Romania

§1. Romania Introduction

Background:
  Soviet occupation following World War II led to the formation of a
  communist "peoples republic" in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The
  decades-long rule of President Nicolae CEAUSESCU became increasingly
  draconian through the 1980s. He was overthrown and executed in late 1989.
  Former communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept
  from power. Much economic restructuring remains to be carried out before
  Romania can achieve its hope of joining the EU.

§2. Romania Geography

Location:
  Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Ukraine

Geographic coordinates:
  46 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references:
  Europe

Area:
  total: 237,500 kmē
  land: 230,340 kmē
  water: 7,160 kmē

Area - comparative:
  slightly smaller than Oregon

Land boundaries:
  total: 2,508 km border countries: Bulgaria 608 km, Hungary 443 km, Moldova
    450 km, Yugoslavia 476 km, Ukraine (north) 362 km, Ukraine (east) 169 km

Coastline:
  225 km

Maritime claims:
  contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of
    exploitation
  exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
  territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate:
  temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers
  with frequent showers and thunderstorms

Terrain:
  central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain of Moldavia on the
  east by the Carpathian Mountains and separated from the Walachian Plain on
  the south by the Transylvanian Alps

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Moldoveanu 2,544 m

Natural resources:
  petroleum (reserves declining), timber, natural gas, coal, iron ore, salt,
  arable land, hydropower

Land use:
  arable land: 41%
  permanent crops: 3%
  permanent pastures: 21%
  forests and woodland: 29%
  other: 6% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land:
  31,020 kmē (1993 est.)

Natural hazards:
  earthquakes most severe in south and southwest; geologic structure and
  climate promote landslides

Environment - current issues:
  soil erosion and degradation; water pollution; air pollution in south from
  industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta wetlands

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
    Desertification, Endangered 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,
    Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note:
  controls most easily traversable land route between the Balkans, Moldova,
  and Ukraine

§3. Romania People

Population:
  22,364,022 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 17.95% (male 2,054,323; female 1,959,196)
  15-64 years: 68.51% (male 7,605,751; female 7,715,434)
  65 years and over: 13.54% (male 1,255,880; female 1,773,438) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate:
  -0.21% (2001 est.)

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

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

Net migration rate:
  -0.6 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: 0.99 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
  total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

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

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 70.16 years male: 66.36 years
  female: 74.19 years (2001 est.)

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

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  0.02% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  7,000 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  350 (1999 est.)

Nationality:
  noun: Romanian(s)
  adjective: Romanian

Ethnic groups:
  Romanian 89.5%, Hungarian 7.1%, Roma 1.8%, German 0.5%, Ukrainian 0.3%,
  other 0.8% (1992)

Religions:
  Romanian Orthodox 70%, Roman Catholic 3%, Uniate Catholic 3%, Protestant
  6%, unaffiliated 18%

Languages:
  Romanian, Hungarian, German

Literacy:
  definition: age 15 and over can read and write
  total population: 97%
  male: 98%
  female: 95% (1992 est.)

§4. Romania Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: none
  conventional short form: Romania
  local long form: none
  local short form: Romania

Government type:
  republic

Capital:
  Bucharest

Administrative divisions:
  40 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality* (municipiu);
  Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud, Botosani, Braila, Brasov,
  Bucuresti*, Buzau, Calarasi, Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna,
  Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati, Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita,
  Iasi, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare,
  Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea

Independence:
  1881 (from Turkey; republic proclaimed 30 December 1947)

National holiday:
  Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918)

Constitution:
  8 December 1991

Legal system:
  former mixture of civil law system and communist legal theory; is now based
  on the constitution of France's Fifth Republic

Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: President Ion ILIESCU (since 20 December 2000)
  head of government: Prime Minister Adrian NASTASE (since 29 December 2000)
  cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
  elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election
    last held 26 November 2000, with runoff between the top two candidates
    held 10 December 2000 (next to be held NA November/December 2004); prime
    minister appointed by the president
  election results: percent of vote - Ion ILIESCU 66.84%, Corneliu Vadim
    TUDOR 33.16%

Legislative branch:
  bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (140
  seats; members are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional
  representation basis to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies
  or Adunarea Deputatilor (345 seats; members are elected by direct popular
  vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms)
  elections: Senate - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held in the fall
    of 2004); Chamber of Deputies - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be
    held in the fall of 2004)
  election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDSR 37.1%, PRM
    21.0%, PD 7.6%, PNL 7.5%, UDMR 6.9%; seats by party - PDSR 65, PRM 37, PD
    13, PNL 13, UDMR 12; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party -
    PDSR 36.6%, PRM 19.5%, PD 7.0%, PNL, 6.9%, UDMR 6.8%; seats by party -
    PDSR 155, PRM 84, PD 31, PNL 30, UDMR 27, ethnic minorities 18

Judicial branch:
  Supreme Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the president on the
  recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistrates)

Political parties and leaders:
  Democratic Party or PD [Petre ROMAN]; Democratic Union of Hungarians in
  Romania or UDMR [Bela MARKO]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Mircea
  IONESCU-QUINTUS]; Party of Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR [Adrian
  NASTASE]; Romania Mare Party (Greater Romanian Party) or PRM [Corneliu
  Vadim TUDOR]; The Democratic Convention or CDR [Ion DIACONESCU]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  various human rights and professional associations

International organization participation:
  ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU
  (applicant), FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC,
  IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
  LAIA (observer), MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA,
  PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WEU
  (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 1607 23rd Street NW,
    Washington, DC 20008
  telephone: [1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851
  FAX: [1] (202) 232-4748
  consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador James C. ROSAPEPE embassy: Strada Tudor
    Arghezi 7-9, Bucharest
  mailing address: American Embassy Bucharest, Department of State,
    Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch)
  telephone: [40] (1) 210 40 42
  FAX: [40] (1) 210 03 95
  branch office(s): Cluj-Napoca

Flag description:
  three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; the
  national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been
  removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also resembles the flags of
  Andorra and Moldova

§5. Romania Economy

Economy - overview:
  Romania, one of the poorest countries in Central and Eastern Europe, began
  the transition from communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial
  base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country's needs. Over the past
  decade economic restructuring has lagged behind most other countries in the
  region. Consequently, living standards have continued to fall - real wages
  are down over 40%. Corruption too has worsened. The EU ranks Romania last
  among enlargement candidates, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and
  Development (EBRD) rates Romania's transition progress the region's worst.
  The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing three-year recession thanks to
  strong demand in EU export markets. A new government elected in November
  2000 promises to promote economic reform. Bucharest hopes to receive
  financial and technical assistance from international financial
  institutions and Western governments; negotiations over a new IMF standby
  agreement are to begin early in 2001. If reform stalls, Romania's ability
  to borrow from both public and private sources could quickly dry up,
  leading to another financial crisis.

GDP:
  purchasing power parity - $132.5 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
  2.2% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita:
  purchasing power parity - $5,900 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 13.9% industry: 32.6%
  services: 53.5% (2000)

Population below poverty line:
  44.5% (2000)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: 3.8% highest 10%: 20.2% (1992)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  45.7% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
  9.9 million (1999 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture 40%, industry 25%, services 35% (1998)

Unemployment rate:
  11.5% (1999)

Budget:
  revenues: $11.7 billion
  expenditures: $12.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999
    est.)

Industries:
  textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber,
  construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum
  refining

Industrial production growth rate:
  8% (2000)

Electricity - production:
  49.036 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source:
  fossil fuel: 53.99% hydro: 36.18%
  nuclear: 9.81%
  other: 0.02% (1999)

Electricity - consumption:
  44.768 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports:
  1.935 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports:
  1.1 billion kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products:
  wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes; eggs, sheep

Exports:
  $11.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  textiles and footwear 26%, metals and metal products 15%, machinery and
  equipment 11%, minerals and fuels 6% (1999)

Exports - partners:
  Italy 23%, Germany 18%, France 6%, Turkey 5%, US (1999)

Imports:
  $11.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  machinery and equipment 23%, fuels and minerals 12%, chemicals 9%, textile
  and products 19% (1999)

Imports - partners:
  Italy 20%, Germany 19%, France 7%, Russia 6% (1999)

Debt - external:
  $9.3 billion (2000 est.)

Currency:
  leu (ROL)

Currency code:
  ROL

Exchange rates:
  lei per US dollar - 26,243.0 (January 2001), 21,708.7 (2000), 15,332.8
  (1999), 8,875.6 (1998), 7,167.9 (1997), 3,084.2 (1996); note - lei is the
  plural form of leu

Fiscal year:
  calendar year

§6. Romania Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  3.777 million (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  645,500 (1999)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: poor domestic service, but improving
  domestic: 90% of telephone network is automatic; trunk network is mostly
    microwave radio relay, with some fiber-optic cable; about one-third of
    exchange capacity is digital; roughly 3,300 villages have no service
  international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; new digital,
    international, direct-dial exchanges operate in Bucharest; note - Romania
    is an active participant in several international telecommunication
    network projects (1999)

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 40, FM 202, shortwave 3 (1998)

Radios:
  7.2 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
  48 (plus 392 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions:
  5.25 million (1997)

Internet country code:
  .ro

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
  38 (2000)

Internet users:
  600,000 (2000)

§7. Romania Transportation

Railways:
  total: 11,385 km (3,888 km electrified)
  standard gauge: 10,898 km
  narrow gauge: 487 km (1996)

Highways:
  total: 153,359 km
  paved: 103,671 km (including 133 km of expressways)
  unpaved: 49,688 km (1998 est.)

Waterways:
  1,724 km (1984)

Pipelines:
  crude oil 2,800 km; petroleum products 1,429 km; natural gas 6,400 km
  (1992)

Ports and harbors:
  Braila, Constanta, Galati, Mangalia, Sulina, Tulcea

Merchant marine:
  total: 95 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 695,227 GRT/931,598 DWT
  ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 71, container 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo
    1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, roll on/roll off 4, specialized
    tanker 1 (2000 est.)

Airports:
  62 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 25 over 3,047 m: 3
  2,438 to 3,047 m: 10
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
  914 to 1,523 m: 12
  under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.)

Heliports:
  1 (2000 est.)

§8. Romania Military

Military branches:
  Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Paramilitary Forces, Civil Defense

Military manpower - military age:
  20 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
  males age 15-49: 5,899,536 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
  males age 15-49: 4,962,807 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
  males: 179,951 (2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  $720 million (FY00)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  2.2% (FY00)

§9. Romania Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  none

Illicit drugs:
  important transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the
  Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western
  Europe
