BGN

Exchange rates:

leva (BGN) per US dollar - 1.4366 (2007), 1.5576 (2006), 1.5741 (2005), 1.5751 (2004), 1.7327 (2003)

Communications
Bulgaria

Telephones - main lines in use:

2.3 million (2007)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

9.897 million (2007)

Telephone system:

general assessment: an extensive but antiquated telecommunications network inherited from the Soviet era; quality has improved; the Bulgaria Telecommunications Company's fixed-line monopoly terminated in 2005 when alternative fixed-line operators were given access to its network; a drop in fixed-line connections in recent years has been more than offset by a sharp increase in mobile-cellular telephone use fostered by multiple service providers; the number of cellular telephone subscriptions now exceeds the population domestic: a fairly modern digital cable trunk line now connects switching centers in most of the regions; the others are connected by digital microwave radio relay international: country code - 359; submarine cable provides connectivity to Ukraine and Russia; a combination submarine cable and land fiber-optic system provides connectivity to Italy, Albania, and Macedonia; satellite earth stations - 3 (1 Intersputnik in the Atlantic Ocean region, 2 Intelsat in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) (2007)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001)

Radios:

4.51 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:

39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001)

Televisions:

3.31 million (1997)

Internet country code:

.bg

Internet hosts:

513,470 (2008)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

200 (2001)

Internet users:

1.899 million (2007)

Transportation
Bulgaria

Airports:

214 (2007)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 131 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 95 (2007)

Airports - with unpaved runways:

total: 83 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 72 (2007)

Heliports:

4 (2007)

Pipelines:

gas 2,500 km; oil 339 km; refined products 156 km (2007)

Railways:

total: 4,294 km standard gauge: 4,049 km 1.435-m gauge (2,710 km electrified) narrow gauge: 245 km 0.760-m gauge (2006)

Roadways:

total: 40,231 km paved: 39,587 km (includes 331 km of expressways) unpaved: 644 km (2005)

Waterways:

470 km (2007)

Merchant marine:

total: 74 by type: bulk carrier 37, cargo 14, chemical tanker 5, container 6, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 65 (Germany 63, Ireland 1, Russia 1) registered in other countries: 31 (Comoros 2, Malta 5, Panama 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 15, Slovakia 6) (2008)

Ports and terminals:

Burgas, Varna

Military
Bulgaria

Military branches:

Bulgarian Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Bulgarian Air
Forces (Bulgarski Voennovazdyshni Sily, BVVS) (2008)

Military service age and obligation:

18-27 years of age for voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 9 months; as of May 2006, 67% of the Bulgarian Army comprised of professional soldiers; conscription ended as of 1 January 2008; Air and Air Defense Forces and Naval Forces became fully professional at the end of 2006 (2008)

Manpower available for military service:

males age 16-49: 1,701,979 females age 16-49: 1,691,092 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:

males age 16-49: 1,364,029 females age 16-49: 1,401,348 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:

male: 39,477 female: 37,339 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures:

2.6% of GDP (2005 est.)

Transnational Issues
Bulgaria

Disputes - international:

none

Illicit drugs:

major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and, to a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market; limited producer of precursor chemicals; some money laundering of drug-related proceeds through financial institutions

This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008

@Burkina Faso

Introduction
Burkina Faso

Background:

Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and has won every election since then. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries.

Geography
Burkina Faso

Location:

Western Africa, north of Ghana

Geographic coordinates: