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POLAND.CRD
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#CARD:Poland:Geography
#WORD 42 68 388 387 0
Poland Click Here for Country List
#IMAGE 44 61 TWPCX \maps\POLAND.PCX
Geography Click Here for MAP
Location:
Central Europe, between Germany and Belarus
Map references:
Asia, Ethnic Groups in Eastern Europe, Europe, Standard Time Zones of
the World
Area:
total area:
312,680 sq km
land area:
304,510 sq km
comparative area:
slightly smaller than New Mexico
Land boundaries:
total 3,114 km, Belarus 605 km, Czech Republic 658 km, Germany 456 km,
Lithuania 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 432 km, Slovakia 444 km,
Ukraine 428 km
Coastline:
491 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent
precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers
Terrain:
mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border
Natural resources:
coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt
Land use:
arable land:
46%
permanent crops:
1%
meadows and pastures:
13%
forest and woodland:
28%
other:
12%
Irrigated land:
1,000 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
forest damage due to air pollution; improper means for disposal of
large amounts of hazardous and industrial waste; severe water
pollution from industrial and municipal sources; severe air pollution
results from emissions of sulfur dioxide from coal-fired power plants
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
party to - Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear
Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands; signed,
but not ratified - Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of
the Sea
Note:
historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack
of natural barriers on the North European Plain
#CARD:Poland:People
People
Population:
38,654,561 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.35% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
13.44 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
9.4 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
13.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
72.66 years
male:
68.64 years
female:
76.91 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.94 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Pole(s)
adjective:
Polish
Ethnic divisions:
Polish 97.6%, German 1.3%, Ukrainian 0.6%, Byelorussian 0.5% (1990
est.)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 95% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox,
Protestant, and other 5%
Languages:
Polish
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1978)
total population:
98%
male:
99%
female:
98%
Labor force:
17.329 million
by occupation:
industry and construction 32.0%, agriculture 27.6%, trade, transport,
and communications 14.7%, government and other 24.6% (1992)
#CARD:Poland:Government
Government
Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Poland
conventional short form:
local long form:
Rzeczpospolita Polska
local short form:
Polska
Digraph:
PL
Type:
democratic state
Capital:
Warsaw
Administrative divisions:
49 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Biala Podlaska,
Bialystok, Bielsko Biala, Bydgoszcz, Chelm, Ciechanow, Czestochowa,
Elblag, Gdansk, Gorzow, Jelenia Gora, Kalisz, Katowice, Kielce, Konin,
Koszalin, Krakow, Krosno, Legnica, Leszno, Lodz, Lomza, Lublin, Nowy
Sacz, Olsztyn, Opole, Ostroleka, Pila, Piotrkow, Plock, Poznan,
Przemysl, Radom, Rzeszow, Siedlce, Sieradz, Skierniewice, Slupsk,
Suwalki, Szczecin, Tarnobrzeg, Tarnow, Torun, Walbrzych, Warszawa,
Wloclawek, Wroclaw, Zamosc, Zielona Gora
Independence:
11 November 1918 (independent republic proclaimed)
National holiday:
Constitution Day, 3 May (1791)
Constitution:
interim "small constitution" came into effect in December 1992
replacing the Communist-imposed Constitution of 22 July 1952; new
democratic Constitution being drafted
Legal system:
mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover Communist
legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader
democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Lech WALESA (since 22 December 1990); election first round
held 25 November 1990, second round held 9 December 1990 (next to be
held NA November 1995); results - second round Lech WALESA 74.7%,
Stanislaw TYMINSKI 25.3%
head of government:
Prime Minister Waldemar PAWLAK (since 26 October 1993)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; responsible to the president and the Sejm
Legislative branch:
bicameral National Assembly (Zgromadzenie Narodowe)
Senate (Senat):
elections last held 19 September 1993 (next to be held no later than
NA October 1997); seats - (100 total)
post-Solidarity bloc:
UW 6, NSZZ 12, BBWR 2
non-Communist, non-Solidarity:
independents 7, unaffiliated 1, vacant 1 (to be filled in a 19 June
election)
Communist origin or linked:
PSL 34, SLD 37
Diet (Sejm):
elections last held 19 September 1993 (next to be held no later than
NA October 1997); seats - (460 total)
post-Solidarity bloc:
UW 74, UP 41, BBWR 16
non-Communist, non-Solidarity:
KPN 22
Communist origin or linked:
SLD 171, PSL 132
note:
4 seats were won by ethnic Germans
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
post-Solidarity parties:
Freedom Union (WD; UD and Liberal Democratic Congress merged to form
Freedom Union), Tadeusz MAZOWIECKI; Christian-National Union (ZCHN),
Wieslaw CHRZANOWSKI; Centrum (PC), Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI; Peasant
Alliance (PL), Gabriel JANOWSKI; Solidarity Trade Union (NSZZ), Marian
KRZAKLEWSKI; Union of Labor (UP), Ryszard BUGAJ; Christian-Democratic
Party (PCHD), Pawel LACZKOWSKI; Conservative Party, Alexander HALL;
Nonparty Bloc for the Support of the Reforms (BBWR)
non-Communist, non-Solidarity:
Confederation for an Independent Poland (KPN), Leszek MOCZULSKI;
Polish Economic Program (PPG), Janusz REWINSKI; Christian Democrats
(CHD), Andrzej OWSINSKI; German Minority (MN), Henryk KROL; Union of
Real Politics (UPR), Janusz KORWIN-MIKKE; Democratic Party (SD),
Antoni MACKIEWICZ; Party X, Stanislaw Tyminski
Communist origin or linked:
Social Democracy (SDRP, party of Poland), Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI;
Polish Peasants' Party (PSL), Waldemar PAWLAK; Democratic Left
Alliance, Aleksander KWASNIEWSKI
Other political or pressure groups:
powerful Roman Catholic Church; Solidarity (trade union); All Poland
Trade Union Alliance (OPZZ), populist program
Member of:
BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, COCOM (cooperating),
CSCE, EBRD, ECE, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFC, ILO,
IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO, NACC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), PCA,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNDOF, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNOMIG, UNPROFOR,
UNTAC, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Jerzy KOZMINSKI
chancery:
2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone:
(202) 234-3800 through 3802
FAX:
(202) 328-6271
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Nicholas A. REY
embassy:
Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31, Warsaw
mailing address:
American Embassy Warsaw, Unit 1340, or APO AE 09213-1340
telephone:
[48] (2) 628-3041
FAX:
[48] (2) 628-8298
consulate(s) general:
Krakow, Poznan
Flag:
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the
flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white
#CARD:Poland:Economy
Economy
Overview:
Poland is continuing the difficult transition to a market economy that
began on 1 January 1990, when the new democratic government instituted
"shock therapy" by decontrolling prices, slashing subsidies, and
drastically reducing import barriers. The economy contracted sharply
in 1990 and 1991, but in 1992 real GDP grew 1% despite a severe
drought. Real GDP expanded about 4% in 1993, the highest rate in
Europe except for Albania. About half of GDP now comes from the
private sector even though privatization of the large state-owned
enterprises is proceeding slowly and most industry remains in state
hands. The pattern of industrial production is changing rapidly;
output of textiles and construction materials is well above 1990
levels, while output of basic metals remains depressed. Inflation,
which had exceeded 50% monthly in late 1989, was down to about 37% for
all of 1993, as the government held the budget deficit below 3% of
GDP. Unemployment has risen steadily, however, to about 16%. The trade
deficit is also a problem, in part due to recession in Western Europe,
Poland's main customer. The new government elected in September 1993
is politically to the left of its predecessor but is continuing the
reform process.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $180.4 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
4.1% (1993 est.)
National product per capita:
$4,680 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
37% (1993)
Unemployment rate:
15.7% (December 1993)
Budget:
revenues:
$24.3 billion
expenditures:
$27.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.5 billion (1993
est.)
Exports:
$13.5 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
machinery 24%, metals 17%, chemicals 12%, fuels and power 11%, food
10% (1992)
partners:
Germany 31.4%, Netherlands 6.0%, Italy 5.6%, Russia 5.5% (1992)
Imports:
$15.6 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
commodities:
fuels and power 17%, machinery 36%, chemicals 17%, food 8% (1992)
partners:
Germany 23.9%, Russia 8.5%, Italy 6.9%, UK 6.7% (1992)
External debt:
$47 billion (1993); note - Poland's Western government creditors
promised in 1991 to forgive 30% of Warsaw's $35 billion official debt
immediately and to forgive another 20% in 1994; foreign banks agreed
in early 1994 to forgive 45% of their $12 billion debt claim
Industrial production:
growth rate 7% (1993)
Electricity:
capacity:
31,530,000 kW
production:
137 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
3,570 kWh (1992)
Industries:
machine building, iron and steel, extractive industries, chemicals,
shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles
Agriculture:
accounts for 7% of GDP and a much larger share of labor force; 75% of
output from private farms, 25% from state farms; productivity remains
low by European standards; leading European producer of rye, rapeseed,
and potatoes; wide variety of other crops and livestock; major
exporter of pork products; normally self-sufficient in food
Illicit drugs:
illicit producers of opium for domestic consumption and amphetamines
for the international market; transshipment point for Asian and Latin
American illicit drugs to Western Europe
Economic aid:
donor:
bilateral aid to non-Communist less developed countries (1954-89),
$2.2 billion
recipient:
Western governments and institutions have pledged $8 billion in grants
and loans since 1989, but most of the money has not been disbursed
Currency:
1 zloty (Zl) = 100 groszy
Exchange rates:
zlotych (Zl) per US$1 - 21,080 (January 1994), 18,115 (1993), 13,626
(1992), 10,576 (1991), 9,500 (1990), 1,439.18 (1989)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
#CARD:Poland:Communications
Communications
Railroads:
26,250 km total; 23,857 km 1.435-meter gauge, 397 km 1.520-meter
gauge, 1,996 km narrow gauge; 8,987 km double track; 11,510 km
electrified; government owned (1991)
Highways:
total:
360,629 km (excluding farm, factory and forest roads)
paved:
220,000 km (220 km of which are limited access expressways)
unpaved:
140,629 km (1988)
Inland waterways:
3,997 km navigable rivers and canals (1991)
Pipelines:
crude oil 1,986 km; petroleum products 360 km; natural gas 4,600 km
(1992)
Ports:
Gdansk, Gdynia, Szczecin, Swinoujscie; principal inland ports are
Gliwice on Kanal Gliwicki, Wrocaw on the Oder, and Warsaw on the
Vistula
Merchant marine:
173 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,327,855 GRT/3,458,445 DWT,
bulk 89, cargo 57, chemical tanker 4, container 8, oil tanker 1,
passenger 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 5
note:
Poland owns 3 ships operating under Liberian registry
Airports:
total:
209
usable:
167
with permanent-surface runways:
70
with runway over 3,659 m:
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
47
with runways 1,060-2,439 m:
78
note:
a C-130 can land on a 1,060-m airstrip
Telecommunications:
severely underdeveloped and outmoded system; cable, open wire and
microwave; phone density is 10.5 phones per 100 residents (October
1990); 3.6 million telephone subscribers; exchanges are 86% automatic
(1991); broadcast stations - 27 AM, 27 FM, 40 (5 Soviet repeaters) TV;
9.6 million TVs; 1 satellite earth station using INTELSAT, EUTELSAT,
INMARSAT and Intersputnik
#CARD:Poland:Defense Forces
Defense Forces
Branches:
Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 10,046,993; fit for military service 7,856,680; reach
military age (19) annually 316,339 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
30.8 trillion zlotych, 1.8% of GNP (1993 est.); note - conversion of
defense expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate
could produce misleading results
POLAND.0