Armenia
REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
National Name: Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun
President: Robert Kocharian (1998)
Prime Minister: Andranik Markarian (2000)
Current government officials
Land area: 10,965 sq mi (28,400 sq km); total area: 11,506 sq mi (29,800 sq km)
Population (2006 est.): 2,976,372 (growth rate: –0.2%); (Armenian, 93%; others,
Kurds, Ukrainians, and Russians); birth rate: 12.1/1000; infant mortality rate:
22.5/1000; life expectancy: 71.8; density per sq mi: 259
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Yerevan, 1,462,700 (metro. area),
1,267,600 (city proper)
Other large cities: Vanadzor, 147,400; Gyumri (Leninakan), 125,300; Abovian,
59,300
Monetary unit: Dram
Languages: Armenian 98%, Yezidi, Russian
Ethnicity/race: Armenian 97.9%, Russian 0.5%, Kurds 1.3%, other 0.3% (2001)
Religion: Armenian Apostolic 95%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi 1%
Literacy rate: 99% (1989 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $15.7 billion; per capita $5,300. Real
growth rate: 13.9%. Inflation: –0.2%. Unemployment: 31.6% (2004 est.). Arable
land: 16.78%. Agriculture: fruit (especially grapes), vegetables; livestock.
Labor force: 1.2 million; agriculture 45%, industry 25%, services 30% (2002 est).
Industries: diamond processing, metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing
machines, electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric,
chemicals, trucks, instruments, microelectronics, jewelry manufacturing,
software development, food processing, brandy. Natural resources: small deposits
of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, alumina. Exports: $800 million f.o.b. (2005
est.): diamonds, mineral products, foodstuffs, energy. Imports: $$1.5 billion
f.o.b. (2005 est.): natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs,
diamonds. Major trading partners: Belgium, Israel, Germany, Russia, U.S.,
Netherlands, Iran, Georgia, UAE, Ukraine, Italy, France.
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 582,500 (2004); mobile cellular:
203,300 (2004). Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998).
Television broadcast stations: 3 (plus an unknown number of repeaters) (1998).
Internet hosts: 8,852 (2005). Internet users: 150,000 (2005).
Transportation: Railways: total: 845 km (2004). Highways: total: 7,633 km;
paved: 7,633 km (includes 1,561 km of expressways) (2003). Waterways: n.a. Ports
and harbors: none. Airports: 16 (2005).
International disputes: Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in
Nagorno-Karabakh and since the early 1990s, has militarily occupied 16% of
Azerbaijan - Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
continues to mediate dispute; over 800,000 mostly ethnic Azerbaijanis were
driven from the occupied lands and Armenia; about 230,000 ethnic Armenians were
driven from their homes in Azerbaijan into Armenia; Azerbaijan seeks transit
route through Armenia to connect to Naxcivan exclave; border with Turkey remains
closed over Nagorno-Karabakh dispute; ethnic Armenian groups in Javakheti region
of Georgia seek greater autonomy; tens of thousands of Armenians emigrate,
primarily to Russia, to seek employment
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