| Background: |
Poland gained its
independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the
Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite
country following the war, but one that was comparatively
tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the
formation of the independent trade union
"Solidarity" that over time became a political
force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the
presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the
early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy
into one of the most robust in Central Europe, boosting
hopes for acceptance to the EU. Poland joined the NATO
alliance in 1999. |
| Location: |
Central Europe,
east of Germany |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
52 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Area: |
total:
312,685 sq km
land: 304,465 sq km
water: 8,220 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller
than New Mexico |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
2,888 km
border countries: Belarus 605 km, Czech
Republic 658 km, Germany 456 km, Lithuania 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad
Oblast) 206 km, Slovakia 444 km, Ukraine 428 km |
| Maritime
claims: |
exclusive
economic zone: defined by international treaties
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
temperate with
cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent
precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and
thundershowers |
| Terrain: |
mostly flat
plain; mountains along southern border |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest point:
Raczki Elblaskie -2 m
highest point: Rysy 2,499 m |
| Natural
resources: |
coal, sulfur,
copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, arable land |
| Land
use: |
arable land:
47%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 13%
forests and woodland: 29%
other: 10% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
1,000 sq km (1993
est.) |
| Environment
- current issues: |
situation has
improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and
increased environmental concern by postcommunist
governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious
because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power
plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest
damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal
sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous
wastes |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Air Pollution, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol |
| Geography
- note: |
historically, an
area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of
natural barriers on the North European Plain |
| Population: |
38,633,912 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
18.39% (male 3,640,451; female 3,463,604)
15-64 years: 69.17% (male 13,288,471; female
13,434,753)
65 years and over: 12.44% (male 1,836,816;
female 2,969,817) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
-0.03% (2001
est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
10.2 births/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
9.98 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-0.49 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
9.39 deaths/1,000
live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 73.42 years
male: 69.26 years
female: 77.82 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
1.37 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.07% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
less than 100
(1999 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Pole(s)
adjective: Polish |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Polish 97.6%,
German 1.3%, Ukrainian 0.6%, Byelorussian 0.5% (1990 est.) |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic
95% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox, Protestant,
and other 5% |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 98% (1978 est.) |
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Republic of Poland
conventional short form: Poland
local long form: Rzeczpospolita Polska
local short form: Polska |
| Government
type: |
republic |
| Administrative
divisions: |
16 provinces (wojewodztwa,
singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie,
Lodzkie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Malopolskie, Mazowieckie,
Opolskie, Podkarpackie, Podlaskie, Pomorskie, Slaskie,
Swietokrzyskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Wielkopolskie,
Zachodniopomorskie |
| Independence: |
11 November 1918
(independent republic proclaimed) |
| National
holiday: |
Constitution Day,
3 May (1791) |
| Constitution: |
16 October 1997;
adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997; passed by
national referendum 23 May 1997 |
| Legal
system: |
mixture of
Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover communist
legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of
broader democratization process; limited judicial review of
legislative acts although under the new constitution, the
Constitutional Tribunal ruling will become final as of
October 1999; court decisions can be appealed to the
European Court of Justice in Strasbourg |
| Suffrage: |
18 years of age;
universal |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI (since 23
December 1995)
head of government: Prime Minister Jerzy BUZEK
- Solidarity Electoral Union - (since 31 October 1997),
Deputy Prime Ministers Janusz STEINHOFF (since 12 June
2000), Longin KOMOLOWSKI (since 19 October 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to
the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister
proposes, the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the
Council of Ministers
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a five-year term; election held 8 October 2000 (next to
be held NA October 2005); prime minister and deputy prime
ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the
Sejm
election results: Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI
reelected president; percent of popular vote - Aleksander
KWASNIEWSKI 53.9%, Andrzj OLECHOWSKI 17.3%, Marian
KRZAKLEWSKI 15.6%, Lech WALESA 1% |
| Legislative
branch: |
bicameral
National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe consists of the
Sejm (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system
of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) and
the Senate or Senat (100 seats; members are elected by a
majority vote on a provincial basis to serve four-year
terms)
elections: Sejm elections last held 21
September 1997 (next to be held by NA September 2001);
Senate - last held 21 September 1997 (next to be held by NA
September 2001)
election results: Sejm - percent of vote by
party - AWS 33.8%, SLD 27.1%, UW 13.4%, PSL 7.3%, ROP 5.6%,
MNSO 0.4%, other 12.4%; seats by party - AWS 201, SLD 164,
UW 60, PSL 27, ROP 6, MNSO 2; Senate - percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - AWS 51, SLD 28, UW 8, ROP 5,
PSL 3, independents 5; note - seats by party in the Sejm as
of February 2001: AWS 175, SLD 161, UW 49, PSL 26, PP 6, KdP
7, ROP-PC 4, independents 31, one seat vacant
note: two seats are assigned to ethnic minority
parties |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court
(judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation
of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite
period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen by the
Sejm for nine-year terms) |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Coalition for
Poland or KdP [first name unknown GRABOWSKI]; Confederation
for an Independent Poland-Patriotic Camp or KPN-OP (KPN-Fatherland
or KPN-O is a small group within the KPN-OP) [Michal
JANISZEWSKI]; Democratic Left Alliance or SLD (Social
Democracy of Poland) [Leszek MILLER]; Freedom Union or UW [Bronislaw
GEREMEK]; German Minority of Lower Silesia or MNSO [Henryk
KROLL]; Movement for the Reconstruction of Poland or ROP-PC
[Jan OLSZEWSKI]; Polish Accord or PP [Jan LOPUSZANSKI];
Polish Peasant Party or PSL [Jaroslaw KALINOWSKI]; Polish
Socialist Party or PPS [Piotr IKONOWICZ]; Solidarity
Electoral Action or AWS (includes RS-AWS and Solidarity)
[Marian KRZAKLEWSKI]; Social Movement-Solidarity Electoral
Action or RS-AWS [Jerzy BUZEK] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
All Poland Trade
Union Alliance or OPZZ (trade union); Roman Catholic Church;
Solidarity (trade union) |
| International
organization participation: |
ACCT (observer),
Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CCC, CE, CEI,
CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO,
IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD,
OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT,
UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,
WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Przemyslaw GRUDZINSKI
chancery: 2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC
20009
telephone: [1] (202) 234-3800 through 3802
FAX: [1] (202) 328-6271
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and
New York |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Christopher R. HILL
embassy: Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 00-054, Warsaw
P1
mailing address: American Embassy Warsaw, US
Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5010 (pouch)
telephone: [48] (22) 628-30-41
FAX: [48] (22) 628-82-98
consulate(s) general: Krakow |
| Flag
description: |
two equal
horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the
flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white |
| Economy
- overview: |
Poland has
steadfastly pursued a policy of liberalizing the economy and
today stands out as one of the most successful and open
transition economies. GDP growth has been strong and steady
since 1992 - the best performance in the region. The
privatization of small and medium state-owned companies and
a liberal law on establishing new firms has allowed for the
rapid development of a vibrant private sector. In contrast,
Poland's large agricultural sector remains handicapped by
structural problems, surplus labor, inefficient small farms,
and lack of investment. Restructuring and privatization of
"sensitive sectors" (e.g., coal, steel, railroads,
and energy) has begun. Structural reforms in health care,
education, the pension system, and state administration have
resulted in larger than expected fiscal pressures. Further
progress in public finance depends mainly on privatization
of Poland's remaining state sector. The government's
determination to enter the EU as soon as possible affects
most aspects of its economic policies. Improving Poland's
outsized current account deficit and reining in inflation
are priorities. Warsaw leads the region in foreign
investment and needs a continued large inflow. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $327.5 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
4.8% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $8,500 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
3.8%
industry: 36.6%
services: 59.6% (1999) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
18.4% (2000 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
3%
highest 10%: 26.3% (1996) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
10.2% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
17.2 million
(1999 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
industry 22.1%,
agriculture 27.5%, services 50.4% (1999) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
12% (1999) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$49.6 billion
expenditures: $52.3 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1999) |
| Industries: |
machine building,
iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food
processing, glass, beverages, textiles |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
4.3% (1999) |
| Electricity
- production: |
134.351 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
96.43%
hydro: 3.16%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0.41% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
120.007 billion
kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
8.43 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
3.491 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
potatoes, fruits,
vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork |
| Exports: |
$28.4 billion
(f.o.b., 2000) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
machinery and
transport equipment 30.2%, intermediate manufactured goods
25.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 20.9%, food and live
animals 8.5% (1999) |
| Exports
- partners: |
Germany 36.1%,
Italy 6.5%, Netherlands 5.3%, France 4.8%, UK 4.0%, Czech
Republic 3.8% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$42.7 billion
(f.o.b., 2000) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
machinery and
transport equipment 38.2%, intermediate manufactured goods
20.8%, chemicals 14.3%, miscellaneous manufactured goods
9.5% (1999) |
| Imports
- partners: |
Germany 25.2%,
Italy 9.4%, France 6.8%, Russia 5.8%, UK 4.6%, Netherlands
3.7% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$57 billion
(2000) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$NA |
| Exchange
rates: |
zlotych per US
dollar - 4.3126 (December 2000), 4.3461 (2000), 3.9671
(1999), 3.4754 (1998), 3.2793 (1997), 2.6961 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
8.07 million
(1998) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
1.78 million
(1998) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: underdeveloped and outmoded system;
government aimed to have 10 million telephones in service by
2000; the process of partial privatization of the
state-owned telephone monopoly has begun; in 1998 there were
over 2 million applicants on the waiting list for telephone
service
domestic: cable, open wire, and microwave radio
relay; 3 cellular networks; local exchanges 56.6% digital
international: satellite earth stations - 2
Intelsat, NA Eutelsat, 2 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean
regions), and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 14, FM 777,
shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Radios: |
20.2 million
(1997) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
179 (plus 256
repeaters) (September 1995) |
| Televisions: |
13.05 million
(1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.pl |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
19 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
2.8 million
(2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
23,420 km
broad gauge: 646 km 1.524-m gauge
standard gauge: 21,639 km 1.435-m gauge (11,626
km electrified; 8,978 km double track)
narrow gauge: 1,135 km various gauges including
1.000-m, 0.785-m, 0.750-m, and 0.600-m (1998) |
| Highways: |
total:
381,046 km
paved: 249,966 km (including 268 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 131,080 km (1998) |
| Waterways: |
3,812 km
(navigable rivers and canals) (1996) |
| Pipelines: |
crude oil and
petroleum products 2,280 km; natural gas 17,000 km (1996) |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Gdansk, Gdynia,
Gliwice, Kolobrzeg, Szczecin, Swinoujscie, Ustka, Warsaw,
Wroclaw |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
46 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 943,540 GRT/1,532,694
DWT
ships by type: bulk 41, cargo 2, chemical
tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 1 (2000
est.) |
| Airports: |
122 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
83
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 29
1,524 to 2,437 m: 42
914 to 1,523 m: 6
under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
39
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 13
under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Army, Navy, Air
and Air Defense Force |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
19 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 10,447,931 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 8,139,245 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
344,781 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$3.17 billion
(FY00) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
1.95% (FY00) |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
major illicit
producer of amphetamine for the international market; minor
transshipment point for Asian and Latin American illicit
drugs to Western Europe |
|
