Moldova

Republic of MoldovaRepublica Moldoveneasca

republicIndependence 27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

Moldova as the 1993 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 77 fields, one of 34 editions from 1992 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.

CapitalChisinau (Kishinev)

Area33,700 km2

LocationEastern Europe, between Ukraine and Romania

Populationas each edition published it

4.46 million July 1993 est. · 4.46m in 1992

Population growth% a year

0.4% 1993 est. · -0.57% in 2025

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 32 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

67.92 years 1993 est. · 70.1 yrs in 2025

Fertility ratechildren per woman

2.2 children per woman 1993 est. · 2.6 in 1992

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

30.8 deaths per 1,000 live births 1993 est. · 35 in 1992

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $3,650 in 1994

GDP real growth% a year

-26% 1992 · 0.1% in 2025

Geography

Eastern Europe, between Ukraine and Romania

14 fields

Area

33,700km2

land area: 33,700 km2comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Hawaii

Coastline

0km

(landlocked)Maritime claims: none; landlocked

Land boundaries

1,389km

total · Romania 450 km, Ukraine 939 km

Irrigated land

2,920km2

(1990)

Location

Eastern Europe, between Ukraine and Romania

Map references

Asia, Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World

International disputes

potential dispute with Ukraine over former southern Bessarabian areas; northern Bukovina ceded to Ukraine upon Moldova's incorporation into USSR

Terrain

rolling steppe, gradual slope south to Black Sea

Land use

arable land:: 50%
permanent crops:: 0%
meadows and pastures:: 9%
forest and woodland:: 0%
other:: 41%

Environment

heavy use of agricultural chemicals, including banned pesticides such as DDT, has contaminated soil and groundwater;
extensive erosion from poor farming methods

People

14 fields

Population

4,455,645

(July 1993 est.)growth rate: 0.4% (1993 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1993 est.)

Birth

16.15Death

10.01Net migration

-2.15

Male · female(1993 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years67.92

64.49 · 71.53

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy100%

100% · 99%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 9-49 can read and write (1970)

Ethnic divisions

Moldovan/Romanian 64.5%Ukrainian 13.8%Russian 13%Gagauz 3.5%Jewish 1.5%Bulgarian 2%other 1.7% (1989 figures)note: internal disputes with ethnic Russians and Ukrainians in the Dniester region and Gagauz Turks in the south

Labor force

2.095million

by occupation: agriculture 34.4%, industry 20.1%, other 45.5% (1985 figures)

Infant mortality rate

30.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.2 children born/woman (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Moldovan(s)
adjective:: Moldovan

Religions

Eastern Orthodox 98.5%, Jewish 1.5%, Baptist (only about 1,000 members) (1991) note: almost all churchgoers are ethnic Moldovan; the Slavic population are not churchgoers

Languages

Moldovan (official); note - virtually the same as the Romanian language, Russian

Government

Republic

21 fields

Names

conventional long form:: Republic of Moldova
conventional short form:: Moldova
local long form:: Republica Moldoveneasca
local short form:: none
former:: Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldova; Moldavia

Digraph

Type

republic

Capital

Chisinau (Kishinev)

Administrative divisions

previously divided into 40 rayons; to be divided into fewer, larger districts at some future point

Independence

27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

Constitution

as of mid-1993 the new constitution had not been adopted;
old constitution (adopted NA 1979) is still in effect but has been heavily amended during the past few years

Legal system

based on civil law system;
no judicial review of legislative acts;
does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction but accepts many UN and CSCE documents

National holiday

Independence Day, 27 August 1991

Political parties and leaders

Christian Democratic Popular Front (formerly Moldovan Popular Front), Ivrie ROSCA, chairman;
Yedinstvo Intermovement, V. YAKOVLEV, chairman;
Social Democratic Party, Oazul NANTOI, chairman, two other chairmen;
Agrarian Democratic Party, Valery CHEBOTARV, leader;
Democratic Party, Gheorghe GHIMPU, chairman;
Democratic Labor Party, Alexandru ARSENI, chairman

Other political or pressure groups

United Council of Labor Collectives (UCLC), Igor SMIRNOV, chairman;
The Ecology Movement of Moldova (EMM), G. MALARCHUK, chairman;
The Christian Democratic League of Women of Moldova (CDLWM), L. LARI, chairman;
National Christian Party of Moldova (NCPM), D. TODIKE, M. BARAGA, V. NIKU, leaders;
The Peoples Movement Gagauz Khalky (GKh), S. GULGAR, leader;
The Democratic Party of Gagauzia (DPG), G. SAVOSTIN, chairman;
The Alliance of Working People of Moldova (AWPM), G. POLOGOV, president;
Christian Alliance for Greater Romania;
Women's League;
Stefan the Great Movement

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Elections

President:: last held 8 December 1991 (next to be held NA1996); results - Mircea SNEGUR ran unopposed and won 98.17% of vote
Parliament:: last held 25 February 1990 (next to be held NA 1995);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (350 total) Christian Democratic Popular Front 50;
Club of Independent Deputies 25;
Agrarian Club 90;
Social Democrats 60-70;
Russian Conciliation Club 50;
60-70 seats belong to Dniester region deputies who usually boycott Moldovan legislative proceedings;
the remaining seats filled by independents;
note - until May 1991 was called Supreme Soviet

Executive branch

president, prime minister, Cabinet of Ministers

Legislative branch

unicameral Parliament

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State:: President Mircea Ivanovich SNEGUR (since 3 September 1990)
Head of Legislature:: Chairman of the Parliament Petru LUCINSCHI (since 4 February 1993); Prime Minister Andrei SANGHELI (since 1 July 1992)

Member of

BSEC, CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, IBRD, ICAO, ILO, IMF, NACC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Permanent Representative to the UN Tudor PANTIRU (also acts as representative to US)
chancery:: NA
telephone:: NA

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador Mary C. PENDLETON
embassy:: Strada Alexei Mateevich #103, Chisinau
mailing address:: APO AE 09862
telephone:: 7-0422-23-37-72 or 23-34-94
FAX:: 7-0422-23-34-94

Flag

same color scheme as Romania - 3 equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red;
emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons;
on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized ox head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow

Economy

Moldova, the next-to-smallest of the former Soviet republics in area, is the | most densely inhabited.

19 fields

Real growth rate

-26%

(1992)industrial production growth: growth rate -22% (1992)

Inflation, consumer prices

27%per month

(first quarter 1993)

Unemployment rate

0.7%

(includes only officially registered unemployed; also large numbers of underemployed workers)

External debt

$100million

(1993 est.)

Overview

Moldova, the next-to-smallest of the former Soviet republics in area, is the most densely inhabited. Moldova has a little more than 1% of the population, labor force, capital stock, and output of the former Soviet Union. Living standards have been below average for the European USSR. The country enjoys a favorable climate, and economic development has been primarily based on agriculture, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine, and tobacco.

Industry accounts for 20% of the labor force, whereas agriculture employs more than one-third. Moldova has no major mineral resources and has depended on other former Soviet republics for coal, oil, gas, steel, most electronic equipment, machine tools, and major consumer durables such as automobiles.

Its industrial and agricultural products, in turn, have been exported to the other republics. Moldova has freed prices on most goods and has legalized private ownership of property. Moldova's near-term economic prospects are dimmed, however, by the difficulties of moving toward a market economy, the political problems of redefining ties to the other former Soviet republics and Romania, and the ongoing separatist movements in the Dniester and Gagauz regions.

In 1992, national output fell substantially for the second consecutive year - down 22% in the industrial sector and 20% in agriculture. The decline is mainly attributable to the drop in energy supplies.

National product

GDP $NA

National product per capita

$NA

Budget

revenues $NA; expenditures $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Exports

100 million to outside the successor states of the former USSR (1992)

commodities:: foodstuffs, wine, tobacco, textiles and footwear, machinery, chemicals (1991)
partners:: Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Romania

Imports

100 million from outside the successor states of the former USSR (1992)

commodities:: oil, gas, coal, steel machinery, foodstuffs, automobiles, and other consumer durables
partners:: Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Romania

Electricity

3,115,000 kW capacity; 11,100 million kWh produced, 2,491 kWh per capita (1992)

Industries

key products (with share of total former Soviet output in parentheses where; known): agricultural machinery, foundry equipment, refrigerators and freezers (2.7%), washing machines (5.0%), hosiery (2.0%), refined sugar (3.1%), vegetable oil (3.7%), canned food (8.6%), shoes, textiles

Agriculture

Moldova's principal economic activity; products (shown in share of total; output of the former Soviet republics): Grain (1.6%), sugar beets (2.6%), sunflower seed (4.4%), vegetables (4.4%), fruits and berries (9.7%), grapes (20.1%), meat (1.7%), milk (1.4%), eggs (1.4%)

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of opium and cannabis;
mostly for CIS consumption;
transshipment point for illicit drugs to Western Europe

Economic aid

IMF credit, $18.5 million (1992);
EC agricultural credit, $30 million (1992);
US commitments, $10 million for grain (1992);
World Bank credit, $31 million

Currency

plans to introduce the Moldovan lei in 1993 or 1994, until then retaining Russian ruble as currency

Exchange rates

rubles per US$1 - 415 (24 December 1992) but subject to wide fluctuations

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

6 fields

Networkskm · (1990)

Highways

20,000Railroads

1,150

Highways: ; 13,900 km hard-surfaced, 6,100 km earth · Railroads: ; does not include industrial lines

total:: 26
useable:: 15
with permanent-surface runways:: 6
with runways over 3,659 m:: 0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:: 5
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:: 8

Telecommunications

poorly supplied with telephones (as of 1991, 494,000 telephones total, with a density of 111 lines per 1000 persons);
215,000 unsatisfied applications for telephone installations (31 January 1990);
connected to Ukraine by landline and to countries beyond the former USSR through the international gateway switch in Moscow