@Bosnia and Herzegovina:Geography
Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Croatia
Geographic coordinates: 44 00 N, 18 00 E
Map references: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe
Area: total: 51,233 sq km land: 51,233 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than West Virginia
Land boundaries: total: 1,459 km border countries: Croatia 932 km, Serbia and Montenegro 527 km (312 km with Serbia, 215 km with Montenegro)
Coastline: 20 km
Maritime claims: NA
Climate: hot summers and cold winters; areas of high elevation have short, cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy winters along coast
Terrain: mountains and valleys
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m highest point: Maglic 2,386 m
Natural resources: coal, iron, bauxite, manganese, forests, copper, chromium, lead, zinc
Land use: arable land: 14% permanent crops : 5% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 39% other: 22% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 20 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: frequent and destructive earthquakes
Environment - current issues: air pollution from metallurgical plants; sites for disposing of urban waste are limited; widespread casualties, water shortages, and destruction of infrastructure because of the 1992–95 civil strife
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: within Bosnia and Herzegovina's recognized borders, the country is divided into a joint Muslim-Croat Federation (about 51% of the territory) and a Serb Republic, The Republika Srpska [RS] (about 49% of the territory); the region called Herzegovina is contiguous to Croatia and traditionally has been settled by an ethnic Croat majority
@Bosnia and Herzegovina:People
Population: 3,222,584 (July 1997 est.) note: all data dealing with population is subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by military action and ethnic cleansing
Age structure: 0–14 years: 18% (male 301,637; female 284,694) 15–64 years: 70% (male 1,123,477; female 1,140,604) 65 years and over: 12% (male 145,711; female 226,461) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 5.09% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 8.29 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 13.88 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 56.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth : 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15–64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 37 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 59.42 years male : 54.58 years female: 64.59 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.09 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality: noun: Bosnian(s), Herzegovinian(s) adjective: Bosnian, Herzegovinian
Ethnic groups: Serb 40%, Muslim 38%, Croat 22% (est.)
Religions: Muslim 40%, Orthodox 31%, Catholic 15%, Protestant 4%, other 10%
Languages: Serbo-Croatian (often called Bosnian) 99%
Literacy: NA
@Bosnia and Herzegovina:Government
Country name: conventional long form : none conventional short form: Bosnia and Herzegovina local long form : none local short form: Bosna i Hercegovina
Data code: BK
Government type: emerging democracy
National capital: Sarajevo
Administrative divisions: there are no first-order administrative divisions approved by the US Government, but it has been reported that the Muslim/Croat Federation is comprised of 10 cantons called by either number or name - Goradzde (5), Livno (10), Middle Bosnia (6), Neretva (7), Posavina (2), Sarajevo (9), Tuzla Podrinje (3), Una Sana (1), West Herzegovina (8), Zenica Doboj (4)
Independence: NA April 1992 (from Yugoslavia)
National holiday: Republika Srpska - "Republic Day", 9 January;
Independence Day, 1 March; Bosnia - "Republic Day", 25 November
Constitution: the Dayton Agreement, signed 14 December 1995, included a new constitution now in force
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 16 years of age, if employed; 18 years of age, universal
Executive branch: chief of state : Chairman of the Presidency Alija IZETBEGOVIC (since 14 September 1996); other members of the three-member rotating presidency: Kresimir ZUBAK (since 14 September 1996 - Croat) and Momcilo KRAJISNIK (since 14 September 1996 - Serb) head of government: Cochairman of the Council of Ministers Haris SILAJDZIC (since NA January 1997); Cochairman of the Council of Ministers Boro BOSIC (since NA January 1997) NA cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the council chairmen note: president of the Muslim-Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Vladimir SOLJIC (since March 1997); president of the Republika Srpska: Biljana PLAVSIC (since September 1996) elections: the three presidency members (one each Muslim, Croat, Serb) are elected by direct election (first election for a two-year term, thereafter for a four-year term); the president with the most votes becomes the chairman; election last held 14 September 1996 (next to be held September 1998); the cochairmen are nominated by the presidency election results: Alija IZETBEGOVIC elected chairman of the collective presidency with the highest number of votes; percent of vote - Alija IZETBEGOVIC received 80% of the Muslim vote to Haris SILAJDZIC's 14%; Kresimir ZUBAK received 88% of the Croat vote to Ivo KOMSIC's 11%; Momcilo KRAJISNIK received 68% of the Serb vote to Mladen IVANIC's 30%
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliamentary Assembly or Skupstina consists of the National House of Representatives or Vijece Opcina (42 seats - 14 Serb, 14 Croat, and 14 Muslim; members serve NA-year terms) and the House of Peoples or Vijece Gradanstvo (15 seats - 5 Muslim, 5 Croat, 5 Serb; members serve NA-year terms) elections: National House of Representatives - elections last held 14 September 1996 (next to be held NA); note - the House of Peoples are elected by the Muslim-Croat Federation's 140-seat House of Representatives (two-thirds) and the Bosnian Serb Republic's 83-seat National Assembly (one-third) election results: National House of Representatives: two-thirds chosen from the Muslim-Croat Federation: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SDA 16, HDZ-BiH 7, Joint List of Social Democrats 3, Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina 2; one-third chosen from the Bosnian Serb Republic: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SDS 9, SDA 3, Democratic Patriotic Front/Union for Peace and Progress 2 note: the Muslim-Croat Federation has a House of Representatives with 140 seats: seats by party - SDA 80, HDZ-BiH 33, Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina 11, Joint List of Social Democrats 10, other 6; the Republika Srpska has a National Assembly with 83 seats: seats by party - SDS 50, Democratic Patriotic Front/Union for Peace and Progress 10, Serb Radical Party 7, SDA 6, other 10
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court
Political parties and leaders: Party of Democratic Action or SDA
[Alija IZETBEGOVIC]; Croatian Democratic Union of BiH or HDZ-BiH [Bozo
RAJIC]; Serb