Bulgaria

• temperate;
• cold, damp winters;
• hot, dry summers

total:

6.92 cu km/yr (3%/78%/19%)

per capita:

895 cu m/yr (2003)

• air pollution from industrial emissions;
• rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents;
• deforestation;
• forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain;
• soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.69 male(s)/female

total population:

0.92 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

noun:

Bulgarian(s)

adjective:

Bulgarian

conventional long form:

Republic of Bulgaria

conventional short form:

Bulgaria

local long form:

Republika Balgariya

local short form:

Balgariya

name:

Sofia

geographic coordinates:

42 41 N, 23 19 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

• 28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast);
• Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya, Sofiya-Grad, Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol

chief of state:

President Georgi PARVANOV (since 22 January 2002); Vice President Angel MARIN (since 22 January 2002)

head of government:

• Prime Minister Sergei STANISHEV (since 16 August 2005);
• Deputy Prime Ministers Ivaylo KALFIN, Daniel VULCHEV, and Emel ETEM (since 16 August 2005) and Meglena PLUGCHIEVA (since 25 April 2008)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly

elections:

• president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held 22 and 29 October 2006 (next to be held in 2011);
• chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) nominated by the president and elected by the National Assembly;
• deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly

election results:

• Georgi PARVANOV reelected president;
• percent of vote - Georgi PARVANOV 77.3%, Volen SIDEROV 22.7%;
• Sergei STANISHEV elected prime minister, result of legislative vote - 168 to 67

• Supreme Administrative Court;
• Supreme Court of Cassation;
• Constitutional Court (12 justices appointed or elected for nine-year terms);
• Supreme Judicial Council (consists of the chairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22 other members; responsible for appointing the justices, prosecutors, and investigating magistrates in the justice system; members of the Supreme Judicial Council elected for five-year terms, 11 elected by the National Assembly and 11 by bodies of the judiciary)

• ATAKA (Attack Coalition) (coalition of parties headed by the Attack National Union);
• Attack National Union [Volen SIDEROV];
• Bulgarian Agrarian National Union-People's Union or BANU [Anastasia MOZER];
• Bulgarian New Democracy [Borislav RALCHEV];
• Bulgarian People's Union or BPU (coalition of UFD, IMRO, and BANU);
• Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV];
• Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria or GERB [Tsvetan TSVETANOV];
• Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV];
• Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria or DSB [Ivan KOSTOV];
• Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or IMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV];
• Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN];
• National Movement for Stability and Progress or NMSS [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA] (formerly National Movement Simeon II or NMS2);
• New Time [Emil KOSHLUKOV];
• Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Petar STOYANOV];
• Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI];
• United Democratic Forces or UtDF (a coalition of center-right parties dominated by UDF)

ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

chief of mission:

Ambassador Latechezar PETKOV

chancery:

1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 387-0174

FAX:

[1] (202) 234-7973

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, Los Angeles, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador Nancy McELDOWNEY

embassy:

16 Kozyak Street, Sofia 1407

mailing address:

American Embassy Sofia, US Department of State, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740

telephone:

[359] (2) 937-5100

FAX:

[359] (2) 937-5320

agriculture:

8.5%

industry:

33.6%

services:

57.9% (2nd qtr. 2006 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.9%

highest 10%:

25.4% (2005)

• electricity, gas, water;
• food, beverages, tobacco;
• machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel

• machinery and equipment;
• metals and ores;
• chemicals and plastics;
• fuels, minerals, and raw materials

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)

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)

total:

40,231 km

paved:

39,587 km (includes 331 km of expressways)

unpaved:

644 km (2005)

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)

• 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)

males age 16-49:

1,701,979

females age 16-49:

1,691,092 (2008 est.)

males age 16-49:

1,364,029

females age 16-49:

1,401,348 (2008 est.)

male:

39,477

female:

37,339 (2008 est.)

• 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