Location: Central Europe, northwest of Romania

Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 20 00 E

Map references: Europe

Area:
total: 93,030 sq km
land: 92,340 sq km
water: 690 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Indiana

Land boundaries:
total: 2,009 km
border countries: Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km (all with Serbia), Slovakia 515 km, Slovenia 102 km, Ukraine 103 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers

Terrain: mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Tisza River 78 m
highest point: Kekes 1,014 m

Natural resources: bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils

Land use:
arable land:52%
permanent crops : 3%
permanent pastures: 13%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 15% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 2,100 sq km (1998 est.)

Environment - current issues: the approximation of Hungary's standards in waste management, energy efficiency, and air, soil, and water pollution with environmental requirements for EU accession will require large investments

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea

Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin

Population: 10,075,034 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 116.4% (male 847,081; female 802,340)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 3,406,701; female 3,528,087)
65 years and over: 14.8% (male 544,956; female 945,869) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate:-0.3% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 9.34 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 13.09 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.58 male(s)/female
total population:0.91 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.9 years
male : 67.55 years
female: 76.55 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.25 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun : Hungarian(s)
adjective: Hungarian

Ethnic groups: Hungarian 89.9%, Gypsy 4%, German 2.6%, Serb 2%, Slovak 0.8%, Romanian 0.7%

Religions: Roman Catholic 67.5%, Calvinist 20%, Lutheran 5%, atheist and other 7.5%

Languages: Hungarian 98.2%, other 1.8%

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female : 98% (1980 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Hungary
conventional short form: Hungary
local long form: Magyar Koztarsasag
local short form: Magyarorszag

Data code: HU

Government type: republic

National capital: Budapest

Administrative divisions: 19 counties (megyek, singular - megye), 20 urban counties* (singular - megyei varos), and 1 capital city** (fovaros); Bacs-Kiskun, Baranya, Bekes, Bekescsaba*, Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen, Budapest**, Csongrad, Debrecen*, Dunaujvaros*, Eger*, Fejer, Gyor*, Gyor-Moson-Sopron, Hajdu-Bihar, Heves, Hodmezovasarhely*, Jasz-Nagykun-Szolnok, Kaposvar*, Kecskemet*, Komarom-Esztergom, Miskolc*, Nagykanizsa*, Nograd, Nyiregyhaza*, Pecs*, Pest, Somogy, Sopron*, Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg, Szeged*, Szekesfehervar*, Szolnok*, Szombathely*, Tatabanya*, Tolna, Vas, Veszprem, Veszprem*, Zala, Zalaegerszeg*

Independence: 1001 (unification by King Stephen I)

National holiday: St. Stephen's Day (National Day), 20 August (commemorates the coronation of King Stephen in 1000 AD)

Constitution: 18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April 1972; 18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997 amendment streamlined the judicial system

Legal system: in process of revision, moving toward rule of law based on Western model

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Ferenc MADL (since NA August 2000)
head of government : Prime Minister Peter MEDGYESSY (since 27 May 2002)
cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president
elections:president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 6 June 2000 (next to be held by June 2005); prime minister elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president
election results:Ferenc MADL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA% (but by a simple majority in the third round of voting); Peter MEDGYESSY elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA%

Legislative branch:unicameral National Assembly or Orszaggyules (386 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a system of proportional and direct representation to serve four-year terms)
elections : last held 7 and 21 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party (5% or more of the vote required for parliamentary representation in the first round) - FIDESZ/MDF 48.70%, MSZP 46.11%, SZDSZ 4.92%, other 0.27%; seats by party - FIDESZ/MDF 188, MSZP 178, SZDSZ 20

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly for nine-year terms)

Political parties and leaders: Alliance of Free Democrats or SZDSZ [Gabor KUNCZE]; Christian Democratic People's Party or KDNP [Gyorgy GICZY, president]; Hungarian Civic Party or FIDESZ [Zoltan POKORNI]; Hungarian Democratic Forum or MDF [Ibolya DAVID]; Hungarian Democratic People's Party or MDNP [Erzsebet PUSZTAI, chairman]; Hungarian Justice and Life Party or MIEP [Istvan CSURKA, chairman]; Hungarian Socialist Party or MSZP [Laszlo KOVACS, chairman]; Hungarian Workers' Party or MMP [Gyula THURMER, chairman]; Independent Smallholders or FKGP [Jozsef TORGYAN, president]

International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAVEM III, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNOMIG, UNU, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Geza JESZENSZKY
chancery: 3910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 362-6730
FAX : [1] (202) 966-8135
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Nancy Goodman BRINKER
embassy: V. Szabadsag Ter 12, Budapest
mailing address: American Embassy Budapest, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5270
telephone : [36] (1) 267-4400, 269-9331
FAX: [36] (1) 269-9326

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green

Economy - overview: Hungary continues to demonstrate strong economic growth and to work toward accession to the European Union. The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP. Foreign ownership of and investment in Hungarian firms is widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totaling more than $23 billion since 1989. Hungarian sovereign debt was upgraded in 2000 to the second-highest rating among all the Central European transition economies. Inflation and unemployment - both priority concerns in 2001 - have declined substantially. Economic reform measures such as health care reform, tax reform, and local government financing have not yet been addressed by the ORBAN government.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $120.9 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 3.9% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $120.9 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6%
industry :34%
services:60% (2000 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 9.2% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
total: 4.2 million (1997)
by occupation: services 65%, industry 27%, agriculture 8% (1996)

Unemployment rate: 6.5% (2001 est.)

Budget:
revenues:$13 billion
expenditures : $14.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries:mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), motor vehicles

Industrial production growth rate: 4.7% (2001 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 6.98 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 33.436 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 35.095 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: wheat, corn, sunflower seed, potatoes, sugar beets; pigs, cattle, poultry, dairy products

Exports:
total value:$27.9 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities: machinery and equipment 59.5%, other manufactures 29.4%, food products 6.9%, raw materials 2.4%, fuels and electricity 1.8% (2000)
partners : Germany 37%, Austria 9%, Italy 6%, Netherlands 5% (2000)

Imports:
total value :$29.5 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities:machinery and equipment 51.1%, other manufactures 35.9%, fuels and electricity 8.1%, food products 2.8%, raw materials 2.1% (2000)
partners: Germany 25%, Russia 8%, Austria 7%, Italy 7% (2000)

Debt - external: $28.5 billion (2001)

Economic aid:
recipient: $122.7 million (1995)

Currency: 1 forint (HUF) = 100 filler

Exchange rates: forints per US dollar - 275.920 (January 2002), 286.490 (2001), 282.179 (2000), 237.146 (1999), 214.402 (1998), 186.789 (1997)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 3.095 million (1997)

Telephone system: the telephone system has been modernized and is capable of satisfying all requests for telecommunication service
domestic :the system is digitalized and highly automated; trunk services are carried by fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay; a program for fiber-optic subscriber connections was initiated in 1996; heavy use is made of mobile cellular telephones
international: Hungary has fiber-optic cable connections with all neighboring countries; the international switch is in Budapest; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Inmarsat, 1 very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system of ground terminals

Radio broadcast stations:AM 17, FM 57, shortwave 3 (1998)

Radios:7.01 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 41 (Russian repeaters 8)

Televisions: 4.42 million (1997)

Railways:
total: 7,869 km
broad gauge: 36 km 1.524-m gauge
standard gauge: 7,614 km 1.435-m gauge (2,423 km electrified; 1,236 km double-tracked)
narrow gauge : 219 km 0.760-m gauge
note: Hungary and Austria jointly manage the cross-border, standard-gauge railway connecting Gyor, Sopron, and Ebenfurt (Gysev railroad) which has a route length of about 101 km in Hungary and 65 km in Austria (2001)

Highways:
total: 188,203 km
paved: 81,680 km (including 448 km of expressways)
unpaved:106,523 km (1998 est.)

Waterways: 1,373 km (permanently navigable) (1997)

Pipelines: crude oil 1,204 km; natural gas 4,387 km (1991)

Ports and harbors: Budapest, Dunaujvaros

Merchant marine:
total: 11 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 51,076 GRT/67,498 DWT (1996 est.)

Airports: 43 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total : 16
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total:27
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 12
under 914 m : 8 (2001)

Military branches: Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guard, Territorial Defense

Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 2,559,260 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males : 2,099,109 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 64,121 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:$1.08 billion (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.75% (2002 est.)

Disputes - international: Slovakia requested additional ICJ judgment in 1998 and talks continue to set modalities to assure Hungarian compliance with 1997 ICJ decision to proceed with construction of Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Dam, abandoned by Hungary in 1989; Hungary opposes Croatian plan to build a hydropower dam on the boundary stream Drava

Illicit drugs: major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and cannabis and transit point for South American cocaine destined for Western Europe; limited producer of precursor chemicals, particularly for amphetamines and methamphetamines