North Macedonia
emerging democracyIndependence 20 November 1991 from Yugoslavia
North Macedonia as the 1992 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 70 fields, one of 34 editions from 1992 to 2025.
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Geography
12 fieldsTerrain
territory covered with deep basins and valleys; there are three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line
Natural resources
chromium, lead, zinc, manganese, tungsten, nickel, low-grade iron ore, asbestos, sulphur, timber
Land use
- arable land 5%;
- permanent crops 5%;
- meadows and pastures 20%;
- forest and woodland 30%;
- other 40%;
- includes irrigated NA%
People
13 fieldsGovernment
Emerging democracy
20 fieldsLeaders
- Chief of State:
- President Kiro GLIGOROV (since 27 January 1991)
- Head of Government:
- Prime Minister Nikola KLJUSEV (since March 1991), Deputy Prime Ministers Jovan ANDONOV (since March 1991), Blaze RISTOVSKI (since March 1991), and Bezir ZUTA (since March 1991)
Political parties and leaders
- Social Democratic Alliance (SDA; former Communist Party), Branko CRVENKOVSKI, chairman;
- Party of Democratic Prosperity, (PDP), Nevzat HALILI, chairman;
- National Democratic Party, Iliaz HALIMI, chairman;
- Alliance of Reform Forces of Macedonia (MARF), Sojan ANDOV, chairman;
- Socialist Party, chairman NA;
- Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization - Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (IMRO-DPMNU), Ljupco GEORGIEVSKI, chairman
Elections
- President:
- last held 27 January 1991 (next to be held NA); results - Kiro GLIGOREV won
- Assembly:
- last held 11 November 1990 (next to be held NA);results - percent of vote by party NA;
- seats - (120 total) IMRO-DPMNU 37, SDA 31, PDP 25, MARF 17, Party of Yugoslavs 1, Socialists 5, others 4
Other political or pressure groups
Movement for All Macedonian Action (MAAK), IMRU-Democratic Party, League for Democracy, Albanian Democratic Union-Liberal Party
Economy
Macedonia, although the poorest among the six republics of a disintegrated | Yugoslav federation, can meet basic food and energy needs through its own | agricultural and coal resources.
15 fieldsOverview
Macedonia, although the poorest among the six republics of a disintegrated Yugoslav federation, can meet basic food and energy needs through its own agricultural and coal resources. As a breakaway republic, however, it will move down toward a bare subsistence level of life unless economic ties are reforged or enlarged with its neighbors Serbia, Albania, Greece, and Bulgaria.
The economy depends on outside sources for all of its oil and gas and its modern machinery and parts. Continued political turmoil, both internally and in the region as a whole, prevents any swift readjustments of trade patterns and economic rules of the game. Inflation in early 1992 was out of control, the result of fracturing trade links, the decline in economic activity, and general uncertainties about the future status of the country;
prices rose 38% in March 1992 alone. Macedonia's geographical isolation, technological backwardness, and political instability place it far down the list of countries of interest to Western investors. Recognition of Macedonia by the EC and an internal commitment to economic reform would help to encourage foreign investment over the long run.
Exports
$578 million (1990)
- commodities:
- manufactured goods 40%, machinery and transport equipment 14%, miscellaneous manufactured articles 23%, raw materials 7.6%, food (rice) and live animals 5.7%, beverages and tobacco 4.5%, chemicals 4.7%
- partners:
- principally Serbia and the other former Yugoslav republics, Germany, Greece, Albania
Imports
$1,112 million (1990)
- commodities:
- fuels and lubricants 19%, manufactured goods 18%, machinery and transport equipment 15%, food and live animals 14%, chemicals 11.4%, raw materials 10%, miscellaneous manufactured articles 8.0%, beverages and tobacco 3.5%
- partners:
- other former Yugoslav republics, Greece, Albania, Germany, Bulgaria
Industries
- low levels of technology predominate, such as, oil refining by distillation only;
- produces basic fuels;
- mining and manufacturing processes result in the extraction and production of coal as well as metallic chromium, lead, zinc, and ferronickel;
- light industry produces basic textiles, wood products, and tobacco
Agriculture
- provides 12% of Macedonia's GDP and meets the basic need for food;
- principal crops are rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, and millet;
- also grown are cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus fruit, and vegetables;
- Macedonia is one of the seven legal cultivators of the opium poppy for the world pharmaceutical industry, including some exports to the US;
- agricultural production is highly labor intensive
Communications
7 fieldsTelecommunications
- 125,000 telephones;
- broadcast stations - 6 AM, 2 FM, 5 (2 relays) TV;
- 370,000 radios, 325,000 TV;
- satellite communications ground stations - none
Defense Forces
Army, Air and Air Defense Force
3 fieldsManpower availability
- males 15-49, 590,613;
- NA fit for military service;
- 22,913 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures
- exchange rate conversion - 7.0 billion dinars (est.), NA% of GDP (1992);
- note - conversion of the military budget into US dollars using the current exchange rate could produce misleading results
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Macedonia.” The World Factbook 1992. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/north-macedonia/1992.