Hungary

Republic of HungaryMagyar Koztarsasag

republicIndependence 1001 (unification by King Stephen I)

Hungary as the 1995 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 82 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalBudapest

Area93,030 sq km

LocationCentral Europe, northwest of Romania

Populationas each edition published it

10.32 million July 1995 est. · 10.57m in 1990

Population growth% a year

0.02% 1995 est. · -0.07% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 38.4 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

71.9 years 1995 est. · 70.86 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.82 children per woman 1995 est. · 1.8 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

11.9 deaths per 1,000 live births 1995 est. · 15 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$5,700 1994 est. · $5,380 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

3% 1994 est. · -5% in 1993

Geography

Central Europe, northwest of Romania

14 fields

Land useshare of 93,030 sq km

arable land 50.7%permanent crops 6.1%meadows and pastures 12.6%forest and woodland 18.3%other 12.3%irrigated 1,750 sq km (1989)

Area

93,030sq km

land area: 92,340 sq kmcomparative area: slightly smaller than Indiana

Coastline

0km

(landlocked)Maritime claims: none; landlocked

Land boundaries

1,989km

total · Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km (all with Serbia), Slovakia 515 km, Slovenia 82 km, Ukraine 103 km

Climate

temperate;
cold, cloudy, humid winters;
warm summers

Terrain

mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border

Natural resources

bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils

Environment

current issues:: air pollution; industrial and municipal pollution of Lake Balaton
natural hazards:: levees are common along many streams, but flooding occurs almost every year
international agreements:: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands;
signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea

Note

landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin

People

15 fields

Population

10,318,838

(July 1995 est.)growth rate: 0.02% (1995 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1995 est.)

Birth

12.65Death

12.44Net migration

Male · female(1995 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years71.9

67.94 · 76.06

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy99%

99% · 98%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1980)

Ethnic divisions

Hungarian 89.9%Gypsy 4%German 2.6%Serb 2%Slovak 0.8%Romanian 0.7%

Religions

Roman Catholic 67.5%Calvinist 20%Lutheran 5%atheist and other 7.5%

Labor force

5.4million

by occupation: services, trade, government, and other 44.8%, industry 29.7%, agriculture 16.1%, construction 7.0% (1991)

Age structure

0-14 years:: 18% (female 918,281; male 958,027)
15-64 years:: 68% (female 3,534,218; male 3,440,036)
65 years and over:: 14% (female 914,221; male 554,055) (July 1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate

11.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Hungarian(s)
adjective:: Hungarian

Government

Republic; President Arpad GONCZ (since 3 August 1990; Prime Minister Gyula HORN (since 15 July 1994)

21 fields

Legislature, 386 seatsseats by party

MSzP 209SzDSz 70MDF 37FKgP 26KDNP 22FiDeSz 20other 2

Names

conventional long form:: Republic of Hungary
conventional short form:: Hungary
local long form:: Magyar Koztarsasag
local short form:: Magyarorszag

38 counties (megyek, singular - megye) and 1 capital city* (fovaros); Bacs-Kiskun, Baranya, Bekes, Bekescsaba, Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen, Budapest*, Csongrad, Debrecen, Dunaujvaros, Eger, Fejer, Gyor, Gyor-Moson-Sopron, Hajdu-Bihar, Heves, Hodmezovasarhely, Jasz-Nagykun-Szolnok, Kaposvar, Kecskemet, Komarom-Esztergom, Miskolc, Nagykanizsa, Nograd, Nyiregyhaza, Pecs, Pest, Somogy, Sopron, Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg, Szeged, Szekesfehervar, Szolnok, Szombathely, Tatabanya, Tolna, Vas, Veszprem, Zala, Zalaegerszeg

Independence

1001 (unification by King Stephen I)

National holiday

St. Stephen's Day (National Day), 20 August (commemorates the founding of Hungarian state circa 1000 A.D.)

Constitution

18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April 1972;
18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight

Legal system

in process of revision, moving toward rule of law based on Western model

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:: President Arpad GONCZ (since 3 August 1990; previously interim president from 2 May 1990);
election last held 3 August 1990 (next to be held NA 1995);
results - President GONCZ elected by parliamentary vote;
note - President GONCZ was elected by the National Assembly with a total of 295 votes out of 304 as interim President from 2 May 1990 until elected President
head of government:: Prime Minister Gyula HORN (since 15 July 1994)
cabinet:: Council of Ministers; elected by the National Assembly on recommendation of the president

Legislative branch

unicameral

National Assembly (Orszaggyules)

elections last held on 8 and 29 May 1994 (next to be held spring 1998);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (386 total) MSzP 209, SzDSz 70, MDF 37, FKgP 26, KDNP 22, FiDeSz 20, other 2

Judicial branch

Constitutional Court

Political parties and leaders

Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF), Lajos FUR, chairman;
Independent Smallholders (FKgP), Jozsef TORGYAN, president;
Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP), Gyula HORN, president;
Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP), Dr. Lazlo SURJAN, president;
Federation of Young Democrats (FiDeSz), Viktor ORBAN, chairman;
Alliance of Free Democrats (SzDSz), Ivan PETO, chairman

note: the Hungarian Socialist (Communist) Workers' Party (MSzMP) renounced Communism and became the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSzP) in October 1989; there is still a small MMP

Member of

Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EBRD, ECE, FAO, G- 9, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNOMIG, UNOMOZ, UNOMUR, UNU, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Gyorgy BANLAKI (since 27 October 1994)
chancery:: 3910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:: [1] (202) 362-6730

FAX

[1] (202) 966-8135; consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador Donald M. BLINKEN
embassy:: V. Szabadsag Ter 12, Budapest
mailing address:: Am Embassy, Unit 1320, Budapest; APO AE 09213-1320
telephone:: [36] (1) 112-6450

FAX

[36] (1) 132-8934

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green

Economy

Since 1989 Hungary has been a leader in the transition from | a socialist command economy to a market economy - thanks in large part | to its initial economic reforms during the Communist era.

19 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$5,700

(1994 est.)

Real growth rate

(1994 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 7% (1994 est.)

Inflation, consumer prices

21%

(1994)

Unemployment rate

10.4%

(yearend 1994)

Budget

Revenues

$11.3 billionExpenditures

$14.2 billion (1994)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $NA

Installed generating capacity, 6,740,000 kW

Electricity production

31 billionElectricity consumption per capita

3,012 (1993)

Overview

Since 1989 Hungary has been a leader in the transition from a socialist command economy to a market economy - thanks in large part to its initial economic reforms during the Communist era. The private sector now accounts for about 55% of GDP. Nonetheless, the transformation is proving difficult, and many citizens say life was better under the old system.

On the bright side, the four-year decline in output finally ended in 1994, as real GDP increased an estimated 3%. This growth helped reduce unemployment to just over 10% by yearend, down from a peak of 13%. However, no progress was made against inflation, which remained stuck at about 20%, and the already-large current account deficit in the balance of payments actually got worse, reaching almost $4 billion.

Underlying Hungary's other economic problems is the large budget deficit, which probably exceeded 7% of GDP in 1994, despite some late-year budget cutting by the new leftist government. In 1995 the government has pledged to accelerate privatization and lower the budget deficit to 5.5% of GDP. It believes this fiscal tightening will reduce the current account deficit to $2.5 billion but at the cost of holding economic growth to only 1%.

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $58.8 billion (1994 est.)

Exports

$10.3 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

commodities:: raw materials and semi-finished goods 30.0%, machinery and transport equipment 20.1%, consumer goods 25.2%, food and agriculture 21.4%, fuels and energy 3.4% (1993)
partners:: Germany 25.3%, Italy 8.3%, Austria 10.5%, the FSU 14.0%, US 4.3% (1993)

Imports

$14.2 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

commodities:: fuels and energy 12.6%, raw materials and semi-finished goods 27.3%, machinery and transport equipment 33.0%, consumer goods 21.2%, food and agriculture 5.9% (1993)
partners:: Germany 21.5%, Italy 6.1%, Austria 11.8%, the FSU 20.9%, US 4.3% (1993);
note - about one-fourth of the imports from the FSU were MiGs delivered as a debt payment

External debt

$27 billion (September 1994)

Industries

mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), buses, automobiles

Agriculture

including forestry, accounts for 15% of GDP and 16% of employment;
highly diversified crop and livestock farming;
principal crops - wheat, corn, sunflowers, potatoes, sugar beets;
livestock - hogs, cattle, poultry, dairy products;
self-sufficient in food output

Illicit drugs

transshipment point for Southeast Asia heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe; limited producer of precursor chemicals

Economic aid

recipient: assistance pledged by OECD countries since 1989 about $9 billion

Currency

1 forint (Ft) = 100 filler

Exchange rates

forints per US$1 - 112 (January 1995), 105.16 (1994), 91.93 (1993), 78.99 (1992), 74.74 (1991), 63.21 (1990), 59.07 (1989)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

7 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 78 in all

over 3,047 m

2,438 to 3,047 m

1,524 to 2,437 m

under 914 m

1,524 to 2,438 m

914 to 1,523 m

PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways

158,711Railroads

7,785Inland waterways

1,622 (1988)

Highways: paved: 69,992 km (441 km expressways) · unpaved: 88,719 km (1992) · Railroads: broad gauge: 35 km 1.520-m gauge · standard gauge: 7,574 km 1.435-m gauge (2,277 km electrified; 1,236 km double track) · narrow gauge: 176 km mostly 0.760-m gauge (1994)

Railroads

total:: 7,785 km
broad gauge:: 35 km 1.520-m gauge
standard gauge:: 7,574 km 1.435-m gauge (2,277 km electrified; 1,236 km double track)
narrow gauge:: 176 km mostly 0.760-m gauge (1994)

Highways

total:: 158,711 km
paved:: 69,992 km (441 km expressways)
unpaved:: 88,719 km (1992)

Pipelines

crude oil 1,204 km; natural gas 4,387 km (1991)

Ports

Budapest, Dunaujvaros

Merchant marine

total: 10 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 46,121 GRT/61,613 DWT

Communications

3 fields

Telephone system

1,520,000 phones;
14.7 telephones/100 inhabitants (1993);
14,213 telex lines;
automatic telephone network based on microwave radio relay system;
608,000 telephones on order;
12-15 year wait for a telephone;
49% of all phones are in Budapest (1991)

local:: NA
intercity:: microwave radio relay
international:: 1 INTELSAT and Intersputnik earth stations

Radio

broadcast stations:: AM 32, FM 15, shortwave 0
radios:: NA

Television

broadcast stations:: 41 (Russian repeaters 8)
televisions:: NA

Defense Forces

Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guard, | Territorial Defense

3 fields

Defense expenditures

66.5billion forints

NA% of GDP (1994 est.); note - conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the prevailing exchange rate could produce misleading results ICELAND

Branches

Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guard, Territorial Defense

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 2,639,860;
males fit for military service 2,105,632;
males reach military age (18) annually 86,298 (1995 est.)

Central Intelligence Agency. “Hungary.” The World Factbook 1995. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/hungary/1995.

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