Armenia:: Population: 2,970,495
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ground
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Armenia prides itself on being the first
nation to formally adopt Christianity (early 4th century). Despite periods of
autonomy, over the centuries Armenia came under the sway of various
empires including the Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Persian, and Ottoman. During
World War I in the western portion of Armenia, Ottoman Turkey instituted a
policy of forced resettlement coupled with other harsh practices that
resulted in at least 1 million Armenian deaths. The eastern area of Armenia was ceded by the Ottomans to Russia in 1828; this portion declared
its independence in 1918, but was conquered by the Soviet Red Army in 1920.
Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily
Armenian-populated region, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began fighting over the area in
1988; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from
the Soviet
Union in
1991. By May 1994, when a cease-fire took hold, ethnic Armenian forces held
not only Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper. The economies of both
sides have been hurt by their inability to make substantial progress toward a
peaceful resolution. Turkey closed the common border with Armenia in 1994 in support of Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia over control of Nagorno-Karabakh
and surrounding areas, further hampering Armenian economic growth. In 2009,
senior Armenian leaders began pursuing rapprochement with Turkey, aiming to secure an opening of
the border.
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Landlocked
in the Lesser Caucasus Mountains; Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan) is the largest lake in this
mountain range
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Location:
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Southwestern
Asia,
between Turkey (to the west) and Azerbaijan
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Geographic coordinates:
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40 00 N,
45 00 E
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Area:
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total:
29,743 sq km land: 28,203 sq km water: 1,540 sq km
Size comparison: slightly smaller than Maryland |
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Land Boundaries:
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total: 1,254
km border countries: Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked)
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Maritime claims:
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none
(landlocked)
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Climate:
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highland
continental, hot summers, cold winters
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Terrain:
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Armenian
Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast flowing rivers; good soil
in Aras River valley
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Debed River 400 m highest point: Aragats
Lerrnagagat' 4,090 m
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Natural resources:
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small
deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, bauxite
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Land use:
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arable
land: 16.78% permanent crops: 2.01% other: 81.21% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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2,740 sq
km (2003)
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Natural hazards:
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occasionally
severe earthquakes; droughts
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Current Environment Issues:
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soil
pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT; the energy crisis of the 1990s
led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood; pollution of
Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers; the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan), a
result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water
supplies; restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant in spite of its location in
a seismically active zone
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International Environment
Agreements:
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party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
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Population:
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2,970,495
(July 2012 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 17.6% (male 279,304/female 242,621) 15-64 years: 72.4% (male
1,006,312/female 1,141,430) 65 years and over: 10.1% (male 112,947/female
185,361) (2011 est.)
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Median age:
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total:
32.6 years male: 29.9 years female: 35.4 years (2012 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.107%
(2012 est.)
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Birth rate:
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12.9
births/1,000 population (2012 est.)
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Death rate:
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8.49
deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)
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Net migration rate:
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-3.35
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth:
1.12 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.15 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.88
male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.59 male(s)/female total population: 0.89
male(s)/female (2011 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
18.21 deaths/1,000 live births male: 22.63 deaths/1,000 live births female:
13.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 73.49 years male: 69.85 years female: 77.56 years (2012 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.38
children born/woman (2012 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.1%
(2009 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with
HIV/AIDS:
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1,900 (2009
est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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fewer
than 100 (2009 est.)
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Nationality:
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noun:
Armenian(s) adjective: Armenian
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Ethnic groups:
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Armenian
97.9%, Yezidi (Kurd) 1.3%, Russian 0.5%, other 0.3% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Armenian
Apostolic 94.7%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi (monotheist with elements of
nature worship) 1.3%
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Languages:
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Armenian
(official) 97.7%, Yezidi 1%, Russian 0.9%, other 0.4% (2001 census)
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.7%
female: 99.4% (2010 est.)
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Republic of Armenia conventional short form: Armenia local long form: Hayastani
Hanrapetut'yun local short form: Hayastan former: Armenian Soviet Socialist
Republic,
Armenian Republic
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Government type:
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republic
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Capital:
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name: Yerevan geographic coordinates: 40 10 N,
44 30 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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Administrative divisions:
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11
provinces (marzer, singular - marz); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir,
Geghark'unik', Kotayk', Lorri, Shirak, Syunik', Tavush, Vayots' Dzor, Yerevan
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Independence:
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21 September 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
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National holiday:
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Independence
Day, 21 September (1991)
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Constitution:
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adopted
by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995; amendments adopted through a
nationwide referendum 27 November 2005
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Legal system:
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civil law
system
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Suffrage:
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20 years
of age; universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: President Serzh SARGSIAN (since 9 April 2008) head of government:
Prime Minister Tigran SARGSIAN (since 9 April 2008) cabinet: Council of
Ministers appointed by the prime minister (For more information visit the
World Leaders website ) elections: president elected by popular vote for
a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 19
February 2008 (next to be held in February 2013); prime minister appointed by
the president based on majority or plurality support in parliament; the prime
minister and Council of Ministers must resign if the National Assembly refuses
to accept their program election results: Serzh SARGSIAN elected president;
percent of vote - Serzh SARGSIAN 52.9%, Levon TER-PETROSSIAN 21.5%, Artur
BAGHDASARIAN 16.7%, other 8.9%
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral
National Assembly (Parliament) or Azgayin Zhoghov (131 seats; members elected
by popular vote, 90 members elected by party list and 41 by direct vote; to
serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 6 May 2012 (next to be held in
the spring of 2017) election results: percent of vote by party - HHK 44%,
Prosperous Armenia 30.1%, ANC 7.1%, Heritage Party 5.8%, ARF (Dashnak) 5.7%,
Rule of Law 5.5%, other 1.8%; seats by party - HHK 70, Prosperous Armenia 36,
ANC 7, Heritage Party 5, ARF (Dashnak) 6, Rule of Law 6, independent 1
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Judicial branch:
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Constitutional
Court; Court of Cassation (Appeals Court)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Armenian
National Congress or ANC (bloc of independent and opposition parties) [Levon
TER-PETROSSIAN]; Armenian National Movement or ANM [Ararat ZURABIAN];
Armenian Revolutionary Federation ("Dashnak" Party) or ARF [Hrant
MARKARIAN]; Heritage Party [Raffi HOVHANNISIAN]; People's Party of Armenia
[Stepan DEMIRCHIAN]; Prosperous Armenia [Gagik TSARUKIAN]; Republican Party
of Armenia or HHK [Serzh SARGSIAN]; Rule of Law Party (Orinats Yerkir) [Artur
BAGHDASARIAN]
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Political pressure groups and
leaders:
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Aylentrank
(Impeachment Alliance) [Nikol PASHINIAN]; Yerkrapah
Union [Manvel GRIGORIAN]
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International organization
participation:
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ADB,
BSEC, CE, CIS, CSTO, EAEC (observer), EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO,
ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador Tatoul MARKARIAN chancery: 2225 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 319-1976
FAX: [1] (202) 319-2982 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
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Diplomatic representation from the
US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador John HEFFERN embassy: 1 American Ave., Yerevan 0082
mailing address: American Embassy Yerevan, US Department of State, 7020
Yerevan Place, Washington, DC 20521-7020 telephone: [374](10) 464-700 FAX:
[374](10) 464-742
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Fter
several years of double-digit economic growth, Armenia faced a severe economic recession
with GDP declining more than 14% in 2009, despite large loans from
multilateral institutions. Sharp declines in the construction sector and
workers' remittances, particularly from Russia, led the downturn. The economy
began to recover in 2010 with 2.1% growth, and picked up to 4.6% growth in
2011. Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia developed a
modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other
manufactured goods to sister republics, in exchange for raw materials and
energy. Armenia has since switched to small-scale
agriculture and away from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet
era. Armenia has managed to reduce poverty,
slash inflation, stabilize its currency, and privatize most small- and
medium-sized enterprises. Armenia's geographic isolation, a narrow
export base, and pervasive monopolies in important business sectors have made
it particularly vulnerable to the sharp deterioration in the global economy
and the economic downturn in Russia. The conflict with Azerbaijan over the ethnic
Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh contributed to a severe
economic decline in the early 1990s and Armenia's borders with Turkey remain closed. Armenia is particularly dependent on
Russian commercial and governmental support and most key Armenian
infrastructure is Russian-owned and/or managed, especially in the energy
sector. The electricity distribution system was privatized in 2002 and bought
by Russia's RAO-UES in 2005. Natural gas is
primarily imported from Russia but construction of a pipeline to
deliver natural gas from Iran to Armenia was completed in December 2008,
and gas deliveries expanded after the April 2010 completion of the Yerevan
Thermal Power Plant. Armenia's severe trade imbalance has been
offset somewhat by international aid, remittances from Armenians working
abroad, and foreign direct investment. Armenia joined the WTO in January 2003.
The government made some improvements in tax and customs administration in
recent years, but anti-corruption measures have been ineffective and the
economic downturn has led to a sharp drop in tax revenue and forced the
government to accept large loan packages from Russia, the IMF, and other international
financial institutions. Amendments to tax legislation, including the
introduction of the first ever "luxury tax" in 2011, aim to
increase the ratio of budget revenues to GDP, which still remains at low
levels. Armenia will need to pursue additional economic reforms and to
strengthen the rule of law in order to regain economic growth and improve
economic competitiveness and employment opportunities, especially given its
economic isolation from two of its nearest neighbors, Turkey and Azerbaijan.
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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GDP
(purchasing power parity): $18.17 billion (2011 est.) $17.41 billion (2010
est.) $17.05 billion (2009 est.) note: data are in 2011 US dollars
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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GDP
(official exchange rate): $10.11 billion (2011 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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4.4%
(2011 est.) 2.1% (2010 est.) -14.2% (2009 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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GDP - per
capita (PPP): $5,500 (2011 est.) $5,300 (2010 est.) $5,200 (2009 est.) note:
data are in 2011 US dollars
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
19.1% industry: 40.5% services: 40.3% (2011 est.)
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Labor force:
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1.194
million (2011 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture:
44.2% industry: 16.8% services: 39% (2008 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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5.9%
(2011 est.) 7.1% (2007 est.)
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Population below poverty line:
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34.1%
(2009 est.)
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Household income or consumption by
percentage share:
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lowest
10%: 3.7% highest 10%: 25.4% (2008)
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Distribution of family income -
Gini index:
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30.9
(2008) 44.4 (1996)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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Inflation
rate (consumer prices): 7.7% (2011 est.) 8.2% (2010 est.)
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Investment (gross fixed):
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Investment
(gross fixed): 35.4% of GDP (2011 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues:
$2.27 billion expenditures: $2.57 billion (2011 est.)
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Public debt:
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38.6% of
GDP 39.3% of GDP
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Agriculture - products:
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fruit
(especially grapes), vegetables; livestock
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Industries:
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diamond-processing,
metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines, electric motors,
tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric, chemicals, trucks,
instruments, microelectronics, jewelry manufacturing, software development,
food processing, brandy, mining
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Industrial production growth rate:
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14.1%
(2010 est.)
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Electricity - production:
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7.432
billion kWh (2011 est.)
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Electricity - consumption:
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5.8 billion
kWh (2011 est.)
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Electricity - exports:
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1.36
billion kWh note: Armenia exports an unknown quantity to Georgia; includes exports to
Nagorno-Karabakh region in Azerbaijan (2011 est.)
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Electricity - imports:
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17
million kWh; note - imports an unknown quantity from Iran (2008 est.)
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day
(2010 est.)
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Oil - consumption:
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52,000
bbl/day (2010 est.)
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Oil - exports:
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0 bbl/day
(2009 est.)
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Oil - imports:
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46,680
bbl/day (2009 est.)
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Oil - proved reserves:
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0 bbl (1
January 2011 est.)
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Natural gas - production:
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0 cu m
(2011 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption:
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2.077
billion cu m (2011 est.)
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Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m
(2011 est.)
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Natural gas - imports:
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2.077
billion cu m (2011 est.)
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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0 cu m (1
January 2011 est.)
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Current account balance:
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-$1.258
billion (2011 est.) -$1.3 billion (2010 est.)
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Exports:
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$1.305
billion (2011 est.) $1.113 billion (2010 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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pig iron,
unwrought copper, nonferrous metals, diamonds, mineral products, foodstuffs,
energy
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Exports - partners:
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Russia
15.4%, Germany 13.9%, Iran 9.8%, Bulgaria 9.3%, Netherlands 7.8%, US 7.6%,
Spain 7.6%, Canada 5.7%, Belgium 5.5%, Georgia 4.6% (2011)
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Imports:
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$3.503
billion (2011 est.) $3.255 billion (2010 est.)
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Imports - commodities:
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natural
gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds
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Imports - partners:
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Russia
20%, China 8.1%, Ukraine 6.8%, Iran 6.5%, Germany 5.9%, Italy 4.7% (2011)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and
gold:
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$1.959
billion (31 December 2011 est.) $1.866 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
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Debt - external:
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$7.336
billion (30 September 2011) $6.103 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
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Market value of publicly traded
shares:
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$43.52
million (31 December 2011) $27.99 million (31 December 2010) $140.5 million (31 December 2009)
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Exchange rates:
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drams
(AMD) per US dollar - 371 (2011 est.) 373.66 (2010 est.) 363.28 (2009) 303.93
(2008) 344.06 (2007)
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Fiscal year:
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calendar
year
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Telephones in use:
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589,900
(2009) country comparison to the world: 92
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Cellular Phones in use:
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3.865
million (2009)
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: telecommunications investments have made major inroads in
modernizing and upgrading the outdated telecommunications network inherited
from the Soviet era; now 100% privately owned and undergoing modernization
and expansion; mobile-cellular services monopoly terminated in late 2004 and
a second provider began operations in mid-2005 domestic: reliable modern
fixed-line and mobile-cellular services are available across Yerevan in major
cities and towns; significant but ever-shrinking gaps remain in
mobile-cellular coverage in rural areas international: country code - 374;
Yerevan is connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe fiber-optic cable through Iran;
additional international service is available by microwave radio relay and
landline connections to the other countries of the Commonwealth of
Independent States, through the Moscow international switch, and by satellite
to the rest of the world; satellite earth stations - 3 (2008)
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Radio broadcast stations:
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Television broadcast stations:
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Internet country code:
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.am
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Internet hosts:
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192,541
(2010)
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Internet users:
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208,200
(2009)
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Airports:
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11 (2012)
country comparison to the world: 155
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Airports (paved runways):
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total: 10
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2
(2012)
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Airports (unpaved runways):
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total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2012)
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Pipelines:
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gas 2,233
km (2010)
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Railways:
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total: 869 km broad gauge: 869 km 1.520-m gauge (818 km electrified) note: some lines are
out of service (2009)
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Roadways:
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total: 8,888
km paved: 7,079 km (includes 1,561
km of expressways) unpaved: 1,809
km (2008)
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Military branches:
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Armenian
Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Air Force and Air Defense; "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic": Nagorno-Karabakh
Self-Defense Force (NKSDF) (2011)
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Military service age and
obligation:
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18-27
years of age for voluntary or compulsory military service; 2-year conscript
service obligation (2010)
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Manpower available for military
service:
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males age
16-49: 805,847 females age 16-49: 854,296 (2010 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service:
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males age
16-49: 644,372 females age 16-49: 717,272 (2010 est.)
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