Albania

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More Facts & Figures

National name: Republika e Shqiperise

Current government officials

Languages: Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek

Ethnicity/race: Albanian 95%, Greeks 3%, other 2%: Vlachs, Gypsies, Serbs, and Bulgarians (1989 est.)

Religions: Islam 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10% (est.)

National Holiday: Independence Day, November 28

Literacy rate: 98.7% (2011 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2011 est.): $24.99 billion; note: Albania has a large gray economy that may be as large as 50% of official GDP (2011 est.); per capita $7,800. Real growth rate: 2.5% (2011 est.). Inflation: 3.9% (2012 est.). Unemployment: 10% official rate, but may exceed 30% due to preponderance of near-subsistence farming (2011 est.). Arable land: 20.1% (2005). Agriculture: wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products. Labor force: 1.053 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers); agriculture 58%, industry 15%, services 27% (2011 est.). Industries: food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, bauxite, chromite, copper, iron ore, nickel, salt, timber, hydropower. Exports: $1.886 billion (2012 est.): textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco. Imports: $5.022 billion (2011 est.): machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals. Major trading partners: Italy, Greece, Turkey, Germany.

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 331,500 (2011); mobile cellular: 4.548 million (2011). Radio broadcast stations: AM 13, FM 46 (3 national, 62 local), shortwave 1 (2005). Television broadcast stations: 65 (3 national, 62 local); note - 2 cable networks (2005). Internet hosts: 15,505 (2011). Internet users: 1,300,000 (2011).

Transportation: Railways: total: 339 km (2011). Highways: total: 18,000 km; paved: 5,400 km; unpaved: 12,600 km (2011). Waterways: 43 km (2007). Ports and harbors: Durres, Sarande, Shengjin, Vlore. Airports: 5 (2011).

International disputes: The Albanian Government calls for the protection of the rights of ethnic Albanians in neighboring countries, and the peaceful resolution of interethnic disputes; some ethnic Albanian groups in neighboring countries advocate for a "greater Albania," but the idea has little appeal among Albanian nationals; the mass emigration of unemployed Albanians remains a problem for developed countries, chiefly Greece and Italy

Major sources and definitions