Belgium
Population
Belgium has a population of 10,5 mio. and 4.4 mio private households.
Since Belgium is a small country (surface of 30 500 km²), the population density is high : 322,6 inhabitants per km².
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.9%
15-64 years: 65.7%
65 years and over: 17.4%
Birth rate: 10.48 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 10.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Legal system:
Civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Official languages:
Dutch (57%) , French (43 %) and German (0.6%)
Regions:
Flanders (6.1 mio inhabitants) , Wallonia (3.4 mio inhabitants) and Brussels Capital Area (1 mio inhabitants).
Main cities:
Brussels, Gent, Antwerp, Liège, Charleroi
Economy - overview:
This modern private enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Roughly three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is nearly 100% of GDP. On the positive side, the government has succeeded in balancing its budget, and income distribution is relatively equal.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $316.2 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $30,600 (2004 est.)
Labor force: 4.75 million (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12% (first half, 2004)