Kosovo*, Montenegro, Serbia, Vojvodina*
Independence: | 27 April 1992 (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or FRY formed as self-proclaimed successor to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or SFRY)
National holiday: | Republic Day, 29 November
Constitution: | 27 April 1992
Legal system: | based on civil law system
Suffrage: | 16 years of age, if employed; 18 years of age, universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Vojislav KOSTUNICA (since 7 October 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Dragisa PESIC (since 24 July 2001); Deputy Prime Minister Miroljub LABUS (since 25 January 2001)
cabinet: Federal Executive Council
elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for up to two, four-year terms; election last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Vojislav KOSTUNICA elected president; percent of vote - Vojislav KOSTUNICA 50.2%, Slobodan MILOSEVIC 37%

Legislative branch:

bicameral Federal Assembly or Savezna Skupstina consists of the Chamber of Republics or Vece Republika (40 seats - 20 Serbian, 20 Montenegrin; members distributed on the basis of party representation in the republican assemblies to serve four-year terms; note - the Assembly passed a new constitutional amendment calling for direct elections for the deputies to the upper chamber) and the Chamber of Citizens or Vece Gradjana (138 seats - 108 Serbian with half elected by constituency majorities and half by proportional representation, 30 Montenegrin with six elected by constituency and 24 proportionally; members serve four-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Republics - last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Citizens - last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results: Chamber of Republics - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SNP 19, DOS 10, SPS/JUL 7, SRS 2, SPO 1, SNS 1; note - seats are filled on a proportional basis to reflect the composition of the legislatures of the republics of Montenegro and Serbia; since 1998 Serbia has effectively barred Montenegro from its constitutional right to delegate deputies to the Chamber of Republics; Chamber of Citizens - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - DOS 58, SPS/JUL 44, SNP 28, SRS 5, SNS 2, other 1

Judicial branch: | Federal Court or Savezni Sud; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts are elected by the Federal Assembly for nine-year terms

Political parties and leaders:

Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians or SVM [Jozsef KASZA]; Civic Alliance of Serbia or GSS [Goran SVILANOVIC]; Coalition Sandzak [Rasim LJAJIC]; Coalition Sumadija [Branislav KOVACEVIC]; Democratic Alternative of DA [Nebojsa COVIC]; Democratic Center or DC [Dragoljub MICUNOVIC]; Democratic Christian Party of Serbia of DHSS [Vladan BATIC]; Democratic League of Kosovo or LDK [Dr. Ibrahim RUGOVA, president]; Democratic Opposition of Serbia or DOS [leader NA]; Democratic Party or DS [Zoran DJINDJIC]; Democratic Party of Serbia or DSS [Vojislav KOSTUNICA]; Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro or DPS [Milo DJUKANOVIC]; Movement for a Democratic Serbia or PDS [Momcilo PERISIC]; New Democracy or ND [Dusan MIHAJLOVIC]; New Serbia [Velimir ILIC]; People's Party of Montenegro or NS [Dragan SOC]; Serb People's Party or SNS [Bozidar BOJOVIC]; Serbian Radical Party or SRS [Vojislav SESELJ]; Serbian Renewal Movement or SPO [Vuk DRASKOVIC, president]; Serbian Socialist Party or SPS (former Communist Party) [Slobodan MILOSEVIC]; Social Democracy or SD [Vuk OBRADOVIC]; Social Democratic Union or SDU [Zarko KORAC]; Socialist People's Party of Montenegro or SNP [Momir BULATOVIC]; Yugoslav United Left or JUL [Ljubisa RISTIC]

Political pressure groups and leaders:

Alliance for the Future of Kosovo or AAK [Ramush HARADINAJ]; Democratic League of Kosovo or LDK [Ibrahim RUGOVA]; Democratic Party of Kosovo or PDK [Hashim THACI]; Group of 17 Independent Economists or G-17 [leader NA]; National Movement for the Liberation of Kosovo or LKCK [Sabit GASHI]; Otpor Student Resistance Movement [leader NA]; Political Council for Presevo, Meveda and Bujanovac or PCPMB [leader NA]; The People's Movement for Kosovo or LPK [Emrush XHEMAJLI]

International organization participation: | ABEDA, BIS, CCC, CE (guest), CEI, EBRD, FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Ivan ZIVKOVIC telephone: [1] (202) 462-6566 chancery: 2134 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador William D. MONTGOMERY embassy: Kneza Milosa 50, 11000 Belgrade telephone: [381] (11) 361-9344 FAX: [381] (11) 646-031 branch office: Pristina
Flag description: | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and red

Economy | Yugoslavia

Economy - overview:

MILOSEVIC-era mismanagement of the economy, an extended period of economic sanctions, and the damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry during the war in Kosovo has left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. Since the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President MILOSEVIC in October 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government has implemented stabilization measures and embarked on an aggressive market reform program. After renewing its membership in the IMF in December 2000, Yugoslavia continued to reintegrate into the international community by rejoining the World Bank (IBRD) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). A World Bank-European Commission sponsored Donors' Conference held in June 2001 raised $1.3 billion for economic restructuring. An agreement rescheduling the country's $4.5 billion Paris Club government debts was concluded in November 2001; it will write off 66% of the debt and provide a basis for Belgrade to seek similar debt relief on its $2.8 billion London Club commercial debt. The smaller republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the MILOSEVIC era and continues to maintain it's own central bank, uses the euro instead of the Yugoslav dinar as official currency, collects customs tariffs, and manages its own budget. Kosovo, while technically still part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia according to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244, is moving toward local autonomy under United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and is dependent on the international community for financial and technical assistance. The euro and the Yugoslav dinar are official currencies, and UNMIK collects taxes and manages the budget.

GDP: | purchasing power parity - $24 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: | 5% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: | purchasing power parity - $2,250 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 26% industry: 36% services: 38% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line: | 30%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 40% (2001 est.)
Labor force: | 3 million (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate: | 30% (2001)
Budget: | revenues: $3.9 billion expenditures: $4.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)

Industries:

machine building (aircraft, trucks, and automobiles; tanks and weapons; electrical equipment; agricultural machinery); metallurgy (steel, aluminum, copper, lead, zinc, chromium, antimony, bismuth, cadmium); mining (coal, bauxite, nonferrous ore, iron ore, limestone); consumer goods (textiles, footwear, foodstuffs, appliances); electronics, petroleum products, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals

Industrial production growth rate: | 11% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production: | 32.984 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 58.75% hydro: 41.25% other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: | 31.546 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: | 43 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: | 914 million kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: | cereals, fruits, vegetables, tobacco, olives; cattle, sheep, goats
Exports: | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Exports - commodities: | manufactured goods, food and live animals, raw materials
Exports - partners: | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Germany (2001)
Imports: | $4.5 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Imports - commodities: | machinery and transport equipment, fuels and lubricants, manufactured goods, chemicals, food and live animals, raw materials
Imports - partners: | Germany, Italy, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (2001)
Debt - external: | $9.2 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: | $2 billion pledged in 2001 (disbursements to follow for several years)
Currency: | new Yugoslav dinar (YUM); note - in Montenegro the euro is legal tender; in Kosovo both the euro and the Yugoslav dinar are legal (2002)
Currency code: | YUM
Exchange rates: | new Yugoslav dinars per US dollar - official rate: 65 (January 2002), 10.0 (December 1998), 5.85 (December 1997), 5.02 (September 1996); black market rate: 14.5 (December 1998), 8.9 (December 1997)
Fiscal year: | calendar year

Communications | Yugoslavia

Telephones - main lines in use: | 2.017 million (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: | 87,000 (1997)
Telephone system: | general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: | AM 113, FM 194, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: | 3.15 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: | more than 771 (including 86 strong stations and 685 low-power stations, plus 20 repeaters in the principal networks; also numerous local or private stations in Serbia and Vojvodina) (1997)
Televisions: | 2.75 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 9 (2000)
Internet users: | 400,000 (2001)

Transportation | Yugoslavia

Railways: | total: 4,059 km standard gauge: 4,059 km 1.435-m gauge (1,377 km electrified) note: during the 1999 Kosovo conflict, the Serbian rail system suffered significant damage due to bridge destruction; many rail bridges have been rebuilt; Montenegrin rail lines remain intact (2001)
Highways: | total: 48,603 km paved: 28,822 km (including 560 km of expressways) note: because of the 1999 Kosovo conflict, many road bridges were destroyed; since the end of the conflict in June 1999, there has been an intensive program to either rebuild bridges or build by-pass routes (1999) unpaved: 19,781 km

Waterways:

587 km
note: the Danube River, central Europe's connection with the Black Sea, runs through Serbia; since early 2000, a pontoon bridge, replacing a destroyed conventional bridge, has obstructed river traffic at Novi Sad; the obstruction is bypassed by a canal system, the inadequate lock size of which limits the size of vessels which may pass; the pontoon bridge can be opened for large ships but has slowed river traffic (2001)

Pipelines: | crude oil 415 km; petroleum products 130 km; natural gas 2,110 km
Ports and harbors: | Bar, Belgrade, Kotor, Novi Sad, Pancevo, Tivat, Zelenika
Merchant marine: | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,437 GRT/400 DWT ships by type: short-sea passenger 1 (2002 est.)
Airports: | 46 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: | total: 19 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2001) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6
Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 27 27 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 2 13 (2001)
Heliports: | 2 (2001)

Military | Yugoslavia

Military branches: | Army (VJ) (including ground forces with border troops, naval forces, air and air defense forces)
Military manpower - military age: | 19 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 2,589,437 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 2,082,322 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: | males: 82,542 (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $654 million (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | NA%

Transnational Issues | Yugoslavia

Disputes - international:

Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have delimited about half of their boundary, but several segments, particularly along the meandering Drina River, remain in dispute; FYROM-Yugoslavia signed and ratified a boundary agreement, which adjusts the former republic boundaries, with demarcation to commence in 2002; ethnic Albanians in Kosovo dispute authority of agreement which cedes small tracts of Kosovo to FYROM; Croatia and Yugoslavia continue to discuss disputed Prevlaka Peninsula and control over the Gulf of Kotor despite imminent UN intention to withdraw observer mission (UNMOP)

Illicit drugs: | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western Europe on the Balkan route

This page was last updated on 1 January 2002