Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note:
crossroads of Western Europe; majority of West European capitals
within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the European Union and
NATO
People Belgium
Population:
10,348,276 (July 2004 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 17.1% (male 901,486; female 863,092)
15–64 years: 65.6% (male 3,424,438; female 3,364,057)
65 years and over: 17.3% (male 739,479; female 1,055,724) (2004 est.)
Median age:
total: 40.2 years
male: 38.9 years
female: 41.5 years (2004 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.16% (2004 est.)
Birth rate:
10.59 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Death rate:
10.2 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Net migration rate:
1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 5.36 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.44 years
male: 75.26 years
female: 81.75 years (2004 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.64 children born/woman (2004 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
10,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Belgian(s)
adjective: Belgian
Ethnic groups:
Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%
Languages:
Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less
than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: NA
female: NA
Government Belgium
Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium
local short form: Belgique/Belgie
local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie
Government type:
federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch
Capital:
Brussels
Administrative divisions:
10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Dutch:
provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (French: regions;
Dutch: gewesten); Antwerpen, Brabant Wallon, Brussels* (Bruxelles),
Flanders*, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur,
Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams-Brabant, Wallonia*, West-Vlaanderen
note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered
devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of
government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a
complex division of responsibilities
Independence:
4 October 1830 (a provisional government declares independence from
the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King Leopold I ascends to the throne)
National holiday:
21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I
Constitution:
7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a
constitutional package creating a federal state
Legal system:
civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory;
judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August 1993); Heir Apparent
Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch
head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July
1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers formally appointed by the monarch
note: government coalition - VLD, MR, PS, SP.A-Spirit
elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the
majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the
monarch and then approved by Parliament
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat
in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular
vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and
a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch,
Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly
elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation
to serve four-year terms)