Independence Year : 1908
Population : 8190900
Life Expectancy : 70.9
Capital : 539
GNP : 12178.00
GNP Old : 10169.00
Local Name : Balgarija
Government Form : Republic
Location : Southeast Europe
Terrain : with large mountainous areas, fertile valleys, plains, coastline along the Black Sea
Climate : Temperate continental, mild summers and cold, snowy winters.
Ethnic Group : Bulgarian 84%, Turkish 10%, Roma 5%.
Religions : Bulgarian Orthodox 83%, Muslim 12%
Official Website :
www.government.bg/
|
|
General Information - Bulgaria
Background
Bulgaria earned its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1878, but having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, it fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946.
Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multi-party election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime.
Today, reforms and democratization keep Bulgaria on a path toward eventual integration into NATO and the EU - with which it began accession negotiations in 2000.
(Source: CIA - The World Factbook)
|
